You get all the fun of a high revving sport bike, but don't have to break all speed limits in the universe to let it sing. The 90's 250 and 400 inline fours deserve a comeback.
I kinda wish this was out when I bought my new bike as a daily rider. I wanted small and went with a gixxer600. I would have liked to look at one of these.
@@IconicMotorbikes I expect them to think it's just another 400, do they know about this stuff really? Hard for me to say since I don't live in US Sadly this bike will not be available where I live. Don't think it can ever pass the strict emission standards.
@@pek7629 Many insurance companies don't really know about this stuff, but it's been shown with other bikes (like the not-extremely-fast Ninja 650 parallel twin) that as soon as they see "Ninja" in the name, it bumps the insurance rate up. It's a bit of a crapshoot, so it'll be interesting to see how different companies respond to it.
I have this bike and the internet has all sorts of suggestions of what I could've bought instead. I'm like, Oh yeah, an Aprilia. Why didn't I buy the bike I *didn't* want? GoOd tHiNkInG. I got this bike because it speaks to me. It reminds me of the 250r ninja I cut my teeth on twenty years ago. I love how you have to be acting like an absolute s**thead before this bike misbehaves. I get 59 mpgs, but I'm not mobbing on it the entire life of the bike. This bike is in the same insurance category as the regular 400, and I paid $308 for the YEAR on it. It makes people smile, it has such a friendly demeanor, its so forgiving, you can see it all the way from Duluth, and it has all kinds of stuff that a proper, modern bike should have, but they gave it all to the model with the tiny engine this time for a change. Its such a dumb idea for a bike, and its made for nobody I can think of, and it makes such a goddamned racket just riding around town and 100% I love it. And yes, its expensive, but here's a little secret of mine: Work a little more and it won't be a big deal.
This is my ideal track bike. It’s not so fast that you’re on the brink of becoming a pile of mush but has all the same controls and feel of a big bike. Wringing out a small bike is always fun compared to half riding a monster every day of the week. I can’t wait to get it. 1 more day.
Thank you Thank you Thank you Kawasaki for once again bucking the trend and just making bad a$$ $hit. While Yamaha turned the iconic R7 into squid twin, Kawis keeping it old school with the little displacement screamers.
@@2stroketyson79 The R7 is the biggest disappointment within the sport bike community in the past 20 years. It's the equivalent of watching the Mitsubishi Eclipse devolve into a crossover.
I'm just looking at starting my test and this is definitely on my radar. My biking friends will call me a bender and tell me to get a 600 i'm sure, but i've got a feeling this will fit me better than the 650.
The thing with Yoshimura was similar to what happened to me with Toce. Reached out to them for something else and they asked if I would donate the FZ-07 for the slip on and then eventually the full exhaust. PS. If I get back into riding, I think this is going to be the way I go. I have ridden 600's all the way up to a Busa, and even the 2016 R1 that Toce has which I think is around 194 RWHP. The power profile of the parallel twin wasn't great nor was the suspension, the lack of fairings wasn't ideal, and the vibrations kinda sucked. So having something that makes similar power, but is smooth...yeah, that sounds just right.
In a world of parallel twins in everything, it seems expensive. If you don’t want to see inline fours go away, if you think small displacement inline fours still belong in motorcycling, this might not seem like it’s priced badly. What are your smiles worth?
would they ever produce a naked bike in this format though? I don't think that makes sense, is there a bike that has been done as a naked version like this before? I can't think of any other than maybe honda's cb lineup
Got one of these about a month ago, been bone stock other then a fender eliminator kit since I got it. I will say it’s just a little disappointing bone stock, you can definitely feel the power drop off after 11.5k rpm and it sounds like… well a stock inline 4 😂 Plan on putting a graves slip on and a new air filter on there, then the flash (probably from 2 wheel dynoworks, open to recommendations) VERY excited to do all that and get this little thing moving
Congrats on the new bike! Based on my experience, you'll have an absolute blast after it's been flashed. Look forward to hearing your before/after thoughts!
It's funny - I get to ride lots of very fast bikes, but this bike (with the flash and the pipe) makes me giggle just as much as any of them on the street. Would love to take it out for a track day!
I rode on that the Kawasaki demo trailer had I was told I was the first person not affiliated with Kawasaki to ride the bike had 100 miles on it. Insanely impressed
Hi, 1. Can we have this the only bike as a daily commuter bike in country like India with high traffic 2. How is low end torque ? Possible to ride at 50-60kmph at 6th gear ?
Absolutely agreed! The KB2 (GPz550 motor) was reportedly Massimo Tamburini's favorite Bimota. If Bimota made a KB5 with this motor, it could be such a cool tribute to the old bike.
