Kawasaki's most popular motorcycle in the Indian market, the Z800 is soon going to be replaced by the Z900. The Japanese bike maker will launch the new Z900 on March 25, 2017. Kawasaki India has sent out invitations for an official ride weekend, mentioning important models will be launched at the event. Through our sources, we have found out that one of the important models is the Z900. It was unveiled at the Intermot motorcycle show in Germany last year and will be imported in the country as CBU from Thailand. Kawasaki is also likely to launch the new Kawasaki Ninja 650 and Z650 at the same event.
Coming back to the Kawasaki Z800, the bike has received a complete design overhaul based on the Kawasaki Z100. The bike sports sharper and sportier lines with an edgy looking headlamp while the contrast green finish on the trellis frame looks cool. The new frame has been instrumental in the Kawasaki Z900 shedding 20kg in comparison to its predecessor. Kawasaki engineers also claim that handling of the bike has also improved thanks to the new chassis and loss of weight.
The new 948cc inline four-cylinder motor is based on the Z1000’s engine and it churns out 125PS of power and around 99Nm of peak torque. The engine is coupled to a six-speed gearbox, while the gear ratios have been revised to improved low and mid-range performance of the motor. The new motorcycle also features slipper clutch as standard fitment. Suspension duties are handled by 41mm inverted front forks and horizontally mounted monoshock at the rear. Braking is done by disc brakes at both ends while Nissin ABS is standard. We expect the new Kawasaki Z900 to carry a premium of Rs 1 lakh over its predecessor, and likely to be priced between Rs 9 lakh and 10 lakh.
Talking about the new Kawasaki Ninja 650, the fairing design has been made sharper and the new motorcycle gets twin split headlamps similar to the Ninja ZX-10R which makes it look aggressive. Among the most important changes on the 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 is the adoption of a new multi-tubular aluminium chassis and new swingarm. According to the Japanese bikemaker, the new trellis frame weighs just 15kg and also has improved the handling dynamics of the sports tourer. The power figures haven’t increased but the parallel-twin motor is now Euro 4-compliant and Kawasaki engineers have improved the mid-range performance of the bike too. Braking hardware has also been improved as it gets revised calipers from Nissin and Bosch 9.1 ABS system.
Kawasaki has redesigned the Z650 and we must admit that the new motorcycle looks much better than the Kawasaki ER-6n. The chiseled tank -- which now gets similar mirror-paint finish like the Ninja H2 -- tank extensions, contrast colour on the frame and sharper-looking headlight are all enticing to look at. However, the engine is the same unit as seen on the new Kawasaki Ninja 650 and the cycle parts are also identical.
Source: BikeDekho.com
