2021 Kawasaki Z H2 SE Review

We live in an age of super naked bikes but none are quite as batty as the Kawasaki Z H2. And now it comes with semi-active suspension.

By Rennie Scaysbrook | Photography by Ryan Nitzen

When Cycle News big cheese Sean Finley and I put together a comparison test of the recently released Kawasaki Z H2 and Ducati Streetfighter S back in early 2020, both of us were left flabbergasted at just how fast the Z H2 was.

It wasn’t that the supercharged Kawasaki was actually faster than the naturally aspirated Ducati, it was the way in which the power would rush in with the kind of force we normally associate with professional boxers rather than motorcycles.

It was a case of the power-to-control relationship being firmly on the power side of the equation. The Z H2’s conventional Showa suspension was quickly overwhelmed by the task at hand of trying to tame such an unruly beast. Our findings were confirmed when more than one tester from the UK agreed with our findings, while a respected colleague of mine from back in the land of Kangaroo steaks said the Kawasaki felt like it had a hinge beneath the seat.

This has somewhat been put right by the big K with the release of the 2021 edition of the Z H2 SE. You’ve essentially got the same bike underneath you as last year, except for the fitment of the Kawasaki Electronic Control Suspension (KECS) system that teams with Showa and their Skyhook EERA (Electronically Equipped Ride Adjustment) Technology to transform the most mental naked bike on the road today into a partner you can actually live with.

You get four modes with the KECS to modulate the 43mm Showa SFF-CA fork and BFRC Lite shock (Sport, Road, Rain, and a programable Rider mode), which takes information fed by front and rear stroke sensors every millisecond, as well as taking information from the IMU (bike acceleration/deceleration) the FI ECU (front/rear wheel speed), and the ABS ECU (front brake caliper pressure) every 10 milliseconds to adjust damping to suit the current condition. In Rain mode, the system maintains the chassis balance by taking into account vertical acceleration and pitch rate (each confirmed every 10 milliseconds) to determine the damping force required.

The result at the bars of all this electronic trickery is a far more enjoyable ride than it was before. Forget the fact you have a claimed 101 lb-ft of torque at your disposal that comes on like a firework (more on that in a minute), the Z H2’s added composure when banked over hard on its side is something to be thankful for. The electronic Showa’s have also taken out much of the harshness we encountered last year when hitting hard-edged bumps like potholes and rough roads, the kind of hits that unsettle a chassis and send you flying off the road if you’re not careful.

The Skyhook/KECS work hand in hand with myriad other systems to help keep everything under control (big deep breath) KECS Linked Integrated Riding Modes, Kawasaki Cornering Management Function (KCMF), three Power Modes, Kawasaki Traction Control (KTRC), Kawasaki Launch Control Mode (KLCM), Kawasaki Engine Brake Control (KEBC), Kawasaki Intelligent anti-lock Brake System (KIBS), Kawasaki Quick Shifter (KQS) (upshift and downshift), Electronic Cruise Control.

When you get lost in the huge amount of electronics at your disposal, it’s easy to forget you’ve got the most bonkers production motor beneath your legs rattling away. Make no mistake, the Kawasaki Z H2’s supercharged 998cc inline four-cylinder motor is utter insanity. It’s so damn fast it’s beyond belief, and it was the ferocity of the motor which put the microscope on the chassis and suspension in the first place.

As mentioned, you have four modes at your disposal to help soften or increase the punch from the motor, but you can dress it however you want—you can’t hide the fact this engine is on the very edge of what is acceptable in modern riding. It’s not particularly docile at low revs, either. It feels like it’s always wanting to go, always waiting for you to crack open the throttle, get the supercharger impellor spinning up and unleash tons of arm-twisting torque to the rear tire.

Accompanied by the spooky sound of the supercharger, the ride is unlike anything else on the road today. There are mod-cons like a quickshifter, cruise control and ABS, mated to excellent Brembo Stylema calipers and a half-way decent master-cylinder so you can feel everything at its most needed, but this is without doubt the motorcycle incarnation of a heavyweight UFC fighter in a tank top at the beach. Ready to party and ready to fight in the same sentence.

The cockpit position for my 6’1” frame is a touch on the cramped side as I feel the handlebar is too narrow and too close for attack-stance naked-bike riding, although to be honest, it’s not that bad. It’s certainly something you don’t notice as much as the adrenaline of trying to hang onto the thing.

Kawasaki’s Z H2 is probably the gnarliest a company will make a naked bike. It’s barely on the side of sensible, barely, and for that, Kawasaki needs to be congratulated. It’s not overly practical (we got 22 mpg out of it on our test), nor is it going to win any beauty pageants, but the ride is undeniably engaging, and one that keeps us coming back for more. CN

VIDEO | Kawasaki Z H2 SE First Ride

2021 Kawasaki Z H2 SE Specifications

 

Click here to read the 2021 Kawasaki Z H2 SE Review in the Cycle News Digital Edition Magazine.

 

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