Established since 1976
Established since 1976
By Lee Pang Seng @ Leeps
IF YOU have been wondering what happened to Kawasaki in the Malaysian market for the past two years, well, we are pleased to inform you that Kawasaki is back and making a strong statement with the Ninja 250 and Z250 models assembled by Modenas.
The absence of the Japanese motorcycle brand in Malaysia was more of bad timing than intended. Kawasaki terminated the services of the appointed distributor in Malaysia in 2020 as it planned to take direct control over the bike distribution.
However, the Covid-19 pandemic upset all the plans before they could even be implemented. Kawasaki had to bide its time before embarking on the new venture and it had done so since the beginning of 2022.
Kawasaki bike owners must be heaving a sign of relief to know that they could now send their motorcycles to newly dedicated brand service centres for servicing and procurement of spare-parts.
A new Kawasaki dealer network is already put in place and it comes in two forms; Kawasaki Shop and Kawasaki Station. The former sells exclusively Kawasaki motorcycles while the latter comprises multi-brand dealers who sell the Kawasaki range as well. There are currently 20 service dealers and Kawasaki would double this number to 40 next year.
For owners with older Kawasaki models, Modenas says it would order up to 80,000 parts for models dating back to 1992. And if one couldn’t get a part that is readily available, the person could go to a Kawasaki or Modenas outlet to make an order for it.
Naturally, Kawasaki planned its new strategy with its long-term partner Modenas that started its foray into the underbone market with local versions based on the Kawasaki range in the mid-1990s. The Modenas Kriss proved to be very popular and the company produced its 1-millionth motorcycle in mid-2007 and never looked back.
Modenas is the third best seller in the Malaysian underbone market and for the first five months of 2022, the company sold more than 31,200 ‘kap cais’. Modenas CEO Roslan Roskan says it also secured almost 8400 monthly registration (of which the Kriss MR3 accounts for 7000-plus units) this year, the highest monthly total since 2008.
Kawasaki is obviously aware that there are many supporters of the brand here and wants to cement a firmer foundation to cater to them. It did that by upping its stake in Modenas from 19 per cent to 30 per cent recently and it might even go the full distance to 48 per cent in due course.
With a greater presence in Modenas, model strategy for the Malaysian market might see more Kawasaki model adaptations to the Modenas range. Although the Kawasaki-derived Kriss underbone in all its variants is Modenas’ top seller, it has also ventured into other model adaptions, such as the Taiwan-sourced scooters to the 200cc motorcycles from Bajaj India (which are KTM-derived models).
In time, the model range is likely to be adapted progressively from the Kawasaki range at least until 650cc. As it were, the Vulcan S 650 is already in the Modenas assembly pipeline for later in the year.
A recent visit to the sizeable Modenas production facility in Gurun, Kedah gave us an insight into the initial production phase of the Ninja 250. The assembly line was set up by engineers from Kawasaki Japan and Thailand, and the assembly process was overseen with supervision from these engineers as well.
A unique part of the new assembly line is the addition of a special dyno machine that was brought in from Kawasaki Japan. Unlike the dyno machine that is used for the Kriss underbones, which checks the bikes for engine performance via the rear wheel, the dyno machine from Japan checks the bikes for engine performance and braking performance via the front and rear wheels.
As the Ninja 250 and Z 250 are made available with ABS (anti-lock brake system) and non-ABS models, the special dyno machine allows the front braking capability to be fully checked. We were told that Kawasaki is the only bike producer in Japan to use such a dyno machine and its installation in Modenas makes the factory the only one in the Asean region to have such an equipment.
Currently, the Ninja 250 and Z 250 are assembled with parts brought in from Kawasaki Thailand and they would initially carry the Kawasaki name. The strategy is to have local parts content of up to 33 per cent towards the end of 2022, while the bikes are expected to carry the Modenas name in due course. These CKD 250 range would be launched here by late July.
Being locally assembled models, the prices for this 250cc range are expected to be lower than that for the CBU models. As Encik Roslan has duly emphasised: “It’s our target to provide exciting motorcycles to Malaysian bikers at affordable prices.”
The Modenas factory has plenty of room to add new assembly lines that are required for the respective Kawasaki model to be produced here in the near future. And talking of exciting models, the possibility of a Kawasaki Super Moped showing up in Modenas colours might just happen if all goes to plan.
There would be no research and development facility at Modenas as all the R&D work is done at a dedicated facility in Kawasaki Thailand for the region as well as the global market. In the area of EV (electric vehicle) development, Encik Roslan said the current situation in Malaysia was uncertain as to the trend, facilities and government direction. Nevertheless, he affirmed that the company would take part in some development work to prepare for any eventuality.
For now, Modenas is set to play its new role as the Kawasaki distributor and motorcycle assembler and producer. The main thing for Kawasaki enthusiasts is that Kawasaki is back and fully committed to stay for a good long while.
