2019 Bajaj Dominar 400 Spotted Testing, Again

The updated Dominar 400 was heavily camouflaged but looked production-ready; launch in early 2019

• 2019 Dominar 400 spotted testing on Pune roads
• Updates include USD forks, a new exhaust canister and an upgraded engine
• Bajaj likely to launch the bike in early 2019

The upcoming 2019 Bajaj Dominar 400 has been spotted testing yet again, this time on the roads of Pune. These images are stills captured from a video uploaded by a Youtuber who spotted the bike undergoing road tests. Although the pictures show the 2019 Dominar 400 heavily camouflaged, the bike looks like it is close to being production ready. This indicates that Bajaj might be in the final stages leading up to the launch of its updated flagship.

To recall, the new 2019 Dominar 400's pictures first surfaced in September this year. The pictured bike looked surprisingly well-finished for a test mule and gave us a good idea of the updates it carried. The most prominent among these was a USD front suspension setup, which will be a first for any Bajaj production bike. It also featured a reworked exhaust canister, catalytic converter and front fender. The 2019 Dominar 400 caught testing on the roads of Pune featured all those updates as well.

However, the new Dominar 400 is also likely to get a handful of mechanical improvements. For instance, Bajaj might offer a DOHC (dual overhead cams) setup and a ride-by-wire throttle. While the former should give the Dominar 400 better top-end performance, the latter will result in a faster and smoother throttle response. With DOHC, the new Dominar’s engine should also produce slightly more peak power than the existing one. The current engine is a 373.3cc single-cylinder, liquid-cooled, SOHC unit that produces 35PS of peak power and 35Nm of max torque.

To recall, Bajaj had launched the Dominar 400 in December 2016. The bike offered excellent value for money back then and has retained that reputation even after subsequent price hikes. However, it also gained a reputation for being quite vibey. The highly tractable engine produced vibrations very early on in the power band, which made highway cruising a bit cumbersome. Within city limits too, the Dominar 400’s weight (182kg) made it heavy to lug around. Combined with a confused marketing campaign, these issues ensured the Dominar 400’s sales never really took off.

By launching the new 2019 Dominar 400, Bajaj hopes to revive the fortunes of its flagship motorcycle. As for launch date, we expect Bajaj to introduce the bike in early 2019 and at a premium of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 over the current Dominar 400 ABS, which is priced at Rs 1.63 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

Picture Credit: Rushlane & YouTube

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