In Akashi, Kawasaki is working hard and fast to show up at the big motorcycle shows at the end of the year and release a refreshed line up of models. And one of those models, according to British website Bennetts, is a new generation of the iconic Ninja ZX-6R.
The 2019 supersport Ninja will be even more aggressive than before. Kawasaki saw what Yamaha did with its supersport YZF-R6, a bike that is winning on the race tracks in World Supersport and other championships while conquering motorcyclists around the world at the same time, and so the Akashi brand is developing a completely new Ninja ZX-6R that will be capable of taking the fight to Yamaha on the supersport segment.
According to sources, the design of the 2019 Ninja ZX-6R will be based on the hipersport H2 supercharged bike, but the engine will continue to be the inline-four with 636 cc displacement, with Kawasaki working on this engine to fulfill the Euro4 regulations.
The power figures won’t be too different from the previous generation, and might even be a little worse. According to Bennetts, the power will decrease 1,2 hp compared to the previous generation Ninja ZX-6R, and this is because of the new three-way catalytic converter installed on the exhaust headers to make the engine Euro4.
There’s also the possibility that Kawasaki is working the engine to make it Euro5, because the new homologation rules will become mandatory in 2020.
The electronic package will also be inspired by its big sister ZX-10R, and the supersport Ninja is getting features like a Bosch Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) that will take control of the ABS, traction control and possibly wheelie control.
When will we see the new Ninja ZX-6R?
Everything points to Kawasaki having the bike reveal at the Cologne motorcycle show in October, but usually a reveal of this magnitude happens at the more famous EICMA show in Milan, in November.