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►Out there in the semi-dark suburban night,
few motorcycle brands have as tough a reputation as Kawasaki. Just ask any gas
station attendant. Virtually anyone whose pulse quickens at the aroma of
high-octane gasoline associates the marque with pavement-shredding performance.
A glance at the semi-chopped LTD suggests that this motorcycle rejects the
legend rather than exploits it. Indeed, the launch of this bike in 1976
inspired far more comments about the customized look than the Z-1 engine beneath
the tank. But to the people attracted to LTDs, the custom look and limited
edition status aren't nearly as important as this bike's combination of Kawasaki
horsepower and—because it's a Kawasaki, not in spite of it—American aesthetics.
In its own way the LTD duplicates the perfectly American antigod nastiness that
burns inside every Harley-Davidson.
With the success of the Yamaha
Specials fresh in our minds, the LTD's styling seems harsh and uninspired. But
we forget that the Americanized look of the LTD represented a bold experiment in
1976. Only the Triumph Hurricane and Norton Hi-Riser had previously been as
daring. Both failed. Even the Fat Bob, the motorcycle that finally ended
Harley's guilt about its chopper image, didn't appear until 1977. From this
perspective, the LTD represents a major watershed in styling, especially when
you consider that Honda was still laboring with the cafe look in 1976.
The formula followed by the LTD
is still current. The trim 3.4-gallon tank cunningly reveals to the rider the
businesslike bulge of the engine beneath it. The requisite chrome detailing is
apparent in the chainguard, grab rail and instrumentation. The chromed fenders
are bobbed. The mufflers are short and nasty. The narrow handlebar is
auspiciously, if uncomfortably, bent. The Goodyear tires also indicate how far
Kawasaki is willing to go to capture the Harley look. The mag wheels represent
the first major use of such flash on a Japanese motorcycle. Because the
four-into-two pipes and two-tiered seat with tuck-and-roll upholstery, among
other items, were originally installed at Kawasaki's Lincoln, Nebraska plant,
the LTD was even sold with a Made-in-America label, yet another gesture
emphasizing the Americanization of the LTD.
The LTD's raw-boned styling is
matched by an equally coarse mechanical soul. In motorcycles like the Yamaha
Specials, the machinery is not part of the riding equation. But gas station
attendants will tell you that with any Kawasaki, as with any Harley, the way the
motorcycle feels is terribly important. And like the Harley, the LTD rejects
conventional notions of comfort and efficiency for a large dose of rumbling,
vibrating, shrieking "feel."
As the nighttime toughs know,
the core of any Kawasaki is its powertrain. And every nanosecond of the KZ1000
engine's life is marked by clicking, tapping and thrashing as the engine churns
out power. The LTD cranks out only seven less horsepower than the MkII, but
responsive 2mm-smaller carburetors and shorter gearing indicate that this
motorcycle is designed just for maximum performance at the stoplights. For 1979,
the LTD engine has received an automatic cam chain adjuster, Air Suction
emissions control and a carburetor accelerator pump.
In practice, the LTD engine
exhibits all the virtues of the street-wise enthusiast's ideal Kawasaki engine.
The motor trembles less at low rpm than previous big Kwackers, but it still
grows surly as the tach needle swings across the dial. And no matter what the
rpm, there's power to spare. Each shift slides home with a positive clunk. And
for pure traditionalists, the LTD offers the most drivetrain lash of all the
Kawasaki big bikes—always the worst thing about the big Kawasaki engines—as well
as the high-pitched whine of a jet engine—always the best thing about the big
Kawasaki mills.
The uncommitted complain that
the LTD delivers a ride just as churlish as its styling. In reality, the LTD
runs in a straight line with confidence and competence. While the fork can't be
termed stiction-free, the jolts won't give you bursitis in your shoulders
either. Around slow corners the bike feels tentative and tippy, and the narrow,
oddly-shaped handlebars amplify the LTD's clumsy low-speed steering. Even so,
the LTD rides better than any Z-1 you remember, due in no small part to the
continuing substitution of Mulholland shocks for Kawasaki's brand of Kayabas.
For all this dispassionate
analysis of the LTD's character traits, however, Kawasaki enthusiasts seem to
care very little about accepted standards of bike behavior. Tough-guy bikers
don't want their motorcycles to screen out elemental sensations. Complaints
about the LTD's awkward relationship of narrow bars, pegs that force your legs
forward and a seat that throws your torso aft invite uncomprehending stares.
Suggestions about the apparently disproportionate size of the engine compared to
the tank are greeted with reminders that the engine is the most important part
of any motorcycle's styling. Venture that the LTD doesn't ride with the aplomb
of a GS1000 and the tough guys will accuse you of being an uncommitted
pencil-necked pansy. Complain about vibration and they'll tell you to ride
around in a Ford Granada instead.►
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Bike Tests 
