- 9 months ago
We put the all-new 2025 Kawasaki Versys 1100 SE LT to the test on a two-day ride from SoCal to Baja, tackling highways, twisty mountain roads, city streets, and even a dirt detour. With a bigger engine, refined electronics, and added comfort features like heated grips and electronic suspension, the top-spec Versys proves it’s more than just a pretty face. Whether you're commuting or chasing the horizon, this sport-ADV tourer is built to handle it all.
Check out the story at https://www.cycleworld.com/motorcycle-reviews/kawasaki-versys-1100-se-lt-first-ride/
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6CLI74xvMBFLDOC1tQaCOQ
Read more from Cycle World: https://www.cycleworld.com/
Buy Cycle World Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/cycleworld
Check out the story at https://www.cycleworld.com/motorcycle-reviews/kawasaki-versys-1100-se-lt-first-ride/
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6CLI74xvMBFLDOC1tQaCOQ
Read more from Cycle World: https://www.cycleworld.com/
Buy Cycle World Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/cycleworld
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SportsTranscript
00:00this is the 2025 kawasaki versus 1100 selt and we're about to ride to mexico
00:30all right here we go in the saddle of the 2025 versus 1100 selt got some updates including a
00:45larger engine some new electronics packages some revised gearing a larger rear brake the engine is
00:52now up to 1099 cc's and we're off starting in rain mode we also have now a quick shifter that works at
01:02lower rpms before the quick shifter wouldn't work until 2500 rpm now it starts working at 1500 rpm so
01:12you can short shift with the quick shifter when cruising around town or through an empty parking
01:18lot like this here we have heated grips we don't need that quite yet i'm a little overdressed i
01:22thought it would be colder but i'm sure at some point we're going to need that you have electronically
01:27adjustable suspension that's tied to each ride mode but then you can also adjust it independently
01:32along with traction control you have three levels of traction control as well as off two power modes
01:37full power low power about to get on the freeway and head towards the border we're headed south
01:43so we're going to start in sport mode oh road mode it takes a little you got to hold it for a sec
01:50there we go sport mode so this is kawasaki's uh flagship premium touring model adventure touring model
01:59this versus 1100 selt
02:03for the united states market we only get the selt where in europe you get a base model
02:12this bike also has a slipper assist clutch super easy pulling away from the light right there
02:17using the quick shifter even at low rpms or below four super buttery super smooth inline four
02:25the increased displacement has also increased horsepower and torque over the previous
02:32versus 1000 i believe the engine has bumped up from what was before
02:401043 to now 1099 yeah super smooth very comfortable just locked in
02:47good wind protection both from the fairing and the windscreen and it's really balanced it's got some
02:52good stability but you can tell once we get into some twisty roads this thing is going to be very
02:57sporty what they've seen through market research and customer input is that a large majority of
03:04kawasaki versus 1000 and eventually versus 1100 owners are middle-aged uh riders people that with an
03:13average riding experience of 31 years someone who's uh got you know a combined income of over a hundred
03:22thousand dollars and uh yeah someone that's going to spend a lot of miles in the saddle whether it's
03:29commuting to work doing weekend adventure trips putting a passenger on the back and going to a
03:36nice winery like we're doing later today and just doing stuff like that but then of course it's gonna
03:41have a sporty package as well for when uh the road gets twisty you want to have some fun there's really a lot
03:50going for this thing when it comes to putting in the hard miles on the freeway or the back roads yes it
03:56needs to have the comfort and utility of a big adventure style motorcycle but then they want to
04:03have performance it's got 17 inch wheels and street tires it's got uh acclaimed 133 horsepower so uh
04:12yeah something that's equally as capable for slaying highway miles as it is for carving up a twisty back
04:19road all right well we're stopped here for a traffic break on the freeway let's show you how to uh
04:25adjust the windscreen so lefty lucy on both sides you loosen it up and then you can pull it up and adjust
04:30it we're gonna do that for the freeway so i will say for a bike at this price you know you're spending
04:3620 grand i do wish you had uh an easier way to adjust the windscreen at least one-handed so you
04:44could do it on the fly while you're riding all right it's only been about a mile or so but i got
04:53to go back to the lower windscreen level it's as high as it'll go right now and at my stature about
05:01five foot eight it's just the top of the windscreen is great in my field of vision it's just very
05:07distracting i'm not tall enough to look over it not sure enough to be looking through it it's just right
05:12up my eye level at uh the top of the windscreen so it's a bit distracting so let's try to loosen it
05:20yeah loosen it on one side loosen it on the other and it'll go down okay it's definitely going to be
05:27easier to push it down and pull it up while you're riding but that wasn't too bad tighten each side
05:33okay so we did it not super easy but it's definitely doable and that was without cruise control on so
05:44yeah not bad i will say just first impressions of the chassis while rolling down the freeway here is
05:50the bike just feels so stable and planted for me my legs are bent you know i don't know about maybe 90
05:57degrees or so on five foot a i think taller riders will find maybe the foot pegs feel a little bit
