On October 6, 2023, Kawasaki Motors Europe introduced yet another new model that involves electricity and is in the Ninja family—but don’t call it an electric bike. It’s the 2024 Kawasaki Ninja 7 Hybrid Electric Vehicle, or HEV. Team Green first introduced a prototype and briefly discussed it at EICMA 2022, but that was nearly a year ago—and a lot has advanced between then and now.
As the name suggests, it’s powered by two things. On the combustion side, there’s a new 451cc parallel twin engine that’s capable of manual or automatic gear selection. On the electric side, Kawasaki uses a 9-kilowatt (about 12 horsepower) traction motor with a 48-volt battery pack. Team Green is calling this combination a strong hybrid system, and brags that it’s the world’s first mass-produced motorbike of this type.
By their powers combined, they aren’t Captain Planet—but the two devices do produce a claimed 43.5 kilowatts (about 58.3 horsepower), which can rise to a peak of 51.1 kW (about 68.5 hp) if you engage the e-Boost feature that’s also found on the fully electric 2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1 and Z e-1.
Gallery: 2024 Kawasaki Ninja 7 Hybrid
What’s the combustion equivalent?
According to Kawasaki, the Ninja 7 HEV most closely resembles a 650cc to 700cc combustion bike in terms of physical size and performance. Presumably, that’s why it chose to call it a Ninja 7. It’s a name that’s different enough from its existing naming practices to call attention to the fact that it’s not the Ninja that you’re used to—but similar enough so you know it’s still a cousin, at the very least.
If you watch the video, you’ll see a cutaway animated diagram showing the combustion engine, the traction motor, the battery, and their placement within the frame. It’s clear from the video that Kawasaki worked to centralize the mass—something it also specifically mentions in the official release about this bike. Full details aren’t available yet, so we don’t know what this bike weighs—but are sure to be coming soon.
Features of the 2024 Kawasaki Ninja 7 HEV
While we don’t have full specs just yet, here are a few things that Kawasaki lists as features on this completely new bike:
- An idle stop function, where the combustion engine stops when the bike is completely still to conserve fuel. It’s a feature already found on some scooters but hasn’t historically been common on motorcycles.
- Automatic Launch Position Finder, which automatically selects first gear when the bike is at a standstill so you’re ready to go when it’s appropriate
- Walk Mode, which offers a low-speed Reverse and Forward option. This feature debuted on the 2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1 and Z e-1
- Full-color TFT dash with a layout that looks very similar to the one found on the 2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1 and Z e-1
- Three ride modes: EV, Eco Hybrid, and Sport Hybrid
- No clutch lever and push-button shifting on the handlebar
Pricing and Availability
Kawasaki is a manufacturer that sells its bikes in multiple markets. However, it often releases its new models in different regions at different times. As of October 6, 2023, it has announced this bike in the European and UK markets.
Pricing information is coming soon but is not available just yet. According to Kawasaki, however, the 2024 Ninja 7 HEV should be available in UK dealerships in April 2024.
It’s a reasonably safe bet that full specification information, along with important things like pricing details, will be released sometime between now and then (and likely sooner rather than later). As and when we have more information, we’ll of course keep you up to date here at RideApart.
