Kawasaki Versys 300 (Baby Versys) is coming

[guzzi850m2]

Looks like the "Baby Versys" is coming soon, based on Kawa's 300cc parallel twin. ABS, gear indicator, center stand and slipper clutch standard.

Looks quite nice, a cheap to run commuter bike and comes in a couple of versions apparently: Urban and Adventure (center stand)

 

http://www.visordown.com/motorcycle-news-new-bikes/new-kawasaki-versys-x-300

 

http://www.cycleworld.com/2017-kawasaki-versys-x-300-might-be-best-entry-level-bike-season#page-3

 

http://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/new-bikes/2016/november/kawasaki-versys-x-300-2017-eicma-milan/

Edited November 9, 2016 by guzzi850m2

[papa al]

Looks good.

Are these manufactured here.?

 

[AllanB]

Much better looking than the Honda and a real 300cc too (well 296).

 

Let me know when the do a lightweight Vulcan.

[Nickymaster]

I am fairly sure they will be made here. As I understand, Kawasaki makes all road legal motorcycles up to 650cc and two cylinders in Thailand. Except the KLR 650.

This is a nice bike for Thailand if you are not too tall and heavy. Should sell well.


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[DILLIGAD]

There will also be a baby V-Strom.


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[BBJ]

If it comes spoke wheels, that'll be a good idea.  Not sure if BMW are offering spokes on their 300gs.

[AllanB]

On 10/11/2016 at 0:46 AM, Nickymaster said:

I am fairly sure they will be made here. As I understand, Kawasaki makes all road legal motorcycles up to 650cc and two cylinders in Thailand. Except the KLR 650.

This is a nice bike for Thailand if you are not too tall and heavy. Should sell well.


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"This is a nice bike for Thailand if you are not too tall and heavy." What does that mean another cramped bike, for Pete's sake?

[DILLIGAD]

"This is a nice bike for Thailand if you are not too tall and heavy." What does that mean another cramped bike, for Pete's sake?

Not for the average Asian


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[Rhys]

Nice .... what is the price range?

 

[edwinchester]

4 hours ago, Rhys said:

Nice .... what is the price range?

 

Haven't heard yet but it will have to significantly undercut the 500X to sell in any numbers.

[edwinchester]

On 13/11/2016 at 9:47 AM, edwinchester said:

Haven't heard yet but it will have to significantly undercut the 500X to sell in any numbers.

199k bht according to the guy on the Kwak stand at the MotorExpo.

Too close to the 500X for me.

Looks very nice but finish is not as good as the Honda too.

[Briggsy]

On 02/12/2016 at 3:11 PM, edwinchester said:

199k bht according to the guy on the Kwak stand at the MotorExpo.

Too close to the 500X for me.

Looks very nice but finish is not as good as the Honda too.

Have to agree.

 

Lots of people buy on impulse and emotion and I am sure it is a very nice bike so they will sell but the buyer who considers all the options available would very likely go for the 500cc Honda.

[Issanman]

 

[Happy Grumpy]

22 hours ago, Briggsy said:

but the buyer who considers all the options available would very likely go for the 500cc Honda.

 

471cc, unless things have drastically changed. :)

[Richard-BKK]

Amazing Kawasaki has copied the Zongshen RX3, the Zongshen RX3 is available for the last 2 years....

 

[Dutchbike]

^^^

That's one way to look at it, but to me it's more likely Kawasaki got his inspiration from it's own Versys models and made this to fill a gap in the market

 

It is a nice bike and clever from Kawasaki bringing this out, I never really understand the heavy adventure dinosaur bikes, unless you only use them for high speed touring, this 300X is more versatile, makes much more sense.

Curious to see when it arrives in Kawasaki's Thai showrooms as It might be the perfect replacement for my KLX250,  it has most of things in which I find the KLX lacking: more power, comfortable seat, bigger tank, wind protection,factory luggage options.

The KLX is a good bike but, this Versys X 300 would be a nice replacement, being able to get a higher cruising speed and still being able to cope with some light off road use , good it has a "19" front wheel, Perfect for another Laos trip.

That little 300cc twin proved to be a bulletproof engine. plenty of Kawa dealers around.

Hopefully they can keep the price fair, as the ninja 300KRT is already 192K, I expect it ( with some options) to be around 210K

b.t.w  anyone know what happened with the KLX series on the Thai Kawasaki website? no bikes there just "coming soon" new KLX coming??

