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azn370z · September 13th, 2012, 10:05 PM

The type of shopper the Ninja 300 and cbr250r attract are price conscientious ones. Most shoppers for these bikes are not enthusiast but people getting into biking for the first time. Most of these new buyers have heard of Honda and its reputation and most likely haven't heard of Kawasaki. They don't care about 300cc versus 250cc, rear tire size, etc.

The Ninja 250r used to be the 5th selling motorcycle in the US.
Kawasaki had a monopoly on the entry sport bike for many years. The Ninja 300 is a reactive response to Honda's cbr250r. The whole point of the Ninja 300 was to win back loss market share. But how does Kawasaki expect to beat Honda by charging $600* more for the base and $800* more for the abs model. In 5 years I'm sure the cbr250 will continue to dominate the Ninja.

Now I'm the type of buyer that spends $3000 on wheels or $1000 for a piece of carbon fiber to attach on my car. So buying the ninja 300 abs is not an issue for me. But I just don't see Honda losing this war.

*calculated using 2012 cbr pricing with the expectation that 2013 will have a $100 increase.

September 13th, 2012, 10:05 PM	#1
azn370z ninjette.org member Name: Jason Location: seattle Join Date: Sep 2012 Motorcycle(s): Ninja Posts: 53	The Ninja 300 will fail The type of shopper the Ninja 300 and cbr250r attract are price conscientious ones. Most shoppers for these bikes are not enthusiast but people getting into biking for the first time. Most of these new buyers have heard of Honda and its reputation and most likely haven't heard of Kawasaki. They don't care about 300cc versus 250cc, rear tire size, etc. The Ninja 250r used to be the 5th selling motorcycle in the US. Kawasaki had a monopoly on the entry sport bike for many years. The Ninja 300 is a reactive response to Honda's cbr250r. The whole point of the Ninja 300 was to win back loss market share. But how does Kawasaki expect to beat Honda by charging $600* more for the base and $800* more for the abs model. In 5 years I'm sure the cbr250 will continue to dominate the Ninja. Now I'm the type of buyer that spends $3000 on wheels or $1000 for a piece of carbon fiber to attach on my car. So buying the ninja 300 abs is not an issue for me. But I just don't see Honda losing this war. *calculated using 2012 cbr pricing with the expectation that 2013 will have a $100 increase.