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2013 Kawasaki Ninja 300

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Limited comparison data

There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

39 reports with mileage · 3 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Engine. Review the 37 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 14 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Fuel/propulsion System. Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

2 crash reports0 fire reports1 injury reports

Engine complaints

37 reports
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Mileage unknown · Apr 22, 2013
Engine

I GOT A BRAND NEW KAWASAKI NINJA 300, BUT HAVE ISSUES WITH IT STALLING. I ALLOW IT TO WARM UP FOR AT LEAST 5-10 MINUTES BEFORE RIDING, AS INSTRUCTED BY KAWASAKI, THIS DOES NOT HELP. EVERY MORNING I COME TO A STOP RIGHT AFTER I START MY RIDE TO WORK, WHEN I PULL IN THE CLUTCH THE ENGINE WILL SHUT OFF. THIS HAPPENS ALMOST EVERY DA…

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I GOT A BRAND NEW KAWASAKI NINJA 300, BUT HAVE ISSUES WITH IT STALLING. I ALLOW IT TO WARM UP FOR AT LEAST 5-10 MINUTES BEFORE RIDING, AS INSTRUCTED BY KAWASAKI, THIS DOES NOT HELP. EVERY MORNING I COME TO A STOP RIGHT AFTER I START MY RIDE TO WORK, WHEN I PULL IN THE CLUTCH THE ENGINE WILL SHUT OFF. THIS HAPPENS ALMOST EVERY DAY AND PERSISTS UNTIL GETTING ON THE HIGHWAY AND DRIVING A FEW MILES BEFORE IT ACTUALLY WARMS UP. I BROUGHT IT BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP, THEIR TECH RODE IT AND IT HAPPENED TO THEM TOO. I CALLED KAWASAKI AND BASICALLY ALL THEY WERE ABLE TO TELL ME IS THE BIKE NEEDS TO WARM UP TO AN OPTIMAL TEMPERATURE. I DISAGREE AND THINK THERE IS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WITH THIS VEHICLE AND IT NEEDS TO BE RESOLVED. BUT IT DOES NOT APPEAR THAT KAWASAKI IS DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT, THEY ARE CALLING IT 'NORMAL RIDING CONDITIONS'. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10509113

Mileage unknown · Apr 3, 2013
Engine

THIS MOTORCYCLE HAS A SERIOUS AND DANGEROUS FLAW WITH THE ENGINE SHUTTING OFF WHEN IT IS NOT SUPPOSED TO. AFTER A SUFFICIENT WARM UP PERIOD I WILL DRIVE OFF, AND WHEN I PULL IN THE CLUTCH WHILE SLOWING THE BIKE SHUTS OFF. THIS IS A HAZARD TO ME AND OTHER DRIVERS AROUND ME. PLEASE MAKE KAWASAKI ISSUE A FIX IMMEDIATELY. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10505580

1 miles · Mar 30, 2013
Engine

THE MOTORCYCLE WILL STALL INTERMITTENTLY WHILE BEING DRIVEN AND CREATES A DANGEROUS OPERATING ENVIRONMENT FOR MYSELF AND THE OTHER VEHICLES AROUND ME WHEN POWER IS SUDDENLY AND ABRUPTLY LOST. IT SEEMS THAT WHEN THE CLUTCH LEVER IS PULLED, THE ENGINE WILL STALL. KAWASAKI AND THE DEALERSHIP HAVE BEEN VERY UNHELPFUL AND ARE PUTT…

