The adventure bike is popular because it is so versatile. You can enjoy a twisty road and a dirt one in equal measure. However, there are sub-segments that have developed. One of them is the adventure tourer, where the focus is more on road touring than adventuring – and that’s what most riders will be doing anyway.
The Versys brand aims to exploit precisely that. The flagship 1100 has a lot of expectations to live up to just by looking at its smaller siblings. Happily, it delivers with its large but not unwieldy experience, along with usable power. It also has brilliant features, but doesn’t go overboard with them. Impeccable reliability is another plus. On that note, here’s why the Kawasaki Versys 1100 might be the most practical premium ADV-tourer today.
Why The Versys 1100 Might Be The Most Practical Adventure-Tourer For The Road In 2026
Price: $19,599
The Japanese have always been pragmatic, and this reflects in their motorcycles as well. The Versys 1100 is Kawasaki’s flagship adventure bike and it has everything you might need for an interstate ride, but it doesn’t go overboard. A good example is the instrument cluster: it sticks to an old school analog tachometer, but also adds a TFT color display to aid with navigation. This same logic is reflected in other areas of the Versys, including the sub-$20,000 price. That is why the Kawasaki Versys 1100 might be the most practical premium ADV in 2025.
Kawasaki Versys 1100 Engine
The Versys 1100 uses a massive 1.1-liter inline four engine. While a lot of touring motorcycles are moving to the twin cylinder format for the less weight and additional torque they offer, it is good to see Kawasaki keeping the I4 candle burning. You’d be hard-pressed to find a smoother engine type in a motorcycle.
Surprisingly, Kawasaki has kept the power and torque figures skewed towards torque. Even the smaller displacement Suzuki GSX-G1000GX handily outdoes the Versys 1100’s power figure, but the Versys has oodles of torque. Remember, the goal here was not high-revving power, but usable torque with the creamy smoothness of an inline four. A by-wire throttle, ride modes, and cornering traction control monitor the power to keep you safe.
Transmission And Final Drive
Kawasaki has kept things relatively simple with a six-speed manual gearbox for the Versys 1100. An assist and slipper clutch, and a two-way quickshifter that operates from 1,500 RPM upward, are standard equipment. A chain drives the rear wheel, which helps with component sharing across the various Kawasaki models that use this driveline.
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Kawasaki Versys 1100 Chassis
The Versys 1100 has an old-school aluminum twin spar frame with the engine as a stressed member. The only other full-size ADV that has something similar is the Suzuki V-Strom 1050. It uses a bolt-on subframe while Showa provides the suspension. This isn’t the usual Showa kit, though, as there is electronic adjustment for the rear preload, rebound, and compression damping at both ends. The preload of the inverted front forks can be adjusted manually.
It is worth noting that the rear monoshock is a Showa Balance Free Rear Cushion Lite shock. The Brembo brakes have 4-piston fixed radial monobloc calipers at the front, and the KIBS cornering ABS system is enabled at both ends. The 17-inch alloy rims are shod with road-biased tires, but with the tall stance, slight dirt roads should not be too difficult for the Versys 1100.
Kawasaki Versys 1100 Dimensions
What might deter you from going off tarmac is the Versys 1100’s over-550-pound weight. It is quite a good figure for an adventure bike with a twin spar chassis and an inline four engine, but you can feel the mass when the grip level decreases. The 5.5-gallon fuel tank is large enough for a decent tank range, and the ground clearance will let you deal with bad roads. The seat height is reasonable for an adventure bike, but remember that this is a wide motorcycle. So it might not be equal to a twin-cylinder ADV with the same seat height.
Kawasaki Versys 1100 Features
The Versys 1100 might be a flagship motorcycle, but Kawasaki has given it practical features and left out anything that would drive the price up without an equivalent return on investment. It starts with the part-analog display. The left side of the instrument cluster is occupied by a large analog tachometer, surrounded by LED warning lamps. This old-school feature is complemented by a 4.3-inch TFT color screen on the right that has Bluetooth and voice-activated navigation, besides information about the motorcycle. Also present are features like cornering headlamps, an adjustable windscreen, heated grips, and self-healing paint.
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Kawasaki Versys 1100 Competition
The Versys 1100 has an obvious competitor in the Suzuki GSX-S1000GX, another adventure-type tarmac-biased motorcycle powered by an inline four engine. This is a far more sporty bike that needs to be revved to get any true performance out of it. Another more likely competitor is the BMW S 1000 XR, which follows the same format as the other two, but doesn’t hold back on the performance at all. BMW’s various optional packages also mean that you can customize it to within an inch of its life – but you’ll pay for the privilege.
Kawasaki Versys 1100 Vs Rivals
|
Model |
Kawasaki Versys 1100 SE LT ABS |
BMW S 1000 XR |
Suzuki GSX-S1000GX+ |
|
Price |
$19,599 |
$17,995 |
$18,599 |
|
Displacement |
1,099 |
999 cc |
999 cc |
|
Power |
133 HP @ 9,000 RPM |
170 HP @ 11,000 RPM |
152 HP @ 11,000 RPM |
|
Torque |
82.5 LB-FT @ 7,600 RPM |
84 LB-FT @ 9,250 RPM |
78.2 LB-FT @ 9,250 RPM |
|
Curb Weight |
571 LBs (wet) |
500 LBs (wet) |
511 LBs (wet) |
Sources: Kawasaki USA