Hi Guys, I got my Kawasaki Ninja 400 MY2019 on 10/07/2018 and till now have clocked 100km so this is just my Initial Ownership Review rather than a Full comprehensive review which will come up when I clock more miles in near future.


Background to the madness


It all Started in mid-2017 when it as eagerly waiting for the launch of Ninja 300 with ABS, But Kawa-Bajaj split meant my State (GOA) had no Showroom left for the Purchase and was utterly disappointed with N300 BS-IV being launched without ABS. looked at Yamaha R3 has an alternative but that too was off the shelf in no time due to BS-IV regulations and thus begun the wait for either relaunch of R3 with ABS or opening of Kawasaki showroom in Goa.


By end of 2017, When Kawa Showroom was opened in Goa, N400 was launched in Tokyo Autoshow and it was more or less confirmed that N400 will replace N300 all over the world so it made better sense to wait for the new model or wait for R3 with ABS to show off which happened in 2018 Auto Expo in India and I did visit Two Yamaha dealers after launch multiple times was disappointed for two reasons . One for a long period they didn't have proper on Road price and for the second they seemed not so keen on handling customer who wants to pay 4lacs for a Bike and not one follow up nor calls even after dropping my number multiple times first for Quotation and second was that they could not confirm about the availability or possible delivery schedule , Random answer were Two or Three months waiting which looked strange since many where taking deliveries in other towns without much waiting period which again made me look into N300 since I was in regular touch with Kawasaki people and was offered discount of 60k and in next few days N400 was launched in India with Ex4.69,0000 Pan India .


Initially, i was disappointed with the Price Since I had was expecting a price range of 4.20-4.30 at worst but 4.69 was good 40-50k more then what I was expecting. In the USA N400 replaced N300 at same price bracket but we Indians are used to paying high price for things our Govemrent considers Luxiaries items and was never expected price range of 3.60 in India in first place but good 1lac difference made me reconsider R3 again even though I was disappointed by the casual nature of the Yahamha folks and was also not happy with N400 pricing in India .


Why i said no to N650 and Z650!


Kawasaki N650 and Z650 were other alternatives i was considering at one point of time due to the marginal price difference between this machine and N400 but for the purpose of my Daily Usage plus weekend long rides was not I could have got from 650 Twins due to my usage. Z650 was rejected due to India's love for fared bikes and poor resale values of Naked Superbikes in India and Z650 was not Bulky enough for me and easily could have passed off as Z250 in India.


No offense to N650 owners who are reading this, No matter how many times people claim N650 is Commuter friendly, the sheer size of the machine makes it a bit pain in the ass in traffic and then there is parking issue with such big bike. All Kawasaki Bikes have excellent Heat displacement but short rides I had with N650 in Hot summers in Traffic made me think twice.


At 49HP, N400 is actually a class apart in terms of figure matching higher displacement bikes like Global favorite Honda CBR500R which makes 49.6HP from its 471CC motor and has a top speed of near 200km. 400 CC badge is a confusing lot of crowd in India and I know due to lack of any Twin-Cylinder 500cc competion in India, many are resorting to comparing it with KT390 or R3 which are actually not the bikes even in the same class.


Chat with N300 owner also helped me a lot to go for N400 over N650. Not only I am saving money on the cost of Tyres and Chain sockets when there are due for replacements but i am also getting a more compact bike which actually is more usable to my needs than a big bike, so i decided to take the call and booked the bike, though I missed 20k Discount due to Lengthy Bank Loan Process, showroom people were sweat enough to give me some discount on the bike which was all booked in the first lot even though price was considered little on the higher side by many .


Message to Prospective Buyers of N400


I feel who all are at the crossroads like me between N400 and N650, Should not jump the gun just because 650 sounds better should evaluate their own usage first carefully. Planning to use it for long touring with a Pillion? or keep it as a weekend bike then go for N650, or plan to use it as a daily commuter or as a single tourer then N400 will meet all performance parameters of N650 and it is also more compact and lighter and easy to maneuver and consumables like Tyres etc will be way cheaper.


Let talks about the Bike






Engine: 400CC behaves like a smaller displacement engine which is actually good for new riders and little push and bike is in a three-figure mark in no time. Did 100+ in short burst and i am trying to keep it in under 100 for all the rides still i complete 1000km mark for the first service which most likely will not happen in first month due to heavy rains in this time of the year in my state coupled with pothole infected roads which make me extra careful to avoid going out with my new machine .


Suspension and Handling of the bike are good and Bike took 75kg Rider like me over Huge speed breakers without scrapping several times already and even handled Rumblers very well actually I felt it was much smoother in my N400 then my Honda Brio when going over Rumblers at High speed.


Brakes are spot on and the first instance came when I was taking the bike home from showroom when a Spendor Guy breaked hard suddenly after he went through a pothole in traffic and I was able to avoid crashing into him. Brakes and ABS Both are sharp and are performing as expected.


Gear and clutch operations are smooth, the only time when I move from fourth to fifth i get small click feedback which i am not sure is it due to me or is related to the functioning of the bike.



Quality: Feel and Quality of the parts used feels premium and I feel horn and LED lights on the bike are sufficient for my daily rides, will update if I find any need for upgrades later.


Seating: I felt it is 20-25% better than N300 but that could also be my assumption since I never owned an N300 and all I have done is few hundred miles on others N300, maybe an N300 owner will be able to gauge seating position and comfort and give better feedback on it. Pillion seat is similar to N300 and one friend who was with me for a short ride of 5km felt he could do 50km plus before his butt might start screaming for some relief, will update when I go with a pillion for 100+ ride after rains.




Service: While first service cost should come to average 6k as informed but I was told to carry it only when it is close to the 1000km mark and not rush for the first service since it is anyway paid and same can be done even after that as told to me by Kawasaki folks. During the run-in period of 1000km, I have been told to avoid high-speed accelerations and in Kawasaki Ninja 400 International FB community I have been told to keep speed and revs in checks till 1600km to let engine settle in.




Accessories: No aftermarket accessories are available in the Indian market and I plan to ask my friend who will be visiting Thailand for Holidays soon to get me few from there. I have already done some research and have located stores where accessories like Radiator Guard, crash folks and tanks pads etc.


Since very few have been sold in India and a very small group of owners they are of N400 here, I have created an FB Page for all Current and prospective N400 owners who wish to join to talk about the bikes and other things related to ownership and experience.