Owned a Ninja 400 and enjoyed the bike very much. Then I bought the zx4rr and after riding it I can say they are not even in the same ball park as far as rider experience. The zx4rr is glued to the pavement with that suspension and the bike turns in to corners effortlessly. The inline 4cyl engine is absolutely beautiful and the on off throttle is perfect. I love everything about the bike. I just sent ECU out to be flashed and I’m sure I’ll love this machine even more when I get it back. The thing I enjoy the most about the bike is when you want to ride relaxed it does it so well and when you wanna rip and rev the bike out it’s an absolute blast. It’s like having 2 bikes in 1. It really is an awesome motorcycle.

That Anniversary Edition has such pretty graphics and colors, wow.

Mine just arrived at dealership ... this looks even better in person ... thanks for reviewing

Great review. Your initial review of ZX4RR vs ZX4R helped my decision to buy the RR all the way back in May of last year. Thank you! Matter of fact, just did my first vid ever on what modifications I have done... so far. Again, thank you for great reviews.

I actually own the zx4rr 40th anniversary. I bought it December and already have 1300 miles on it. I would never even consider a ninja 500 over it. I did not even consider the zx6r over it. I wanted the zx4rr since I heard about it in 2022. I just didn’t want the krt colors. But when the 40th anniversary colors came out and I walked into my local dealer and saw it there early last December, I sold my 2015 Versys 650 ( with 93,000 miles on it) and bought it. I wanted dependable nostalgia with terrific sound. If I want speed, I also own a fully flashed 2021 Zx14r (my dream bike) in the garage. I will be flashing the zx4rr and taking to the track sometimes later this year.

Watching you helped me make my decision for getting a 2023 ninja 650. I keep coming back because I just enjoy your content. Keep up the great work

Fantastic in-depth technical review. Thank you!!!

Looks great in person but can't beat the black! :)

Pick mine up next week. There are fast bikes, and there are fast riders. This is a perfect corner carver, makes more HP than the R7, and is the perfect track bike. Mine will allow me to get back into track days, and hopefully into competition later on. Not to mention, this is an instant classic and will hold its value for years to come. Thankful that Kawaski revived this class of bike- my wife is thankful that I won't be going ludicrous speed in 2nd gear as I did in the past with my ZX6R. Great video, as always. Those who get it, get it.

Got mine in late Jan and still haven’t insured it. I wish it warms up soon in Canada so I can get a first ride. The 40th anniversary livery did it for me, especially the green wheels! My first bike was a 2008 zx6r lime green on green. I was just never a big fan of the KRT graphics.

Hi Peter. Nice to see you again in the UK

Having grown up in SE Asia in the 80's to 90's, I got to ride most of the 250 2-stroke and 400 inline fours 4-strokes from that era. I did eventually own 2 Suzuki GSF400's which dominated club racing, which was kinda odd since it was steel framed with not the best components. I do think the GSF400 was the best of the bunch for street riding which, of course, is why I bought two of them. So how were the older 400's like to ride and own? They were very expensive to maintain (I think all of them had valve adjustments of between 3000 to 6000 miles). And they ate their front tires like no other bike. With a 400cc inline four, it's all cornering speed but the geometry on them is off with the engine so far forward. With bigger bikes, you have that instant torque that allows you to throw the bike on its rear tire right after full lean, and you could be pretty sloppy at to which RPM you were at but 400cc bikes were just terrible at that. You'd end up riding through the most of the turn on the front tire as you had a lot of throttle but either not enough rpms or too much rpms. And that's the way you see riders riding the new ZX4RR! So despite the electronics which I would hope you could whack the throttle open, you can see these ZX's are just really hard bikes to ride on the track and on the street. Eventually I gave up and bought 600's, 750's, and 1000cc bikes that were a lot easier to ride and maintain. Ultimately, 400cc inline fours weren't very good street bikes and they weren't very good race bikes. Maybe the Japanese manufacturers built them as a way to see if they could bring insane valve train technology to production but ultimately it was just cheaper to build big displacement motorcycles that were about the same weight as those 400cc bikes.

I have the ninja 400, with full exhaust and tune. Didn’t make sense for me to go to the 500 since the horsepower change is tiny. Just more tech. So I’m moving to the zx4rr 40th anniversary edition. Got a deposit on one and waiting till it comes in. The 500 seems nice, but not if you’re coming from a 400.

you don't know how much I want this anniversary edition but sadly in our country only the Zx4R is available and that too only in black colour not even the KRT RR variant. I would love to ride this beautiful bike, love the paint job and the legacy it carries.

My first bike in japan was a zxr400. I called over 20 dealerships before I locked in my zx4rr 40th. Im forty, the ninja is forty. If I still had my 84 zxr it would be forty. And from what I hear they are only puttimg out 40 40th anniversary editions for each model. Mine is 31... I have never bought a new bike, or one sight unseen, but I know this is my bike.

