Kawasaki Ninja 500 teased in India, to be launched in March

- Powered by a 451cc, parallel-twin engine

- Offered in two variants in the international market

- Likely to be launched in a month

Kawasaki India has teased the Ninja 500 on its social media handles hinting at an official launch around the corner. The Japanese middleweight could debut in India in a month and here is what we know about it.

The new Ninja 500 takes design inspiration from the bigger siblings and looks just as modern and youthful. Typical of the current Kawasaki fascia, the new Ninja 500 also gets a split LED headlight with a transparent visor. Moreover, the Ninja 500 gets a set of clip-on handles but the rider triangle appears more on the sport-touring side.

Powering the Ninja 500 is a 451cc, parallel-twin engine. It makes 45.4bhp at 9,000rpm and 42.6Nm at 6,000rpm and is linked to a six-speed gearbox. The setup also benefits from a slipper-clutch. Kawasaki offers two variants of the Ninja 500 in the international market – standard and SE. The latter benefits from additional features like a TFT instead of an LCD, along with smartphone connectivity, and Kawasaki’s Intelligent Proximity Activation Start System. It is also offered in two dual-tone paint schemes.

The hardware front on the Kawasaki Ninja 500 includes telescopic front forks and a monoshock while the brakes comprise a 310mm front and a 220mm rear disc with dual-channel ABS. These are mounted on 17-inch alloys.

The asking price for the Kawasaki Ninja 500 in America is USD 5,299 (approximately Rs. 4.39 lakh sans taxes). We think Kawasaki would launch the Ninja 500 in India for an asking price of around Rs. 6.20 lakh (ex-showroom) and as a CBU product.