- 8 hours ago
We put the Kawasaki ZX-4RR to the test to see how this high-revving inline-four performs on real roads and in everyday riding. In this review, we look at power, handling, and features to find out what makes the ZX-4RR one of the most unique bikes in the lightweight sportbike class.
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00:00Hey everyone, good morning and welcome to this episode of MC Commute. Today we're going to be riding Kawasaki's 2025 Ninja ZX4 RR.
00:07Who's ready to ride? Alright everyone, there it is. Kawasaki's 2025 Ninja ZX4 RR.
00:12This is a lightweight inline 4 powered sport bike from Kawasaki Heavy Industries out of Japan.
00:19Though this motorcycle is actually made out of its Thailand factory. It's powered by a 399cc water-cooled inline 4 engine.
00:27We have that twin spar steel frame and swing arm. So, super sport ethos in a very light and easy to ride package.
00:36Enough talking about it, let's swing a leg inside the cockpit and see what this bad billy goat's about.
00:41Right away sitting on this motorcycle, well, it's a sport bike. That means we have relatively low mounting clip-ons and high mounted foot pegs.
00:52To be fair, the clip-ons aren't as low as they typically would be on a sport bike.
00:57As you can see, they're mounted below the top clamp, but they have a lot of rise right here.
01:04Which gives a really good, comfortable clip-on bend for riders, especially us tall folks.
01:10The foot pegs are a little bit on the high side.
01:15They aren't as relaxed as other sport bikes we've ridden.
01:18But again, if you're someone who's maybe smaller in stature or really wants a lot of lean angle in corners,
01:27you're going to like these high mounted foot pegs.
01:30For this 6-foot tall, 190-pound rider, this seating position is actually pretty comfortable for a 400cc sport bike.
01:38Not bad, Kawasaki.
01:40Other nice touches we have in the ergonomics department are the adjustable lever position front brake lever
01:46and the adjustable lever position clutch lever.
01:50You don't see that very often on sport bikes.
01:52It's cool that Kawasaki includes that.
01:55That is the customization.
01:56The seat actually has a good amount of room, so you can move front and back in the seat.
02:02If you're a tall rider, you're always going to want to scoot back a little bit,
02:04especially when you're in the tuck position, which is nice.
02:08This windscreen, however, this thing is very, very short.
02:13It would be nicer if this bike had a taller windscreen.
02:16Again, if you're a tall person like me, you're going to want something that is higher.
02:22But if you're a short person, you might be able to fit underneath this windscreen.
02:26It just depends on your size.
02:27But overall, this bike is very versatile for a 400cc sport bike.
02:33This particular model is powered by a 390cc dual overhead cam water-cooled inline-four engine.
02:39In the 400cc class, it's dominated by parallel twins.
02:45So it's really cool that Kawasaki actually makes a four-cylinder in this segment.
02:50If you rewind a couple decades, there was a time where motorcycle manufacturers actually engineered 400cc and smaller inline-four-powered sport bikes.
03:01Quite often, they were Japanese-specific models, but sometimes they made their way to other destinations in the world, including the U.S.
03:10So it's really cool that Kawasaki returns that old-school heritage to us sport bike riders with a 400cc inline-four.
03:20I think it's really neat.
03:22This particular engine is good for 56 horsepower at the business end of the tire.
03:2626-pound feet of torque.
03:28Definitely not a lot of torque, but you get this thing revving towards its 15,500 RPM redline, and it's got a little bit of scoot.
03:36It's not anywhere near as powerful as the 600, but it's still cool that it offers the 600-like character and high RPM riding experience,
03:47which is very visceral and fun, only in a much more accommodating and easy-to-ride package.
03:53Of course, we have this cable-actuated clutch with slipper function and a six-speed transmission with an electronic up-and-down shifter,
04:04so you don't have to use the clutch whether you're up-shifting or down-shifting.
04:08Very, very, very nice touch.
04:11The clutch feel on this motorcycle is very light.
04:17It's not as well-weighted as other sport bike motorcycles we've ridden recently,
04:24but it still has a little bit of feel to it,
04:27and if you're someone who's looking for a clutch lever that just doesn't have,
04:32it's not going to require a lot of hand strength.
