The marketplace for naturally-aspirated personal watercraft is now as competitive as the supercharged offerings, so Kawasaki did the best thing possible and took their flagship Ultra 310LX and dropped the blower, giving it the all-new 160LX JetSki. This runabout provides all of the bells-and-whistles as the top tier machine but without the incredibly thirsty 310-horsepower fuel consumption. See our review of it HERE:
Read the whole review with more details and pictures HERE:
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I want a jet ski that comes with it's own wheels so I can just drive it home. Get on that will you Kawasaki? Oh and while you're at it could you add a sub woofer and a refrigerator unit with an ice maker??
What about the awful access to the front hatch you keep complaining about on the 310? Is that the case on the 160LX?
The glove box on that 17000 skii is terrible, also looks like an elephant sat on the front end. Great riding machine i bet, but ill be buying a tr1 yamaha vx deluxe 9 mpg 120 hp.
Rather buy a supercharged ski then be stuck at 50 mph top speed!!! A N/A ski should hit 60mph no problem in this day an age!!! I smell a new 1800R in my future!!!
Another great review. Bought the 310 in October thinking about this one for my daughter
Great review, thank you for posting! I put money on my opinion that Kawasaki makes the best product on the market in terms of durability for ocean riding. Built like a real boat, and based on a platform with 15+ years of proven reliability…this is a great option for those who don’t want the extra cost and maintenance of owning a supercharged ski.
Great review & content guys & gals! Thanks for sharing. So glad to see Kawasaki swinging for the fence moving forward. Can’t wait to try out the new Ultra 160 platforms.
Billy D
Why did you not give any real commentary as to the performance of the machine? Everyone is wondering whether the industry's heaviest and draggiest hull, coupled with the industry's smallest "luxury" base engine resulted in a ski that's a dog compared to the competition. How about some insight into its performance, speed, handling, and other aspects that actually matter?
Awesome review!
I have a 22 310lx and LOVE IT!
This would be a great option for me however I can’t justify $19k+ OTD.
Imo I think is should be $1000 cheaper.
I know it’s not directly comparable but my 2021 Gti Se 170 seems like a much better value. The 310Lx was around $23k and I’m into the GTI for HALF of that! The GTX 170s are very similar in price to the GTI in my area.
I look forward to seeing how well it sells but I think a lot of people would feel the same as me.
Kawi definitely hit the nail on the head with this one. I remember watching the review on the 2020 STX 160 and just thinking “meh”, so I’m glad to see a quality N/A ski from them. I also love the new orange livery for the 160 LX-S, a review of which I assume is coming in the near future (not that much has changed with it either).
Great review. I too am a huge Ultra fan but my supercharged ski is averaging around 4.5 miles per gallon on a Normal Catalina Cruise. What’s the avg MPG in this ski?
Naming all that stuff almost sounds toungue twister Kevin
I waited several weeks for this review. Stumbled on a great deal on an Ultra 160lxs Tuesday. Great deal in current environment meaning MSRP plus tax and registration. None of the other fees. (Kawi has rebates right now for those that don't know).Signed papers Wednesday. Wednesday night you finally posted your review! I was nervous watching thinking you might view it as a dog. Fortunately you were mostly positive. I hope I will be also. Work and Mother's Day stuff preventing me from picking it up til early next week. It will be in the water ASAP. Enjoyed the thorough review. Much better than the other guys.
Great video Kevin !! This is what we needed . Can’t wait to see what improvements come on next year’s Ultra 160LX
Kawasaki is absolutely genius for listening to their customer base concerns and taking action this rapidly. I’m still blown away by the new MSRP ranges for these PWC’s.
Please do a direct comparison of 2023 Ultra 160lx Vs 2023 FX HO, mostly interested in fuel economy and comfort.
Do you know if all the KSRD systems were slow to respond that day or just the one you were on?
Finally rode my 160 LXS briefly yesterday. Having no experience with KSRD I can't really say if it was slow deploying or not. Again, I have never been an electric reverse guy anyway but it seemed ok. Hoping it is a simple adjustment as you said and not a change Kawi made to these skis over the 310. But did not really play with it much. My only experience on an Ultra is the 250. You are so correct on playful. I know Kawi changed up the steering a long time ago and man it really does feel playful for a freaking 12 ft long ski. Trim of course changes that too. But the turning response was great. I was not doing much and trying to stay dry but I can tell it will be far more playful than anticipated. Ride is drier than 250 but I can tell it will get you wet with a trimmed down turn! Reverse camera was a definite plus. That will be great for cruising with a group. Anyone that has ever unloaded or loaded a ski in the dark will appreciate the bow lights. I didn't put it on the drive on dock til after dark and they were perfect for that. 54 mph brief FT run with full tank. Surprisingly trimming from level to full up made no difference on speed. Trim was obviously working based on changes in turning. I have always noticed a definite increase in speed when trimmed up with skis in the past. As you stated, maybe someone comes out with a plate that will really get the nose up. Lengthy rant but definitely liking the ski.