Kawasaki updates ZX-6R

Kawasaki has updated its popular ZX-6R supersport with new styling, a modern TFT dash, and the 636cc screamer engine to comply with Euro-5 emissions norms.

The 2024 ZX-6R has an all-new face that is sharper and more aggressive. The twin LED headlights have been redesigned, and the face has been brought more in line with the current-gen ZX-10R. Behind that new face lies the signature Kawasaki TFT dash, replacing the earlier model’s (visually pleasing) digi-analogue unit. The TFT dash also brings with it Bluetooth connectivity enabling users to get notification alerts and navigation updates by pairing their smartphone to it.

Updating it to meet Euro-5 emissions norms has had an impact on the bike’s performance and weight — it now weighs 2kg more, at 198 kg (with its 17-litre fuel tank full).

Powering the ZX-6R is the same liquid-cooled, 636cc, inline-four screamer engine that churns out 128hp at 13,000rpm and 69Nm at 10,800rpm. The eagle-eyed will notice that peak torque is now made 200rpm lower in the rev range. This engine is mated to a close-ratio 6-speed gearbox, with the addition of a quickshifter. The company’s site does not specify whether this is a bi-directional unit, but, with the presence of throttle cables, this is most likely the same up-only quickshifter as the earlier model.

Nestling this engine is an aluminium perimeter frame suspended by a USD fork and monoshock, both Showa units and both fully adjustable. Braking duties are handled by a pair of Nissin monobloc calipers clamping down on twin 310mm petal discs at the front and a single-pot caliper clamping on a 220mm disc at the rear.

As was the case with the earlier bike, you get two power modes — Full and Low — and a 3-level traction control system. This 2024 model also gets four riding modes — Sport, Road, Rain and Rider (fully customisable). Tyre sizes at 120/70-ZR17 and 180/55-ZR17 at the front and rear, respectively, are the same as the earlier model. However, the bike now runs on Pirelli Diablo Rosso 4 tyres as opposed to Bridgestone Battlax S22s.

In the UK, the Kawasaki ZX-6R is priced at £10,599 (around ₹10.8 lakh), which slots it neatly between the Z900 and the Ninja 1000. This was the case with the earlier model too, when it was on sale in India. If it does come to India, expect the Kawasaki ZX-6R to sit somewhere around the ₹12 lakh mark.