Soft but not nearly as bad as the forks. Kawasaki says the shock is similar to what's on the ZX-10 but with different valving and spring rate. I'm just under 200 pounds and would want a stiffer shock. But I'd be addressing the forks first!
These are the bikes we should have been getting for the street and beginners I’ve been waiting to see a bike like this because I don’t want to buy a bike that I’ll not love and feel like I’m going to out grow after a season or two. this bike is expensive but for someone like me who just wants to start and keep the bike I start on this price will be small and in the longer run it won’t matter because I have no intention of selling it 💚
Sport bikes aren't built with 200 pounders in mind. That shouldn't even be a complaint. just buy it and plan to do suspension work if you're a big boy. Don't expect them to come from the factory suspended for you.
Why do you say "way safer"? The 25 won't go as fast but sometimes you need to have a little horsepower to get you out of a tight situation. And it's not like the ZX-4RR will be overpowering most of the time.
That’s not sleazy it’s them making sure that enthusiasts get a fun bike despite the tough regulations… This is them fighting for us not against us, and “perform acceptably” is a bit rough, this bike isn’t for people looking for the best objective performance. It’s for those who want to be able to ring out their bike at high RPM without needing to go 150mph, the fact that people can’t understand this is hilarious 😂
Not to hard to find. My dealer has had 4 of them. They sell in a week. If I want one he will give me the next one. I passed. It's a turd. It's also heavy for a 400.
I love the RS660 (and would rather have it myself), but I can't deny that there's some riders who prefer being able to wind out an inline-four in a way that a parallel twin can't match. Nice to have options!
@@IconicMotorbikesI get why people want a ZX-4R. And I'm glad the bike exists. Even if I'm not into screamer online fours, nor parallel twins. As a Tuono V4 and Street Triple owner I prefer V4s and triples. But between the Kawasaki and the Aprilia for me there's no contest. Even between the ZX4RR and the R7. An exotic Bimota with this engine would be something completely different!
@kirkdunn1379 The base RS660 is $1800 more than the ZX4RR. Not really the same price in my book. Not saying that the Aprilia isn't a great bike, but a twin is different than an inline 4. People's tastes vary.
You get all the fun of a high revving sport bike, but don't have to break all speed limits in the universe to let it sing.
The 90's 250 and 400 inline fours deserve a comeback.
Agreed! It'll be interesting to see how insurance companies treat this bike.
I kinda wish this was out when I bought my new bike as a daily rider. I wanted small and went with a gixxer600. I would have liked to look at one of these.
@@IconicMotorbikes I expect them to think it's just another 400, do they know about this stuff really? Hard for me to say since I don't live in US
Sadly this bike will not be available where I live. Don't think it can ever pass the strict emission standards.
But of course we saw this test bike going about 75 on a suburban looking street. 😂
@@pek7629 Many insurance companies don't really know about this stuff, but it's been shown with other bikes (like the not-extremely-fast Ninja 650 parallel twin) that as soon as they see "Ninja" in the name, it bumps the insurance rate up. It's a bit of a crapshoot, so it'll be interesting to see how different companies respond to it.
I have this bike and the internet has all sorts of suggestions of what I could've bought instead. I'm like, Oh yeah, an Aprilia. Why didn't I buy the bike I *didn't* want? GoOd tHiNkInG.
I got this bike because it speaks to me. It reminds me of the 250r ninja I cut my teeth on twenty years ago. I love how you have to be acting like an absolute s**thead before this bike misbehaves. I get 59 mpgs, but I'm not mobbing on it the entire life of the bike. This bike is in the same insurance category as the regular 400, and I paid $308 for the YEAR on it. It makes people smile, it has such a friendly demeanor, its so forgiving, you can see it all the way from Duluth, and it has all kinds of stuff that a proper, modern bike should have, but they gave it all to the model with the tiny engine this time for a change. Its such a dumb idea for a bike, and its made for nobody I can think of, and it makes such a goddamned racket just riding around town and 100% I love it.
And yes, its expensive, but here's a little secret of mine: Work a little more and it won't be a big deal.
Guy that bought this bike got so lucky ✌
Thank you!
Just got one of these. Super fun. You can redline it thru 1st and 2nd and halfway thru 3rd look down and you’re only doing 70. It’s a riot
This is my ideal track bike. It’s not so fast that you’re on the brink of becoming a pile of mush but has all the same controls and feel of a big bike. Wringing out a small bike is always fun compared to half riding a monster every day of the week. I can’t wait to get it. 1 more day.
