Kawasaki India Denies Rumours Of Locally-Assembled Z800

Kawasaki has officially denied the rumours about locally assembling the Z800 in India, saying there is no positive outcome from going the CKD route.

It has been more than a month since we first heard rumours about the Kawasaki Z800 going the completely-knocked down (CKD) route in India, thus bringing its price tag down by as much as Rs. 1 lakh. However, the company has trounced these rumours, announcing recently that there are no plans for local assembly of the bike, which has already been priced reasonably according to them. Managing Director of India Kawasaki Motors, Yutaka Yamashita, said, "There was never a plan to have the Z800 go CKD. Kawasaki always decides the assembly of models that is reasonable under CKD regulations. We do not see any positive outcome to go CKD in India with the Z800".

One of the most popular motorcycles in the middleweight naked segment, the Kawasaki Z800 is quite a value for money proposition already. Looking at the performance and the price tag of Rs. 7.67 lakh (ex-showroom, Pune), the bike can be said to be the one of the most affordable naked bikes in its segment. Further reduction in its price will most likely cannibalise sales of Kawasaki India’s other offerings, including the Ninja 650 and ER-6n which are already assembled in India.

With an aggressive styling, the Kawasaki Z800 gets a very truculent liquid cooled, inline four-cylinder motor, displacing 806cc. Using electronic fuel injection system, the 16-valve, DOHC engine makes 113PS at 10,200rpm and delivers a peak torque figure of 83Nm at 8,000rpm. The bike gets an adjustable suspension setup, comprising of 41mm inverted telescopic forks up front and a bottom-link, Uni-Trak gas-charged shock at the rear. It runs on fat tubeless tyres, 120/70 section front and 180/55 section rear, providing good traction on tarmac. The high-performance braking system includes dual semi-floating 310mm front and single 250mm rear petal disc brakes along with dual-channel ABS as a standard feature.

Looking at the competition, the Z800 rivals the likes of the Ducati Monster 821 and the Benelli TNT 899, which costs significantly more than the Kawasaki.