The torque numbers are surprising.
Not to me they aren't. It is further support to what I have been saying for years now.
The bigger cams in the Zx just move everything higher up...
What they gain higher up is equal to what they lose at the bottom.
Exactly. Thanks for sharing, Ivan. The differences will actually be MORE exaggerated when they are stock exhaust (the C14 will have even less peak HP and more lower torque). The stock C14 exhaust system is *NOT* restrictive for its purpose (but it can be one's goal is is to try and change that purpose by raising top HP at the expense of lower RPM power and efficiency).
The C14 is designed for higher power at lower RPM, smoother, and more efficient, like a touring bike should be.
The ZX14 is designed for higher power at higher RPM, like a super-sport bike should be.
Neither is "detuned", they are both explicitly, purposeful set for their individual roles and goals. Kawasaki is not stupid. It would have been far easier and *less* expensive for them to just use the identical ZX14 cams (with lack of VVT), intake, exhaust system, and TB's in both models. They chose a far more difficult and expensive path to create two bikes that excel at different tasks. As such, they had to expend far more R&D, source and handle far more different parts, produce much more documentation, etc.
Side comment: There is nothing wrong with wanting a C14 that behaves like a ZX14. There is nothing wrong with trying to change it to be that way (and you can come close, if you want). Some people might be perfectly willing to sacrifice the C14's nice power profile for a different power profile, while keeping some of the nice non-engine things that the C14 has and the ZX14 lacks. But there is something very wrong with criticizing the C14 because it doesn't behave like a ZX14.
