kawasaki 1000 special edition

Has anyone ever heard of a 1978 Kawasaki 1000 Stars and Stripes edition?
A buddy of mine says he has one, trying to look it up, but can't find
any information on the existence of one.

Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks.

If he has one in stock condition it's a VERY rare bike. Actually, I believe it was called the "Spirit of America" edition. A limited edition Z1000-A2A Spirit of America model was made in 1978. Only 200 of the A2As were produced. Each one was fitted with a Vetter fairing and panniers. They were painted White with Red and Blue stripes.

commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1978_Kaw...pirit_of_America.jpg

They are not KZ1000-A2A's. The A2A was a 1978 variant with slightly different carburation to meet EPA regulations - aka California spec. If you check the Kawasaki.com fiche and compare the A2 with the A2A, the only differences are related to fuel settings.

The Spirit of America models don't appear to have an official model designation - probably because they were just a stock KZ1000-A2 with a Vetter fairing and some white paint.

There's been a few of them come up on eBay, but they rarely sell for any serious amount - usually they just don't sell.

Never saw or even heard of that model before, and I worked at a large Kawasaki dealership back then!! Back then we always hoped the bikes we got from Kawasaki were the Japanese made models. The bikes made in Lincoln the first couple years were nowhere near the quality of the bikes made in Japan. You could spot the American made 1976 KZ900's from MILES away. The plastic tail sections, and side covers were about 15 shades of color different and a duller finish than the metal gas tanks that came on the Japanese made KZ900's!!! All the body parts on the Japanese models matched.

Best way to tell a KZ1000A2 from a KZ1000A2A is the A2A did not have an ON/OFF headlight switch. And all the A2's were all made BEFORE January 1, 1978. The KZ1000A2A's were the first KZ's with the F/Ued EPA jetting. All the KZ1000D1's were all produced before January 1, 1978 so they all ran good.

Jeff.Saunders wrote: They are not KZ1000-A2A's. The A2A was a 1978 variant with slightly different carburation to meet EPA regulations - aka California spec. If you check the Kawasaki.com fiche and compare the A2 with the A2A, the only differences are related to fuel settings.

The Spirit of America models don't appear to have an official model designation - probably because they were just a stock KZ1000-A2 with a Vetter fairing and some white paint.

There's been a few of them come up on eBay, but they rarely sell for any serious amount - usually they just don't sell.

I don't doubt that you are correct as I know you have more experience with these bikes than practically anyone, so thank you for the correction. Here is the source of that statement; it's about halfway down the page just before the Z1-R writeup. Just goes to show, you can't believe everything you read on the internet. :laugh: Ed

www.kawasakiz1.com/Kawasaki-Z1000-page-1.html

If anyone ever sees one look at the headlight switch to see if it's an A2 or an A2A. I think they were simply 1978 A2 repainted in the color scheme with fairing and bags. Despite the 200 made spec, they are less valuable than a standard 1978 A2 in comparable shape.

RonKZ650 wrote: If anyone ever sees one look at the headlight switch to see if it's an A2 or an A2A. I think they were simply 1978 A2 repainted in the color scheme with fairing and bags. Despite the 200 made spec, they are less valuable than a standard 1978 A2 in comparable shape.

You are right, even though they are pretty rare they do not appeal to very many buyers. They may not be sporty enough plus they have a bit of a police bike look about them. IMHO, their paint scheme isn't as pretty as the regular models, but then I've never been fond of white bikes. Ed

Just noticed --




Good Fortune!

Patton wrote: Just noticed --

Good Fortune!

Absolutely correct! However, there is no record of where these 200 bikes were shipped to, and there is no corresponding associated VIN number list of which motorcycles were the 'Spirit' variants. So, take the numbered tank off, remove the fairing, and viola! you have a bike indistinguishable from a standard A2.

picasaweb.google.com/1073753245979555846...#5701754107879086082 click on the arrows on the right side of the picture. There is an article about the bikes. You have to click on full screen in upper left hand side. This will tell you more about your buddys bike. Welcome to the forum

650ed wrote:

Jeff.Saunders wrote: They are not KZ1000-A2A's. The A2A was a 1978 variant with slightly different carburation to meet EPA regulations - aka California spec. If you check the Kawasaki.com fiche and compare the A2 with the A2A, the only differences are related to fuel settings.

The Spirit of America models don't appear to have an official model designation - probably because they were just a stock KZ1000-A2 with a Vetter fairing and some white paint.

There's been a few of them come up on eBay, but they rarely sell for any serious amount - usually they just don't sell.

I don't doubt that you are correct as I know you have more experience with these bikes than practically anyone, so thank you for the correction. Here is the source of that statement; it's about halfway down the page just before the Z1-R writeup. Just goes to show, you can't believe everything you read on the internet. :laugh: Ed

www.kawasakiz1.com/Kawasaki-Z1000-page-1.html

Sadly there are plenty of erroneous web sites about these bikes. Because the A2A was not shown on European fiche, someone assumed the A2A model was the Spirit of America. but a simple review of the A2A fiche tells a very different tale.