Reportedly the retro motorcycle was previously on the cards for India in 2016, it was discontinued internationally in the same year since it didn’t meet Euro-IV emission regulations. However, Kawasaki unveiled a heavily updated version of the bike at EICMA 2018 and this is the model that will make its way to our shores in the coming months.
The Kawasaki W800 is a successor the brand’s W series motorcycles that were clones of British vertical-twin standard motorcycles, like BSAs. Now, while you can’t go out and buy a brand-new vertical-twin BSA, you will soon be able to buy a W800 in India. The different firing order doesn’t only give the motorcycle a unique sound, but also, as Kawasaki claims, ‘a strong low-mid range torque character’.
Additionally, the bike also uses an old school bevel gear cam drive, which is a set of gears with curved teeth on the crankshaft that turn a propeller shaft running vertically up the right side of the cylinder. This propeller then meets another set bevel (curved) gears which connect to the camshaft.
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