2021 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R Review

The Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R’s design has stood the test of time and still looks sleek and purposeful. That is until you stand it next to the latest 2021 iteration, which has a significantly meaner and more brutal look about it. The last major update came in 2016, so it was due for a refresh.

Of course, haters are gonna hate, and there's inevitably been some negative comments about the 2021 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R's new aggressive styling, particularly the revised front fairing. Let me just say that pictures do not do it justice and in the flesh it looks incredible, especially with the all-new, blinding LED headlights tucked right into the nose.

Changes to the bodywork aren't just for show either. Being a bit late to the aero-party, the new ZX-10R now features the almost-compulsory addition of wings. But instead of simply bolting some upside-down airfoil sections onto the bike, Kawasaki has gone a more unique route by incorporating scoops built into that wild-looking upper fairing, either side of the capacious new air-intake.

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Despite not being huge appendages, the revised design apparently generates up to 17 per cent more downforce on the front tyre than the old bike (although unlike some other manufacturers, Kawasaki doesn't quote an actual kilo figure for this). Being fully enclosed means they're also less likely to snap off if you slide through the kitty-litter: bonus.

As well as the extra downforce, Kawasaki claims a reduction in drag of seven per cent which, as an ex-aeronautical engineer, I can tell you is the opposite of how the maths works: if you increase downforce, you increase drag. What Kawasaki is actually referring to in this case is a decrease in drag for the entire bike/rider combination over the outgoing model. To achieve this, the broader front fairing also features a larger and more steeply raked screen (40mm taller) which helps produce a bigger pocket of still air.

If this all sounds a bit tortuous on paper, the actual riding experience is far from it. I initially wondered if I'd even be able to bend my old bones enough to get my feet on the 'pegs, but it was no problem at all. The spacious cockpit gives you plenty of room to move about and, although I have an agreement with a journo mate of mine that he is to murder me with a brick if I ever use the phrase 'the controls fall easily to hand', the straighter bars are in a perfectly natural position.

My biggest ergonomic peeve is the fact that the clutch and brake lever assemblies cannot be rotated around the 'bar far enough to give a straight pull – something I dislike on any bike. Either the switch gear or wiring loom get in the way, meaning your wrists are always cracked at an annoying angle. It definitely effects my ability to jump on the brakes as quickly as I'd like. And on a bike with more than one horsepower per kilo (with full ram-air in effect), the right-hand lever naturally gets a proper workout.

In contrast, you rarely need to bother the clutch as the quickshifter is superb in either direction. The gear linkage feels like it has zero play in it underfoot and is super positive, 100 per cent accurate, and just about seamless – even in traffic. It's probably one of the best I've used lately and always a massive help on the track.

Before arriving at Kawasaki's Sydney HQ, I'd been drooling over shots of the ZX-10R in its winter-test livery. I was very happy to see our press bike in the same glorious matte-black scheme, officially called Flat Ebony, although sadly missing the snowflake stickers. The bike looks absolutely mint with this paint, much better than the fussy green/black/red/white combination.

The only downside to all the moody blackness is that the paint seems to mark very easily and our test bike was already showing quite a few signs of scratches on the tank and boot scuffs on the rear bodywork. To be honest I'd be willing to put up with it simply because the bike looks so stunning: almost like it's been wrapped. In other news I bought a black texta yesterday: I'll let you know how that goes.

Other eye-grabbing features are the front brake and suspension components, which together look about as race-ready as you could possibly imagine. It's hard to go wrong with dual 330mm discs in the death-grip of Brembo M50 monobloc calipers and actuated by a radial Brembo master cylinder at the bar. When squeezed hard, the power is absolutely immense with tons of feel. And yet they retain a delicate touch when just scrubbing off a couple of km/h in normal conditions.

Sitting alongside these incredible stoppers is just about the most factory-looking front suspension set-up on any road bike out there. Showa's BFF fork (or Balance Free Front Fork) separates the spring from both the compression chamber and damping force chamber, and is effectively grafted straight over from the WSBK factory race bike.

