The banshee howl of the good old in-line four engine has become synonymous with sportbikes for several decades now. Although a good number of top-tier sportbikes now make use of V4 engines, the high-pitched scream of an inline-four will always have a special place in the hearts of sportbike enthusiasts.
In today's performance-obsessed sportbike scene, it's truly a breath of fresh air to see a machine designed to focus on providing a pure riding experience without the neck-breaking power. I'm talking about none other than the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-25R. While you folks in the U.S. and Europe are unlucky not to have this bike available in your home countries, here in Asia, the ZX-25R is a rather common sight among sportbike aficionados. I've been privileged enough to have ridden this bike quite a few times, and I can confidently say it truly lives up to the hype.
As such, it isn't really too surprising that despite being unrivaled in its class, the ZX-25R continues to exist and be modestly updated. In fact, for the 2023 model-year, Kawasaki has introduced a refreshed Ninja ZX-25R SE in Thailand. Giving it a few touches of modernity, it's clear that the update was made mainly in compliance with emissions restrictions in various parts of Asia—including Japan. Yes, the SE version sports a redesigned exhaust system to lower emissions, but it also gets a full-color TFT display and LED turn indicators to refresh the bike's aesthetic.
Packaged with the full-color TFT display is built-in smartphone connectivity. Now, ZX-25R owners can enjoy all the perks of Kawasaki's Rideology app, allowing them to configure various settings on the bike via their smartphone. Apart from the revamped tech package, the ZX-25R SE gets revised front suspension tuning. Interestingly, however, the ZX-25R SE doesn't get a quickshifter, unlike the recently unveiled ZX-25RR edition in Indonesia. All that being said, the recently unveiled SE version is also expected to make its way to other parts of Asia, including Japan.
