Kawasaki has announced plans for a future range of hybrid and battery-powered bikes with the first models hitting showrooms in the near future.
Along with this announcement, Kawasaki took the wraps off a hybrid prototype that it has been dropping hints about since 2020, which displays how the technology will be applied to evolutions of existing gas-powered machines.
Kawasaki says that by 2035 every major model it sells in developed markets will be either fully electric or a hybrid. However, in the short term, the company vowed to have more than 10 battery-electric and hybrid-electric motorcycle models in showrooms by 2025, which is a much different outlook from when Kawasaki unveiled an electric prototype several years ago with no plan for a production bike.
Kawasaki says that by 2025 it will be launching an average of 16 new models a year, including the battery-electric and hybrids, and by then the company will have launched 15 new off-road models as well.
Kawasaki hasn’t officially revealed any details of the hybrid prototype as of yet, but it appears to use the parallel twin engine from either the Ninja 250 or Ninja 400, and a large electric motor is fitted above the gearbox. The battery is a 48V unit mounted under the seat.
