The Ninja goes electric, but it’s not what you probably think it is. Rather than being a blisteringly fast sportbike with unlimited low-rpm torque and razor-sharp handling, the 2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1 is a motorcycle firmly entrenched in the urban mobility segment. With a list price of $7599 and supersport styling, this battery-powered Ninja allows you to stealthily traverse big cities without leaving a trace. Let’s dig into the details of this all-new electric motorcycle.
- The 2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1 has a brushless, permanent magnet synchronous motor that will propel it up to 52 mph, and then some. In everyday riding, you get 5kW of power and a top speed that keeps you off the freeway, even in urban areas. However, the Ninja e-1 has an ace up its sleeve: e-boost. Push a button, and you get 15 seconds of 9kW of power, and that’s good enough for 65 mph. That will help you pass a slow-moving vehicle, or reach escape velocity when the stoplight turns green.
- The Ninja e-1’s electric motor has two modes. Top speed in the Road mode is 52 mph, with Eco mode restricting you to 37 mph. However, e-boost can be invoked for 15 seconds in Eco mode to run the Ninja e-1 up to 45 mph.
- The range of the Ninja e-1, when laying off the e-boost, is 41 miles. The Eco mode will undoubtedly extend that a bit, though Kawasaki is tight-lipped about how much.
- Kawasaki has equipped the 2024 Ninja e-1 with a pair of hot-swappable lithium-ion batteries. You can run the Ninja e-1 with one or two batteries installed, though if there’s only one battery, you’re restricted to Eco mode and no e-boost.
- There are multiple charging options for the two 30 amp-hour batteries. You can charge them on the bike, though they charge one at a time. You can remove them from the bike—they live under the storage box—and charge them one at a time with the included charger. If you get the accessory dock, you can charge both batteries simultaneously—a 3.7-hour job going from zero to full. Charging a battery from 20 percent to 85 percent takes just 96 minutes. If you have spare batteries, you can simply swap them out while charging.
- With no clutch or gearbox, the 2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1 is easy for a new rider to operate. Hop on the bike, turn it on, and flick up the kickstand. From there, you press the Drive Ready button, and it’s ready to go. If you put the kickstand down, the Ninja e-1 automatically switches from Drive to neutral.
- As you will be riding the Ninja e-1 in the tight confines of urban areas, there is a Walk mode and reverse function. With the e-1 stopped and the throttle off, push the mode button for a few seconds, and the TFT screen turns red. That tells you the e-1’s speed is limited to 3.1 mph. To get the e-1 into reverse, plus the throttle forward past the stop. Top speed in reverse is 1.8 mph.
- Sporting a trellis frame, the 2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1 has ergonomics similar to the Ninja 400 gasoline-powered motorcycle. That means it’s relatively small and impressively light—309 pounds with both 25-pound batteries installed.
- The Ninja e-1 should have sporty handling to match its fairing-equipped countenance. The 24.4-degree rake and 3.7 inches of trail are identical to the Ninja e-1’s unfaired maternal-twin sibling—the 2024 Kawasaki Z e-1 ABS. The wheelbase is less than 54 inches, so agility and maneuverability should rule the day—remember, the top sustained speed of the e-1 twins is not ready for the freeway, so there’s no reason to lean the handling toward high-speed stability.
- Along with regenerative braking, the Ninja e-1 has a disc brake on each wheel. Up front, you get a modest 300mm disc and conventionally mounted two-piston caliper, and the rear has a 220mm disc with its own two-piston caliper. The IRC Road Winner RX-01 tires on 17-inch rims should shoulder their acceleration, deceleration, and cornering responsibilities handily. We will take the Ninja e-1 for a run or two on the famed ridge-running Mulholland Drive separating the Los Angeles Basin from the San Fernando Valley—a thrilling and scenic 11-mile adrenaline blast of urban twisties.
- The Ninja e-1 has the electronics you’d expect from an urban motorcycle. You get LED lighting and a TFT dash that pairs via Bluetooth to your iOS or Android smartphone, provided you’ve installed Kawasaki’s free Rideology The App Motorcycle app. Unfortunately, Rideology gets a 1.6 rating on the Apple Store, and tracks you across apps and websites.
- Practicality matters on an urban motorcycle, and the Ninja e-1 comes through. What looks like a fuel tank is actually a storage box with a 6.6-pound capacity. There’s also space under the passenger seat to stow the charger and a U-lock.
- You have a choice of one colorway for the 2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1, which should be in dealerships this month. The Metallic Bright Silver/Matte Lime Green/Ebony looks good to us, and we look forward to urban testing of this stealthiest of Ninjas.
2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1 Specs
MOTOR
• Type: Permanent magnet synchronous
• Rated power: 5kW
• Maximum power: 9kW
• Transmission: Clutchless single-speed
• Final drive: Chain
BATTERY
• Type: Lithium-ion
• Maximum capacity: 60 Ah (two 30 Ah batteries)
• Charge time: 3.7 hours per battery
• Estimated range: 41 miles (Road mode w/o e-boost)
CHASSIS
• Frame: Steel trellis
• Front suspension; travel: Non-adjustable 41mm fork; 4.7 inches
• Rear suspension; travel: Linkage-assisted, spring-preload adjustable gas-charged shock; 5.2 inches
• Tires: IRC Road Winner RX-01
• Front tire: 100/80 x 17
• Rear tire: 130/70 x 17
• Front brake: 290mm disc w/ 2-piston caliper
• Rear brake: 220mm disc w/ 2-piston caliper
• ABS: Nissin ABS
DIMENSIONS and CAPACITIES
• Wheelbase: 53.9 inches
• Rake: 24.4 degrees
• Trail: 3.7 inches
• Seat height: 30.9 inches
• Curb weight: 309 pounds
• Color: Metallic Bright Silver / Matte Lime Green / Ebony
2024 Kawasaki Ninja e-1 ABS Price: $7599 MSRP