 

 

 

[bobbin]

15 hours ago, Richard-BKK said:

Amazing Kawasaki has copied the Zongshen RX3, the Zongshen RX3 is available for the last 2 years....

 

 

What is the price of the Zongshen RX3? And where do you find them? I'm guessing , based on the price of  the Lifan 200, that it might be around 79-85,000 baht..

 

That would be a sweet deal compared to 200,000 for the Kawasaki and only giving up 50cc.

 

Put some decent tires on it and you are good to go, as a second bike.

Edited December 6, 2016 by bobbin
comment on tires..

[DILLIGAD]

 
What is the price of the Zongshen RX3? And where do you find them? I'm guessing , based on the price of  the Lifan 200, that it might be around 79-85,000 baht..
 
That would be a sweet deal compared to 200,000 for the Kawasaki and only giving up 50cc.
 
Put some decent tires on it and you are good to go, as a second bike.

Until you need parts!


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[pbas400]

http://www.kawasaki.co.th/motorcycle/versysx300

 

[Richard-BKK]

1 hour ago, DILLIGAD said:

Until you need parts!


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Why you think parts availability would be a problem, Zongshen has a factory in Thailand and worldwide they one of the largest motorcycle component and parts manufacturers.

 

I'm more worried about Kawasaki parts, for example try to find parts for a Kawasaki ZX130 which was sold last time around 3-years ago.... But spare parts are mostly not available...

Edited December 6, 2016 by Richard-BKK

[macknife]

3 hours ago, Richard-BKK said:

 

Why you think parts availability would be a problem, Zongshen has a factory in Thailand and worldwide they one of the largest motorcycle component and parts manufacturers.

 

I'm more worried about Kawasaki parts, for example try to find parts for a Kawasaki ZX130 which was sold last time around 3-years ago.... But spare parts are mostly not available...

 

They may well have a factory here but I've never seen a Zongshen dealership. I doubt there are many shops around that stock Zongshen parts.

Kawasaki and Honda have dealerships in almost every major town in this country. (Yamaha do need to step up in this regard)

Why don't you answer the original question. Where can one buy such a bike? As I've never seen one.

 

As for this new Versys I'm not so sure. like others have said, why buy this when the CBX500 isn't much more? The only positive is that it's lighter.

I believe people prefer a Ninja/Z3 or R3/MT03 over the CBR/CB500 as they rev much higher and are more fun to race about on. The Versys doesn't really fall into that category. Also, why not make the front end look similar to the new shape Versys instead of keeping the look of the old one?

 

PS. Why do the Panniers indent so much? Seems a lot of space is lost there almost making them redundant.

[papa al]

6 hours ago, bobbin said:

 

What is the price of the Zongshen RX3?

 

~B100K

[edwinchester]

40 minutes ago, papa al said:

~B100K

I'm pretty sure it was marked up at 80k bht at the Motorexpo although I stand to be corrected.

There was another version, 250cc(?) watercooled fully kitted out in adventure bling for 160k bht which was alot better finished.

[Richard-BKK]

14 hours ago, edwinchester said:

I'm pretty sure it was marked up at 80k bht at the Motorexpo although I stand to be corrected.

There was another version, 250cc(?) watercooled fully kitted out in adventure bling for 160k bht which was alot better finished.

 

I'm sure the Zongshen RX3 standard comes as 250cc liquid-cooled and has standard the adventure outfit, 160K THB is ridicules the actual price is probably around 120,000 THB

[Richard-BKK]

16 hours ago, macknife said:

 

They may well have a factory here but I've never seen a Zongshen dealership. I doubt there are many shops around that stock Zongshen parts.

Kawasaki and Honda have dealerships in almost every major town in this country. (Yamaha do need to step up in this regard)

Why don't you answer the original question. Where can one buy such a bike? As I've never seen one.

 

As for this new Versys I'm not so sure. like others have said, why buy this when the CBX500 isn't much more? The only positive is that it's lighter.

I believe people prefer a Ninja/Z3 or R3/MT03 over the CBR/CB500 as they rev much higher and are more fun to race about on. The Versys doesn't really fall into that category. Also, why not make the front end look similar to the new shape Versys instead of keeping the look of the old one?

