Retro Rocket: Kawisaki's GPz550

Image Gallery Introduced in 1981, the GPz550 could outperform most 650s in its day. The bikini fairing offered little protection but added to the bike's European flavor.

Kawasaki GPz550

First year: 1981
Weight: 211 kg
Frame: Double down tube
Fuel capacity: 15ltr Top speed: 119mph
Engine type: 4-stroke, in-line four-four-cylinder, twin overhead cams
Bore and stroke: 58x52.4 mmDisplacement: 653cc
Compression ratio: 10.0:1
Horsepower: 57@9500rpm
Transmission: 6-speed
Electrical: 12V battery, transistorzed ignition
Carburetion: Four 22mm TKs

For Brian Goodwin, it was the motorcycle equivalent of the woman who left Roy Orbison growling and saying, "Mercy."

Goodwin was 14 years old when he swung a leg over a Kawasaki GPz550 for the first time in 1984. A Firecracker Red sport machine in a sea of black and maroon factory custom cruisers, the bike was designed to make testosterone flow and checkbooks fly open. Goodwin would never forget it.

“The first thing that caught my eye was the red color. Then I sat on one and it fit me, so that really put the thought in my head that I wanted to have one someday. I just loved the look of it: It was so ahead of its time.’’

From its front disc brakes to the tips of its gloss-black mufflers, the GPz550 was a pacesetter in style and function during the early Eighties. The motorcycle press called it a wrist rocket or a pocket rocket; later, it would be recognized as the godfather of the crotch rocket.

Introduced in 1981, the GPz was an upgrade of the KZ550 street bike, with a hot-rodded version of the old machine’s four-cylinder engine, an air-charged fork, adjustable shocks and a bikini fairing.

The new engine generated a claimed 57bhp at 9,500rpm, 4bhp more than the KZ’s power plant, and propelled the 469lb machine to a quarter-mile time of 12.65 seconds — a class record — in a test by Cycle World.

“750s Beware! Here Comes the GPz550,’’ blared the cover of Motorcyclist in February 1981.

Similar praise flowed like Cutty Sark at a Shriner convention. Reviewers found that the bike worked well on twisty roads and on longer hauls, thanks to comfortable ergonomics, 51mpg highway fuel consumption, a 3.8gal tank and a reasonably wide and supportive seat.

The GPz was hailed as a bike that could be used as a commuter during the week and raced on weekends, an all-around thrill ride that would demolish other bikes in its class and even leave most 650s in its mirrors. MC

Excerpted from the November/December 2005 issue of Motorcycle Classics. Subscribe today to read the full article and more!