The 2024 Kawasaki Ninja 500 has finally been launched in India. Brought via the CBU route, the supersport bike has been priced at Rs 5.24 lakh (ex-showroom, introductory). That makes it Rs 1.14 lakh more expensive than the Aprilia RS 457.
Now, let’s quickly delve into all the necessary details of the all-new Kawasaki Ninja 500: –
- The new Ninja 500 replaces the Ninja 400 in Kawasaki’s India portfolio.
- It comes equipped with a 451cc, parallel twin-cylinder engine yielding 45.4PS of maximum power output at 9,000 rpm, along with a peak torque of 42.6Nm at 6,000 rpm. The ride is sent to the rear wheels via a 6-speed gearbox, assisted by a slipper clutch, which helps in decreasing rear-wheel skidding during aggressive downshifting and reduces clutch lever effort during gear shifts.
- Underpinned on the high-tensile steel trellis frame, the bike has a kerb weight of 171 kg.
- Wheelbase 1375mm | ground clearance 145mm | seat height 785mm | fuel tank capacity 14 litres.
- The Ninja 500 utilises a non-adjustable telescopic fork with 41mm diameter fork legs (120mm travel) and gas-charged rear shock absorbers with preload adjustability (130mm travel).
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- Anchoring duties are handled by a 310mm diameter semi-floating disc upfront at the front and a 220mm disc at the rear, both clamped by dual-piston callipers, assisted by dual-channel Antilock Braking System (ABS) as standard.
- It rides on 110-section front and 150-section rear Dunlop Sportmax GPR-300 tyres.
- When it comes to features, the bike comes equipped with twin LED headlamps (projector for low beam and reflector for high beam), LED taillamp, keyless ignition, and a 5-inch LCD instrument cluster with smartphone connectivity support via RIDEOLOGY THE APP, enabling various instrument functions, including riding logs and call/notification alerts.
- Available in a sole Metallic Spark Black colour.
- The new Kawasaki Ninja 500 will lock horns with the Yamaha R3 and Aprilia RS 457.
Author’s Take
The new Kawasaki Ninja 500 hits the market at a competitive price, but it skips some modern-day features like navigation, riding modes, traction control and most importantly, inverted forks.
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