Equipped with a range of upgrades, 2020 Kawasaki Z650 BS6 has been launched at Rs 5.94 lakh ex-showroom. Kawasaki appears to be following an aggressive pricing strategy for India as the streetfighter was previously expected to come at a price range of Rs 6.25-6.50 lakh. Still, Z650 BS6 has become costlier by Rs 25,000 compared to its earlier BS4 model. Its faired sibling, Ninja 650 BS6, was launched earlier this month. In the litre-class category, Kawasaki introduced Versys 1000 BS6 about a week before.
One of the key highlights of Kawasaki Z650 BS6 is its strong reliance on Sugomi design. In the Japanese language, the word ‘Sugomi’ refers to the “intense aura or energy that is radiated by an individual or object”. It is believed that anything or anyone with Sugomi will leave a lasting impression and command respect naturally. Kawasaki has used this design concept for several products and in the case of Z650 BS6, the strong Sugomi presence is evident across the compact yet edgier headlamp cowl, muscular radiator shrouds, sharp chin spoiler, forward-slanting lines and new meter cover.
2020 Kawasaki Z650 BS6 gets a newly designed LED headlight with better brightness and energy efficiency than before. The motorcycle is offered in only one colour option: Metallic Spark Black.
Other additions include an all-new full-TFT instrument console; a first for a 650cc Kawasaki motorcycle. The updated instrumentation (with Bluetooth connectivity) is also functionally relevant as it incorporates significantly more than its previous format. Using Kawasaki’s ‘RIDEOLOGY THE APP’ smartphone application, riders can access a wide variety of vehicle information as well as create logs of their rides and check performance data.
For the 2020 model year (2021MY internally), new Kawasaki Z650 BS6 is powered by the same 649cc liquid-cooled DOHC parallel-twin engine. The primary highlight remains its compliancy to stringent BS6 emission norms for which Kawasaki had to work around with the motorcycle’s intake and exhaust system components. It generates 67bhp at 8,000rpm and 64Nm of peak torque at 6,700rpm while mated to a 6-speed transmission. In comparison to its BS4 counterpart, torque has reduced marginally by 1.7Nm while power output stays the same.
The naked sports Kawasaki utilizes high-tensile steel trellis frame suspended on telescopic front forks (conventional units and not USD) and horizontal back-link rear suspension with adjustable preload. Braking duties are carried out by 300mm dual petal discs at the front and a single 220mm unit at the rear. Rivalling many entry-level middleweights, the motorcycle weighs 191kg and comes with a 15-litre fuel tank.
Source: Bike - rushlane.com
