The BMW F 450 GS rival will have its global debut at the EICMA 2025 in Milan, Italy which starts from Nov 4
Kawasaki has released a teaser video of its upcoming adventure bike, which will break cover at the EICMA 2025 in Milan, Italy. Christened as KLE 500, it will be the brand’s challenger to the upcoming BMW F 450 GS which is also likely to have its world premiere at the same event on Nov 4. Kawasaki is bringing the ‘KLE’ nameplate back to existence as it used to exist in the era of 90s. Kawasaki KLE 500 was first teased at the last edition of EICMA, now we believe that it will be revealed to the world at EICMA 2025.
Though Kawasaki has kept all the technical details under the wraps, we expect the new adventure motorcycle to get Ninja 500’s engine. For the unversed, the KLE 500 in the 90s used to be powered by a 498cc parallel twin engine. The Ninja 500 is equipped with a 451cc parallel twin unit which generates max power of 45 bhp and peak torque of 46.2 Nm while paired to a 6-speed gearbox.
The new teaser video does not reveal the design of the upcoming KLE 500. However, the teaser released at the EICMA 2024 indicates that styling cues would be borrowed from the older KLE 500 with elements like USD front forks, 21-inch spoke wheels, low-mounted fender and steel box-section swingarm. Kawasaki is expected to introduce a few modern elements as well in the form of a windscreen, tubed tyres and single front Nissin brake.
The teaser video also shows a low-slung exhaust on the right side, which is quite similar to the unit seen on the Ninja 500. The teaser video reads, “Coming Soon” and it indicates that the ADV bike might go on sale in 2026 in the Indian market. However, the sales performance is likely to depend a lot on the final ex-showroom price in India.
Kawasaki Ninja 500, for reference, is sold as a CKD import in the Indian market at a sticker price of Rs 5.66 lakh (ex-showroom). Hence, if the KLE 500 is brought via the same route, it could have an identical pricing, more or less. Another one of its arch rivals, Honda NX500, is presently priced at Rs 6.33 lakh (ex-showroom) in the country.
Recently, Kawasaki commenced the local production of the KLX230 in India, which brought down its price substantially. Hence, if Kawasaki tries something very similar with the upcoming KLE 500 with over 95 percent of localization, it could indeed be more accessible for the buyers and emerge as the most worthy contender to the upcoming BMW F 450 GS which will be locally developed by TVS at its Hosur facility.
