From our Old Bike Archives – Issue 115 – first published in 2024.
Ride review: Rennie Scaysbrook • Photography: Kit Palmer
I have to confess I am a real fan of the retro Z900RS, there’s one in my garage. But the RS just got better with the addition of the up-spec SE model for the 2024 Australian range. We have had this one before, but only in extremely limited numbers. Now it’s part of the fleet, and who better to appraise it than number-one son and ace tester, Rennie.
There are few motorcycles that have left their mark on the subculture like the Kawasaki Z1, which could quite easily be labelled the first Japanese superbike, the machine that put us on the path we’re on today with over 200 hp four-pot screamers.
Using the Z900 as its base, the Z900RS channelled the lines and style of the original but with most of the mod-cons you’d hope for like fuel injection, modern suspension and decent brakes.
The Z900RS SE comes with the beautiful “Yellow Ball” paint scheme, gold wheels, gold forks, Brembo 4.32 monobloc four-piston brakes and an Ohlins S46 monoshock.
The motor in Z900RS SE guise has shorter duration intake and exhaust cam profiles than the Z900 and combined with the 12 percent heavier flywheel, the Z900RS SE produces more torque and pulls harder up to 7000 rpm in a more linear fashion.
It prefers to ride along at a medium speed, using all that torque in third, fourth or fifth gear to float from corner to corner without having to constantly dance on the shift lever.
However, it’s not perfect. Considering we live in the modern age, I would have loved Kawasaki to have fitted the quickshifter that is also missing from the Z900SE. The gearshift is a little on the agricultural side and although no mis-shifts were encountered, it’s a heavier shift than I’d have liked. That is the only downside to the Kawasaki’s engine and gearbox equation, and the rest of the machine is superb. The ride quality offered by that Ohlins S46 is a marked improvement, and the Brembo Monoblock brakes offer decent bite and performance.
Perhaps the thing I love most about the Z900RS SE is the ergonomics. This is a properly old school 50/50 front to rear riding position with next to no weight on your wrists so you can ride further for longer without getting sore. Comfort is the name of the game here, with the package topped off by that 1970s-style bench seat that wouldn’t look out of place in a ’69 El Camino SS. More than anything, the Z900RS SE emits the kind of style I absolutely love. It is (in my opinion) the best of the throw-back style machines on offer from today’s manufacturers, and there’s some good competition in that category from the likes of Triumph, BMW, and, to a degree, Yamaha.
There is just one colour offer, what Kawasaki call Metallic Diablo Black, with a vivid yellow panel in the oh-so-retro fuel tank. Pretty as that tank is, the air filter underneath sits well up into the tank itself, so you’ll need to stop fairly regularly to add another 17 litres. The front mudguard is very brief at the rearward end, so water and muck gets flung into the radiator. There’s a number of inexpensive and easily-fitted after-market extensions available to partially ameliorate this.
It’s not perfect, no bike is, however, I don’t think I could find anyone who will go for a ride on a Z900RS SE and not at least like it, if not love it. It’s that kinda bike.
Specifications: 2024 Kawasaki Z900RS SE
Engine: Inline four-cylinder, DOHC, 16-valve, liquid-cooled
Displacement: 948cc
Bore x stroke: 73.4 x 56mm
Compression ratio: 10.8:1
Lubrication: Wet sump
Ignition: Digital
Power: 82kW at 8,500 rpm
Torque: 98.5 Nm at 6,500 rpm
Clutch: Wet multi-plate
Transmission: Six-speed
Chassis: Tubular steel trellis frame
Suspension: Front: Inverted 41mm fork with adjustable compression and rebound damping, and spring preload. 120mm travel.
Rear: Horizontal back-link swingarm. Ohlins S46 shock with stepless adjustable rebound damping and spring preload adjustment. 140mm travel.
Brakes: Front: 300 mm dual semi-floating Brembo discs, radially-mounted Brembo monobloc M4.32 four-piston calipers, ABS
Rear: 250 mm disc, single-piston caliper, ABS
Tyres: Front: 120/70 ZR17 Dunlop GPR-300F; Rear tyre: 180/55 ZR17 Dunlop GPR-300
Wheelbase: 1470mm
Seat height: 845mm
Fuel capacity: 17 litres
Weight, wet: 214kg
Colour: Metallic Diablo Black
RRP Australia: $19,309 + ORC
And checkout the 2025 version at https://www.kawasaki.com.au/en-au/motorcycle/z/retro-sport/z900rs/2025-z900rs-se
