Following the reveal of 2021 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR at the FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) in Jerez, Team Green has fully revealed the Ninja line of ZX-10R and ZX-10RR superbike in the international market. The Japanese brand has announced that the 2021 Kawasaki ZX-10R will be priced starting USD 16,399, the KRT Edition will be priced at USD 16, 699, the ZX-10R ABS will be priced at USD 17,399, the ZX-10R KRT Edition ABS will be priced at USD 17,699 and the ZX-10RR comes at USD 28,999 (MSRP).
For 2021 the Ninja ZX-10R and the ZX-10RR have been completely revamped and feature a new aerodynamically enhanced front fairing, smaller and lighter LED headlamps, integrated winglets to increase downforce, stability and several changes to the chassis and engine. The next-generation motorcycle features a sharper nose which claims to improve the downforce by 17% but will polarise some customers in the looks department. The revised air intake is also able to feed more oxygen into the intakes and the windscreen has been positioned 40mm higher than before offering more wind protection to the rider.
In the engine department, the 2021 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R features a Euro5 compliant motor with 998cc of displacement and an in-line four-cylinder 16-valve architecture. The new engine features Diamond-Like Carbon coated finger followers, Titanium intake and exhaust valves, larger coolant passages to improve thermodynamic efficiency, lightweight Chromoly camshafts with a soft nitriding treatment, dry film lubricant on the piston skirts and several other weight-saving and friction-reducing treatments.
The ZX-10R also gets 4.3-Inch TFT Instrumentation with Smartphone Connectivity, Integrated Riding Modes, Electronic Cruise Control, Bosch IMU, Kawasaki Launch Control Mode (KLCM), Cornering Management Function (KCMF), Sport-Kawasaki TRaction Control (S-KTRC), Kawasaki Intelligent anti-lock Brake System (KIBS), Kawasaki Quick Shifter (KQS) and more.
The new chassis also features a new swingarm pivot position that has been lowered by 1 mm and provides better action during corner exits, a longer wheelbase accomplished by a higher fork offset and an 8 mm longer swingarm allows the motorcycle to be more composed, a shorter trail achieved by the revised fork offset allows easier change of direction as well.
The motorcycle also gets a new lower triple clamp and new advanced Showa Balance Free Front Fork (BFF) front fork and new independently adjustable compression and rebound damping, fork settings. Rear suspension duties are handled by Showa Balance Free Rear Cushion (BFRC). Braking power comes from 330 mm Brembo semi-floating front discs with dual radial-mount four-piston callipers, revised brake pads on the 220 mm rear unit and repositioned rear brake reservoir.
The 2021 Kawasaki ZX-10RR focuses more on closed-circuit-riding. The extra ‘R’ in the moniker means the motorcycle is laced with performance parts tuned to for just one purpose, lower lap times on the racetrack. In addition to the shared litre-class engine, the ZX-10RR comes with a single-seat design several special updates through Team Green’s racing experience in WorldSBK.
The engine has been updated with new Camshafts, new Intake and Exhaust Valve Springs, Pankl High-Performance Parts, Marchesini Forged Wheels, Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa SP Tyres and the intake funnels have also been eliminated from the airbox. The ZX-10RR also features new lighter weight pistons that lower the reciprocating weight, allowing the engine to rev higher and the RPM climb to be smoother. The new pistons also use one less piston ring who allows it to be shorter and reduces mechanical loss due to friction. The engine also uses lightweight titanium connecting rods manufactured by ‘Pankl’ and also features DLC coated piston pins to reduce frictional losses.
The 2021 Ninja ZX-10R is offered in two colour options – Metallic Spark Black/Metallic Matte Carbon Gray and the KRT Edition in Lime Green/Ebony/Pearl Blizzard White. The Ninja ZX-10RR model is available only in Lime Green.