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The Kawasaki Z250 is a performance bike which doesn't compromise on comfort, says Faisal Ali Khan of MotorBeam.com
Kawasaki has been on a product offensive in India, launching new models in quick succession. A few months back, we saw Kawasaki launch a range of CBU models and the automaker has now turned attention to CKD offerings, bringing in two naked motorcycles -- the ER-6n and Z250.
The Kawasaki Z250 becomes the company's entry-level India offering as it's the cheapest motorcycle on offer from the Japanese brand.
The Kawasaki Z250 is an attractive bike and the design is a mix of the Z800 and Ninja 300. Yes, that's right, the front is a Z800 with the aggressive headlight while the rear borrows cycle parts from the Ninja 300.
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There is however no LED brake lights which is a grave omission in today's time, especially for a motorcycle that costs so much. The fit and finish levels are immaculate and the baby Z has terrific quality.
The instrument cluster on the Z250 is the same unit which is seen on the Ninja 300. There is however some changes in the colours and font of the tachometer.
The analogue-digital instrument cluster is easy to read on the go and there are a slew of tell-tale lights surrounding the console. The digital display has fuel meter, clock, speedometer, trip meters and odometer on it. There is also an ECO mode indicator.
Powering the Kawasaki Z250 is a 249cc, twin-cylinder engine which produces 31.1 HP of peak power at 11,000 RPM and 21 Nm of peak torque at 10,000 RPM. This parallel-twin motor is terrifically refined and there are almost no vibes, not even at the 13,000 RPM redline.
The bike does lack low-end grunt and one needs to rev it to get going with urgency.
Peak juice only comes post 7000 RPM and the rush post 10,000 RPM is the best part of the powerplant.
In spite of lacking low-end grunt, Kawasaki's motor is at home in the city as one can amble around town in third gear at low speeds without having to witness any sort of knocking.
The engine doesn't heat in stop-go traffic either.
0-100 km/hr takes 8.31 seconds while top speed is 165 km/hr. The gearbox offers smooth shifts and the clutch is light too. The bike comes with a 17-litre fuel tank and the mileage is upwards of 30 km/l, resulting in a tank range of 500 kms plus on a single fill.
The Kawasaki Z250 uses a semi-double cradle frame and weighs 168 kgs. The handling is good but the tyres let down the bike as they lack grip. What really impresses is the ride quality as the Z250 simply glides over bad roads without any fuss whatsoever. It remains stable at speed but one does witness quite a lot of windblast.
Braking performance is good but there is no ABS on offer, not even as an option.
The Kawasaki Z250 isn't a bike which spells value for money as it costs Rs 3.37 lakh in Mumbai. There are cheaper bikes which are faster but the Kawasaki offers excellent comfort thanks to the splendid ride quality and nice ergonomics.
The engine is super refined and the motor emits amazing vocals at high revs. Still, if you want to buy a Z250, we would suggest you to pay Rs 58,000 more to get the Ninja 300 which offers much more for the added cost.