Kawasaki Ninja 300

Sporting a reduced sticker price and the addition of ABS, does the baby Ninja make for a sensible purchase?

- Rishabh Bhaskar​​​​​​​

The Kawasaki Ninja 300 had a lot riding on it when it was launched in India, a few years ago. It was expected to replicate the success of the Ninja 250, but as it turned out, the Ninja 300 was anything but. While the bike was pretty good, it was the prohibitive pricing (Over 4 lakh on-road Mumbai) that turned out to be the proverbial nail in the coffin. Following the launch of the Ninja 400, Kawasaki India decided to localise a number of components on the Ninja 300, in order to drop its price and create a significant gap to the N400. At 2.98 lakh (ex-showroom), the 2018 Ninja 300 is 62,000 cheaper than the previous year’s model. And you get some essential kit that was absent in the previous machine. So how good is the most affordable twin-cylinder motorcycle in the country?

Design and build

The new Ninja 300 wears the same panels as its predecessor, however, the new metallic paint job and a smattering of graphics lend a fresh appeal to the baby Ninja. Though most of the components, like the panels, wheels, tyres and wiring are locally sourced, there is no perceived drop in quality levels. The fit and finish are just as good as before and the switchgear feels high quality as well.

Engine and performance