Kawasaki Eliminator SE

The Kawasaki Eliminator SE is a modern take on the old-school Eliminator from the past, which is evident in the design of the cruiser. With elements like black alloy wheels, a black-themed engine, all-LED lighting and a fully digital instrument console, the Kawasaki Eliminator SE feels like a new-age motorcycle that is designed to impress the younger crowd. 

The front profile of the Kawasaki Eliminator SE has a rounded LED headlamp flanked with slim LED turn indicators, with this SE variant getting a small and curvaceous cowl around the headlamp that makes the fascia look sportier. The rest of the front profile looks minimalist, with the cruiser having rubber gaiters for the front fork and a chopped front fender. 

The Kawasaki Eliminator SE has an elongated stance when viewed from the side, with Kawasaki calling it a ‘horizontally-designed cruiser motorcycle’. This is due to the long wheelbase, a slim and long fuel tank over the trellis main frame and wide designs for the side panels and rear fender. The Kawasaki Eliminator SE has blacked-out cycle parts and alloy wheels, further contributing to the sporty appeal of the cruiser as a whole.

Towards the rear, the Kawasaki Eliminator SE has a split seat arrangement and a compact tail lamp with slim LED turn indicators on its sides, with the tail lamp being in the same line of vision with the almost flat rear fender. The Eliminator SE also gets an offset, rounded full-LCD instrument console, which besides having general bits like a speedometer, tachometer, fuel gauge, odometer, and trip meters, also supports Bluetooth connectivity. 

The Kawasaki Eliminator SE is based on a high-tensile trellis steel frame, which is different from other middleweight motorcycles from the Japanese manufacturer. This cruiser motorcycle has a 41mm telescopic fork setup with 120 mm travel at the front, while for the rear wheel, it gets twin coil springs with 90 mm travel.

While there are no adjustability options for the suspension, it does the job of absorbing undulations and keeping the motorcycle composed at higher speeds pretty effectively. With 18-inch front and 16-inch rear alloy wheels, the Kawasaki Eliminator SE has a wide 130/70-18 tyre at the front and 150/80-16 tyre at the rear. The single 310mm disc at the front and a single 240 mm disc at the rear also work effectively in bringing the Kawasaki Eliminator SE to a halt.

The Kawasaki Eliminator SE shares its four-stroke, liquid-cooled, parallel-twin, 451cc engine with the Ninja 400, which is paired with a 6-speed transmission and generates a maximum power output of 52 bhp and a maximum torque output of 42.6 Nm. One of the most refined engines one can find in the middleweight cruiser category, this oversquare engine impresses with its peak performance, but there is a lack of bottom-end grunt, which could have made low-speed cruising even more relaxed.

The Kawasaki Eliminator SE gets the essential safety feature of a dual-channel ABS, while also getting an assist and slipper clutch for effortless riding in urban, traffic-laden environments. However, for a middleweight motorcycle of its price, the Eliminator SE could have had more features, considering the competition is picking up the pack with better equipment. 

Unlike the relaxed American and European cruisers with which most of us are familiar, the Kawasaki Eliminator SE takes a different route with its sportsbike-like underpinnings. For a cruiser motorcycle, the Kawasaki Eliminator SE has a peaky top end, which feels very sportsbike-like and might not appeal to some cruiser lovers. However, the Kawasaki Eliminator SE is a worthy option for those who want a relaxed middleweight cruiser with user-friendly ergonomics and low seat height and performance, without breaking the bank.