Doing something new sometimes isn't easy; a thing that Kawasaki Motors has been discovering in recent months. In 2024, the company introduced four bikes in completely new categories for the brand. The first two were the all-electric Ninja e-1 and Z e-1, and the second two were the Ninja 7 HEV and Z7 HEV.
While all were intriguing to varying degrees, things haven't been smooth sailing in the months since. In September 2024, Team Green issued its first stop sale, stop ride notice on the Ninja 7 and Z7 hybrids, followed in November 2024 by a second stop sale, stop ride for a different hybrid issue.
Those were both for the hybrids, though; what about Kawasaki's pure electric motorcycles? Well, in February 2025, it's now their turn for a stop ride notice from Kawasaki. On February 24, 2025, the company advised owners to immediately stop riding their 2024 Ninja e-1 and Z e-1 motorcycles if they were produced prior to October 19, 2023.
The reason: A missing anchor is apparently an issue on some unknown number of units, which is responsible for connecting the drive battery connector terminal. On a motorbike that relies solely on an electric motor, having battery connectivity is crucial; without a proper, secure battery connection, the bike could stop unexpectedly. This could, of course, be dangerous to the rider and their bike, which is why Kawasaki has issued this recall.
In June 2024, Kawasaki's battery supplier, Forsee, began inspecting the terminals on its batteries to ensure that this problem no longer occurred. Therefore, Kawasaki Ninja e-1 and Z e-1 motorcycles produced outside the specific range outlined in this recall should not be affected.
While Kawasaki hasn't specified a notification schedule, it plans to send a notification letter to all registered owners of Ninja e-1 and Z e-1 motorcycles that may be within the affected range. Authorized Kawasaki dealers will inspect the battery terminals. If they find that this anchor is missing, they will replace the entire battery, free of charge. Kawasaki already sent a Stop Sale, Stop Delivery notification to its dealer network on February 24, 2025 regarding this issue.
Repair information should come to the Kawasaki dealer network later in March 2025. Around 216 bikes are believed to be affected, which represents approximately one percent of the population according to Kawasaki's records.
Kawasaki Motors Corporation USA's number for this recall is MC25-03. Owners may contact KMC customer service at 1-866-802-9381. Additionally, owners may contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or go to www.nhtsa.gov.
