2025 Kawasaki Versys 1100 S Revealed

New approval documents filed in Australia show that the 2025 Kawasaki Versys 1000 S (very similar to the Versys 1000 SE LT+ we get in the US) will be replaced with a new Versys 1100 S in the near future, but the biggest change might turn out to be the bike’s name.

Kawasaki has been granted type approval for the new bike, with the marketing name “Versys 1100 S” and the model code KLZ1100B, but at the moment there’s a lack of additional information on the paperwork. Normally, these documents include some fairly detailed specifications including power, dimensions, tire information, and even photographs of the bike that the approval covers but, in this instance, there are simply blank spaces in all of those areas.

However, there are clues that suggest the new Versys 1100 S won’t be hugely different to the Versys 1000 S that precedes it. Not least because the documents say that the KLZ1100B is simply a variant of the existing KLZ1000B. The paperwork lists multiple reference numbers to other documents, each proving that the bike meets specific areas of the required standards, and all those additional documents have reference numbers starting with KLZ1000B instead of KLZ1100B. From them, it appears that elements like the lights, mirrors, and instruments are all carried over, as are the brakes, tires, and dimensions.

Most intriguing, even the documents related to meeting noise requirements are marked KLZ1000B, hinting that despite the change of name, the “1100″ might retain the same capacity as the existing Versys 1000. That wouldn’t be without precedent. Most recently, we’ve seen Suzuki’s V-Strom 1000 become the V-Strom 1050 despite retaining the same capacity (1,037cc). Since the Kawasaki Versys 1000 is actually slightly larger at 1,043cc, it’s conceivable that the bike could be renamed as an “1100″ without actually changing the size of the engine. From a marketing point of view, with rivals including the V-Strom 1050 and Honda’s Africa Twin 1100 and NT1100—all badged as having larger engines than the Versys, despite being within a handful of cubic centimeters—there’s a clear incentive to make the change to the Versys 1100 name.

Since the same 1,043cc four-cylinder is also used by several other Kawasakis including the Ninja 1000SX and the Z1000, if the engine is increased in size, it’s logical to assume that the other models will also benefit from similar upgrades. The Australian documents only list the Versys 1100 S and not the base or SE variants, but that’s likely to be because the Versys 1000 S is the only model of the bike currently sold in the Australian market. In other parts of the world, where the base and SE versions are offered, they’re surely due to get the same 1100 rebranding in 2025.