Hi Peter, i tried to get a ninja 400 this year 2024. However the ninja 400 has been kept at the 2023 model and are not shipping anymore evidently to the US. They are bumping us to the ninja 500. Yes, I would like for you to do a review of it because i ended up going with the 500. I should receive it in March. Thanks

I am considering getting the ZXRR-Ah,(lol). I think it makes a lot more sense, in my opinion. I say this because, after researching a ton of different bikes, I’ve found that the ZX4RR is the best option. I say this because the sound is ridiculously awesome, but the 500 is still technically a 450, and kind of is the same as the CF Moto 450SS. The Ninja 650 is awesome-sauce too, but I believe the ZX4RR is the best option. Love you reviews.

They really KILLED the color scheme. I LOVE the 40th. So tempting… want the ZX6R but $. ZX4R seems in budget 👀

The colors on that bike are amazing

I would likely go with the Zx4-RR because my Eliminator 450 would overlap too much with the Ninja 500. Gotta diversify the garage! Ideally I'd love to have an older Zx-7R but i'm not trying to mess with carbs.

Nice paint with the green/blue/green rims. Ha, you got good practice that first time without the microphone. ZX4RR looks like a fun Kawasaki motorcycle. Do you believe Kawasaki is going to replace the Ninja 400 with the Ninja 500 eventually? I remember riding my Ninja 250R (now have Ninja 650), and wondering what a 500 was like back then. Thanks!

this all day every day of the week

I ordered ZX-6R in that color at Jim gibert. My sales man told me It’s coming in April. 🎉 I can’t wait for it either your next video with my bike.

Hi Peter, I’ve watched a lot of your reviews which helped me pick the bike I was looking for, which is the ZX4RR, much appreciated! I do have some questions though, the suspension is adjustable, but how to choose the right setting? And what should be the right adjustments in several situations? I Live in the Netherlands and we have like tons of speed bumps where I think the default settings are just fine but sometimes there are some tiny holes in the road or just going through a corner where I feel like the suspension is a little soft. How would I determine what’s right for me? And how to adjust both the front and back suspension to what is suitable for me? Appreciate it!

Love your passion for motorcycles, nice review

ZX4RR is going to hold value longer, I don't think they'll be making a small displacement inline 4 much longer since basically everyone including Kawi has been heavily focused towards twins as for the cost / regulations are easy on them.

I have the zx4rr and its the most fun bike I've owned. It would be amazing to see what the other guys would respond with, but that probably won't happen. They won't make these for long. Whatever it is that's keeping us from the 70hp it has inside is only going to get more pronounced. That's partly why I got one. I realized this can't go on past 2026 without another stranglin', and by that point, why not just drop the model all together? This bike was a wishlist fantasy, and one day, Kawasaki said, "Aw, alright. We love your pretty smile, so we'll make this ridiculous bike." It feels, like you said, like a favor. And very impermanent.

For the price of the 400RR I'll rather get the 636 although I wouldn't use it's full potential most of the time. I'm interested in your thoughts about the ninja 500 and 650 and long term thoughts.

I remember being in Germany and the 1991 zx400rr was a scalpel.....lol very similar

Nice review I need those wheels for my Vulcan s.😅

Just got a ninja 500 it’s a blast!

Please do a video of considering the upcoming Ninja 500 vs the Aprilia RS 457

Great idea for a video actually. One thing I noticed on the Kawasaki site was that if I ordered a ninja 650.. the windshield cost like $100 the cig lighter costs like $50.. but if you add these on the new 500 or the zx4rr it’s MUCH more expensive.. like by hundreds of dollars.. what is up with that?

I have a 400 and I don't think the bump in performance for a 500 is enough to jump ship. 400rr sounds like a blast and I'm sure a tune would put it on another level, but for the price I'd rather get an inline 600. I was really hoping kawasaki would juice up the 650 to a 700 to compete with thr R7, Gsxr8 or the cbr650. For the money I think the 500 would be solid.

Love this bike, what would be the real one up from here is to see a company bring back a 2 stroke. Regulations be damned it would sell

Could you show us the red/black version of the 500?? Or 650

Zx4 looks and sounds legit if i was deaf and just hopped off the new 500 the torque would win me all day

Have yet to see a review on the new z500! I'm looking to purchase but can't find an in-person review! Please 🙏🏼🙏🏼

I have a 200 cc bike want to upgrade which one would be better zx4r or zx6r ???

It is a good looking bike-I've not ridden Kawasaki and am curious. I also fear that this bike is way too complicated for me to do maintenance on. Engine not very accessible.