It's a complicated arrangement but was a good compromise between race-track stiff and user-friendly compliance. The support on the brakes is particularly noticeable, giving the rider plenty of confidence when steaming, nose-down, into a blind corner.

Unlike some of its rivals, however, there's no electronic adjustability, meaning you can't easily have two separate settings (one for track, one for street) available at the flick of a switch. That said, the base setting, although certainly quite firm, worked very well on the road, particularly the small bump damping.

All of this would be a bit of a waste if the rear shock wasn't also up to the task. Thankfully, more acronyms follow in the form of the Showa BFRC-lite (or Balance Free Rear Cushion) rear shock. The shock works every bit as well as the fork it's mated with and the adjustments are easily accessed without taking the bike apart.

The linkage and shock are also both mounted above the swingarm, which not only help keep it cool (and therefore the damping consistent) but gives the engineers more wiggle room under the bike for changes to the exhaust layout (critical in this Euro 5 era). This helps ensure the end-can isn't the size of bus… I'm looking at you, GSX-R1000R.

No modern superbike would be able to hold its head up in a pit-lane full of its peers without a comprehensive rider-aid package. The Ninja ZX-10R is certainly not left wanting in that department, featuring state-of-the-art software linked to a six-axis Bosch IMU and based around Kawasaki's propriety Cornering Management Function.

The system, incorporating ABS, anti-wheelie, engine braking, and traction control, constantly monitors multiple parameters such as RPM, throttle position, pitch and yaw information, as well as acceleration and rates of change in every direction. Throughout corner entry, mid-corner and corner exit it adjusts the bike to help it come out the other side as quickly and safely as possible while maximising grip and acceleration.

This predictive software analyses data at five-millisecond intervals, altering the ignition and throttle valves to keep the bike behaving smoothly and with optimal traction. What’s more, it can do all this whilst taking into account whether the road/track surface is on a camber or gradient rather than just relating all its data to a horizontal plane, as is commonly the case. Safe to say it's probably much better at it than I am.

To help keep things as simple as possible for the pilot there are three pre-set maps/modes which have fixed power, traction control (also linked to anti-wheelie), and ABS values. There are an additional four Rider modes which are fully customisable and give the option of fully disabling the TC.

I used Road quite often due to the shocking weather during our test period but found Sport to be preferable when things dried out. Both of these maps give full power but with more intrusive electronics. Meanwhile, Rain has 60 per cent of the available ponies and pretty much all of the safety features dialled up.

Despite being such an obviously track-ready weapon, the ZX-10R is surprisingly kind to its owner on the road. As mentioned above, the riding position isn't the pilates torture device the specs might suggest and, at a shade under six feet, I found it to be a great fit.

The press-pack supplied with the bike mentions how the first three gears are now shorter to give the in-line four more punch out of slower corners, helping it live with those pesky V-twins on the track. That being the case, the bike was surprising docile off the line and trickling through traffic was a sensible and very smooth affair thanks to the impeccable fuelling and silky engine.

Make no mistake though – while this bike can be Dr. Jekyll around town, from 4000rpm it transforms into Mr. Hyde, the intake roar taking on a totally different sound and the bike shrieking out of the traps.

It does it again at about 6000rpm and then just keeps pulling, hard, until the big shifter light lets you know it's either time to grab another ratio or you hit the limiter.

It's super exciting but never feels like you aren't the one in charge and, even though you could clearly go to prison without even bothering fourth gear, it actually feels safer than any 200hp+ motorcycle has a right to outside of a racetrack. Everything seems to come together to help keep it under control: the riding position, the power, the brakes, the quickshifter, the safety package, and, not least of all, the handling.