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THE MOTORCYCLE WILL STALL INTERMITTENTLY WHILE BEING DRIVEN AND CREATES A DANGEROUS OPERATING ENVIRONMENT FOR MYSELF AND THE OTHER VEHICLES AROUND ME WHEN POWER IS SUDDENLY AND ABRUPTLY LOST. IT SEEMS THAT WHEN THE CLUTCH LEVER IS PULLED, THE ENGINE WILL STALL. KAWASAKI AND THE DEALERSHIP HAVE BEEN VERY UNHELPFUL AND ARE PUTTING THE OWNERS OF THESE MOTORCYCLES AT RISK OF SERIOUS INJURY. THERE ARE NUMEROUS OWNERS OF THESE BIKES WITH THE SAME ISSUE, APPARENTLY IT IS QUITE WIDESPREAD. THIS ISSUE HAS EXISTED SINCE MY FIRST DRIVE IN THE DEALER PARKING AND STILL CONTINUES. EXAMPLE: HTTP://WWW.KAWASAKININJA300.COM/FORUM/11-NINJA-300-ISSUES-TROUBLESHOOTING/928-NINJA-300-STALL.HTML PLEASE PUT THE ONUS ON KAWASAKI TO PROTECT THE WELL BEING OF THEIR RIDERS AND FIX THIS ISSUE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10505031

200 miles · Mar 30, 2013
EnginePower Train

HI I HAVE A 2013 KAWASAKI NINJA 300 AND I BEEN HAVING PROBLEM OF SLOWING DOWN AND THE ENGINE WOULD STALL DOESN'T MATTER ANY GEAR AFTER 3RD GEAR SLOWING DOWN WOULD JUST STALL, ALSO PROBLEM WITH GETTING INTO THE GEAR AFTER IT STALLING. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10505012

35 miles · Mar 20, 2013
Engine

I OWN A BRAND NEW STOCK NINJA 300. ON THE DAY I FIRST EXPERIENCED THIS PROBLEM, IT WAS PROBABLY ABOUT 80+ DEGREES OUTSIDE. I HAD ALLOW MY BIKE TO WARM UP FOR AT LEAST 5 MINUTES. TOOK THE BIKE OUT AND WENT DOWN THE BLOCK. I WAS PROBABLY IN 2ND GEAR WHEN I CAME TO AN INTERSECTION WHERE I PREPARED TO STOP. I PULLED IN THE CLUTCH AL…

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I OWN A BRAND NEW STOCK NINJA 300. ON THE DAY I FIRST EXPERIENCED THIS PROBLEM, IT WAS PROBABLY ABOUT 80+ DEGREES OUTSIDE. I HAD ALLOW MY BIKE TO WARM UP FOR AT LEAST 5 MINUTES. TOOK THE BIKE OUT AND WENT DOWN THE BLOCK. I WAS PROBABLY IN 2ND GEAR WHEN I CAME TO AN INTERSECTION WHERE I PREPARED TO STOP. I PULLED IN THE CLUTCH ALL THE WAY AND APPLIED THE BRAKES. UPON PULLING IN THE CLUTCH, THE ENGINE SHUT OFF. I DIDN'T EVEN REALIZE IT WAS OFF UNTIL I WENT TO TRY AND PULL OFF AGAIN AND REALIZED MY BIKE WASN'T EVEN RUNNING! THIS HAPPENED 2 MORE TIMES AS I TOOK THE BIKE AROUND THE BLOCK TO PUT IT BACK IN THE GARAGE. THE VERY NEXT DAY, JUST TO MAKE SURE I WASN'T CRAZY I DECIDED TO TEST THE BIKE OUT AGAIN. THIS TIME I LET IT WARM UP A GOOD TEN MINUTES AT LEAST THEN DID THE SAME EXACT THING. TOOK IT DOWN THE STREET AND AROUND THE BLOCK. LOW AND BEHOLD, THE FIRST CHANCE I TRY TO SLOW DOWN, I PULL IN THE CLUTCH AND AGAIN THE BIKE SHUTS OFF. I BROUGHT IT BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP. THEIR TECH RODE IT AND IT HAPPENED TO THEM TOO. I CALLED KAWASAKI AND BASICALLY ALL THEY WERE ABLE TO TELL ME IS THE BIKE NEEDS TO WARM UP TO AN OPTIMAL TEMPERATURE. I DISAGREE AND THINK THERE IS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WITH THIS VEHICLE AND IT NEEDS TO BE RESOLVED. BUT IT DOES NOT APPEAR THAT KAWASAKI IS DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10503834