04:35You're really going to like the clutch lever on this particular vehicle.
04:39This bike meshes between each of its six gears very nicely.
04:44The transmission has a nice positive feel,
04:47and of course, that quick shifter just makes it easy to roll up or down through that six-speed gearbox.
04:52Yes, let's give this thing the berries.
04:55Oh, I'm getting carried away.
04:57That visceral inline-four whale is just so fun.
05:01Now, compared to a boring parallel twin,
05:04this engine is just way more charismatic.
05:06It loves to rev.
05:07It's got a really pleasing, throaty sound that you'd experience on a Kawasaki Ninja ZX 6R or Ninja ZX 10R,
05:16which we really like.
05:17We're old-school sport bike riders,
05:19so having a Waylink inline-four is just totally awesome to us.
05:23On the flip side, this engine doesn't make anywhere near the amount of torque as a similar displacement parallel twin.
05:31You whack the throttle and nothing really happens.
05:33You really got to grab a bunch of gears and get this thing zinging to accelerate.
05:38But when you do, oh my gosh, it's an absolute poot.
05:43You're really going to be working the gear shift lever a lot on this motorcycle.
05:47So it's a good thing it's got an electronic quick shifter that allows for those full throttle upshifts and downshifts without having to use the clutch.
05:57All right, folks.
05:57So far, so good on Kawasaki's 2025 Ninja ZX 4RR.
06:01This bike is certainly a hoot to ride.
06:03We love its high RPM performance, which we were just talking about.
06:06This thing loves to rev.
06:07And when you have this thing zinging on the pipe, it's very, very exhilarating to ride.
06:11Yet it doesn't make enough power to really get away from you or really intimidate you.
06:15Whether you're a new rider or a more experienced rider, this bike certainly is a fun to ride on the open road.
06:21All right, enough talking about this Ninja ZX 4RR.
06:23Let's get back in the saddle and continue our ride.
06:26All right, folks.
06:27Where were we?
06:28Oh, yes, the clutch and the exhilarating four-cylinder performance of this bike.
06:32Now, with a full tank, a full 4.0 gallons of fuel, this motorcycle weighs in at 415 pounds.
06:38Certainly not the lightest motorcycle on the spec sheet.
06:41But with 17-inch wheels spinning, you'd be amazed at how light and nimble feeling this 415-pound Ninja ZX 4RR is.
06:50A lot of that comes down to just the reduced reciprocal rotating mass from the engine.
06:56Less displacement, smaller crankshaft means a motorcycle really goes side to side.
07:01Really well and is very, very agile, yet still delivers upwards of 30 miles per gallon.
07:10We've been riding this thing at the racing track, so we've got a little bit less fuel mileage, 34.7.
07:16But that's a lot of high-speed track riding.
07:19If you ride this motorcycle on the road and don't have the engine zinging off the 15,500 RPM Redliner,
07:27expect well over 40 miles per gallon.
07:29Conversely, if you ride this motorcycle like you're supposed to be riding it at 15,500 RPM,
07:35you're going to get 34.7 miles per gallon.
07:39So, not necessarily bad by any means.
07:41Pretty decent fuel mileage when you're getting that, when you're revving the engine at that high of an RPM.
07:48All right, folks, we've got to take a little break for this tree construction, road construction.
07:54We'll be back with you in a little bit.
07:56And away we go, folks.
07:57Again, there's that light clutch action, which really makes clutch release very easy.
08:02If you're new to riding, you're going to like this motorcycle because not only is it not so powerful,
08:07it's easy to ride.
08:08The clutch is actually very forgiving to use.
08:12Where were we?
08:12Back to how nimble this motorcycle is.
08:16This bike rolls on a twin spar steel frame and a steel swing arm,
08:21which we don't really typically see on sport bikes.
08:23It's one area where Kawasaki obviously saved a little bit of money.
08:28But to be fair, at the same time, because of this motorcycle's more limited engine power output,
08:34you really don't need an aluminum frame or an aluminum swing arm.
08:38This engine doesn't make enough power to have this bike carry enough velocity
08:43where you need those rigid components.
08:45Even with its steel frame and swing arm, this motorcycle handles very well at lean.
