Kawasaki Z H2 Acceleration & Top Speed

The Kawasaki Z H2 0-60 mph in 2.91 seconds

The Kawasaki Z H2 is a naked version of Kawasaki’s extremely capable H2 motorcycle.

Currently, the Kawasaki Z H2is one of the most powerful ‘Super Naked’ motorcycles on the market. Below we have top speed and acceleration data through the gears, accompanied by Dyno Curve and Thrust Curve graphs.

Kawasaki Z H2 Dyno Curve

The Kawasaki Z H2 is powered by the same 998 cc supercharged engine found in the H2 SX and the H2.

It produces a claimed 200 horsepower at the crank. In its current guise, it delivers 178 horsepower at the rear wheel at 10,500 rpm and 92 ft-lb of torque at 9,000 rpm.

These kinds of numbers are totally bonkers for a naked motorcycle.

The engine is probably one of the silkiest big-bore units on the market. It drives exceptionally smoothly from tickover and throughout the rpm The power delivery is probably unrivalled in its linearity and feels almost Honda-like, with very few, if any, peaks or troughs.

The Honda comparison ends there, though. The more you ask of the engine, the more it builds in intensity, unlike any other motorcycle apart from Kawasaki’s ownH2 and H2 SX.

The Z H2 loves to be revved hard and sounds incredible as you thrash it through the gears.

Kawasaki Z H2 Thrust curve and in-gear acceleration

Thanks to its 998 cc displacement and supercharger, the Kawasaki Z H2 has one of the most responsive engines available. While some rivals may have a slight edge in acceleration in the lower gears, any advantage is difficult to exploit in practice.

There is simply too much thrust available from both the rivals and the Z H2 in the lower gears. Everywhere else, the Z H2 is hugely dominant.

For example, the Z H2 offers stronger acceleration in any gear, at any speed below 140 mph, than a Gen 2 Hayabusa.

Either way, on the Z H2 you will never be left wanting more acceleration.

It really doesn’t matter what gear you’re in – simply open the throttle and the Z H2 responds instantly, firing you down the road.

It has almost too much acceleration for the road, but that won’t stop many owners from tuning the Z H2 in search of even more power.

Kawasaki Z H2  Acceleration through the gears

The Z H2 delivers some impressive acceleration times, as you would expect from a bike producing close to 180 horsepower at the rear wheel.

The 0-60 mph time is limited by wheelies and could be significantly quicker if the Z H2 were lowered or strapped down.

Even so, the Z H2 manages it in just 2.91 seconds. The 0-100 km/h time doesn’t quite break the three-second barrier, recording 3.04 seconds.

Like many big, powerful bikes, 0-60 mph and 0-100 km/h times are rather pointless measurements. It is beyond those speeds that the Z H2 really paints a more accurate picture.

Taking second gear all the way to the rev limiter, 0-100 mph comes up in 5.32 seconds, while 0-200 km/h is dispatched in just 7.26 seconds.

The Z H2 could probably run into the 9-second bracket for the quarter mile if everything aligned perfectly, though it manages a solid 10.13 seconds with a terminal speed of 146 mph.

The Dragy 60-130 mph time is blistering – just 4.88 seconds.

If you have the nerve to hold on long enough and your neck can cope with the wind blast, the Kawasaki Z H2 will reach a genuine 176.8 mph top speed, though most riders would probably not want to go much beyond 150 mph.