Kawasaki

The philosophy, as I read it

Kawasaki is a shipbuilder, an aerospace company, and a maker of trains that happens to build motorcycles, and it shows in the engineering culture: over-built engines, conservative chassis, and a fondness for outright power. The Z1, the ZX-10R, and the H2 are all statements about what a big engine can do. The Ninja 400 and 500 show the other side, a company that understands that most riders are learning.

History in a paragraph

Kawasaki Heavy Industries traces its roots to 1896 and entered motorcycles in the 1950s through Meguro. The 1969 H1 Mach III two-stroke triple was the fastest thing on the road, the 1972 Z1 out-Hondaed the CB750, and the GPZ900R of 1984 invented the modern sport bike. The supercharged H2 of 2015 remains the only production forced-induction motorcycle from a major manufacturer.