55 miles · Mar 18, 2013
EnginePower Train

I WAS COMING UP TO MY NEIGHBORHOOD GATE AND I PULLED MY CLUTCH IN AND STARTED BRAKING TO STOP SO THE GATE CAN OPEN, THE ENGINE THEN STALLED FOR NO REASON. I WAS IN 1ST GEAR AT THE TIME THIS HAPPENED AND I HAVE MY IDLE SET TO ABOUT 1800 RPMS WHICH IS A LITTLE HIGH SO THERE SHOULD BE NO REASON WHY THIS BIKE STALLED BY PULLING THE …

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I WAS COMING UP TO MY NEIGHBORHOOD GATE AND I PULLED MY CLUTCH IN AND STARTED BRAKING TO STOP SO THE GATE CAN OPEN, THE ENGINE THEN STALLED FOR NO REASON. I WAS IN 1ST GEAR AT THE TIME THIS HAPPENED AND I HAVE MY IDLE SET TO ABOUT 1800 RPMS WHICH IS A LITTLE HIGH SO THERE SHOULD BE NO REASON WHY THIS BIKE STALLED BY PULLING THE CLUTCH IN AND BRAKING. I HAVE READ ON VARIOUS KAWASAKI NINJA 300 ONLINE FORUMS THERE HAVE BEEN MANY OTHER 2013 NINJA 300'S WITH THE SAME SIMILAR PROBLEM. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10503493

1,650 miles · Feb 18, 2013
EngineFuel/propulsion SystemPower Train

I WAS RIDING MY MOTORCYCLE AND COMING TO A RED LIGHT. I HELD IN MY CLUTCH TO GET READY TO DOWNSHIFT, BEFORE I COULD EVEN START DOWNSHIFTING, THE ENGINE STOPPED RUNNING AND I HAD TO START THE ENGINE AGAIN WHEN I WAS AT THE STOP LIGHT. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10498532

Official recalls

1

13V328000 · Electrical System

Jul 29, 2013

Kawasaki Motors Corp. is recalling certain model year 2013 Ninja 300 and 300 ABS motorcycles manufactured July 16, 2012, through April 27, 2013. Due to an improper setting in the Electronic Control Unit (ECU), the motorcycle may stall under deceleration.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A stall under deceleration increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Kawasaki will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ECU. The recall began on August 5, 2013. Owners may contact Kawasaki at 1-866-802-9381.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

1

PE13023 · Motorcycle Stalling

Opened Jun 20, 2013 · Closed Sep 20, 2013

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Fuel System, Other:fuel Injection System

ODI opened this PE with eighteen (18) allegations of stalling while riding a subject motorcycle.During the course of gathering information about this subject, Kawasaki decided to address the stalling issue.Kawasaki has informed ODI they intend to remedy approximately 11,097 2013 Model Year Ninja 300 and 300 ABS motorcycles by replacing the Engine Control Unit.Kawasaki's recall (13V-328) resolves the issue raised by this investigation and therefore this investigation is closed.The ODI reports cited above can be reviewed at http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID under the following 56 complaint identification numbers:10498192,10498532,10503493,10503834,10505012,10505031,10505117, 10505548,10505580,10509113,10509756,10510493,10510706,10512296, 10512579,10513051,10513978,10515717,10519423,10521588,10521827, 10521883,10521889,10521959,10521981,10522157,10522286,10522328, 10522426,10522861,10522984,10522991,10523178,10523506,10524022, 10524290,10525055,10525055,10525289,10525289,10525910,10525910, 10531686,10531686,10532034,10532034,10532226,10532226,10532373, 10532373,10532447,10532447,10532590,10532590,10534559,10536049