touring mods:
am 6'6" and as such like having lowered foot pegs
a slightly taller windscreen too, got the Puig
... and a radiator protection grille, for rough roads

Hey is the seating position on a ZX-14R really that bad so you'll need a riser ? I've ridden one for an hour so I couldn't tell.

I'm 6'2" and I wanted a more relaxed riding position. Most of my riding is well under an hour (commuting for work) in which case the stock ergonomics were great for me, but after riding around on an Kawasaki EX-650 for several hours I realized how much more comfortable a more upright sitting position is. So my suggestion is to buy the bike and ride it, then make changes if you think that's what you want to do.

Oh and btw, does fuel tuning needed for this bike ? I read it was running lean for 2016-onwards due to Euro 4 regulations

Probably not a "need" but several forum members have reported cooler engine temperatures after enriching the fuel mixture

However not many petrol station sell the RON 98 so I was curious if its okay to fill it up with RON 92 IF there's no RON 98 anywhere to be seen

So, there's a few options for you, as I mentioned earlier you PROBABLY are okay with running the lower octane fuel, if you decide to modify the fuel tables (either by an ECU flash or an aftermarket piggy-back ECU) to enrich the fuel mixture its even more likely you'll be fine.

The issue with running lower octane then recommended is pre-detonation or "pinging" where while the piston is compressing the air/fuel in the cylinder the gases get too hot and ignite without the assistance of the spark plug causing the force of the combustion to push down against the piston that is pushing up. Light/minor pinging used to be the norm in vehicles (my first couple of cars specifically said that in their user manuals) but continued pinging will result in holes in the pistons, bent rods, damaged bearings, etc REALLY expensive stuff.

If you concern is that you would normally fill up with RON 98 but on occasion can't find a station that carries it, you'll be fine since likely you would be filling up with some fuel left in the tank resulting in a mixture somewhere between 92-98.

If you are planning on filling up primarily with RON 92, there are fuel additives called "octane boosters" that reduce the combustibility of the fuel, so you could carry a bottle of that additive around in case you run into riding conditions where you notice pinging. Then add the additive and probably switch to better suited fuel on your next tank of gas.

lool.92 is pretty good I think.Wish we had that here....remember..the manual says 'do not add fuel additives in your new kawasaki motorcycle'...jus sayin.I used techron injector cleaner a couple of times...

I've used the 90 octane ethanol-free I can get here locally many times with no ill effects I know of. I'm at about 10,500 miles.

And I recently used 87 octane 10% ethanol, cuz I had to. Didn't notice any difference with that either.

Caveat: I don't race, just street ride with an occasional spirited burst

Ah alright then, I guess the big ZX is back on the list !

One last question though, do you think the ZX-14R will make it through Euro 5 regulation ? This is a more technical question because the ZX-14R is the last big bore Sportbike, they already killed the Suzuki Hayabusa so..

lool.92 is pretty good I think.Wish we had that here....remember..the manual says 'do not add fuel additives in your new kawasaki motorcycle'...jus sayin

It sounds better than it is, that's why I was asking about the measuring technique they use (RON/MON/AKI), for example in the wikipedia link I had earlier, the Petro-Canada "Ultra 94" fuel has a RON rating of 101.5, MON of 88 and AKI of 94. So a RON 92 in this case and assuming the differences between RON & MON are the same with this fuel (probably not) might be the same fuel as 85 octane fuel in the US & Canada.

And yeah I agree, I'd only use the fuel additives as a last resort, personally mostly because they are expensive as hell compared to just buying higher rated fuel. Also, my GUESS is that Kawasaki puts that in their manual as a legal disclaimer more than anything.

....remember..the manual says 'do not add fuel additives in your new kawasaki motorcycle'...jus sayin

I have been using Seafoam in the 14 for going on 12 years and no ill effects. I do a full dose for winter storage and put a little in every now and then during the riding season.

Hey Rook, 12 Ywars ? That's amazing!

So the bike is running well ? Did the tensioner or can chain needed replacement ?

Jus curious, I want to keep this bike for at least 10 years so I'd better choose wisely

Back on topic; If you start seeing unsold leftovers in dealerships, it may signal the beginning of the end. As long as they sell all they make, they'll keep pumping them out. The tooling was paid for long ago.

You do havw a point, but what worries me (should I even?) Is that Kawasaki Indonesia is giving a 30% discount on ZX-14R

Does that count?

Hey Rook, 12 Ywars ? That's amazing!
So the bike is running well ? Did the tensioner or can chain needed replacement ?
Jus curious, I want to keep this bike for at least 10 years so I'd better choose wisely

I will PM you kresna. Yep still running well. Almost 50k miles.

You must not be enabled for PMs. I don't see you in the register. I started a thread.

http://zx14ninjaforum.com/messages.cfm?threadid=1986FBCC-9CAF-917F-DC570D8E5ADF8D7C

* Last updated by: Rook on 9/15/2019 @ 10:32 AM *

It seems that the Kawasaki dealership here where I live doesn't have the ZX-14R on the catalogue, I was visiting them because my bike needed a new brake pads

You do havw a point, but what worries me (should I even?) Is that Kawasaki Indonesia is giving a 30% discount on ZX-14R

I bought my 08 and the very end of 2008, the dealership had picked up a ton of them and had trouble selling enough before the 2009s started coming in. I don't know what the MSRP was anymore but I'm quite certain I got at LEAST 30% off and that was over 11 years ago.

Have you looked into insurance for this bike? I found there were only a handful of companies here that would insure the zx14. That being said several of the insurance companies classified the ZX250 Ninja, which is often considered a beginners bike in this area, just as high risk as the ZX14...

According to what I've been reading, like the Hayabusa, the ZX-14 will fall victim to ever-tightening emission standards. The US has (mostly) adopted EU emissions standards so vehicles made here can be exported.

H2RR, H2, H2SX and now the..... super charged Z1000 I guess when it's time for me
to replace the 14 I'll be forced to go super charged. Oh darn.

* Last updated by: piken on 10/12/2019 @ 10:02 AM *

I hope it'll get the Supercharged treatment or something

No I'm not talk about th H2 SX, I want a proper 1400cc supercharged engine on a sport touring model