This 250cc Kawasaki Ninja Is Sexier Than The Ninja ZX-4R

The quarter-liter sports bike segment is on its deathbed in the West. The only 250cc sports bike available here is the Suzuki GSX-250R, which hasn’t been updated in over a decade. At the other end of the world, though, things are quite different. Honda offers the CBR250RR you all love, and Kawasaki shows its prowess with the inline-four Ninja ZX-25R. The latter has had a small update for MY25, becoming hotter than its sibling sold in America.

The Kawasaki Ninja ZX-25R Now Comes In A Sinister New Livery

“Why fix what’s already quite epic?” That’s the approach Kawasaki has taken with the Ninja ZX-25R in 2025. The motorcycle got a small refresh for the 2024 model year, and much of the bike is the same as before. What is new is the colorway for MY25.

It’s called the Metallic Matte Mysterious Gray/Metallic Flat Spark Black. As the name suggests, much of the bike is blacked out, but there’s a healthy dose of deep purple-type gray graphics all over. That gives the 25R a custom bike kind of look, which we simply dig. It looks better than the US-spec Metallic Matte Whitish Silver option for the ZX-4RR, too.

A 249cc, Inline-Four Engine Powers The Kawasaki Ninja ZX-25R

Under the skin, the ZX-25R carries forward the 249cc, inline-four engine. This is good for 48.3 horsepower (with RAM air) and 16.2 pound-feet via a six-speed transmission. Being a screamer, the power comes in at over 15,000 RPM and torque at 12,000 RPM. At that output, the 25R is more powerful than most of your sub-500cc bikes like the KTM RC 390, Aprilia RS 457, and Honda CBR500R.

The engine sits inside a simple steel trellis chassis. It suspends on Showa SFF-BP forks and a monoshock, both offering adjustability. These join hands with 17-inch alloy wheels, each of which houses single disc brakes. All of the simple materials help enable a curb weight of 405 pounds with the 3.96-gallon tank full.

Last but not least, features are aplenty here. You get all the basics, such as:

• Dual-channel ABS
• Traction control
• Two-way quickshifter
• TFT instrument cluster
• Smartphone connectivity
• USB socket
• LED lights

Kawasaki Has Limited The ZX-25R To Asian Markets

If you like what you see, we have some bad news. Like always, the ZX-25R remains limited to Asian markets. So seeing it in America (or even on this side of the world) is a distant dream, unless someone goes through the hassle of importing one here. It’s a bummer because the ZX-4R is making all the right kind of noise, and the ZX-25R could be the perfect sidekick for that. Are you listening, Kawasaki?

2025 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-25R Specifications