Hollywood movies have always seen extravagance taking a center stage. The more the action, the more the entertainment and, of course, more money coming in for studios. Motorcycles have always added to the drama unlike anything else, from heroes to villains. That's because motorcycles are cool! Right? Well, motorcycles have impacted the lives of many young people, so that says a lot right there. Many people would agree that motorcycle are indeed cultural icons.

Some movies that have featured motorcycles, and which have made a huge cultural impact include the Wild One starring Marlon Brando and of course Top Gun that sees Tom Cruise racing an old Kawasaki superbike.

Tom Cruise is a person who had enough screen time with a number of motorcycles. The Hollywood action hero’s influence on bikes goes a long way. With the number of bikes he’d cast in movies along with owning a few, it’s better said that when it comes to motorcycles, Tom Cruise and Hollywood go hand in hand, and everybody remembers the Kawasaki GPZ900R Maverick rides in Top Gun.

Update November 2022: Tom Cruise may have had another big blockbuster with the new Top Gun: Maverick movie, but we still can't stop talking about the old Kawasaki GPZ900R motorcycle he rode in the original Top Gun movie, and which also made an appearance in the new one.

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The Kawasaki GPZ900R Is Special

Top Gun Maverick Tom Cruise rides the Kawasaki GPZ900R
Via: Fox News

One of the reasons that made the GPZ900R a legend is the fact that it was considered as the predecessor of the modern-day sportbikes, much like how the Lamborghini Miura is to supercars. Part of the reason why this Kawasaki superbike rose to fame was its cameo in Top Gun. Setting that aside, the bike alone was very innovative for the mid-1980s. Kawasaki launched the GPZ900R, affectionately called ‘GPZ’ in 1985. It was a sub-liter sports bike, regarded as the spiritual successor to the Kawasaki Z1. A year prior to launching the GPZ, the ZX750 Turbo caught a lot of attention for the amount of engineering it brought to the table. But, the GPZ was a closely kept secret for almost six years, while the ZX750 saw development start in 1981.

The ZX750 was brought in much earlier despite its short development period, while Kawasaki took its time for the GPZ900R. When the GPZ came out, the bike left everyone awestruck with the amount of sophisticated technology it had for that time. It was so capable that six months after being unveiled to the press, dealers entered three works GPZ900R bikes in the Isle of Man Production TT, and finishing in first and second on the podium.

Given that Isle of Man is one of the prestigious yet notoriously dangerous motorcycle races known to mankind, excelling in that race was an incredible feat for the bike. This along with an important factor, which we’ll dive into later, made Tom Cruise choose the Kawasaki GPZ900R for Top Gun. In the Top Gun: Maverick, Tom Cruise has been spotted on a Ninja H2R; the fastest Kawasaki to date, and which is heavily influenced by the GPZ900R, which also makes a nostalgic appearance in the film.

The Kawasaki GPZ900R Was Made To Go All-Out

Top Gun Kawasaki GPZ900R
Via: Pinterest

Right off the bat, the Kawasaki GPZ900R used a 908cc 16-valve inline-4 engine with liquid cooling. The GPZ made an astonishing 115 hp at 9,800 rpm! Remember this was in 1985 where numbers like these are rare for race bikes let alone a homologized production bike.

The turbocharged ZX750 (often called the GPZ turbo), often compared with the GPZ900R, made 112 horsepower but, used a whole different setup entirely. The GPZ900R used a steel frame, 16-inch front, and 18-inch rear wheels, air suspension, and an anti-dive fork as part of its chassis along with using the engine as a stressed member.

Importantly though, Kawasaki positioned the engine lower in the frame, allowing it to maintain a lower center of mass, and enabling blistering levels of performance. The Kawasaki GPZ900R can do the standing quarter-mile in under 11 seconds - 10.976 to be precise! It’s an astonishing feat for a production bike with license plates to achieve such levels of performance during the 1980s.

Despite its tire-shredding performance, the GPZ was a comfortable urban bike, owing to the new suspension and a crankshaft counter-balancer that eliminated secondary vibration. Along with this, the cleverly designed aerodynamic fairing along with the comfortable riding position meant the Kawasaki GPZ was a good companion for long-distance rides.

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A Lot Of Firsts Were Seen In The Kawasaki GPZ900R

Top Gun motorcycle: Kawasaki GPZ900R
Via: Bikes Republic

Being the grandfather of modern-day superbikes, the GPZ brought in a lot of industry firsts. For starters, the Kawasaki GPZ900R was the world’s first production motorcycle to cross the 150-mph mark. With a top speed of 155 mph, Maverick had no doubts as to which bike he’ll be riding in Top Gun, especially when he is more accustomed to flying supersonic fighter jets.

In addition to this, the GPZ was the first production bike to feature liquid-cooling and 4-valves per cylinder with an overhead valve design. The list doesn’t end there, the GPZ is the first bike to introduce a variable damping system that was used in the forks and marketed as anti-dive forks. The GPZ900R also had an aircraft-inspired flush-fitted, spring-mounted fuel cap that replaced the bulky, twist cap. To top it off, the GPZ900R was the very first Kawasaki motorcycle to rock the Ninja badge. The GPZ900R was certainly one of the most exciting motorcycles on the planet during the era of the first Top Gun movie, and that is why it made its way to the silver-screen. It also touched the hearts of many young motorcycle enthusiasts, and has certainly been a huge influence for young people all across the world.

Sources: Cycle World, Kawasaki