2017 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 launched at Rs. 9.98 lakh

Kawasaki India has launched the 2017 Ninja 1000 at a price of Rs. 9.98 lakh (ex-showroom India). At the moment, only 20 units of the Ninja 1000 have been assigned for the Indian market. Bookings of the bike have commenced at all Kawasaki dealerships across India.

During the launch of the updated motorcycle, Kawasaki has also announced that it has shifted its local assembly operations to a new facility in Chakan, near Pune, Maharashtra from July 1, 2017. This comes after the Japanese bike maker broke its India-specific ties with Bajaj Auto, which was till now responsible for local assembly of Kawasaki bikes in India.

The 2017 Ninja 1000 comes with a wider two-piece fairing, a taller 3-position adjustable windscreen, all-LED headlamps with LED position lamp and a 30 mm longer pillion seat with added cushioning. The rear-view mirrors have also been repositioned and are now 20 mm farther outward. This is expected to aid rear visibility.

Additionally, the instrument cluster has been revised to include an updated multi-function digital display. The bike also gets Kawasaki Cornering Management, traction control and ABS. The foot pegs now come with integrated stays, which is expected to help in mounting panniers on the bike. This, along with better wind protection from the wider fairing and taller windscreen, is likely to aid touring capabilities of the litre-class Ninja. Another tweak made is in the seat height, which is now 5 mm lower at 815 mm.

No changes have been made to the powertrain setup of the Ninja 1000, which continues to come with a Euro-IV compliant 1,043 cc, inline-four, liquid-cooled engine that produces 139 BHP @ 10,000 rpm and 111 Nm of torque @ 7,300 rpm. Transmission duties are handled by a 6-speed slipper clutch enabled gearbox.

Thanks to local assembly of the Ninja 1000, it has been priced around Rs. 2 lakh below its nearest competitor - the Suzuki GSX-S1000F.