In the world of street racing it's run what you brung and hope you got enough. Well...keep hoping, because if you find yourself lined-up against this black beast you better pack a lunch. So far he's pretty much been racing himself as his challengers are left sucking exhaust fumes.
Be it a modded liter bike, worked 14 or buffed-up 'Busa-this Kawasaki ZX-10R has eaten them all. Far more than a bolt-on special, this bike is purpose built.
Think we're kidding? How does 186 HP and a ground pounding 90 LB-FT of chest smacking torque at the tire sound? For the nastiest of competitors he's also got a hidden nitrous unit that bumps those figures to 227 HP and 115 LB-FT of torque. What's all that equate to? A gearing limited 200.2 mph as measured by GPS. Given more gearing, owner Shawn Malanaphy is sure it's got more in it. "With another tooth or two I'm pretty sure I'd touch 205, which isn't bad for a non-turbo bike in about a mile stretch."
To achieve such hellacious speeds the motor received a proper build-up. Starting with the rotating assembly Shawn gave the stock crank a Falicon supercrank treatment, polished the rods and added JE Pistons 2mm overbore, high-compression pistons that punched displacement to 1051cc. Up top he mastered the dark art of headwork with a custom epoxy small port and decked head to keep intake velocity high and bump compression to a healthy 14.5:1. A Kawasaki Racing intake cam opens the valves and the 230-pound springs help keep high-rpm performance in check.
Top speed datalogging with his Daytona Sensors on-board computer showed the poked and juiced Ninja was starving for air on the big end. So, Shawn removed the secondary throttle-bodies, epoxied and ported the primaries, added a BMC air filter, a Power Commander III, a Yoshimura exhaust system anda 2006 ZX-10R front-end with a larger, more efficient ram-air duct."When I went to the more streamlined fairing I could tuck better. I also saw the airbox pressure jump from about three-fourths of a psi to 1 psi of charge, which required more fueling but made big power."
To handle the big-bore Kawi, R&D Motorsports undercut the gears in the transmission and added an ultra-low first gear with billet shift-fork shafts and ceramic bearings to make wide open gear changes a cinch.
As any true racer will tell you, HP isn't the whole story. To finish the build Shawn put his already light ZX-10R on a serious diet. Every unnecessary nut, bolt, clamp and fastener was removed and even the rearsets were drilled. When the homegrown efforts were exhausted he added carbon bodywork in addition to Marchesini magnesium wheels and Braking Wave rotors with Titanium bolts. What's all this equate to? A scant 385 pounds!
If the bike doesn't speak for itself, the fact Shawn puts it to the test on Sundays at the crack of dawn makes it all the better. Word around town is he's the one to beat and is ready to run if challenged. "Not a whole lot has beat me since I finished the bike, but if people start catching up I might stroke it or even do a turbo. For now though, it seems to be enough."