After more than 20 years, the ZXR400 returns to Kawasaki. A new VIN decoder released by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration confirms the arrival of a 399cc four-cylinder inline Supersport model for 2023.
Earlier this year we wrote that a new ZX-4R Supersport is on the way, powered by a 399cc four-in-line engine and derived from the ZX-25R, which is only available in Japan and some Asian markets.
Shortly after the launch of the ZX-25R, Team Green was rumored to be working on a 400cc version, which exploded in March this year after the Japanese magazine Young Machine reported that a ZX-4R was indeed on the way. is coming. More than once, Young Machine has been right.
And so it is now, as has been shown by the new VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) decoder recently released by the NHTSA in the United States, which lists two new models: the ZX400PP and ZX400SP, both registered as Super Sports models.
Apart from the fact that it is an inline four-cylinder engine, nothing is known about Kawasaki’s latest ZX400 Supersport, nor under what name it will be marketed, but the most obvious is Ninja ZX-4R, which name is in line with the Ninja ZX-25R and the rest of the Supersport family: Ninja ZX-6R and Ninja ZX-10RR.
How much power the block of the ZX400 will deliver is not yet known at the moment, the list contains TBD, or to be determined – still to be determined. However, it is expected that it will be a lot higher than the 48 hp power of the Ninja 400, which has been put back on the market after a year of absence in Europe for model year 2023.
With the ZX-25R, Kawasaki has already achieved a top power of 44 hp from a displacement of 250cc, if you take that as a starting point, you will arrive at a top power of 70 hp with a 400cc ZX-4R. The chassis of the ZX-4R will probably also have many similarities with that of the ZX-25R, but then adapted to the greater power of the 400 Supersport.
The inclusion of the ZX400PP and ZX400SP in the new VIN decoder is strictly speaking no confirmation that the motor will also be marketed in Europe, but we estimate that chance is very small. It would be illogical to develop a completely new engine that does not comply with Euro5, especially since it has been rumored for some time that the US will adopt the Euro5 standards in the near future.
– Thanks for information from Motorfreaks.