Supercharged Commute! 2024 Kawasaki Z H2 Review | Daily Rider

Does your commute need a supercharger? Probably not, but do you WANT that?

Well, Zack hits the DR route to find out if a supercharged Daily Rider is good or bad.

SPECS:
MSRP: $21,300
Engine: 998 cc supercharged inline four cylinder
Measured weight: 533 lb. / 241.7 kg
Fuel capacity: 5.0 gal. / 18.9 liters
Seat height: 32.7 in. / 831 mm
Claimed torque: 101.4 foot-pounds

Zack’s gear:

0:00 Intro
0:54 Our Sponsor, RevZilla
1:29 A Quick Walkaround Of The Z H2
4:27 On The Road!
6:55 Freeway Cruisin’
10:27 Urban Manners & Stop Sign Challenge
12:49 Lover’s Lane
13:53 Twisty Road Section
17:17 At the Lights
21:45 Gettin’ Dirty
23:02 Will it Wheelie???
26:24 Instagram Questions!
31:44 On the Daily Rider Leaderboard

[dukenukem]

It's the equivalent of deer hunting with an M134 Minigun.

[tednrok]

I owned the first version of this bike and put 20k miles on it through local mountain rides in CO and tours up to Wyoming and South Dakota. Amazing bike. Zach is spot on about the gas mileage, pretty good if you really baby it, but that is super challenging so don’t expect great mileage as you will want to feel the super charger kicking it. It handles great for street riding. You can really push it through turns really well, and it holds its line. It’s comfortable, but after about an hour to two it because uncomfortable and very hard to ride. Not a lot of options for more comfortable seats and no where else to put your feet to adjust your riding position. You’re pretty locked in so on a long day in the saddle you will be very glad to get off after about 200 miles at the most. Excellent bike though, the feel of the super charger kicking in really makes up for a lot.

[DouglasRosser]

A motorcycle Zack finds challenging to wheelie. Truly terrifying!

[ThaDirtyVicar]

Always grateful when a new ride comes up in my feed. Thank you for what you do.

[Nifilheimur]

Tested the H2 SX and its probably the most amazing motorcycle ive ever ridden. Brutal but smooth at the same time. Expect the Z H2 to be the same.
The supercharger flutter made me smile every single time :p

[estoylaroca]

After reading the comments, people really are underplaying the supercharger bit to think that it's a regular "turbo", to which it is not.
Supercharger buffs the torque on the lower rev range.

Difference being, on a regular 1000cc bike, you're waiting to get to that end of the rev line to get your power.
With the ZH2, no matter where you are at that rev line, *LOOK* at something, twist the throttle, and you're there.

Riding any other 500+cc bike is just going to feel bad after the ZH2, trust me.

[tonyciriello]

As one of those "older" riders, (68) I so want this bike. I put a Druin supercharger on my 1974 Norton Commando around 1975. That turbine sound was just awesome. Only gained 15 to 20 HP but the sound was what made it so "cool". It completely ruined the handling. Everything was on the left side and you had to counter-steer to go straight. Took it off after some hairy high speed adventures. Factory designed is always better. I will just have to keep riding my FTR 1200 for now. Thanks for the great reviews as always.

[Syringe]

I have a '21 Z H2 SE, and agree with Zach's excellent review for the most part. I bought the service manual, and there is an extra step once a year with oil changes - a small catch can off the supercharger needs to be emptied. It's a pain to reach, and mine has never had more than like 5 ml in it. Folks already pay a lot for oil changes at a dealership - this shouldn't be a markup, and if so, only tiny. The dealer I bought from charged a lot more for setup than a "regular, " bike, which I was able to negotiate down. Kawasaki accessories sells a fly screen for it, which is shockingly effective for its small size, helping make the Z H2 an excellent travel bike. I have >20, 000 miles on mine, and it'll chew through miles effortlessly. There are several small pannier kits for them; I have the SW Motech setup. It handles FAR better than it should for its size, and tires are critical. Mine came with some Dunlops [I think]. Those weren't the greatest. I have a set of S22s on it now, and those were transformative - much better handling. Finally, you can drop weight more easily than you might expect. I installed a Shorai battery, and the Akra dual exit slip-on from the European "performance package, " [CARB legal, I might add!!], and those two subtracted >20 lbs. It's a great bike, I have no plans to get rid of it, and it's so special to ride, you cannot imagine something like this sticking around for much longer as emissions regs continue to tighten. One other thing - it is more expensive to insure than a "normal, " bike.

[photomorti]

I drove a Kawasaki Z650 for the first time today and that has 67 hp. And im allready blown away how fast it is hahaha i cant even imagine what this must feel like

[stav-ttvg]

Always happy to see Zack riding, what a lovely guy.

[JayBrockway]

I have had a 2023 H2 SX SE for the past year and it is a green dream machine. I have found setting the power mode to medium makes the engine response much more linear and the supercharger makes the engine more like an electric motor with lots of torque at low RPMs. In medium power mode the power is more usable on road and traffic.

[sneakypotato]

Hi Zach, can you do a daily rider on the Kawasaki Z900RS?

[sv-bk]

I daily a 200hp R1, borrowed my friends ZH2 for the day and holy smokes that thing feels like it's accelerating faster. Quicker acceleration at higher speeds too.

[georgecole]

First bike in 82 was a 73 Kawi 350 triple, 42 years and 20+ bikes later i bought a ZH2, older gentleman checking in.

[markettradinggenius]

Zack, if you had your choice between the 2024 Z H2 and the 2024 Suzuki Hayabusa, as a daily rider, which one would you choose?

[GoldenBoyGarage]

I love when you get a bike and you can tell they put extra care into building it / the proverbial halo bike.

[attilanagy]

Hi Zac. My daily ride (since 9 years) is my beloved ZX14. I love that thing! I also tried the Z H2 a while back when it's came out. It is extremely fast, (at least it's feels like faster then my ZX14, although it isn't). It's insanely expensive, but also unique. Everything you have said about it, it's true. All it wants to do is wheeling in every gear😅. It is good and special, but if you've been riding a ZX14 for a long time, it doesn't feel as special as it's price! Plus, the dealer told me the service on any of Kawasaki's supercharged bike is a hell of a lot more then the others, which they don't tell you before you've singed the dotted line! I think I have to look for one though on the used market. Great video again, as per usual!

[davetbrunner]

I don't even ride (yet), but I watch every one of these videos 😂

It's your presentation, speaking voice, humor, and brutal honesty that will make me buy the right bike ✌️ And so far I lean towards the lightweight corner carving bikes like the 390 Duke or the more attractive Speed 400

[Motovibes]

I have this bike and let me tell you, the feeling of acceleration when the supercharger kicks in is unmatched. I've ridden plenty of fast liter bikesband they don’t come close to this acceleration. When you open the throttle it feels like you’re caught in a tornado

[brianesquivel]

Amazing as always revzilla. Cant wait for the big 100