BS6 Kawasaki Ninja 300 - Is it Worth the Wait?

26/02/2021 - 12:05 | ,  ,  ,   | Utkarsh

There’s no denying that the Kawasaki Ninja 300 has a huge fan following in India. It didn’t do that well in our country before thanks to its high price tag. However, once Kawasaki dropped down the price, the Ninja 300 soon became one of the company’s best-selling models in the Indian market.

Kawasaki Ninja 300 Abs Lime Green
This is the BS4 model of the Ninja 300 which was discontinued more than a year ago.

Kawasaki pulled the plug on the BS4 Ninja 300 more than a year ago as the newer and stricter Bharat Stage 6 emission regulations were to be enforced in India from 1 April 2020. Months passed away and various other manufacturers launched the less polluting versions of their products, however, there was no sign of the BS6 Ninja 300. This created a possibility that Kawasaki could be working on giving the baby Ninja the overhaul that it was in the need of and that’s what causing the delay. Well, now we know that wasn’t the case.

Also Read: Kawasaki Ninja ZX-25R w/ Akrapovic Exhaust Will Make Your Day [Video]

Kawasaki has recently shared the new colours of the forthcoming BS6 Ninja 300. The pictures also revealed that the new motorcycle isn’t a lot different from the old version. The design remains more or less the same and that is quite a bummer because the Ninja 300 has been carrying the same styling for many years now. Kawasaki could have used this opportunity to give it a visual makeover and added modern bells and whistles. Well, it didn’t.

Bs6 Kawasaki Ninja 300 Black
The BS6 Kawasaki Ninja 300 will come with at least 3 colour options.

Apart from the new colours, the other change in the new Ninja 300 will be its engine. It is likely to be the same 296cc parallel-twin motor with some internal tweaks so that it complies with the stringent BS6 emission norms. Kawasaki has not released the official specs of the updated model but it is being anticipated that the output figures wouldn’t differ much when compared to those of the BS4 engine. For reference, the twin-cylinder engine used to produce 39bhp of max power at 11,000rpm and 27Nm of peak torque at 10,000rpm in its BS4 state of tune.

Also Read: 2021 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R India launch by end of Q1 this year

We think that Kawasaki missed a good opportunity here to give the Ninja 300 a proper update. Currently, it’s the brand’s entry-level motorcycle in the Indian market and the company should have done much more than just adding a few new colour options and making the engine more eco-friendly. And if the BS6 Ninja 300 comes with a higher price tag than its BS4 iteration, which used to retail at INR 2.98 lakh*, then that might not work in its favour because motorcycles like the Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650 fall in the similar price range and offer a tempting package.

Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 Twin White press shot left side
The Royal Enfield 650 Twins are the most affordable 650cc twin-cylinder motorcycles available in India at the moment.

So, is the BS6 Kawasaki Ninja 300 worth the wait? We don’t think so. What’s your take on this? Let us know in the comments below.

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*Ex-showroom

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