08:51In fact, that's one of the strongest strong points of this product
08:55is riding this motorcycle at high PR and at high lean ankles.
08:59We talked about those high-mounted rear sets,
09:02which allow for you to really drag a lot of knee and carry a lot of speed in the corners.
09:07And that's what is so fun about this motorcycle.
09:10Now up front, we have a 37-millimeter show inverted fork.
09:14It's a separate function big piston fork.
09:17That means that rebound and compression damping circuits are split between the fork legs.
09:22Damping is not adjustable, but we can adjust the spring preload here atop the fork leg.
09:29Just over four inches of suspension travel up front.
09:32Up back, we have a higher-end Showa shock that mounts between the swing arm and the frame
09:39with a back linkage.
09:41Kawasaki's been using these horizontal backlink shocks for quite a mile.
09:45I think ever since the 2011 Ninja ZX-10R is when they started using this technology.
09:51It works really good.
09:52The shock's a little bit higher spec.
09:54Not only do you have spring preload adjustment,
09:56but you have compression and rebound damping adjustment right there on the nitrogen cartridge
10:03of the fork shock.
10:05It's really easy to adjust with a flathead screwdriver.
10:07So a little bit higher-end rear suspension with just over four inches of suspension travel.
10:12That is really, really nice.
10:14On the road, this motorcycle rolls over the bumps really well.
10:18In typical Kawasaki sport bike fashion, it delivers a very pleasing riding experience.
10:24This motorcycle is very comfortable to ride.
10:26It goes over the bumps really well.
10:28Again, it doesn't make a lot of power,
10:30so you're not going to have to worry about overwhelming the suspension.
10:35Triple-disc hydraulic brakes from Nissan.
10:38We have radio-mount four-piston calipers up front
10:40that are made by Nissan, but embossed with Kawasaki's logo.
10:43Very nice touch.
10:45Out back, we have a single-piston rear brake.
10:47Brakes are more than capable of shedding speed on this motorcycle.
10:52They do a really nice job, even though we don't have a radio master cylinder up front here.
10:56This motorcycle isn't fast enough to necessitate that.
10:59Of course, we have fixed always-on ABS.
11:02The ABS is non-IMU-powered.
11:05There is traction control.
11:07Again, non-IMU-powered.
11:08This motorcycle doesn't have an IMU, but it does have traction control.
11:11To be fair, with it only making 56 horsepower,
11:15it really doesn't need traction control.
11:16It's still a nice that Kawasaki includes it.
11:18It also has combined engine power and throttle mode maps.
11:22There's a sport map, which we're riding in right now.
11:25There's an alternative map,
11:27which lessens throttle-spot engine power ever so slightly,
11:31but it's really hard to feel,
11:33just because, again, this motorcycle only making 56 horsepower.
11:37You'd be hard-pressed to feel any slower power changes,
11:40just because this motorcycle is fairly slow already,
11:44unless you're revving it to 15,500 RPM.
11:47Like we are right now.
11:49Yes!
11:50Oh, when you do that, it's so awesome!
11:52Woo!
11:53Woo!
11:54Whoa, that was a fun, folks.
11:55Sorry, it was letting the speed get carried away from me.
11:58But, oh, boy, gee willikers,
12:01this thing's got some, it's got some stomp
12:03when you rev it up towards its 15,500 RPM red line,
12:09and it's very fun to ride.
12:10This engine doesn't have a lot of vibration.
12:13We're lugging it in sixth gear, 6,000 RPM at 60 miles per hour.
12:16There's not a lot of engine vibration.
12:18You get this thing spinning,
12:20and there still isn't a lot of engine vibration.
12:22You definitely feel a little bit of zing
12:24through the clip-ons and the foot pegs at high RPM,
12:27but I wouldn't say it's off-putting.
12:29This is a very nice engine on this motorcycle.
12:32Very livable.
12:33Very fun to ride.
12:34The only caveat is it doesn't have a lot of torque.
12:37So, if you want to get going,
12:39you're really going to have to wring this thing out
12:41and rev it to the moon.
12:43Keeping tabs on everything is this color 4-inch TFT display.
12:47I like it.
12:48It looks good.
12:49It's a little bit small.
