A daily-ridden, eight- second streetbike that doesn`t break the bank.

l
a
g
e
L
t
e
e
r
t
S
Slayer
N
A daily-ridden, eightsecond streetbike
that doesn’t break
the bank.
Words: Justin Fivella
Pics: Jeff Cabacungan
Model: Aria Price
ot long ago, if your streetbike covered the quarter
mile in the 12-second range
you were top dog. And if
ed into
your race-only dragbike dipp
ey
the 10s, you were taking mon
times
But
ers.
suck
er
slow
from the
on and
change, technology marches
ker.
quic
lot
a
now
are
streetbikes
was
Although the Kawasaki ZX-9R
k into
brea
to
e
rtbik
spo
k
the first stoc
realthe 9s, it was the Hayabusa that
,
solid
a
of
on
noti
the
e
ly drove hom
l ride.
high nine-second street-lega
Team Green has shattered the
ard
gentleman’s agreement of upw
by
bar
e
anc
orm
perf
the
nudges on
all-new
pulling out the stops with an
i
monster, the almighty Kawasak
ker
ZX-14R. The 14R received a stro
ated
upd
d,
hea
ed
crank, a port
tracelectronics and a sophisticated
lt? A
tion control system. The resu
and
new undisputed King of Speed
ugh
thro
put
to
had
something SSB
see
the wringer. So we set out to
aining
just how fast it goes while rem
dly.
street-legal and daily-rider frien
at
orm
perf
to
ded
nee
i
The big Kaw
twothe track, cruise to work, tour
up and still make it through the
run in
corners. Oh yeah, it needed to
l.
the 8s as wel
COVER
STORY
SUPER STREETBIKE
MAGAZINE
42 / SSB
January 2013
superstreetbike.com / 43
cover story
Stage 2: Planting
The Power
The Plan
Since breaking into the engine with
forced induction and piston upgrades
wasn’t part of our daily-rider program, a
well-thought-out process was required.
No wasted money and grandiose
parts that look cool but don’t perform.
Everything was added for a reason
and whenever possible the cheapest
alternative was used. We weren’t going
for any Pro Street records, but a solid
eight-second street-legal bike wasn’t
going to be easy.
The next order of business: extend
the wheelbase. A full-zoot aftermarket
extended ’arm would have been ideal,
but that didn’t fit into the budget after
deciding aftermarket wheels were
necessary. Instead, a set of Roaring
Toyz swingarm extenders stretched the
wheelbase nearly six inches more than
stock to 64 inches. The RTZ kit came
with the aforementioned extenders, a
longer brake line and everything needed
to get your stretch on.
A longer RK GB530GXW X-ring chain
put the power to the ground by way of
a Supersprox +2 rear sprocket and a
matching front OEM-sized countershaft
sprocket. The lower gearing helped
make up for the added heft of the longer chain.
A Brock’s Performance Clutch Mod
Kit Deluxe was also thrown under the
cases since the stock units like to complain under heavy abuse. The kit comes
with heavier springs, spacers and a
shim that kills the stock three-pronged
spacer and eliminates the slipper clutch.
The unit creates static pressure on
the clutch that stiffens engagement
and improves feel under high-RPM
launches.
When it was time to test the new
mods, legal matters temporarily closed
the local Fontana dragway. So a trip to
the infamous Irwindale eighth-mile drag
strip was our only option. The longer
stance, shorter gearing and stronger
clutch netted a best of 5.88 @ 122
MPH—roughly 9.09 when put through
the typical eighth- to quarter-mile conversion table. The extended wheelbase
stopped the bike from lifting the front
tire, but now wheel-spin was part of the
equation. Next stop: less weight, more
power and grip.
Stage 1: Get Low On A
Budget
After establishing stout baseline
numbers of 183.31 HP @ 109.6 LB-FT
on the notoriously conservative dyno
at Herrera Racing, we hit Auto Club
Dragway in Fontana for some baseline
drag-strip times.
On a damp, cool morning, the boxstock Kawi ran a string of 9.80s with a
one-off Hail Mary time of 9.59 @ 150
MPH. In stock form it was a handful
through the first three gears as anything nearing full throttle sent the front
tire flying. Auggie and Gaige Herrera
from Herrera Racing were at the helm,
and they discovered that bogging off
the line and flirting with full throttle
through the first eighth mile was the
quickest method to a better ET. The
high 9.50 ET was hardly repeatable, as
Gaige could barely keep the ZX-14R
planted and pointed straight.
The stock bike had more power than
its height could harness, so the first
order of business was lowering the
ride height. It was an easy and inexpensive fix thanks to Roaring Toyz
lowering links and Brock’s Performance
lowering straps. To ensure the motor
was protected from the rigors of racing,
Amsoil synthetic 10W-40 oil was added
along with a K&N oil filter.
With the stance slammed, another trip
to Fontana netted a more consistent
string of 9.40s with a best of 9.30 @
151 MPH. But low stance or not, it still
wheelied in first and second gear. The
factory stroker motor makes so much
midrange that the decked ride height
didn’t matter, WOT was impossible until
half-track. It was a great start, but the
14 was still a long way from the 8s.
