1986 Kawasaki GPZ1000RX

Kawasaki followed up its trend-setting GPz900R Ninja superbike of 1984 with the GPZ1000RX, also known as the ZX1000A. Introduced in the autumn of 1985, Kawasaki's new flagship sports bike boasted an engine stretched to a full one litre together with a new wrap-around steel perimeter frame complete with aluminium swinging arm and Unit-Trak rear suspension. The latter had been carried over in modified form from the GPz900R, as was the air-damped front fork and anti-dive brakes. Rubber mounted in the chassis rather than a stressed member as it had been in the '900', the heavily revised engine now produced 125bhp, an increase of 13 horsepower over the smaller GPz. Sixteen-inch wheels were fitted at both ends, the rear shod with a massive (for the time) 150/80 section tyre. Wrapped around the new frame was a larger, more smoothly contoured fairing with integrated indicators, bungee hooks and passenger grab rail, its superior aerodynamics, and those extra horses, enabling the GPZ1000RX comfortably to exceed its predecessor's top speed of around 150mph despite a slight gain in weight. But while the iconic GPz900R would live on in the Kawasaki range until 1997, the GPZ1000RX lasted only a couple of years before being superseded by the ZX10. Today it is one of the rarest of the big Kawasakis.

The fastest production bike of 1986, this first-generation A1 model was registered/used overseas (probably in the USA as the speedometer is in miles) before being registered in the UK on 2nd September 2003. Its second owner in the UK, our vendor acquired the machine on 25th April 2004 but due to changes in his circumstances has not used it since the last tax disc expired on 30th November 2006. Its mechanical condition is not known (the battery is flat) and thus the machine is sold as seen. An appreciating classic worthy of recommissioning and/or restoration, it comes with two keys (ignition and tank) and a selection of useful spares including two silencers, a fuel tank and a cockpit cowling. It should be noted that the V5C lists the engine number as 'JKAZXCA13GA005753', which is actually the frame number. Prospective purchasers must satisfy themselves that the actual frame and engine numbers match.