Thank you Thank you Thank you Kawasaki for once again bucking the trend and just making bad a$$ $hit. While Yamaha turned the iconic R7 into squid twin, Kawis keeping it old school with the little displacement screamers.
lol the R7 still beats this hell this barely beats the Ninja 400 reg the videos are all over TH-cam
@@2stroketyson79 You miss the whole restriction thing or what? Cause everything you said is wrong
Yeah for 10k MSRP that’s a very hard pass for me
@@2stroketyson79 The R7 is the biggest disappointment within the sport bike community in the past 20 years. It's the equivalent of watching the Mitsubishi Eclipse devolve into a crossover.
I need that Yoshimura slip on exhaust.
Yosh said they should be available to order at the end of this month...
Finally, a rider riding like we do. So, it’s going to have to be piped, flashed, brakes lines done, and fork done. Very nice.
I'm just looking at starting my test and this is definitely on my radar. My biking friends will call me a bender and tell me to get a 600 i'm sure, but i've got a feeling this will fit me better than the 650.
I’d take this over an R7 any day.
The thing with Yoshimura was similar to what happened to me with Toce. Reached out to them for something else and they asked if I would donate the FZ-07 for the slip on and then eventually the full exhaust.
PS. If I get back into riding, I think this is going to be the way I go. I have ridden 600's all the way up to a Busa, and even the 2016 R1 that Toce has which I think is around 194 RWHP. The power profile of the parallel twin wasn't great nor was the suspension, the lack of fairings wasn't ideal, and the vibrations kinda sucked. So having something that makes similar power, but is smooth...yeah, that sounds just right.
My dream bike. I love the sound, look and everything. I had Kawasaki ninja zxr 400 1992 for 8 years. Good old days.
Just bought this bike last night! Beautiful bike. Can wait to save up for my mods.
Congrats! I'm sure you're going to have a blast with it!
In a world of parallel twins in everything, it seems expensive. If you don’t want to see inline fours go away, if you think small displacement inline fours still belong in motorcycling, this might not seem like it’s priced badly. What are your smiles worth?
A renaissance of 400's would be awesome! Especially a naked bike.
4cyl's in particular :)
would they ever produce a naked bike in this format though? I don't think that makes sense, is there a bike that has been done as a naked version like this before? I can't think of any other than maybe honda's cb lineup
Honda cb is the only inline 4 i can think of. Plenty of twins and singles around that power level though. @@sako-xb2bq
Back in the 80's when I was pretending to be Freddie Spencer on a Honda NS400R the best I got was 30mpg worst was a wallet busting 22mpg😂😂👍👍
Gas was dheap in the 80s
Got one of these about a month ago, been bone stock other then a fender eliminator kit since I got it. I will say it’s just a little disappointing bone stock, you can definitely feel the power drop off after 11.5k rpm and it sounds like… well a stock inline 4 😂
Plan on putting a graves slip on and a new air filter on there, then the flash (probably from 2 wheel dynoworks, open to recommendations) VERY excited to do all that and get this little thing moving
Congrats on the new bike! Based on my experience, you'll have an absolute blast after it's been flashed. Look forward to hearing your before/after thoughts!
Your laughing reaction is the same one I have every time I ride my 4RR. Lots of laughs
It's funny - I get to ride lots of very fast bikes, but this bike (with the flash and the pipe) makes me giggle just as much as any of them on the street. Would love to take it out for a track day!
If i had the money for a second bike i would love one
Hell yeah Abhi! Great review.
thanks for doing a good review instead of only riding for five minutes mumbling into the mic like some others do
I rode on that the Kawasaki demo trailer had I was told I was the first person not affiliated with Kawasaki to ride the bike had 100 miles on it. Insanely impressed
I'm too big for one of these to be my only bike, but I can't think of anything I'd prefer as a number 2 in garage ride.
That bike is definitely a piece of number two
6:43, that Lambo can't go through traffic, but a sub $10,000 bike can. lol which is better?
Sounds fantastic!
Amazing cute bike ❤
That thing sounds amazing for a tiny displacement. I saw Moore Mafia get one up to 72 hp
After flash how much bhp it's making and how high the rpm is going now ?
Hi,
1. Can we have this the only bike as a daily commuter bike in country like India with high traffic
2. How is low end torque ? Possible to ride at 50-60kmph at 6th gear ?
Great scoop man!
I want to see Bimota do something with that engine.
I have the same thought sometimes
Absolutely agreed! The KB2 (GPz550 motor) was reportedly Massimo Tamburini's favorite Bimota. If Bimota made a KB5 with this motor, it could be such a cool tribute to the old bike.
I've been thinking the same thing. My db4 isn't fast but is so, so fun.
People are saying 70-75hp after pipe+tune. It's a sick little bike
Amazing bike
How was the rear suspension setup. Soft or stiff?
Soft but not nearly as bad as the forks. Kawasaki says the shock is similar to what's on the ZX-10 but with different valving and spring rate. I'm just under 200 pounds and would want a stiffer shock. But I'd be addressing the forks first!
