Skip to content
FastestThings

Motorcycles

Kawasaki Ninja ZX-14R

Cycle World measured the 2012 ZX-14R at 185 mph, electronically limited, and timed 0–60 mph in 2.6 seconds.

Also known as ZX-14R, Ninja ZX-14R
Post on X (opens in a new tab)

0–60 mph

2.60s

Cycle World March 2012 road-test table for the 2012 ZX-14R: 0–60 mph in 2.6 seconds, from a standing start. The same table lists 0–30 mph in 1.2 seconds and a quarter mile of 9.47 seconds at 152.83 mph. This is not a 0–100 km/h time converted to 0–60.

VerifiedCycle World (opens source in a new tab)

This list

Why it's so fast

A motorcycle is fast because the air only has to get around a rider and a fairing, not a cabin. The engine still has to stay in its power band, and many of the big numbers are factory limiters.

  1. A small hole in the air

    Less frontal area means less drag for a given speed. The rider's tuck is part of the shape. A sitting-up test is a different motorcycle.

  2. Limiters are common

    A published top speed on a modern sport bike is often an electronic cap the makers agreed to, not the speed the engine would reach with the cap removed.

The capped one people mean is the Suzuki Hayabusa.

This is how the category works. A note written for this entry appears here once it is in the database.

Provenance

Every measurement

Claimed, measured and official figures side by side, each with its source. The ranked figure is marked.

  1. 298km/h185mph82.7m/s161knRanked figure

    Top speed. Cycle World, March 2012, road-test table for the 2012 ZX-14R: measured top speed 185 mph, electronically limited. The prose of the same test says 185.1 mph. That tenth is the same run, so 185 mph from the table is stored. The same table lists 0–60 mph in 2.6 seconds.

    Verified
    Cycle World (opens source in a new tab)
  2. 2.60sRanked figure

    0–60 mph. Cycle World March 2012 road-test table for the 2012 ZX-14R: 0–60 mph in 2.6 seconds, from a standing start. The same table lists 0–30 mph in 1.2 seconds and a quarter mile of 9.47 seconds at 152.83 mph. This is not a 0–100 km/h time converted to 0–60.

    Verified
    Cycle World (opens source in a new tab)

Reference

Specs

Model
2012 ZX-14R
Test
Cycle World, 185 mph and 2.6 s to 60
Limiter
Electronic, same test as the 185.1 mph prose

Spot a wrong number?

Every report is read by a person, and corrections are dated on the page.