While several carmakers around the globe have already announced their roadmap towards achieving complete electrification of their portfolio, bikemakers are yet to follow suit. Kawasaki recently became one of the first movers in this regard when it announced that it is planning to go all-electric with all major models for developed countries by 2035. The Japanese bikemaker has now commenced its ambitious journey by introducing a hybrid sportsbike prototype at a presentation in Japan. The hybrid sportsbike that was showcased is a fusion of a conventional ICE with a small EV motor.
What is it exactly?
Over the past year or so, several intellectual property filings have revealed that Kawasaki was indeed planning to introduce something like this. Going by how the prototype looks, it shouldn’t be long before we will get to see a full-fledged production version of the proposed sportsbike. Kawasaki has been successful in its attempt of packing an electric battery by downsizing the engine in order to fit a battery in what appears to be a frame sourced from a Kawasaki Ninja 400 mule.
To top up the hybrid battery, the system can utilize regenerative systems. The Japanese bikemaker has placed a 48V pack under the seat. It works in tandem with a parallel-twin engine, the exact displacement of which hasn’t been revealed yet. The hybrid sportsbike can run on full-electric mode in the city limits while out on the highway, the hybrid system will operate both the electric motor and the combustion engine.
Another noteworthy addition to this system is a semi-automatic transmission. Kawasaki has been working on with its pure-electric prototype, named the Endeavour. While the new hybrid tech by Kawasaki isn’t classed as zero emissions in average consumption, but like we mentioned earlier, it can be driven in pure EV mode at slow speeds.
Kawasaki recently also made it official during its recently held business policy briefing that it is gearing up to introduce at least 10 battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and hybrids (combined) by 2025. Kawasaki has also announced that it is working hard towards introducing 16 new models per year by 2025 and this number also includes EVs and hybrids.