One of the most iconic sportbikes of the 1980s, perhaps of all time, was Kawasaki’s KZ1000R, aka the Eddie Lawson Replica. Kawasaki made this special motorcycle as a two-wheel tribute to Eddie Lawson’s 1981 AMA Superbike Championship. One of the few Japanese motorcycles that had real exclusivity, only 750 units were made and they sold out even before they hit dealership floors. The price was set by dealers and some reportedly sold for as much as $5000, this at a time when a shiny new 1000cc sportbike could be had for a little over three grand. Cycle Guide’s Dain Gingerelli said of the ELR: “The bucket seat, low-slung handlebar and quarter-fairing put me in Eddie Lawson’s world. I feel like Fast Eddie every time I peel off for a turn, or crack the throttle for a downshift, and hear the Kerker’s bellowing note squelch the rush of wind around my helmet. Now, if I can only find a long-legged trophy queen to greet me with a chilled bottle of champagne after I cross the driveway finish line, I’ll really feel like a Superbike champion.”
The iconic 1982 Kawasaki KZ1000R Eddie Lawson Replica.
Rider Files 
I had the first one in the Chicago area, and boy was I excited when I picked it up. In some ways, I will always love that bike, but the truth of it wasn’t as kind. Imagine going out on a date with Elle Macpherson, and then finding out she’s a dude. Kawasaki took what was a great all around motorcycle in the KZ1000J, and ruined it. Those cool piggyback shocks on the rear? Worthless junk, that made the bike weave like there was a hinge in the middle. Really cool sounding Kerker pipe? Awesome…too bad they didn’t JET THE CARBS! My brother had an ’81 J, and it was actually faster than my ELR. After 1200 miles, it started burning a quart of oil every 500 miles. The dealer tried to tell me that’s normal consumption for a ‘high perf’ engine. Turns out the cylinder bores were too soft (IIRC), which led to premature wear and extreme oil use.
They finally covered it under warranty, but only 600 miles after getting it back, the bike started vibrating badly. Back to the dealer, only to find that the crank pins were not sized properly, resulting in the crank twisting. I dumped it after that, and got an ’83 GPz1100. Ok, so it was a piece of crap, but I still wish I kept it. I didn’t have the patience to fix all of those issues back then, but it sure would be cool to have one now, and turn it into an S1. There was also nothing wilder at the time…people would do double takes when you rode by.
BTW, the bike in the pic isn’t stock, as the bike had CV carbs and an airbox.
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Kevin,
Was your bike typical of the model or do you think you got a lemon?
Larry
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Funny too how the street ELR’s (pictured) are very collectable (never mind an “S1”) but in a similar light and era, the Suzuki GS1000S, in the blue/white colors, informally known as the “Wes Cooley Replica” (Suzuki never marketed it as such to my nowledge, but the Yoshimura bikes of ’80 and ’81 of Cooley and Crosby were that model)never really took off in value or collectability.
This is also in spite of the fact that very few were made/delivered to US dealers, something like 680 for ’79 and far less (350-375?) for the 1980 model year.
http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/features/122_0008_1979_1980_suzuki_gsx1000s/
Cool old bikes the Kawi and the Suzuki, from the “Golden Age” of AMA Superbike racing.
DH
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When I met kevin as a co-worker he told me he had an ELR and that it was in the shop being repaired. So I told him I had a Gpz 550, Then he rode it to work one day! I thought it was the coolest bike I had ever seen. He used to let me take it out for lunch n I would ride over to a friends flooring shop, all the guys would call me Nightrider, I thought I was so cool, Then one sunny sunday morning I woke to the sound of two big bores in my driveway, It was Kevin and his brother Cullun on a Kz1000j model. They spent some time trying to get me to go get my Gpz. I had to admit that I was bullshiting about it, that it was a friend of mine, Ray Jonhson that owned it. My only way to save face was to have them bring me to Desplaines Kawasaki and I bought a brand new 83 Gpz550. Up till then I was all about the dirt, had no clue what roadracing was, I promptly learned how to wheelie than looped it at a party n cart wheeled it into a girlfriends camaro in front of 200 hundred people, 22 days latter I got my second new Gpz and went to my first riders school at Grattan with Kevin and raced! Kevins ELR 1000r might have been a lemon but it changed my life n gave me a purpose n dream to chase. I loved that green bike, wish he still had it!
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Larry,
I don’t know of any other ELR’s that twisted the crank, but my brother’s J did as well, and they had the same engine. The bore issue was a known problem at Kaw for ’82, as there were 5 J’s in the same dealership, with the same problem. The shocks and jetting? That was all of them, unfortunately. The pipe and shockes were all for looks.
Dave, the WCR’s may not had the popularity of the ELR, but they certainly command some serious money these days.
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