43 miles after I left the dealer with it, it had 2 when I bought it, I must say I am frustrated with the bike. Keeping the rpms low like the manufacturer suggests is very difficult on a machine that so easily skyrockets the revolutions. At 4000 RPM in 6th gear I can cruise right along with traffic on the freeway at 70 mph. Long jaunts on the freeway are out of the question though due to having to fluctaute the rpms.
I would like to thank all the members of this board for posting their knowledge and opinions of this bike which allowed me to make a very informed decision.
The bike:
Very comfortable. I do not think I will do any Iron Butt runs with it but never had that desire anyways. The shiftiing is, as many people put it on here "silky smooth." After a few miles the word "silky" is not a hyperbole in this case. Very solid ride but I do not feel as though I am missing out on the feedback from the road. The suspension of course needs some fine tuning to my weight and riding style of course.
As far as power goes, I have no idea what I am in for as of yet. The pull I feel even up to 4K rpm leads me to believe what most people have posted on here.

Another source I went to to research this bike was a Busa forum. Of course I expected the lambasting of the competitors bike and how much better the Suzuki was for this reason or that. To my surprise, their forum was full of well written messages complimenting the Kawasaki and many proclaiming they may switch over. The only complaints were of the asthetics which is strictly a matter of opinion (my opinion was the Kawasaki being the better looking bike.)

In a few hundred miles I will give another review. I am sure there are others out there just like me who read all of this forum but have not posted due to not having much to contribute yet.

Oh, what color did I get, you ask...
I got the black one. When I first saw them I did not like the green one. The more I researched it the more it grew on me. I think it just draws too much attention to itself and it is not my style.
The black one is going to be a challenge to photograph, but I have time...

I like mine after 6700 miles. The more I ride it, the more I like it.

I got the black one too - Stealth Bomber and Darth Vader it's been called so far by my friends.

At first I thought I'd never get used to the riding position, got the Gen Mar risers, still not enough, but now I am actually getting used to the riding position. It might be easy on the sub-40 yr olds, but us older farts need to get some of our weight off our wrists. The LSL conversion is nice, and the perfect solution if you have to sit up straight. I plan on getting that at some point, maybe next year.

As for revs, not sure if you'll be saying this after break-in. I think you might not need to be so concerned with varying the engine speed - just ride it and make sure you don't drone for any extended period. Besides, not many places anymore that traffic doesn't force you to vary speed anyway.

All the real crazy fun comes after 6K, so you're in for a real treat.

* Last updated by: ZRXDarryl on 9/13/2012 @ 10:11 AM *

I am looking forward to it.
I am lucky enough to be only a few miles away from some excellent windy mountain roads that offer very little resistance in the way of traffic. I have been on a few roads on Sundays and only seen a car or two for many miles.
The comfort I find in it must be compared to what I am coming off of, a 2002 R1.

That reminds me, I am very impressed with the low end torque. My R1 needed to be brought up to about 3k rpm to have a "normal" traffic speed launch. This will take off from a light at regular traffic speed at about 1200rpm...

Forget the "vary RPM's" crap, drive it like you stole it. I've done this with every vehicle I've ever bought(and I've bought a lot) and never had an issue. The fact of the matter is most engines are broken in during testing and current manufacturing processes are so much better it renders a lot of the "old ways" obsolete. I had 2 hours on my bike before I had already done a top speed run, my 5.0 had 400 miles on it and it was tuned and running bottom 12's at the track, at the time it ran the fastest stock tire/tune ET in the country (that we could verify anyway). All those tests they do in the promo's and videos are all new bikes rolled out of the truck and started honkin' on it.

* Last updated by: Phantomx2k on 9/13/2012 @ 11:25 AM *

I do not discount your expirience. However, I have chosen to take the manufacturer's suggestion for the break in period. I am banking on them wanting my bike to be reliable and last for a very long time so I have good things to say about it. For the time being, I will stick to it as long as I can stand it. If it is better for the bike and gets me better performance and better mileage, good for me. If it is a waste of my time, I will never know so it does not matter.
Crossing my fingers and taking it easy for a while.

I broke my 09 like the manual said.Partly because I had to break myself in lol.I wasn't ready for the topend hit.It's a handful over 7 grand.And thats the old one.Course mine is modified.But a full exhaust,tuned and 16/43 sprockets gets it done.I like the black one too,think thats the one I'll get.With a full exhaust,tuned and PCV.My buddy has a blue one and his eats tires.
Craig

Glad you were able to work out a deal and get the bike that you wanted. Have you sold your M109R yet, and do you think you will regret it? I think the regret thing will all depend on the type of riding that you do. I do a lot of cruising, therefore I decided to keep the nine. I will be getting a 14R one day. Just need to figure a way to sneek it past the wife.