These are the bikes we should have been getting for the street and beginners I’ve been waiting to see a bike like this because I don’t want to buy a bike that I’ll not love and feel like I’m going to out grow after a season or two. this bike is expensive but for someone like me who just wants to start and keep the bike I start on this price will be small and in the longer run it won’t matter because I have no intention of selling it 💚
do you know when the slip-on would be out for retail sale?
Sorry, we do not know. You'd have to ask Yoshimura directly.
This is what the R7 should have been.
Anyone pls tell me that whether this bike will come to India or not?
USA is the best country! (Cries from India who sees only 150cc bikes :(
Uk my g
USA? Check out a few social demographic measures and you may start to think otherwise…
I wonder reliability of the engine. That's alot of pressure and stress in that little thing
You can filter in LA, I have to split in Tampa
Saludos desde México ✌️
Welcome, and thanks for watching!
Hp Total?
🔥👍🏽
First gear tops out at 53-55, plenty fast!
Always been a 600 guy, but damn this thing is sexy
ZX4RR or Honda CBR650R. Help me to decide
What is your use case? zx4rr is small bike fun, perhaps a novelty bike. cbr650r is a more stable machine with lots more torque.
ZX4RR is a full on race bike, 650R is sport tourer
Sport bikes aren't built with 200 pounders in mind. That shouldn't even be a complaint. just buy it and plan to do suspension work if you're a big boy. Don't expect them to come from the factory suspended for you.
How tall are you?
I am 6'3"
@@IconicMotorbikes thx bro
Nice bike but it weighs as much as the sister ZX6R.
I wanted one. But now I'm not sure.
What’s changing your mind?
This bike will never touch the indian shores
Well i think we are reaching a point where the 400 can get into the speed of a 1000 cc bike
man is lane splitting pretty fast for being on someone else's brand new motorcycle.
lane filtering is next level..
I still think 250cc Zx25r sounds way better and way safer to ride .
Why do you say "way safer"? The 25 won't go as fast but sometimes you need to have a little horsepower to get you out of a tight situation. And it's not like the ZX-4RR will be overpowering most of the time.
@@IconicMotorbikes Rule Number 1 Don't get yourself stuck in a situation like that .
Safe is for euro tard communists
If You want safe drive an old persons 4 door sedan
doesn't sound as fun though.
Might as well swallow the mic... TF!
What a shame , stuck squiding around in the city on a jewel of a sport bike....suspension probsbly set up for a 145 lbs rider....
So, Kawasaki is selling a bike that has to be illegally modified to make it perform acceptably. Pretty sleazy.
Blame america and europe thats the emission law, im pretty sure in japan its out of the factory unrestricted
@@allnighterist in germany the 2024 is unrestricted too, the 23 doesnt exist in europe
That’s not sleazy it’s them making sure that enthusiasts get a fun bike despite the tough regulations… This is them fighting for us not against us, and “perform acceptably” is a bit rough, this bike isn’t for people looking for the best objective performance. It’s for those who want to be able to ring out their bike at high RPM without needing to go 150mph, the fact that people can’t understand this is hilarious 😂
Once you go liter, you'll never go back to a small beater.
Not to hard to find. My dealer has had 4 of them. They sell in a week. If I want one he will give me the next one. I passed. It's a turd. It's also heavy for a 400.
Just buy a RS660 and be done
I love the RS660 (and would rather have it myself), but I can't deny that there's some riders who prefer being able to wind out an inline-four in a way that a parallel twin can't match. Nice to have options!
@@IconicMotorbikesI get why people want a ZX-4R. And I'm glad the bike exists. Even if I'm not into screamer online fours, nor parallel twins. As a Tuono V4 and Street Triple owner I prefer V4s and triples. But between the Kawasaki and the Aprilia for me there's no contest. Even between the ZX4RR and the R7. An exotic Bimota with this engine would be something completely different!
And RS660 and Kawi are same price or very close
@@brunocarmona4958 We need someone to stuff a zx4rr engine into a Honda Monkey frame ...
@kirkdunn1379 The base RS660 is $1800 more than the ZX4RR. Not really the same price in my book.
Not saying that the Aprilia isn't a great bike, but a twin is different than an inline 4. People's tastes vary.
Why buy an underpowered bike and try to get more power......just get the 600 version
not everyone is willing to fuck their back up just to ride on a bike at the streets that you'll never be able to run it to more than 50% of its power
I’d rather have this over a 600. I just ride around town
80hp is enough power lol. You don't need 120+ to experience a nice ride, nor to go 150+ mph, 130 is just as fine
Underpowered ... try a Grom, lawd now that is underpowered. zx4rr has plenty for just riding around.
600's are way too much bike nowadays. What are you on?
lol these are not hard to find