2019 Versys 1000 test: (r) evolutions for the Kawasaki GT Maxitrail
The Versys 1000 undergoes a new stylistic evolution in 2019. Launched in 2012 and remodeled in 2015, the trail – very – road Kawasaki is also making its digital revolution, in particular with its new SE version with electronic suspensions. MNC tested it equipped with its Grand Tourer pack. Full test.
2019 Versys 1000 test page 1: Evolution and revolution
Evolve or disappear: motorcycle manufacturers are also faced with this harsh law. Kawasaki was renowned for its Ninja and ZZR, but faced with the worrying drop in sports and sport-GT sales in the 2000s, Akashi’s firm had no choice but to offer a new type of motorcycle. much more in vogue: road trails.
In 2007, Kawasaki thus released an ER-6 high on legs: the Versys 650 whose success easily exceeded that of the ER-6f and even allowed it to compete with the much appreciated Suzuki V-Strom 650. Five years later , the Greens launched this time a whole new kind of motorcycle never seen before (except in the Dakar with the Yamaha FZ750T,)…
- MNC special file : All news 2019
- MNC special file :
A full and angry 4-cylinder, suspensions – quite – high, a pair of 17-inch rims and road tires: very original, the recipe for the Versys 1000 turned out to be tasty enough to tempt customers … thus than another builder! This German has even gone even further, limiting its 4-cylinder sports car to 160 hp….
Mainly criticized for its too bland "dressage" – failed, even disgusting according to tastes – the Kawasaki Versys 1000 was revised in 2015 to please more. She had completely changed her look and had taken the opportunity to improve certain practical points while keeping her main ingredients.
Four years later, the small green men unveil a third version of their machine still cataloged in the "trails" section at Kawasaki, while it gravitates more and more around the road of the mark. Especially in the SE version that the Journal moto du Net is testing today !
For 2019, the engine – which Kawasaki rightly calls "responsive and versatile" – gets a few updates software software and hardware material: the throttle control is fully electronic and the exhaust has been redesigned (read our technical point on page 4).
The Japanese also tell us that the maintenance intervals of the 1043 cc 4-cylinder – derived from the first Z1000 – are extended to 12,000 km instead of 6000 previously, or once a year. The maximum values remain unchanged: 120 hp and 102 Nm (read the technical sheet on the last page).
To slow the beast by 253 kg (257 kg for the SE against 250 kg for the 2018 model), the rider can count on new 4-piston monobloc calipers with radial mounting. Fans of the green brand will have spotted that they descend directly from the Z1000, the latest (2014).
Hardware and software updates
The tubular aluminum frame is unchanged but the suspension settings are supposed to improve – again! – comfort on board. Even stronger: the top-of-the-range model of the 2019 Versys 1000 receives, as its suffix "SE" (Special Edition) seems to indicate in French, a pair of electronic suspensions! Like the Ninja ZX-10R SE in 2018 and the Ninja H2 SX SE + (are you following ?!) in 2019.
To simplify the life of its user, the Versys 1000 SE has three driving modes (Sport, Road, Rain) which simultaneously modify the setting of the piloted suspensions (Hard, Normal or Soft), that of the engine (Full or Low) and the KTRC traction control level (1, 2 or 3).
A fourth mode called Rider allows the rider to personalize his motorcycle by adjusting the various parameters one by one. The hydraulics of the suspensions are finely modifiable according to the planned route, the degree of sportiness of the pilot or the wishes of the passenger.
The assistance management also promises to be more refined and efficient thanks to the transplant of an inertial unit – the famous IMU which allows trackers to take themselves for Marc Marquez – at the heart of the Versys 1000 "quite simply" and SE. Traction control (KTRC) and ABS (KIBS) now take into account the lean angle and the level of the motorcycle.
The speed is also under control thanks to the regulator fitted as standard on the new Versys 1000. The (top) SE model benefits as a bonus from an "Up & Down" quickshifter from the competition (remember that Kawasaki is a quadruple Superbike world champion) and cornering lights inaugurated on the Ninja H2 SX SE.
If the Versys 1000 2019 "short" uses the dashboard of the previous model, the SE version is logically fitted with the TFT color screen of the Ninja H2 SX (SE!) In order to manage more easily and take full advantage of the suspensions electronic.
The "VERsatile SYStem" 1000 SE also opens a new digital page for Kawasaki since it incorporates a Bluetooth module allowing the user to connect his motorcycle to his smartphone (read our technical point on the penultimate page).
The endowment of the SE also includes hand guards – oddly absent on the "standard" trail, unlike the puny plastic engine spoiler – heated grips and a bubble both higher, wider and always adjustable. .. stopped !
Kawasaki took advantage of this in-depth 2019 update to redesign its "maxitrail maxiroutier": it appears more and more "maxisportif", mainly thanks to the dual LED optics and its skin which are modeled on those of the very last Ninja 400 and ZX -6R 636.
The design manager has skillfully added a touch of color to the rear buckle that dresses and rebalances the entire bike. At the front of the Versys 1000 SE, we also note the appearance of the curved lighting system discovered last year on the Ninja SX SE (without +!).
The manager of the "Versys 1000 2019" project, Hideuki Kato, tells us that he has worked on three axes: "comfort, utility and emotion". A day and a half of driving should allow us to tour Lanzarote and Fuerteventura in the Canaries … and motorbikes, above all! Ready? On the way on next page !
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