Kawasaki KX327 & KX327X: 327cc Dual-Injection Two-Stroke Weapons

Part of Throttle Times’ live coverage of EICMA 2026.

For over twenty years, European single-track and hard enduro paddocks have operated under an undisputed Austrian hegemony. If you wanted a serious, full-sized competition two-stroke with modern fuelling, you bought from Mattighofen or one of its subsidiaries, with occasional Italian defiance from Beta or Sherco. The Japanese Big Four had ostensibly retreated to four-stroke safety and left premix nostalgia to vintage races.

At EICMA 2026, Kawasaki officially blew that complacency apart. Standing on the Milan floor, Team Green unveiled the 2027 KX327 motocrosser and its woods-weapon sibling, the KX327X cross-country. This is not an oversized big-bore kit grafted onto a decade-old KX250 chassis; it is a ground-up, electronically fuel-injected, counterbalanced 327cc open-class two-stroke designed specifically to take the fight directly to European woods racers.

Dual Fuel Injection and 327cc Displacement: The Technical Core

Kawasaki’s all-new liquid-cooled 327cc single-cylinder engine features dual electronic fuel injection (DFI) with twin injectors placed both upstream of the reed valve and directly into the transfer ports, eliminating carburetor jetting changes entirely. The square bore-and-stroke architecture is coupled with an integrated primary gear-driven counterbalancer shaft, reducing high-frequency handlebar vibration by a claimed 40% compared to legacy two-strokes.

An electric starter sits neatly behind the cylinder barrel, backed by a lightweight lithium-ion battery and a Brembo hydraulic clutch master cylinder operating a reinforced multi-plate wet clutch. Power output has not been officially dyno-certified on the show floor, but Akashi engineers target approximately 58 metric horsepower with a broad, tractor-like low-end torque curve managed via selectable handlebar ignition maps and smartphone tuning through Kawasaki’s RIDEOLOGY THE APP KX2.

“Our objective with the KX327 platform was never just nostalgia,” explained a Kawasaki European technical project manager during the Milan presentation. “We engineered a clean-burning, counterbalanced two-stroke that delivers maximum traction in technical European woods without the vibration fatigue or altitude jetting headaches that chased riders away two decades ago.”

The Motocross KX327 vs. The Cross-Country KX327X

The KX327 is tuned strictly for closed-course motocross with a 5-speed close-ratio transmission and a 19-inch rear Excel rim, whereas the KX327X is optimized for cross-country, enduro, and cross-test duty with a wide-ratio 6-speed gearbox, an 18-inch rear wheel, and dedicated off-road valving.

Both variants share Kawasaki’s proven aluminum perimeter frame derived from the KX450, but the off-road KX327X adds essential cross-country kit straight from the factory: a semi-translucent 8.2-litre fuel tank (up from the MX version’s 6.2-litre cell), a heavy-duty composite skid plate, wraparound handguards, a forged aluminum side stand, and a sealed 520 O-ring drive chain. Damping is handled by 49mm inverted KYB Air-Oil Separate (AOS) coil-spring front forks and a fully adjustable KYB rear monoshock linked to Kawasaki’s Uni-Trak rocker system, delivering 305mm of front and 315mm of rear wheel travel on the cross-country spec.

The Rider’s Trade-Off: Traditional Pre-Mix vs. Electronic Oil Injection

The central mechanical compromise of the KX327 platform is Kawasaki’s deliberate refusal to incorporate an electronic oil-injection reservoir: riders must still mix two-stroke oil directly into the fuel tank at a 32:1 ratio.

While European rivals like KTM and Husqvarna have moved to separate oil tanks with electronic metering pumps on their enduro models, Kawasaki engineers prioritized racing reliability and weight reduction. A separate oil tank and metering pump add roughly 1.8 kg of high-mounted hardware, electrical wiring, and pump failure points. Kawasaki’s dual fuel injection atomizes pre-mixed fuel flawlessly across varying ambient temperatures, but riders embarking on multi-day trail excursions or dual-sport liaison sections will still need to carry measuring vials of synthetic two-stroke oil in their backpacks.

Market Positioning and European Availability

The 2027 Kawasaki KX327 and KX327X are slated to arrive in European dealerships in May 2027, with preliminary pricing set at €9,999 for the motocross KX327 and €10,499 for the cross-country KX327X. That undercuts equivalent Austrian machinery by over €1,200 while bringing Japanese build quality and linkage rear suspension back into the open two-stroke conversation. Following closely behind the road-biased Kawasaki KLE650 debut, Akashi is clearly reinforcing its off-road engineering bandwidth against niche European specialists like the Beta RE 330 and the latest Husqvarna FC Factory Editions.

What We Know

• All-new 327cc liquid-cooled two-stroke single with dual fuel injection (DFI) and primary counterbalancer shaft.
• Cross-country KX327X features 6-speed wide-ratio gearbox, 18-inch rear wheel, 8.2L tank, and KYB AOS suspension.
• Arrives in European showrooms in May 2027 starting at approximately €10,499 for the X model.

What’s Still Unclear

• Exact dyno horsepower and peak torque figures (official Akashi homologation pending).
• Whether an EU-homologated road-legal (lights/horn/mirrors) enduro variant will be offered for European national enduro championships.

Media citation: Editorial outlets and forums may quote excerpts with attribution and a link to Throttle Times.

Official source: https://www.kawasaki.eu

Reporting via: dirtbikemagazine.com, eicma.it