Kawasaki EN450 LTD

Kawasaki EN450 LTD
Manufacturer	Kawasaki
Production	1985 - 90
Class	Cruiser
Engine	Four stroke parallel twin cylinder. DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder.
Compression ratio	10.7:1
Ignition	Coil
Transmission	6 Speed
Suspension	Front: Telescopic forks Rear: Dual shocks
Brakes	Front: Single disc Rear: Drum
Front Tire	100/90-19
Rear Tire	140/90-15
Weight	199 kg / 438.7 lbs (wet)
Recommended Oil	K-tech 10W-40
Fuel Capacity	11 Liters / 2.9 US gal
Manuals	Service Manual

Engine

The engine was a Liquid cooled cooled Four stroke parallel twin cylinder. DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder.. The engine featured a 10.7:1 compression ratio.

Drive

Power was moderated via the Wet Plate.

Chassis

It came with a 100/90-19 front tire and a 140/90-15 rear tire. Stopping was achieved via Single disc in the front and a Drum in the rear. The front suspension was a Telescopic forks while the rear was equipped with a Dual shocks. The EN450 LTD was fitted with a 11 Liters / 2.9 US gal fuel tank.

Photos

Overview

Kawasaki EN 450 LTD

The Kawasaki 454 LTD is a motorcycle produced from 1985 to 1990, also known as the EN450. It is the forerunner of the Kawasaki Vulcan. The engine was a precise copy of the Kawasaki Ninja 900s, with two fewer cylinders. The Kawasaki 900 had a 908 cc engine. Removing two cylinders from the 4-cylinder divided the number of cc's by two. (908/2 = 454, thus the name). Included was the liquid cooling, the bore and stroke, the double overhead camshafts, and four valves per cylinder. This gave it a great deal of power for its size, redlining at 10,000 RPM while delivering 50 horsepower. The 454 is considered a good starter bike for having a low seat height and light weight, as well as an efficient use of counterbalancing to limit vibration. The Kawasaki 454 is well known for its high rate of acceleration, having raced against a 454 LS big block Chevrolet Corvette and beating it to both 0-60 and the quarter mile by more than a second. Despite the 440 being its predecessor in the sale of middle-size-displacement motorcycles designed by Kawasaki, the two shared almost nothing in design, as the Kawasaki 440 had a single overhead camshaft and had only two valves per cylinder, and was air-cooled, producing 41 horsepower to the 454's 50 horsepower. Both motorcycles were highly reliable and low maintenance, but for different reasons, as the 440 was just a very simple machine to service, and the 454 needed little maintenance over time as a result of its belt drive. The Kawasaki 454 was discontinued in favor of the Kawasaki Vulcan 500 in 1990, with no increase in horsepower despite the larger engine size. The reason for the switch to the nearly identical early Vulcan 500 was that manufacture of the 908 cc Ninja had ceased in 1990, and was replaced by the 500 cc Ninja, and thus there were no more 908 engines to have two cylinders removed from, to turn it into a 454 engine. The Vulcan 500 was designed very similarly to the 454, with the basis again being from a Ninja counterpart, but the engine was taken straight from the 500 Ninja, and still de-tuned slightly compared to the 454 to give it more cruiser-like characteristics, with other changes such as a chain drive (implemented in later models), and no tachometer on the Vulcan 500 being implemented in the changeover, along with a bicycle spoke look for the wheels. Many of these changes took place over time as the Vulcan changed from its Model A form (very similar to that of the 454) to the Model C form.

Make Model	Kawasaki EN 450 LTD
Year	1985 - 90
Engine Type	Four stroke parallel twin cylinder. DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder.
Displacement	451 cc / 27.7 cu-in
Bore X Stroke	72.5 x 55.0 mm (
Cooling System	Liquid cooled
Compression	10.7:1
Lubrication	Wet Sump
Induction	Keihin carburetor
Ignition	Coil
Starting	Electric
Max Power	50 hp / 36.5 kW @ 9500 rpm
Max Torque	NA
Clutch	Wet Plate
Transmission	6 Speed
Final Drive	Belt
Front Suspension	Telescopic forks
Rear Suspension	Dual shocks
Front Brakes	Single disc
Rear Brakes	Drum
Front Tire	100/90-19
Rear Tire	140/90-15
Wet Weight	199 kg / 438.7 lbs
Fuel Capacity	11 Liters / 2.9 US gal