Did Kawasaki Discontinue The Ninja 400?

By News Update On Dec 20, 2024

If you are a motorcycle enthusiast looking for the most affordable, small-capacity Ninja sport bike from Kawasaki’s extensive lineup, the two options listed on the Kawasaki USA website are the Ninja 500 and the Ninja 650 (yes, the ZX-4R exists, but the ZX lineup is part of Kawasaki’s Supersport series). The Ninja 500 has a starting price of $5,299, while its 650cc cousin will set you back at least $8,299, making these motorcycles excellent entry-level sport bike offerings.

Interestingly, had you visited Kawasaki’s website in early 2024, you would have seen another small-capacity sport bike listed there: the Kawasaki Ninja 400. Today, however, the Ninja 400 is nowhere to be found on Kawasaki’s U.S. website. So, where did it go?

As it turns out, the Ninja 500 — which was first announced in 2024 — came in as a replacement for the Ninja 400. While Kawasaki hasn’t explicitly confirmed this, the Ninja 500’s press release (PDF) contains several remarks hinting at this transition. This also becomes quite evident when you look at the specs of the Ninja 500. With a small 52cc increase in cubic capacity, the Ninja 500’s new 451cc engine isn’t massively different from the Ninja 400’s 399cc unit. In the 500’s launch release, Kawasaki describes how it builds “upon the foundation of the Ninja 400.”

Nevertheless, with the Ninja 400 no longer featured on Kawasaki USA’s website, it’s reasonable to conclude that the model has been discontinued. It is also pertinent to note that the Ninja 400’s discontinuation is a global phenomenon, with the motorcycle either completely missing from the company’s local websites or not being updated since the 2023 model was released in mid-2022.

Why was the Kawasaki Ninja 400 discontinued?

Kawasaki never officially revealed the reasons for the discontinuation of the Ninja 400. While it is true that companies often discontinue products in their arsenal due to poor customer reception and sales, that reason doesn’t seem applicable to the Ninja 400, given that the Ninja 500 — save for the name change and a few upgrades — essentially remains the same motorcycle as the Ninja 400.

These similarities become patently evident when we look at the two bikes, which are nearly identical when it comes to looks. Besides the look, the Ninja 400 and the 500 models have several things in common that range from the front and rear suspension setup to similar tire sizes (the Ninja 500 has a slightly different rear tire size, 150/60-17 as opposed to 150/70-17 on the Ninja 400) and identical front and rear disc brakes. Both motorcycles have almost the same dimensions, wheelbase, and weight, not to mention fuel capacity.

As far as the specs are concerned, the upgrades on the Ninja 500 over the 400 include the larger 451cc engine and a new LED headlight and taillight cluster. The motorcycle also gets new high-contrast LCD instrumentation, which now includes smartphone connectivity. Additionally, Kawasaki also confirms that they modified the shape of the seat, allowing for a sportier riding position.

The larger 451cc engine on the Ninja 500 has resulted in the motorcycle making 51 horsepower of power, as opposed to the 44 horsepower that the Ninja 400 made. Since the introduction of the Ninja 500 in 2024, Kawasaki has updated the motorcycle once again for the 2025 model year.