Among the Japanese Big Four motorcycle companies, Kawasaki holds its own in producing some of the fastest and most technologically advanced motorcycles in the world. Having extensive experience in MotoGP, Superbike and Endurance Racing, their championship performance on track has given Kawasaki the know-how to continuously refine and improve their bikes for street use.

From its humble origins starting in 1964 when they merged with Meguro Manufacturing, its entry to the US Market in 1968 when they started making copies of American Bikes, up until today, Kawasaki has been at the forefront of adapting to changes in order to meet and thrive in the markets they serve.

Through the decades, Kawasaki has continued to provide the Motorcycle Market with bikes that have fulfilled the needs of every rider class, and while not as popular compared to the other top 3 Japanese Manufacturers, the Kawasaki brand has proven itself as a world-beating Motorcycle maker.

15 Mr. Kawasaki

Founder of the Kawasaki Group

The man who began what is now one of the biggest Japanese companies is Mr. Shozo Kawasaki. By getting involved in the shipbuilding industry at the start of Industrialization in 1878 Japan, Mr. Kawasaki was in the right business when the Sino-Japanese War started a soon after causing his fortunes to massively multiply.

Related: 15 Reasons Why The Kawasaki Ninja ZX-11/ZZ-R1100 Is A Legend

14 More Than Just Motorcycles

Kawasaki California

Kawasaki is a very big company, with business interests in industries spanning power and energy, shipbuilding, robotics, aircraft, aerospace, and precision engineering. This diverse portfolio of companies gives Kawasaki an edge in product development, allowing technology and breakthroughs in one area to be applied in their other divisions.

13 Kawasaki Under The Sea

Kawasaki Submarine

While most companies floundered during the outbreak of wars, Kawasaki used their industrial might to provide war machinery to the Japanese Government. From their shipbuilding background, Kawasaki was able to produce the very first submarines for Japan during the Russo-Japanese war of 1906, a manufacturing capability they still retain today.

12 Kawasaki To The Skies

Kawasaki fist airplane

With the proven capacity and capability of Kawasaki, the Japanese Government again contracted their company for a different program, this time, for the skies. It was after the end of World War 1, that the Japanese military recognized the need for aircraft and Kawasaki was able to deliver their first Airplane.

11 Kawasaki Robots!

kawasaki robots
via: Kawasaki 

During the post-WW2 era economic boom, Japan was now considered a key ally by the United States. Technological and monetary support was provided by America and the Kawasaki company took advantage of the opportunity by entering the new field of automated manufacturing, and by 1969, it produced the first Japanese Industrial Robot.

Related: 15 Stunning Pics Of Kawasaki Bikes We're Totally Obsessed With

10 Kawasaki Owns The Name Jet Ski

Kawasaki JS 400 jet ski

In the early 70's, Kawasaki entered an agreement with the inventor of the SEA-DOO after his agreement with Canadian company Bombardier expired. Initially called a Personal Water Craft, Kawasaki set on improving earlier prototype and by 1972, had developed many of the standard features now common with Jet Skis.

9 Journey To The West

Kawasaki 650 SS

While conducting research into other potential business segments, Kawasaki looked beyond Japan and realized a new lucrative market in America - motorbikes. Deploying a small team of managers and product engineers to the East Coast, this pioneering team laid the foundation of what is now known as Kawasaki Motorcycles.

8 Too Fast To Handle

Kawasaki h1 Mach3

Similar to when Ford launched the Mustang, Kawasaki's watershed moment came in 1966 when the H1 or Mach 3 was launched. This groundbreaking 500cc motorcycle quickly gained the reputation of being "too fast to handle" and was considered beyond what contemporary motorcycles had in terms of engineering and Technology.

Related: Kawasaki Unveils Supercharged 2020 Ninja H2 R

7 A Speeding Demon

H2 Mach 4

Less than five years after the groundbreaking debut of the H1, Kawasaki once again upped the ante by giving the world the H2 - an even more powerful bike. With a 750CC engine, truly monstrous by the then standards of motorcycle engines. So great was its power that riders once again had a moniker for this Kawasaki - "The Widowmaker".

6 The Birth Of An Icon

The original Kawasaki Ninja

In 1978, Kawasaki embarked on a secret project that would change the world of motorcycles forever. Envisioned as a super sub-liter bike, the final version gave this model the first 16-valve liquid-cooled inline-four-cylinder bike engine in the world. First unveiled to the press in 1983, this pioneering sportbike, now called the "Ninja" began its dominance in its class.

5 A Long Reign

Kawasaki ZZR 1100

The continued development of Kawasaki on its sportbikes in the '90s gave us the ZZ-R1100, which from its introduction in 1990 up to 1996, was the fastest production bike on the planet. Rival manufacturers finally came up with models to dethrone this king, but by 1999, European governments warned bike manufacturers to stop the speed contests, resulting in a gentleman's agreement to do so.

4 The H2 And The Ninja Reborn

kawasaki h2
via Money inc

With many legendary bikes under their belt in their 40-year existence, Kawasaki made motorbike history again in 2015 with the creation of the Ninja H2, combining the names of their two most powerful creations and giving the unit a supercharged 1000cc inline-4 cylinder, this was truly a bike unlike any other.

Classic Motorcycle collection

The instantly recognizable logo of Kawasaki is meant to evoke their brand philosophy. The big letter K in red color symbolizes peace, security, prosperity and power. The white is meant to represent an important event in Japanese culture, and finally, the black colored font symbolizes courage, valor, and strength.

2 Green Means Kawasaki

Kawasaki Team Green

Another marketing and branding tool that Kawasaki uses to identify itself from its competition is the use of the color green. In their motorsports entries, bikes, uniforms,paddock areas are all emblazoned with what motorcycle enthusiasts have come to call "Kawasaki Green." For street bikes, Kawasaki have also released bikes in this brand identified color.

1 A 250 Mph Kawasaki Of The Future

Alfa X Bullet Train

While the H2 currently tops the speed range of Kawasaki Motorcycles, the near future will bring a 250 mph Kawasaki. Dubbed as the "Alfa X" this new Bullet Train being jointly developed by Kawasaki in conjunction with other manufacturers is slated to go in service in the next 5 years.

Next: Kawasaki Unveils 2020 Brute Force 750 ATV