Kawasaki Ninja ZX Vs. H2: Which Sport Bike Is Faster?

Kawasaki's Ninja line runs so deep that you'll not only find some great starter bikes like the Ninja 400, but you'll also find some of the fastest Kawasaki bikes ever built. The Ninja H2 and ZX are on the list of the fastest bikes available from Kawasaki, so if you're in the market for something powerful, these are good places to start. But which one is faster?

With the H2, there are three models to look at. Riders have their pick between the H2 SX, H2, and H2R, and the starting MSRPs for these three bikes are $28,000, $32,100, and $58,100, respectively. None of the three can be considered budget-friendly, but the H2 SX is the cheapest of the bunch.

The ZX line has even more options to pick from. These include the ZX-4R, ZX-6R, ZX-10R, and ZX-14R. The prices for these bikes have a starting MSRP of $9,399, $11,399, $17,799, and $16,599, respectively. We're going to look at the most powerful machine from each group for comparison, so that means the ZX-14R and H2R. Keep in mind that all of these are solid bikes, so it's tough to go wrong with any of them, especially if you're not planning on hitting a racetrack.

Packed with a massive 1,441cc motor, you might make the assumption the Ninja ZX-14R is the faster of the two bikes, but there's a big factor at play. Kawasaki has a limiter in place that makes the bike top out at 186 mph, so there's a lot of performance left on the table. If you want to reach the bike's full potential, you have to bypass that artificial ceiling. You can do this by getting the ECU flashed, but that'll set you back several hundred dollars. Nevertheless, if you get the limiter removed, you can reach nearly 200 mph.

Shifting gears to the H2R, we're looking at a bike that boasts a 998cc motor but costs exponentially more than the ZX-14R. There's a big reason for this, and it's because this bike's top speed is blazingly fast. Truly a bike like no other, the H2R can hit up to 249 mph, effectively making it one of the fastest bikes in the world.

It's clear there's no real competition between the two, but it's also worth noting the average rider isn't shelling out over $50,000 for a motorcycle — especially since the Ninja HR2 isn't street legal. No matter how you slice it, all versions of the Ninja H2 cost more than the ZX line, but as you do down the line, you'll see the lower-end H2s are more comparable performance-wise.

Looking at the two cheaper options in the H2 line, we can see how the H2 SX and H2 compare to the ZX-14R. Assuming the limiter is still in place for the ZX-14R, all the H2s have to do is surpass 186 mph, but you'll see there's a catch. The H2 SX and H2 are equipped with that very same limiter that caps out the top speed at 186 mph. Like other bikes with the limiter in place, you can bypass it with an ECU flash if you're willing to spend some money.

Without any restrictions, the H2 can stretch its legs and go beyond 220 mph. So, there's a lot of performance being held back by the limiter, and a flashed H2 is faster than a flashed ZX-14R. The H2 SX is comfortably redlining at its 186-mph top speed, so flashing the ECU might not unlock a ton of extra power there. No matter what bike you go for, whether it's any of the H2s or the ZX-14R, you're getting a speedy bike — even with the restrictions.