Bajaj Auto is gearing up for the launch of the new Pulsar NS400 on 3 May. This will be the biggest Pulsar yet in terms of cubic capacity and it is quite an important motorcycle for Bajaj as a lot of Pulsar fans have been waiting for a new, more powerful Pulsar after the NS200 and the N250. The brand Pulsar has always stood for great value and an unbeatable price to performance ratio. Bajaj is expected to stick to this “mantra” with the new Pulsar NS400 and is expected to price the bike between Rs 2-2.3 lakh, ex-showroom.
To achieve this, Bajaj is likely to have sourced a lot of parts and components from existing bikes like the Pulsar NS200 and the Dominar 400. This reduces the cost of research and development, and also reduces the time taken to bring the bike to the market.
In fact, images of the Pulsar NS400 were leaked recently and are all over the internet. A close look at the bike revealed a lot of interesting information. The styling, to begin with, appears to be an evolution of the NS200. There’s a new headlight cluster with a projector lamp in the center flanked by large, LED DRLs. The fuel tank looks straight from the NS200 but the tank extensions are larger and add more visual mass to the side profile. The tail-section is sleeker than the NS200’s and on the whole, the Pulsar NS400 looks like a proper street fighter.
Under the bodywork, we can see a perimeter frame, with a USD fork at one end and preload adjustable monoshock at the rear. The bike seems to be riding on the same alloy wheels as seen on the NS200. The engine, on the other hand, should be the same 373cc, liquid-cooled, single-cylinder unit that you see on the Dominar 400. It develops 39.42bhp and 35Nm.
Bajaj is also expected to add a long list of features that includes a digital display with Bluetooth connectivity and navigation. It is also likely to feature traction control and three ABS modes.
With Bajaj playing the “value game” by offering a near 400cc bike at an aggressive price, it’ll be interesting to see how it fares against existing competition, the BMW G 310 R and TVS Apache RTR 310.