All ‘Intermot 2010 Kawasaki made a lot of new models, with the aim of consolidating its product range. Outstanding among them is a proposal from the ancient taste, skillfully reworked to address the current market without fear. In a few remember Kawasaki W650 presented in 1999 by the House Akashi, the motion looks very retro, with an engine designed in the nineties. As often happens the first who crosses new roads, W650 was not a success, but a year later it was imitated by Triumph with the new edition of Bonneville. Kawasaki, then tries again, raising his W in a historical moment when it seems that the neo-retro are met favor with the public.
The new W800 incorporates the technical basis of its predecessor, but the look is inspired by the legendary W1, the first bike built by Kawasaki well 45 years ago. The operation nostalgia, however, does not want to mimic sports performance are difficult to combine with a technical layout vintage motorcycle, but the market as a replica of an early bikes, equipped with the technical sophistication of today. The packaging of the bike is well cared for, painted with tank on which they are applied decals that simulate the threads by hand, using immersion process and many parts Polished and brushed aluminum.
The Kawasaki W800 is built around a single-beam frame more than double cradle frame, exactly as before, with tilt steering column of 27 °. The front end has a conventional front forks 39 mm, circle spoked wheel 19-inch light alloy and Single 300 mm disc brake with floating caliper with two pistons.
At the rear there is a simple steel swingarm whose motion is governed by two dampers, preload adjustable side in five positions. The rear rim is 18 inches and carries a brake drum on the hub 160 mm, in vintage style. The equipment also provides for a two-element circular analogue instrumentation, with the clear bottoms sixties design, but also features a small LCD panel for the two odometer and clock.
The engine of the Kawasaki W800 comes, of course, the one designed in the late nineties for the W650. This is a Parallel Twin air-cooled with measures 77.0 x 83.0 mm features (so long stroke, although the bore is increased by 5 mm compared to the W650), which return a total capacity of 773 cm3. The peculiarity of this engine is that the distribution of a single overhead camshaft, four valves per cylinder, is controlled by a tree and two bevel gears, Exactly as they did in the sixties and seventies on the Ducati-designed Fabio Taglioni. The crankshaft is timed at 360 °, therefore it was necessary to mount a counter balancer to reduce the imbalances of inertia.
When the W650 was built, there was still the Euro 3 standards on emissions, and Kawasaki designed his engine to run well to carbs. Today, however, it would be difficult to put into production a motorcycle carburetors fed, so to have adopted a facility in Akashi electronic injection, With two 34 mm throttle bodies, with double valves and an injector to twelve holes each.
The exhaust system keeps bottle in the shape of the silencers, which incorporates, however, inside the honeycomb catalyst necessary to comply with the regulations.