 

PS. Why do the Panniers indent so much? Seems a lot of space is lost there almost making them redundant.

 

If you looking for Zongshen Thailand you can easily look on the internet, http://www.zongshenthailand.com/

 

And sure Kawasaki has dealers in all major cities, I totally agree with that - but what is a dealer if they not sell parts from a motorcycle that is about 3 years old? Not forget that most of the Kawasaki's now on the road are on the edge or over 5 years old. In an official statement Kawasaki Thailand only stocks parts for a specific model for 5-years... So for everybody with a ER6n from 2011 or earlier start counting as the model is EOL and parts are not re-stocked... Kawasaki Thailand was unable to explain why they cannot supply the engine parts of the 3-year old Kawasaki ZX130...

[Richard-BKK]

My idea about the Kawasaki Versys-X 300 is that it’s a perfect bike for Thailand. A 300cc parallel-twin is excellent for cruising and exploring the country.

 

As said before I not think big adventure bikes are the perfect tool for Thailand, I have been in to much situations that I was wishing my motorcycle was lighter. Sure a plus 1000cc adventure bike can do over 150km/h, but really think about that… if you want to go over 120km/h did you not buy the wrong motorcycle?

 

My g/f bought a Kawasaki Versys 1000, she doesn’t really like it as the seat height is a bit uncomfortable for her. She still has her BMW F650X which she still rides the most. The BMW has a seat height of 785mm while the Kawasaki is a good amount higher at 838mm

[canthai55]

I agree with Richard above. Can not see the appeal of ADV bikes. Too heavy for offroad, not well suited to the asphalt. Trying to do two jobs with one bike - always a compromise. I rode my Dyna on gravel roads in Canada heading to Alaska many times. On street tires. No issues. Want a street bike - want an offroad bike - you need 2 bikes. For what they charge is a no brainer anyway. And you do not have those two Galvanized garbage cans hanging off the side making lane splitting a real pain - if not impossible.

[DILLIGAD]

I agree with Richard above. Can not see the appeal of ADV bikes. Too heavy for offroad, not well suited to the asphalt. Trying to do two jobs with one bike - always a compromise. I rode my Dyna on gravel roads in Canada heading to Alaska many times. On street tires. No issues. Want a street bike - want an offroad bike - you need 2 bikes. For what they charge is a no brainer anyway. And you do not have those two Galvanized garbage cans hanging off the side making lane splitting a real pain - if not impossible.

I think they are more like 'Ammo boxes'


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[edwinchester]

3 hours ago, Richard-BKK said:

 

I'm sure the Zongshen RX3 standard comes as 250cc liquid-cooled and has standard the adventure outfit, 160K THB is ridicules the actual price is probably around 120,000 THB

Hi, maybe I misremembered the cheaper bike but it was definitely an adventure bike with the standard plastic boxes.

The one marked up at 160k had much better addons. The panniers and topbox were all good quality aluminium.Other items such as the wrap around crashbars, 'Barkbusters' etc were much better quality than those on the cheaper version.

 

Edit. Just had a word with a friend who reckons it was an rx1 at 80k bht.....my bad.

The rx3 at 160k is known as the 'Top' according to him.

Edited December 7, 2016 by edwinchester

[JonnyF]

2 hours ago, Richard-BKK said:

 

If you looking for Zongshen Thailand you can easily look on the internet, http://www.zongshenthailand.com/

 

And sure Kawasaki has dealers in all major cities, I totally agree with that - but what is a dealer if they not sell parts from a motorcycle that is about 3 years old? Not forget that most of the Kawasaki's now on the road are on the edge or over 5 years old. In an official statement Kawasaki Thailand only stocks parts for a specific model for 5-years... So for everybody with a ER6n from 2011 or earlier start counting as the model is EOL and parts are not re-stocked... Kawasaki Thailand was unable to explain why they cannot supply the engine parts of the 3-year old Kawasaki ZX130...

 

Never had an issue with my 2007 KSR110 or 2008 Ninja 250. I ordered parts for the KSR last month, just messaged them on the Line app and they posted them to me the next day. Never had to leave my desk.

 

I never see ZX130's on the road so I'm guessing they didn't sell many and get very few inquiries for spare engine parts and therefore don't keep stock. I'd be amazed if they wouldn't order them for you though.