Quick shifter?

[YossySeven]

Thanks, both of you.

Regarding the clutch switch: the cruise control disengages with only a very slight movement of the clutch lever, so the clutch switch appears to be detecting the lever movement.

I also did another test. While riding above the minimum KQS operating rpm, I slightly pulled the clutch lever (less than about 20%), closed the throttle completely, and then pressed the gear lever down.

With KQS ON, the bike downshifts even though the clutch itself is not disengaged enough to allow a normal manual downshift.

With KQS OFF, using exactly the same clutch lever position and the same gear lever operation, it will not downshift.

I also made sure not to put any pressure on the gear lever before pulling the clutch lever.

This makes me suspect that KQS is still operating even after the clutch switch has detected that the clutch lever is being pulled. This seems inconsistent with the owner's manual, which states that KQS does not operate while the clutch lever is pulled.

My dealer has reported the issue to Kawasaki, and I am waiting for their response.

[danham]

Add this to the strange behavior evidence: it happened to me for the first time ever, two days ago. It was a 3-2 downshift, pulled the clutch lever, blipped the throttle, and the bike added its own blip, resulting in a slightly awkward re-engagement of the clutch (too many RPMs for the road speed). I could not make it happen again (KQS is always on).

-dan

[tuusinii]

I'm not sure about clutch switch but at least in brake switch there are 3 wires and if it is same it could be that only other signal is ok (thus cruise disangages) but maybe it doesn't affect KQS if both signals are not consistent? So maybe check the switch with service manual information.

[YossySeven]

Thanks Dan, that's very interesting. What you experienced sounds almost exactly like my problem — manual blip with the clutch pulled, followed by an additional blip from the bike.

In my experience, it seems to happen more often when downshifting at around 3,000–4,000 rpm. Sometimes the second blip occurs before the rpm from my manual blip has dropped, causing the engine speed to rise much higher than intended.

If you try to reproduce it again, it might be worth trying in that rpm range.

Tuusinii, that's a good point about the clutch switch possibly having more than one signal. I will ask the dealer/Kawasaki to check the clutch switch signals and how they are used by KQS.

One interesting point is that my cruise control disengages with only a tiny movement of the clutch lever, while KQS can still operate with the clutch lever slightly pulled.

Kawasaki is currently investigating the issue through my dealer, so I'll post their response here when I get it.

[YossySeven]

Update:

I have some additional information about this issue.

My dealer was unable to reproduce the problem, so they reset the ECU's learned/adaptive values and returned the bike to me. However, I was able to reproduce the same double-blip behavior almost immediately after getting the bike back, so the reset did not solve it.

I then visited a Kawasaki specialist dealer and spoke with a staff member who rides a ZX-10R. Interestingly, he said that his ZX-10R sometimes does the same thing — the bike can add its own blip even when he is using the clutch for a manual downshift. He had simply assumed that this was normal behavior.

The Kawasaki dealer is now contacting Kawasaki directly to ask a very specific question: Is this behavior actually by design, or is it abnormal?

This is particularly interesting because the owner's manual clearly states that KQS does not operate while the clutch lever is pulled.

So far, similar behavior has now been reported on the H2 SX, my Ninja 1000SX, a ZX-4R owner in Japan, and now a ZX-10R. It makes me wonder whether this behavior may be more widespread among Kawasaki KQS-equipped models, but many riders simply don't notice it or assume it is normal.

I will post Kawasaki's official response here when I receive it.

[Racer-X]

I remember someone here commenting that with KQS enabled even when they used the clutch to downshift the bike still autoblopped. Have you tried downshifting with the clutch but not manually blipping and see if the bike is doing it for you? It feels like the KQS does not go through the clutch switch.