Kawasaki W175 to launch in India in 2021

The Kawasaki W175 will be coming to India around the end of the first quarter of 2021, according to sources. The W175 is a single-cylinder Kawasaki motorcycle sold in Asian markets like Indonesia and Thailand. 

• The W175 will be the most affordable Kawasaki in India

• Localised content will be around 90 percent

• Expected to be priced below Rs 1.4 lakh 

What is the Kawasaki W175?

The W175 is a retro-styled motorcycle with fairly simple mechanicals. It uses a 177cc, two-valve, air-cooled SOHC engine. Performance figures are relatively humble, at 13hp and 13.2Nm of torque, but the engine is carburetted in its international state of tune. Kawasaki will be bringing this motor up to BS6-spec for India and fuel injection is almost certainly going to be added on, so the power figures could change a little. The engine uses a balancer shaft to help reduce vibrations. 

The rest of the bike is quite straightforward as well, with a semi-double-cradle frame and a simple box-section swingarm. The suspension is handled by a telescopic fork with old-school rubber gaiters and a twin shock setup at the rear. The international-spec motorcycle gets a 220mm disc up front and a 110mm drum at the back. ABS is another feature that will have to be engineered in for India and it’s likely that this bike will get single-channel ABS, unless Kawasaki switches over to a rear disc. 

Kawasaki W175 design details

The styling is pure classic, with a round headlamp, a single peashooter exhaust and spoked wheels, which are wrapped with tubed tyres. The all-analogue instrument console on the international bike is also very basic and has a circular speedometer, an odometer and a trip meter. The international-spec model is also quite light, at just 126kg, but the kerb weight is bound to go up once the bike meets all the safety and emissions requirements of our market. Nevertheless, this should remain an easy and light motorcycle to manage. 

Kawasaki W175 launch in India

The W175 is expected to go on sale soon around the end of the first quarter of 2021, and it will be the most localised bike yet that Kawasaki will make in India. Vendor sources told us that up to 90 percent of this bike could be localised and that includes components within the engine. The W175 will be the second bike to be engineered within the company’s R&D setup in India, with the first being the localised Kawasaki Ninja 300 that was launched in 2018. 

Kawasaki W175 price in India

We are given to understand that the price is expected to be between Rs 1.25 and Rs 1.4 lakh (ex-showroom). Internationally, the bike is also available in a Cafe and Scrambler option, but the W175 is expected to launch here in standard trim only, to start with. 

With the launch of the W175, Kawasaki will be looking to move away from being a relatively low-volume premium bike player. The bike will be simple, and it will aim to cater to the retro-loving crowd that’s currently ruled by Royal Enfields, but will also compete with other players like Jawa, Benelli and the newly launched Honda H’ness CB350. The difference is that the W175 will cost much less than those motorcycles, which could appeal to a new crowd of more cash-conscious customers. The fact that so much of the motorcycle is localised means that spare parts prices should be affordable as well.

Also see:

Kawasaki Vulcan S BS6 launched at Rs 5.79 lakh

BS6 Kawasaki Z900 launched at Rs 7.99 lakh