Wrapped around the wrist, a kill tether saves the
bike from ghost riding into the crowd if the rider
falls off.
44 / SSB
January 2013
A generic air bottle was sourced to power the air
shifter. Button shifting saves valuable time when
hunting the fastest possible ETs.
A low profile oil pan saves ground clearance over
the stock unit. Every slammed drag bike needs
one of these or risk cracking the OE pan after
dropping a hard wheelie.
superstreetbike.com / 45
cover story
Stage 3: Uncorked
drag seat that not only allowed
the rider to sit much lower for
another center-of-gravity mod
but also saved a few pounds
over the heavy stock seat.
Total weight savings racked in
at an impressive 85.86 pounds
less than the stock 584-pound
porker, which means we were
finally sub 500 pounds.
Another racer trick was to cut
down on shift times. For those
really wanting to bang gears
fast, an air shifter is where it’s
at. Unlike other alternatives,
an air shifter can be hooked to
a bar-mounted button like the
horn, and each gear is grabbed
with a simple tap of the finger.
We opted for a Schnitz Racing
solenoid and Air Ram kit controlled by an MSD Powersports
SB6 ignition box. The MSD box
controls everything from throttle and gear related timing maps
to the air shifter, a two-step
and it even allows for precise
timing tweaks. It was crucial to a
Now that our 14R was long and low,
it was time to crank up the juice with
a Brock’s Performance TiWinder full
exhaust system, Bazzaz Z-Fi fuel
computer and Takai M-RAIKOU Super
Coils.
The free-flowing Brock’s pipe was
good for roughly 6 HP without tuning
and shaved an impressive 37.25 pounds
off the curb weight. The stock system
pegged the scale at a lofty 45 pounds
while the feathery TiWinder barely
registered at a svelte 7.75 pounds.
We added Takai coils along with some
mapping from the Bazzaz Z-Fi and saw
another 6 HP for total gains of 12 HP.
The new baseline with the extended
swingarm was 181.8 HP @ 107.1 LB-FT,
down from the original baseline because
of the longer, heavier chain and
summer heat. But after the motor
mods, it jumped to 193.9 HP @ 109.3
LB-FT.
Back at the eighth-mile track, the
newfound power and decreased weight
netted a best time of 5.69 @ 126.6 MPH,
or roughly an 8.89 in the quarter mile.
We were safely in the 8s but the fun
wasn’t over yet.
tidy install.
The last bits included a sticky
Shinko Hook-Up drag tire, an
RK non-O-ring chain for drivetrain efficiency and a few more
tweaks to the fuel maps in our
Bazzaz Z-Fi. The result: a
blistering 5.59 @ 127 MPH,
roughly an 8.69 in the quarter
mile.
Stage 5: Final
Touches
While some might consider
race gas cheating, we don’t.
Why? Because with the Bazzaz
you can have multiple maps—
one for pump and the other
for race gas—which means
you no longer have to suffer
the compromises of old when
running race gas on a carbed
bike. Instead, it’s a flip of the
switch and a little extra dyno
time. In our case, that extra
dyno time under the watchful
eye of Herrera Racing netted us
another 10 HP on VP Racing’s
MR12 oxygenated race gas.
This potent concoction is
serious stuff and worth every
penny when you consider it’s
literally like pouring 10 HP into
your tank. Remember though, if
you still have factory cats, MR12
can clog them. So save the
MR12 for the days after you get
a full pipe.
We wrapped up our last stage
with a few race-ready necessities. First, a Super Bright LED
mini shift light that Herrera
Racing mounted on the interior of the windscreen. When
you have a bike accelerating
this fast you can’t be watching the tach. Then came a kill
tether from Schnitz Racing to
meet track regulations and cut
the bike off should the rider
fall off. Finally, a new-to-themarket and artfully crafted
low-profile 1.5-inch billet oil pan
from Adams Performance. The
stock pan on a lowered bike will
make contact with the ground
if the pilot drops a wheelie too
hard . To avoid spilling oil all
over the track in the event of a
wheelie gone wrong, this trick
unit, which is designed for a
sidewinder type exhaust, adds
valuable ground clearance over
stock.
We’re Goin’ Racing
With a street-legal, mid eightsecond ZX-14R sitting in our
garage, we couldn’t pass up the
chance to enter a sanctioned
race event. But with all the drag
strip closures in the United
States, we had to wait until we
finally found our ticket: the King
of the West Coast Motorcycle
Drag event at the infamous
Sacramento Raceway. Charlie
Postlethwait, event organizer,
confirmed this is the only allbike drag race west of Texas for
all makes and models and all skill
levels—from kids on pit bikes to
6-second Pro Stockers.
Stage 4: Weight Loss
Did you know that rotational weight
is roughly four times its static weight
when moving? That means if you save
five pounds on a wheel, it’s equivalent to
nearly 20 pounds when moving. So we
turned to Brock’s Performance for a set
of carbon fiber BST wheels with ceramic
bearings, which have been known to
add a horse or two on the dyno. These
weaved wonders are 11 pounds lighter
than the stock parts, which translates
into faster ETs. OK, so the BSTs were a
little over our budget. But they not only
helped us shave time at the track, they
also look dope. There’s really nothing like
rolling to the local spot with carbon fiber
wheels. Enough said.
