The Z800 (left) and Ninja 250.

The new Ninja 250 brings with it heavily revised styling that been heavily borrowed from its ZX-6R, ZX-10R and ZX-14R stable mates, which certainly adds a great deal of perceived performance appeal.

The Ninja 250 is fitted with an electric starter for its motor, which is fuel-injected with dual throttle valves producing 32bhp at 11,000rpm and 21Nm of torque at 10,000rpm.

All of these get mated to a 6-speed manual transmission to help get the Ninja’s 172kg curb weight up to speed and is able to take on about 17 litres of petrol for the ride.

With the number of big bikes increasing on local roads, Kawasaki Malaysia figured it made sense to introduce the Z800, which replaces the Z750 with an additional 50cc of displacement and should be a welcome option for those who may find the Z1000 too intimidating.

The 229kg Z800, in streetfighter guise, seems a tad hefty, but its 4-cylinder 806cc motor pushes out about 110bhp at 10,200rpm and 83Nm of torque at 8,000rpm making it seem a little acoustically milder than the higher revving Ninja 250, and should be easier to get the bike going when faced with stop-go traffic.

The two bikes were launched at a resort hotel here on Thursday.

Source : The Star - Star-Motoring.com