06:03high but again maybe that's just to help uh give you more cornering clearance because this is a sporty
06:10package you don't want to be dragging stuff uh on the back roads foot pegs and your boots and whatnot
06:17fuel capacity on the versus 1100 is uh i believe five and a half gallons which uh is
06:25fully sufficient you know that'll give you good range all right that hillside over there is mexico
06:43all right we are in rosarito just wrapped up eating lunch now we're gonna work our way towards the
06:53winery hopefully get on some twisty roads and really start testing the performance of the versus 1100
07:01i was able to get into the customizable rider mode and set it up for my preference this will be my sporty
07:08ride mode with full power traction control turned off i have the suspension set to normal
07:17so be more of like a road street uh suspension setting not hard and aggressive like sport riding
07:24or the sport mode but not super soft like rain mode so got it uh set up just to the way i like it
07:31this bike like many other kawasaki models has the easy neutral finder so if you're in first you can't go
07:39from first to second at a dead stop if you're at a dead stop it easily finds neutral just by shifting up
07:47so it's pretty uh pretty nice when uh having to uh go through a lot of stop signs or stop lights like
07:55we've done today here in baja the road is starting to curve now wow i gotta say this thing feels very agile
08:06tips into a corner very easily but still has stability it's actually remarkable how how easy this thing is
08:14to turn a little bit of handlebar input and it dives into a corner very effortlessly
08:21the suspension feels good over those bumps it has good hold up but it's not harsh it doesn't beat
08:29you up on some of that rough stuff it's really well sprung this quick shifter works great as well both
08:36directions the power is really linear you can just keeps pulling but it uh has plenty of low end torque
08:46super smooth just roll on it's very predictable second gear downshift with the quick shifter a little bit
08:53of a dirty corner very smooth easy to ride i really like the sitting position nice and upright feel kind of
09:07on top of the bike fourth gear nice back into six that quick shifter works really well super smooth
09:22grabs the next gear very quickly it's not it's not notchy it's just very smooth and silky
09:28i really like that kawasaki addressed uh the quick shifter working below 2500 rpm that's how the the
09:38thousand was the versus 1000 the quick shifter did not work until you met or exceeded 2500 rpm now it
09:46starts working at 1500 rpm so virtually every time you're in motion so that's really nice just short shifting
09:56through town like we were earlier it's super smooth just grabs that next gear and then when you're on
10:01the boil passing the car coming out of a corner it just again it grabs that next gear very easily
10:13we got our photo pass right here we get to open it up
10:20i do wish the windscreen went a little bit lower for my height especially it's got a little bit of
10:26dust on it so it's right kind of in my way
10:32geez it's hard to see
10:49yeah this thing is very distracting
10:56this morning when it was clear it wasn't an issue but now it's bothering me a little bit
11:12but this engine really good on these roads mostly second gear back there third gear but has plenty of
11:19legs to stretch out a corner hold off a shift
11:26i will say it's so light and flickable at times still getting used to it
11:40this engine's got some steam
12:03i'm so trying to get comfortable with the suspension
12:07hot take there's no better way to see the countryside than an adventure touring motorcycle
12:20the fun wheelie bike geez
12:32i think there's a whole lot you can't do on this thing
12:37so far we're wrapping it looks like we're just about to wrap up day one
12:42for slogging miles and being comfortable this thing checks that box
13:02all right we made it to tonight's destination a banyan tree in valley de guadalupe
13:07just pulled up to this cool little vineyard parked the bikes in this cool kind of mars looking spot
13:14got my glass of wine now i'm ready to clean up and head to dinner
13:21here we go with the versus time to load up you've got two 28 liter hard bags with a one key system
13:39so the key for the ignition also does the bags super simple boom let's see
13:46i can fit my backpacks in here kowtaki also says you can fit a full face helmet in this we'll try that
13:53i'm wearing my helmet right now but once we'll try that later let's get this in there
14:01boom that was pretty simple just gotta check that
14:05done okay so i've got this aero commander 2 new helmet for aero for the united states
14:14but it doesn't look like an adventure bike helmet will fit in here very easily maybe on the top
14:19trunk which you can get as an accessory just the two saddlebags come standard for uh 19 499
14:27dollars is the msrp of the versus 1100 se lt the only option for the states for 2025 but if you have
14:35an adventure bike helmet i don't think it's going to fit in the side bag time to head back to the
14:40border after a full day in the saddle yesterday getting back on this thing is no problem so comfortable
14:48yesterday it's just as comfortable today this thing will just slay highway miles no problem
14:54as you know most adventure touring bikes will but what i really appreciate about this one is how
15:02smooth the engine is you know i love ktm's 1290 platform i love it it's it's amazing it just after a
15:10while those engine pulses the vibration you just you don't want it anymore where this thing
15:17it just it's buttery smooth got plenty of passing power just six gear roll it on so i mean
15:23really fun motorcycle the brakes are good you have a 300 dual 310 millimeter rotors up front
15:30with four piston monoblock calipers radial mount and then you have a single 260 millimeter disc