Can someone please tell me when the Ninja 500 should come out? I can't find any reviews on it 😔

How tall are you? I definatly wanat the zx4rr for that inline 4 sound! No question. What is in story on the 2025 zx-4rr?

The riding school nearby gets everyone on Suzuki 600s. Me, I want a 125, not overpowerd for the city or under powered for the country and 125 is the snd license and insurance class.

Can anyone here attest to the fact that the new ninja 500 sounds like a 4 stroke dirt bike or am I mistaken from the audio??

I'll take the 500 for my first bike

Nice vid, but a little leaned towards the RR. I understand that, but...They're both great bikes. For me, it's very simple: If you want practial, street, light, and simple fun, go N500. If you want racy, cool, hi-tech, ooh-aah, go RR. The N500 won out easily for me, w/MUCH lower cost, much less weight, notably more comfortable riding position, easier ownership experience (Maintenance, gas mileage, cost, comfort, et al.). If I were going tracking, turn it all around. As always, pick the right tool for the job...And I know many will want the RR for the street. Cool. It's higher end, has that I-4 wail, more top-end power, and all that extra. No arguent from me. Get what floats your boat. It's all good. Both are great bikes.

There's such a huge difference in price of the 4rr. It's almost double the cost.

Now we just need a 500cc 3 cylinder.

Any idea when it releases in the states?

The ZX4RR is great for open roads/long rides while the Ninja500 is good for city ridings

i think the zx4rr and the ninja 500 could have been so much better the detune from factory on the zx4rr is criminal

Great video !!! how tall are you ?

As much as I like Kawi and such and the 4R is a great all around 4 cyl. bike, the CBR 650R isn't that much more expensive, maybe $500 more and you get a 650 4cyl. instead of a 400. Hard to consider the 4R at this point.

When is going to arrive?

This might sound a little crazy but the ZX4rr should be the new beginner bike! You can even find them for way cheaper now, got mine for $8 thousand out the door. Forget them bullshit 2 cylinders bikes, unless that’s what you like or the most you can afford.

I heard the 4 has a shorter life than the 2 and that was before. I think this new 2 will last even longer, yes?

cant find an H2😢

How tall Are you??

zx7r or this for the track ????

Ninja 500

I’ve never seen hazards on a bike either

The price difference is just too much for me. I’ll go 500.

I think it's too much bike for me to start on. I had a Honda 200XL ditbike, went to a 360 Twin and then got a 750 Yamaha Maxima, but I haven't been on a bike for 30 yrs.

Kind of unusual that you don't test ride the vehicles! 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔

Hardly anyone will keep the rear fender!

ZX4RR is a beautiful bike that makes superbike sounds but it is death by insurance cost. Compared to a Ninja 650, the 650 cost less, has way more usable power, and you pay 1/3 to 1/4 the price for insurance.

For me the Ninja 500 is the better choice because it is more versatile and of course price matters.

The front suspension is not that good for the cost! It should come with fully adjustable front forks for the price and some better rubber! Before I personally would pay that!!

isn't it a no brainer to take the ZX4RR ?

399cc?

Hand down the 400rr

I would rather have the ninja 400 over the ninja 500, the ninja 400 was lighter and not even 2HP less. Plus the ninja 500 is really a 451cc. Where I live insurance is based off CC, anything with 401cc-750cc costs about literally double than 50cc-400cc. The 50-400 costs $47-$55, the 401-750 is $110-$120. The ZX4 has as much HP after the tune as the new GSXS8, obviously the ZX has a lot less torque, but that GSXS8 is now 2 brackets up since it's over the 750cc range. That third bracket of insurance is around $200 a month. I guess if you love the idea of paying way more money for zero gains I guess the 500 is appealing.

Ninja 500 is a 400 with a little I mean a little longer stroke. So 500 has same horsepower as 400 same motor expect for a longer stroke. So 500 had a couple ftlbs torque more than 400 that’s it. 400RR has a in-line 4cylinder!!! Even 650’s don’t have that they have parallel 2cylinder engines. So 400rr sounds awsome so 400 and 500 has 50hp or 40 something can’t member 400rr had 77hp!!!!

Emissions don't work like that.

on track zx4 rr on the same tire beat ninja 500 and ninja 400 on road defenitely ninja 500 at 1 place cos most torq down low and most comfy ergo second ninja 400 the same ergo the same max performance just weaker lowend and last zx4 r most sporty ergo weakest lowend in category FUN on track no how efficient bike is what was 1 category so which end race on 1 place in which zx4 r smoked ninja 400 and ninja 500 than hard to say depend on day probably can be all 3 🤷🏻‍♂️😉👌🏻☕️

Yall stop calling it ninja 500 and call it the ninja 450

Do people really consider this a Supersport?

Bro Its to slow. Get a zx6r for a few grand more. You wont regret it.