The Kawasaki KZ700 was a one year only bike built to get around a tax on imported bikes with a displacement of over 700 (designed to help Harley Davidson). Different manufacturers got around the tariff in their own ways – Honda sold 700cc Interceptors and even built a plant in Ohio just so they could build their bigger bikes in the US.
The KZ700 had a few advantages over its main competitor of the time (the Honda CB750), mainly triple disc brakes, as well as a gas gauge and a little storage section underneath the seat. The bright colored stripes against a black canvas are delightfully 80s to my eyes.
This specific Kawasaki KZ700 (VIN: JKAKZ6A1XEA000947) has 21,260 miles but looks impressively clean. Everything is in great shape, the carbs have been rebuilt, and it comes with the owners manual as well as an article from Cycle Magazine back in ’84 explaining the tariff and the resulting bikes that Japanese manufacturers put out with 700ccs of displacement – informally called the bikes that “Uncle Sam built”.
Find this Kawasaki KZ700 for sale in Bradenton, Florida, with bidding up to $2,002 and the reserve not yet met