15:38at the rear with a single piston caliper and that's new for the 1100 they bumped up the they
15:45gave it a larger rear disc brake i believe it was previously 250 or 256 and now we're up to 260
15:53so yeah the brakes work really well abs was not intrusive i never felt it other than just in the
15:59dirt back there we were exiting the property but that's to be expected but yeah really just really
16:07loving this bike my customizer rider mode which i'm at right now so rider mode i got full power
16:13traction control turned off and yesterday i was at the normal suspension setting they have hard normal and
16:21soft and i was just struggling a little bit with some of the mid-corner feedback and i felt that
16:28before on electronically adjustable suspension where maybe that kawasaki electronic controlled
16:34suspension it's taking readings every millisecond and making slight adjustments so if you're in sport mode
16:41it has its kind of base sport mode setting and then it'll make micro adjustments in the sport mode
16:48on the fly dynamic style and so on for normal and soft and rain road and so on so yesterday i had
16:56it in normal in my rider mode and yeah just mid corner it felt like maybe the the suspension that
17:03was you know making some adjustments mid corner i just didn't have great feel at what the tires were
17:08doing today we're going to try the the soft mode for pretty much the whole day i mean we'll play around
17:13with it but especially in the twisty see what the soft modes like see i'm in the soft mode this
17:21these roads mid corner have a lot of like bumps and just g outs and i'm really i'm liking the softer
17:27suspension it's absorbing them nicely it feels like it's just not disrupting the bike upset like
17:36unsettling it as easily as it was in the stiffer suspension settings and that's of course has to do
17:42with my weight i'm sure heavier riders if they're in the soft suspension setting it would be too soft
17:47and it'd be blowing through the stroke i'm sure this gopro does not do it justice but this valley
17:53is just covered in rocks and it looks so cool wow they love two wheels down here motorcycles dirt bikes
18:03actually four wheels too side by sides atvs atcs baja definitely loves their power sports
18:15all right let's do a little rundown of the dash as you can see i'm in rider mode with kawasaki
18:20traction control turned off something i really like about this is this stays off when you cycle the key
18:26set up your mode even if you want traction control turned off turn the bike off go to bed wake up the next
18:33morning flip it on traction control will still be turned off so you got your power mode power f for
18:39full ktrc off kawasaki electronic controlled suspension soft these are what your compression clickers are at
18:49and then this shows you uh what the preloads at for one rider then you can have a rider with luggage
18:56two riders and two riders with luggage i believe to get four options definitely three believe four
19:01four and then you can cycle over here go through the mode so from rider mode to rain
19:11from rain it's a long touch hold it for two to three seconds to road and then one more sport power
19:21traction control and what the electronically controlled suspension settings are so all of those are tied to
19:28each ride mode and then of course as i mentioned you can come down and set up your customized mode
19:36customizable mode your rider mode three options of traction control one being the least intrusive
19:43three being the most and then off select that you have kawasaki electronically controlled suspension soft
19:51normal hard i like soft power up there full and now yeah then hit apply you're locked in traffic in
20:01southern california what this is expected there's a great opportunity to do some lane splitting if you
20:09live in a state that allows it as i can see from the uh the rider in front of me also on the versus
20:161100 it looks like the bags are about the width of the the handlebars with the uh the hand guards which
20:25are now standard for 2025 you do you don't have to get them as an accessory an add-on accessory final
20:31thoughts on the 2025 kawasaki versus 1100 s e l t this is really a jack of all trades just like this the versus
20:41650 it'll do everything really well it's not the most knock your socks off performance in the adventure
20:48touring category but it just does everything very well it's super comfortable for putting in the long
20:55miles the engine is buttery smooth you have a super neutral upright riding position and all the creature
21:02comforts you could need like heated grips cruise control electronically adjustable suspension multiple
21:08power modes it really just does it all you're an electronic quick shifter that now works at 1500 rpm
21:16and above super great for connecting corners on the back roads or just working your way up through the
21:23gearbox and short shifting when cruising through town throttle response is really nice you have a solid
21:28braking package with abs adjustable traction control it uh an adjustable windscreen not my favorite but
21:37it's adjustable for those of you that uh want to just set it and forget it before you ride or try to
21:43adjust it on the fly with no hands you got charging ports hand guards plenty of legs to put in the hard
21:49miles and a solid chassis and ergonomics package to keep you comfortable along the way so that's going to
21:56wrap up this on board review of the 2025 kawasaki versus 1100 s e l t of course check the link in the
22:03description for the full written article go a little bit more in depth and uh if you like this video
22:09consider subscribing hit the like button and drop a comment below what do you think of this bike
22:13or what other the other bikes in the category thanks for watching we'll see you in the next one
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