The stars of Kawasaki’s booth at the Japan Mobility Show 2023 were undoubtedly the 40th anniversary Ninja lineup, complete with retro styling from classic models. The Ninjas aren’t the only new throwback bikes, however. Lurking in the shadow of the Ninjas at the show were two tiny Kawasaki retro bikes, the Meguro S1 and the W230.
Photo: Japan Mobility Show
We’ve had a feeling that Kawasaki was going to do something with the Meguro name after filing a trademark application for it in 2019. The Meguro Manufacturing Company is one of the two companies that merged to form Kawasaki as we know it today, so if anyone has a right to use the name, it’s them. This came true at the end of 2020 with the Meguro K3, which is essentially a W800 without the cafe racer styling, but still full retro. Now, Kawasaki has followed up the K3 with the Meguro S1. They call it the successor to the 1964 Kawasaki 250 Meguro SG, as it’s also powered by an air-cooled 250 cc single-cylinder engine. We don’t know much more about it at this point, but it certainly has the classic looks that a throwback bike like this deserves.
Photo: Japan Mobility Show
The W230 looks quite similar and uses the same engine as the Meguro S1. After studying the pictures of both bikes, there appears to be little to distinguish one from the other except the names and the color schemes. It’s certainly a pretty bike, with more retro styling that works quite well on a smaller bike like this. Little air-cooled bikes like these are how it all started for the Japanese motorcycle industry, after all.
There is no word as to whether we’ll see either of these Kawasaki retro bikes in North America. Smaller bikes like these tend not to sell as well here as in other parts of the world. Kawasaki already has the beautiful Z900 available, a retro bike with modern running gear that I would add to my own garage if I had the space. Though it’s not impossible that we might get at least one of these retro rides here, I wouldn’t necessarily be holding my breath, which is too bad. Either one looks like it would be fun to take for a romp and look good doing it.
