Kawasaki Versys 300 launch planned for later part of this year. It will come at a much cheaper price tag than before and the reason is…
Kawasaki is trying to get aggressive in India and has plans to garner sizeable sales. The first step towards this was the localisation of the Ninja 300 – at a time when it was discontinued in other parts of the world. The second step towards this goal was the locally produced W175 bike – which I have been wondering – Why was it launched?
The Jap is now taking its third stride and it is quite interesting. According to an online report, Kawasaki is planning a localized version of the Versys 300 for our market. A test mule was spotted some months ago and now we have the answer why it was under tests.
Kawasaki Versys 300 had a very dry run in India some years ago as it was offered at an unrealistic price tag of around Rs 4.60 Lakh ex-showroom. This time round, there may not be a lot of changes to the motorcycle and it will share its motor from the Ninja 300, which is still beautiful to ride.
It is likely to get basic stuff like semi-digital instrumentation, dual channel ABS and may not attract you with a lot of other gizmos and stuff that you see on latest generation bikes. The 300cc ADV will continue with the same 19-17 inch tyre combination with about 180 mm of ground clearance. Launch, they say, is scheduled for this year – most probably towards the later part.
Bigger Ninja 500 Launched at 5.24 Lac; 1.14 Lac Costlier Than Aprilia RS457
There is no clarity on the price tag of the motorcycle. Considering that the Ninja 300 costs about Rs 3.4 Lac right now Kawasaki may be eyeing something around that Rs 4 Lakh price tag – which is, again, on the higher side. If Kawasaki can, somehow, get that Versys around that 3.5 Lac mark, we may see some kind of excitement in the entry mid-capacity ADV space.
While the overall idea of Indianizing an old platform may not look good to you immediately, but once you start considering what you get for that amount right now, you may admire this step from Kawasaki. This will be the most affordable Twin Cylinder ADV in the country. If priced around that 3.5 Lac mark, it will definitely be worth a definite consideration over the single cylinder competition in the form of the Himalayan as well as the 390 Adventure.
With this, let us wait for more details on this development…