Of course the biggest bang for
the buck mod in the weight savings
department was the Shorai LFX14A2
Lithium Iron battery (Shorai recommends the larger LFX21A6 for longevity reasons and states the 14A2 in the
14(R) is for race use only and will not be
covered under warranty) which shaved
another seven pounds over the leadweight stock unit. This battery also
cuts weight from up high on the bike,
so it’s better for the center of gravity.
Additional weight savings came from a
Catalyst Racing Composites lightweight
46 / SSB
January 2013
Bracket Racing: where a 16
second hog can line up against
an 8 second beast and win.
Stock, our 14R laid down a 183.31 @ 109.16 LB-FT. in the California heat and on a conservative dyno. When the last round of modding was complete and the tank was filled with
MR12 race gas our Kawi made 205.29 HP @ 113.83 LB-FT. That is a gain of 22 ponies and almost 5 LB-FT of torque. The result was a best quarter mile time of 8.57 @ 157.1 MPH. A
longer swingarm would’ve resulted in even quicker results.
superstreetbike.com / 47
cover story
Like all homegrown racing
outfits, we had our share of
teething problems and the extra
10 HP from the MR12 meant the
bike now wheelied in second and
third gear. The 64-inch wheelbase
was no longer sufficient, but with
only budget swingarm extensions
available we were tapped out. Had
we been able to get it back to
68-70 inches it would
have been a serious
contender.
Nevertheless,
Herrera Racing
flew the SSB
colors as Gaige
made it into
the third round
of bracket race
eliminations before
red-lighting. But not
before knocking down two
8.57 passes at nearly 160 MPH.
The high trap speed is evidence
that with a longer wheelbase and
more hook, there’s more left in
the setup. As it sits you’re looking
at a solid 8.55 bike with a perfect
reaction time.
Mission Complete
After six months of spinning
wrenches, SSB along with Herrera
Racing created a street-legal,
eight-second daily rider that’s civil
enough to tackle the commute.
But in beast mode, it’ll kill anything
this side of an all-out dragbike.
It’s almost surreal to think that
with bolt-ons a production bike
is capable of mid 8s. And
with more mods and
further tweaking,
8.20s are well
within reach.
Hell, with more
wheelbase, an
even better tire
and a 50-shot,
you’re looking at
a seven-second,
street-legal monster. So
there you have it, 0-160 MPH
in 8.5 seconds with headlights,
taillights, blinkers and a plate.
If anyone doubts this is the
golden age of speed, let this be a
reminder…a ferociously fast one.
8.57
Fastest
Quarter
Mile ET
Total Weight Savings
Stock weight: 584.3 lbs.
Modified weight: 498.4 lbs.
Weight saved with Brock’s TiWinder exhaust: 38.25 lbs.
Weight saved with BST wheels: 10.92 lbs.
Weight saved with Shorai battery: 6.69 lbs.
Weight saved by removing unnecessary stock parts: 30 lbs.
Buyer’s Box
Herrera Racing
323-517-4518
Adams
Performance
Low Profile Billet Oil Pan
$750
adamsperformance.net
Synthetic oil
$11.55 per quart
amsoil.com
Auto Club Dragway
Fontana
Sacramento
Raceway
Amsoil
autoclubspeedway.com
Bazzaz
Z-Fi Unit
$379.95
bazzaz.net
Clutch Mod Kit Deluxe
$229.95
TiWinder Full System
$1,695.00
Lowering Straps
$89.99
Blackstone Tek (BST)
Front wheel 17x3.5”
$1,650.00
Rear wheel 17x6.25”
$2,495.00
Worldwide Bearings ceramic bearings
$300.00
brocksperformance.com
Catalyst Racing
Composites
Racing Seat
$158
catalystcomposites.com
K&N
Oil filter
$13.99
knfilters.com
MSD Powersports
SB6 Ignition System
$581.50
mpsracing.com
January 2013
Roaring Toyz
Swingarm extensions
$299.99
Adjustable lowering links
$69.99
roaringtoyz.com
Brock’s
Performance
48 / SSB
RK
GB530GXW X-ring Chain
$256.65
530DR Non-O-Ring Chain
$148.93
rkexcelamerica.com
sacramentoraceway.com
Schnitz Racing
Air Ram air shifter
$69.95
Air Shifter solenoid
$54.95
Kill Tether
$79.95
schnitzracingstore.com
Shinko
Hook-Up Drag Radial
Front $110.95
Rear $214.95
shinkotireusa.com
Shorai
LFX14A2-BS12 Battery
$159.95
shoraipower.com
Super Bright LEDs
Shift Light
$85.99
superbrightleds.com
Supersprox
Sprocket kit
$144.90
supersproxusa.com
Takai
M-RAIKOU Super Coils
$749.99
takai-racing.com