The Single Most Important Reason the H2 is, er, IMPORTANT...

Bazza said:

Oh sure its nice to have a handful of $25K transactions in the bank, but how many Ninjettes do you think will move as a consequence? >

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SilverbirdH2 said:

I never read anywhere it was a one year deal.It was always stated 'first come,first served'...'limited production'.I think I read all of Rickey's interviews as well...never read him say '1 year production'.

IF it takes a year to fill all the orders..then 'technically' that would be a 1 yr run...but that's not the same as officially saying '1 year run'..cause nobody KNOWS how many were sold.

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"They lied to you again."
"They had no right to lie to me!" Colonel Scheisskopf protested, his eyes wetting with indignation.

"Of course they had a right," General Peckem snapped with cold
and calculated severity, resolving right then and there to test the mettle
of his new colonel under fire.

"Don't be such an ass, Scheisskopf. People have a right to do anything that's not forbidden by law, and there's no law against lying to you. Now, don't ever waste my time with such sentimental platitudes again. Do you hear?"

"Yes, sir," murmured Colonel Scheisskopf.

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H2R said:

If they sold 2000 H2's it's neither extremely limited nor exclusive - it's 1/3 of their sportbike sales for the year. They also did not guarantee anyone a bike meaning at a certain number production is stopped and not everyone gets one.

My problem isn't with it's value - I don't give a rats a s s about resale - it was the coercion. I don't want another first year bike. When the 12R came out it was a mess - the clutch basket needed drilled because they didn't oil properly, the clutch springs were too weak causing slippage, the factory recommended oil level was too high causing the crank to slap in it and kill horsepower, the coolant reservoir was too small, some of the fuel tanks were prone to cracking and leaking and the f'ing valve stems would pull into the wheel at high speed and cause air loss. All of these things were addressed in 01, but for a good six months (8,000 miles) I was doing R&D for kawasaki and dancing with the reaper.

The first year TL1000 was the same way. It killed 8 guys via tank slapper before Suzuki had to make a damper standard. Same with the 04 10R. That thing was a flighty fistfight that was also a tank slap factory. They don't make a 10R without a damper now for a reason.

I love my 12R and I still have it, the 04 10R was God, but never again. I've done my time as a guinea pig and it's just too goddamned dangerous to volunteer for unnecessarily.

I'd wait for 16 if that were an option available to me. Per Kawasaki, it is not.

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SilverbirdH2 said:

"I don't want another first year bike"...well...this is what it is...a first year bike...minus the 'next year production run'.EVERYONE who bought this machine knows...it's what it is.Technically,if something goes south...they'll fix it.We all know something COULD go wrong...whether minor or major.But we believe in Kawasaki enough to make the leap.It really isn't any different than any other bike in terms of a 'first year run'.It may or may not have issues.I don't think it will actually.All the internals and all the electronics have been fully tested....it's an 'expensive' bike...but not so far above anything else really...the Ducs,Yammies,Hondas.BMW's.When it hits the owners and the aftermarket ramps up with it...that 25K is gonna seem real okay.

You figure...that Ducati...it's what?20+ something.Try adding a factory SC on it...now what's it cost.They don't HAVE a factory SC for it...nor do any of the others.Going aftermarket would require a heck of a lot more money...without the confidence of having ANYONE fix it or work out the bugs beforehand.Kawasaki already has done this.Another reason I bought this bike.Probably one of the MAIN reasons I jumped on.

Some people think those high end bikes are virtually equal to this bike...the performance of THIS bike is gonna blow a lot of people away once they feel how it rides and runs.Can it be ridden on a track?Yes and no.Depending.Trackers will find a way...can it be exploited on the street?Heck yeah...where it'll see it's most duty.

I think I could say with some assurance that most guys that bought this bike did it because of their trust in Kawasaki...and the awesomeness of this bike as a street performer.The ride.The fun.When it hits the owners..the REAL facts will come in.I can't wait to hear about other guys' reviews with their new Killer Kwaks

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edinlr said:

I hope I didn't say anything with my comments above. I guess I did not really take the one year thing as a major selling point, I just wanted the bike. As for reliability, who is going to wring out a 200-300 hp bike? Ricky might tear up a couple, but who else will? I remember running my Honda 90 flat out for hours on end, now that was torture on a motor. I hope to run my H2 at Bonneville, but that is only about 90 seconds flat-out and I feel the motor can take that just fine. We seem to forget Kawasaki has been building supercharged motors in the boats for a while now, I'm trusting they have it figured out. A supercharged 14, now that is a wild thought!

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