Rajiv Bajaj, managing director, Bajaj Auto, has said in an interview with CNBC TV18 that the biggest Pulsar bike will be launched by the end of FY (financial year) 2024, or by the beginning of FY 2025. In simple terms, it’ll either launch by the last week of March 2024, or in the start of April 2024. The bike he was referring to, obviously, was the Bajaj Pulsar NS400.
Staying true to the NS brand, the Bajaj Pulsar NS400 will likely be a sporty naked offering based on the Bajaj Dominar 400’s 373cc engine, that produces 40PS and 35Nm. The Dominar 400 had been branded as a ‘power cruiser’ by Bajaj but our biggest issue with it was its weight. So we hope the NS400, being a streetfighter, will address that issue.
The new Pulsar’s design will likely be similar to the recently launched Bajaj Pulsar NS200 and Pulsar NS160, both of which got a redesigned headlight section and a new set of features. But the Pulsar NS400 is likely to come with a few changes such as a new reinforced perimeter chassis, based on the one used on the Pulsar NS200 and Pulsar NS160, to house the larger and heavier engine.
We can expect it to get an inverted fork and monoshock, just like the Dominar and other bikes in the Pulsar NS lineup. It will also likely come with the same digital instrument console as the Pulsar NS200 and Pulsar NS160. The console has features such as smartphone connectivity and related functionalities such as turn-by-turn navigation and Call/SMS alerts.
The bike is expected to be priced slightly lower than the Bajaj Dominar 400, which currently sells at Rs 2,29,781 (ex-showroom Delhi). The Pulsar NS400 will compete with the likes of the KTM 390 Duke, Triumph Speed 400, and Husqvarna Svartpilen 401.