I am selling the M109R. I am certain I will regret it. However all the lotto tickets I have purchased have been defective and I have not won my fortune so alas the M109R must go. I may be willing to trade it for something nice for my wife to drive though. She is a very patient woman giving me no grief about my riding habit.
As for the kind of riding I like to do, that is where almost a year of contemplation regarding this bike will hopefully pay off. I thouroughly enjoyed the twisties and having my own personal roller coater when I was riding my R1. However, I am 6'2" and 270# so I always felt like I was on a clown bike. This fits so much better. As far as the lack of handling, I think the ability of this bike will be far beyond my own limits and riding ability so I do not think it will be lacking for me. Perhaps I would have pushed the limits if I were still in my 20s when we were all indestructible.
The low end torque of the M109R is where the fun lay in that bike. I could take almost all sport bikes off the line up to about 20-30 miles an hour. 600s I could stay ahead of til about 40 mph. I know the reason I was quicker was the torque and the fast they were struggling to keep the front end on the ground. The M109R is a bike that, with out exaggeration, anyone who has one will confirm, you can not go anywhere with out people coming to talk about your bike and pay it compliments.

BTW. I went to lunch earlier, now I am at 60 miles...

* Last updated by: SunOfAbyss on 9/13/2012 @ 4:01 PM *

Congratulations on your new purchase. I was walking through my garage this afternoon and I just had to turn and take a glance at the 14R.... I've owned it for 7 months and it still calls to me.

I hope you enjoy yours as much as I have enjoyed mine. It's a purchase I don't regret one single bit!

"Forget the "vary RPM's" crap, drive it like you stole it."

I agree. After alot of research, this was my plan. 2000 miles into it, no regrets. Runs perfect, burns no oil. I think it may be the lawyers driving this fight rather than the engineers.

I just turned 1,000 miles on my new black ZX14R and can say it's been a pain sticking to the book and keeping it at or below 6,000RPMs for the past 500 miles. But now it's play time and I can hardly wait. The mountain roads that surround the Tahoe Basin beckon me. Anyway, I'm coming off a 2009 Hayabusa, but with all the hype for this new missile, I just had to have one. I ride with a bunch of wild old guys that go hell bent for leather, so last weekend I told them not to feel bad about leaving me behind in the mountains since I was cooling it with the RPMs at the time anyway. Well, I found that all I needed was 4th and 5th gear to stay with them all the way! This thing tracks like it's on rails. The sitting position is slightly more up right than the busa and after a full day of spirited riding I felt a lot less fatigued than I used to. I changed my oil and filter at 550 miles and grinned all through it. For you that have had or have a busa, you know why...................no plastic removal required to get at the oil filter, awesome! And after decades of riding, I actually now have a bike that I can see a clear image through the mirrors! Shifting is silky smooth, other than the characteristic first gear "clunk" from a full stop going from neutral to 1st gear. I always wear a backpack with water and emergency kit, etc, so the lack of storage is not a problem. She is a bit more thirsty than the busa was, but such a small price to pay for the privilege of throwing a leg over the fastest production vehicle on the planet. I luv my ZX14R!!

As to break-in, personally, I think I'll listen to the folks who built the bike.

I did just that with my '99 ZRX1100 - it now has 91K miles, 15 track days, countless floggings, 5 crashes (all my fault) - only thing really wrong is 4th gear dog prob worn (again, me) and needs replacement - still runs as strong as ever. I plan to get at least as many miles out of the 14.

Just wondering, how many miles do you guys who flogged right away get out of those bikes?

* Last updated by: ZRXDarryl on 9/14/2012 @ 5:37 AM *

Only time will tell.

There is no way to prove who is correct in the break in situation. Some bikes will have problems and some won't. Did the process for the break in cause or prevent the problems? No way to ever know. I hope all of you who do not follow the manufacturers suggestion can return to this thread and say "See? 100k miles later and nary a drop of oil or breakdown."
However, following the manufacturers instructions should do no harm to the bike just delays the fun of riding it for us.

BTW 75 miles...
hope to get another 150+ this saturday...

* Last updated by: SunOfAbyss on 9/14/2012 @ 9:43 AM *

"However, following the manufacturers instructions should do no harm to the bike just delays the fun of riding it for us."

Perhaps true, perhaps not. Here's the counter-argument. I was also influenced by a good friend who is conservative, in his 60s, a motorcyclist, very smart and a mechanical engineer. He agrees with this article. Personally, I have no freakin idea who is right. I've never done this with my other new bikes. I made a bet and will just have to wait and see. So far, so good.

Very compelling arguments. As soon as it cools down, I think the oil is gonna be replaced and some harder riding...

Good review, Abyss. I also still see the power as an untapped resource as of yet, as I am also a *by the book* breakin kinda owner, and I have a mere 100 miles on my bike.

But as you said, the comfort of the ride, smoothness of hte shifting, easy of handling (especially for being such a big beast)..............I could not ask for more from a motorcycle.

I am also having to restrain myself to keep it under the RPM limits, but I figure as much $$$$ as I gave for it, a little self control and *patience* now can certainly not hurt, and I believe, will only help the bike.

Good review, and here's looking forward to your next insight.

* Last updated by: ZX14MAN64 on 9/15/2012 @ 8:01 PM *

Just hit 900 today on mine, been below 6k for the most part, never hold it above that for very long, just short bursts. Trying to follow the manual as much as possible too.

Took the mountain twisties from Cloudcroft to Riudoso and back, coming back stayed between 80-100mph (except to slow down for the cows). Followed an old Harley guy (Mr Brez) according to his tag, led me the whole way back. Never seen a Harley whip through curves like that, he scraped his exhaust quite a few times. I think Kawasaki's solution to downshifting was the 14R. Love this bike, need some more practice on the curves though. Thankfully it's only a 15 min ride to the mountains, haha.