Since the ZXR and ZX-7R days, Kawasaki models have been noteworthy for feeling planted, but this one must surely be generating its own gravitational pull. In the dry, it feels like losing the front end would be physically impossible, and you can take some liberties with this thing, especially on corner entry. I cannot wait to do a follow-up test with some track time thrown in.

The level of grip and feedback from the ultra-sticky Bridgestone RS11 tyres is superb and if anything I'd only have liked the option of adjusting the electronic steering damper, which felt a bit over-stiff. That said, it did seem to do a great job of stopping the front getting its knickers in a twist when hard on the power out of bumpy corners, still with some opposite lock on.

To help make it even more road-friendly, there are some nice features over the old model including heated grips (as an accessory), cruise control and the ultra-clear TFT display from the H2 range. Plus there's Bluetooth connectivity for your phone and you can also use Kawasaki's free Rideology app, if that's your bag. Oh, and even though the indicators are built into the fairing-mounted mirrors, they are designed to be easily removable for track use. On a side note, the stalks are positioned in such a way as to make lane-splitting a total cinch too.

Back in the day I firmly believed it was my manly duty to only ever ride motorcycles with clip-ons, rear-sets and loud pipes regardless of the situation. To that end I commuted many a sportsbike across London on a daily basis for decades, toured Europe with a tank-bag and pillion on numerous occasions, rode to and from every track day, and for a short and somewhat blurry time even worked as a courier on a ZXR750.

Since having the ZX-10R under me I have re-lived some of those heady days – riding a pretty much inappropriate motorcycle in a very inappropriate fashion. Whether popping to the shops, commuting to work, or going for an all-day blast to nowhere in particular, it has been awesome.

It's no secret that sales of sportsbikes have been on a downward trend for some time now. However, if you are in the market for something a bit racy, it makes sense to look at a motorcycle that has proper credentials such as the ZX-10R on which Kawasaki has won seven of the last eight WSBK championships.

There isn't another manufacturer that comes close to this level of consecutive-title domination, and this is very likely the best version of the ZX-10R to date. For the record, Mr. Rea topped the winter test on this bike, falling just one-tenth behind the all-time WSBK record. See what I mean?

Don't just take my word for it though – Kawasaki has sold every single one of the current batch. Who said sportsbikes weren't still popular?

ENGINE
Type: Liquid-cooled, DOHC, 16-valve, in-line four-cylinder
Capacity: 998cc
Bore x stroke: 76mm x 55mm
Compression ratio: 13.0:1
Fuel system: EFI 47mm x 4 with dual injection

PERFORMANCE
Claimed maximum power: 203hp/149.3kW (213hp/156.8kW with ram air) at 13,200rpm
Claimed maximum torque: 114.9Nm at 11,400rpm

TRANSMISSION
Type: Six-speed (with bi-directional quickshifter)
Clutch: Hydraulically controlled slipper and self-servo wet multiplate clutch
Final drive: Chain

CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR
Frame: Twin spar, cast aluminium
Front suspension: Fully adjustable 43mm Balance Free Fork, 120mm travel
Rear suspension: Fully adjustable BFRC shock, 115mm travel
Front brakes: Twin semi-floating 330mm Brembo discs with dual radial-mount, Brembo M50 monobloc four-piston calipers, ABS
Rear brakes: Single 220mm disc, single-piston caliper, ABS
Wheels: Cast alloy; 17x3.5in front, 17x5.5in rear
Tyres: Bridgestone Battlax Racing Street RS11; 120/70-ZR17 front, 190/55-ZR17 rear

DIMENSIONS AND CAPACITIES
Rake: 25 degrees
Trail: 105mm
Wheelbase: 1450mm
Seat height: 835mm
Claimed weight: 207kg (wet)
Fuel capacity: 17 litres

OTHER STUFF
Price: Red $26,000 plus ORC
Colors: Lime Green with Ebony Pearl & Blizzard White or Flat Ebony
Bike supplied by: Kawasaki Motors Australia
Warranty: 24 months unlimited kilometres