The flavour of the season is small capacity ADV at the on-going EICMA 2016 Motorcycle Show. First, the BMW G 310 GS, then the Suzuki DL250 V-Strom and now the Kawasaki Versys-X 300! It was not a far-fetched idea too. Kawasaki always had the 296cc parallel-twin that is in use in the Ninja 300 and the and the only challenge was to scale down the bigger Versys models. Needless to say, Kawasaki aced that challenge with all-new bodywork and chassis. The baby Versys will get 41mm long travel forks up front and a Uni-Trak gas-charged monoshock at the rear.
(Kawasaki Versys-X 300)The engine will produce an estimated 38bhp and will have an assist and slipper clutch as well. ABS will be standard equipment as well. The Versys-X 300 is said to weigh in at 170kg.
Like all ADVs, this one too has a tall-ish design with a 19-inch wheel up front wrapped in 100/90 rubber, while the rear gets a 17-inch rim wrapped in a 130/80 tyre.
(Kawasaki Versys-X 300- instrument console)Kawasaki will have two variants of the Versys in the 'Urban' and the 'Adventure. There will be subtle differences in the two such as the choice to have top box/panniers, bash-plate, hand guards, centre-stands and so on. The instrumentation console consists of an analogue tachmeter and an LCD screen which will show the speed, fuel, range, trip meters and so on. Kawasaki says that the Versys-X 300 will be able to deliver a range of 386km with the eco-mode on.
