Rennie Scaysbrook | October 11, 2018
2019 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R First Look—Just when you thought the supersport market was dead and buried, Kawasaki comes to the rescue with a new ZX-6R.
2019 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R First Look
Kawasaki’s looked down to the Ninja 400 rather than up at the ZX-10R for the new design.
Well, sort of. The 2019 Kawasaki ZX-6R does indeed look different compared to the last ZX-6R, which can trace its roots back almost a decade ago, but underneath it’s still very similar to what was on sale in 2018.
That’s not entirely a bad thing, because the 636cc ZX-6R is still one of the best all-round street sportbikes money can buy.
Starting with the most obvious change in the bodywork. Unlike many bikes that look to their larger capacity brethren for cosmetic inspiration, Kawasaki has instead taken design cues from their Junior Cup weapon in the Ninja 400, with the now twin LED headlight-equipped front fairing looking suspiciously like the 400 that debuted earlier this year. The seat unit, also featuring a new LED taillight, is slightly sharper and angled taller than the 2018 piece, although the gas tank looks the same as before.
Under the new fairing and bodywork sits a now Euro 4 compliant 636cc inline four-cylinder motor measuring 67.0 x 45.1 mm that’s the same as in 2018, but the final drive ratio has been changed from a 16-tooth front and 43-tooth rear sprocket to 15 front/43 rear to give a bit more bottom-end performance. Also new for 2019 is Kawasaki has fitted the Kawasaki Quick Shift (KQS) system as standard for clutchless up (not down) gear shifts.
As for the chassis, it’s the same twin-spar aluminum design as always, with Showa providing the suspension in the SFF-BP (Separate Function Fork – Big Piston) fork and rear shock, both ends fully adjustable, and braking is taken care of by ABS-equipped Nissin four-piston radially-mounted calipers up front and a single piston caliper at the rear.
As for electronics, you get the ABS, Kawasaki TRaction Control (KTRC), two power modes in Full and Low and the quickshifter.
It’s not the full makeover we’d hoped for but it the fact Kawasaki is even doing anything with their aging supersport machine shows they haven’t given up on the segment just yet. We’re currently in Las Vegas putting this thing through its paces and will let you know just what we think of Kawasaki revised supersport weapon soon.
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