2024 Kawasaki Z500 Preview With Video

The second new Kawasaki 500 streetbike to be unveiled at EICMA is the Z500. The Z is the naked bike sibling to the 2024 Kawasaki Ninja 500 released concurrently, and which also shares the same new larger 451cc engine. As with the Ninja, the Z500′s so-called “all-new engine” is in reality a heavily revised version of the outgoing 399cc mill, and was first spotted on the Eliminator cruiser earlier this year. There’s fresh styling on the Z500, though you’ll see a lot of the same underpinnings as the outgoing 2023 Z400.

We know that the new liquid-cooled DOHC parallel twin makes just under 45 hp at 9,000 rpm, and channels it to the rear wheel via a slipper and assist clutch acting on a six-speed gearbox. With the outgoing 400cc model claiming a similar power output but weighing a few pounds less, performance on the Z500 should be relatively close or on par. (We also know 451cc isn’t that close to 500cc, but if Kawasaki wants to call it a 500, so be it.)

As with the Ninja, much of the Z500′s chassis returns relatively unchanged, with a steel-trellis frame and 17-inch wheels attaching to a 41mm nonadjustable fork and rear shock (preload adjustable), but the updated styling and other details better adhere to the Z family design language. The sharper more aggressive style takes elements from the bigger Z bikes, with a crouching stance, low front, and new rear section with an upswept tail. Redesigned side ducts on the tank and a more compact front with smaller dual headlight arrangement make it look sharper.

Like the Ninja 500, the Z500 will be available in two trims, the standard and the SE. The Z500 SE features a high-grade full-color TFT display with a screen that adjusts brightness automatically to suit available ambient light.

Both standard and SE models are available in Candy Persimmon Red/Metallic Flat Spark Black/Metallic Matte Graphene Steel Gray or Candy Lime Green/Metallic Spark Black/Metallic Matte Graphene Steel Gray.