The Indonesian market bets big on 250cc class bikes, and hence, there are many exciting product launched there which we do not get here in India. Another piece of tech being added in the quarter-litre segment is from Kawasaki. In India, we get the Kawasaki Ninja 300 and Ninja 400. But in Indonesia, the brand continues with the Ninja 250 with the styling of the Ninja 400.
At the 2019 Gaikindo Indonesia International Auto Show, Kawasaki has launched the 2019 Ninja 250 with a keyless ignition system. Dubbed as KIPASS (Kawasaki’s Intelligent Proximity Activation Start System), this feature allows the rider to have the key in their pocket and just sit on the motorcycle, fire it up and start riding. There is no need to place the key or insert the key on the keyhole on the handlebars. All this operates via a remote.
Apart from this keyless ignition system, the Kawasaki Ninja 250 gets new body decals and the likes in the cosmetic department. Mechanical bits are carried over from the 2018 model. Powering the Indonesia-spec Kawasaki Ninja 250 is a 249cc, parallel-twin, liquid-cooled, 4-stroke petrol motor which produces 38 BHP of power @ 12500 RPM and 23.5 Nm of torque @ 10000 RPM matched to a 6-speed gearbox.
The Indonesia-spec Ninja 250 just looks like the Ninja 400, which actually looks the same as the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R. The headlamps are actually the same parts on all 3 models and is an LED unit. The bike gets telescopic front fork, rear monoshock, LED tail lamp, digital instrument console, alloy wheels, sports tourer riding stance, split seats and the 2019 bike also gets seat cowl options.
In India, we still have the dated Ninja 300 in the old body style. This bike is powered by a 299cc motor which is a parallel-twin block producing 38 BHP and 27 Nm matched to a 6-speed gearbox. The Ninja 300 in India gets dual-channel ABS and slipper assist clutch, but lacks LED headlamp and tail lamps and even the speedometer cluster looks old and boring now. Recently, Kawasaki recalled the Ninja 300 in India, which was locally assembled, for a faulty brake component built by Endurance.