12:51Right now, it's pretty easy to read,
12:53but if you look at it up close,
12:55the fonts are a little bit lower quality.
12:57There's other motorcycles out there
12:59with higher-quality TFT dashes.
13:01Still, it's cool.
13:02Kawasaki puts it on this motorcycle.
13:05You can also pair this 4-plus-inch color TFT display
13:09with your iOS or Android-powered smartphone
13:11via Kawasaki's Rideology app
13:13where you can do different things there.
13:17I think that's really neat.
13:19Again, a little bit small,
13:20but still relatively easy to read.
13:22We like the standard dark mode
13:25with the black background and the white fonts.
13:28Very, very nice.
13:30The other touch points on this motorcycle,
13:33even though this triple clamp is steel,
13:35the frame is steel,
13:36this motorcycle feels and looks very high quality.
13:39It looks every bit like a real Ninja ZX Sport bike,
13:43which we really like.
13:44I like that the styling pays homage
13:47to the Ninja ZX6R.
13:50Of course, the Ninja ZX,
13:5210R has gone a little bit away
13:55from this styling package
13:56and looking a little bit more racy,
13:59a little bit more Tsugomi style,
14:01which is Kawasaki's signature styling attributes
14:05that it now has on its sport bikes.
14:08But all in all, a very good-looking bike,
14:11and it looks like a full-size real sport bike.
14:14Even though this motorcycle
14:15is a little bit smaller in stature,
14:18smaller in displacement,
14:19smaller, lighter in weight,
14:20it still feels like a full-size motorcycle,
14:24which we really like.
14:26All right, let's grab some downshifts.
14:28Yes.
14:31Let's give her the berries.
14:33Oh, it's so fun to ride a bike like that.
14:35Now, this motorcycle rolls on cast aluminum 17-inch wheels
14:40shot with Dunlop Sport Max GPR 300 tires.
14:43These tires, they work really well,
14:46even though they're a budget tire from Dunlop.
14:48These tires have a lot of grip.
14:50They have a relatively rigid feel.
14:52Not too rigid, but also not too squirmy.
14:55And they have a lot of grip.
14:56You could ride these tires very hard,
14:58and they hold up really well.
15:00Well, we're getting ready to actually switch out these tires
15:04because we've been riding this motorcycle so much
15:05at the racetrack.
15:06It's time to fit something else.
15:08Stay tuned to our Instagram series
15:11to see what we fit next.
15:14Gosh, I just love riding this motorcycle.
15:16It's a very fun-loving, small-displacement sport bike.
15:20It just proves to you that you don't need to be riding
15:23at 160 miles per hour to have fun on a sport bike.
15:27This motorcycle, in a lot of ways,
15:28is a lot more practical as a street-going sport bike
15:32just because it generates less speed
15:35than a Ninja ZX-10R or a Ninja ZX-6R.
15:38You can be riding around at 48 miles per hour
15:41and still have a good time.
15:43And, of course, the handling on this thing
15:45is crazy how light this thing feels.
15:47Of course, this route's a little bit boring
15:50and doesn't have a lot of corners at high speed
15:53like we'd like,
15:54but rest assured,
15:55you ride this motorcycle on a faster road
15:58with lots of corners,
15:59and this thing is an absolute hoot to ride.
16:03Well, everyone, that was a super fun ride
16:05on Kawasaki's 2025 Ninja ZX-4RR.
16:08Who knew a small-displacement inline-four sport bike
16:10could be so fun to ride?
16:11Yeah, it doesn't make a lot of torque,
16:13but you rev this thing up towards its 15,500 RPM redline,
16:16and this thing certainly gets with the program.
16:18We love the charismatic feel of the engine.
16:20We also like how light and agile this bike feels.
16:23415 pounds of full tank of gas,
16:24but it feels much lighter in motion.
16:27And if you're looking for a really fun
16:28and more affordable sport bike,
16:31check out this $9,700 Ninja ZX-4R from Kawasaki.
16:36It carries a one-year warranty.
16:37It's made in Thailand.
16:38Well, everyone, that wraps up our official MC commute
16:40on the 2025 Ninja ZX-4RR.
16:42We'll see you in the next episode.
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