Kawasaki revived its dormant 1924 Meguro motorcycle brand with the retro K3 and S1

Meguro Seisakusho, founded in 1924, was Japan's prewar and postwar grande marque of large-displacement motorcycles — so famous that riders said 'is it a Meguro bike, or is it the Meguro?' In the 1960s the struggling company tied up with Kawasaki and was absorbed in 1964; the bloodline continued as the 500cc K1 and then the 1966 W1, the vertical twin that fathered today's W650/W800 line.

Fifty-plus years after the marque disappeared as a brand, Kawasaki revived it. February 2021 brought the MEGURO K3, built on the W800: a 773cc air-cooled SOHC parallel twin, 19-inch front wheel, 790mm seat, 227kg, but dressed unmistakably in Meguro identity — the shield emblem, hand-drawn-style pinstripes, silver-and-black livery and model naming that continues the original K-series sequence.

The revival was deliberately small and premium. The K3's 2026 model, announced in October 2025 and on sale from 1 November 2025, keeps the concept and nudges the price to ¥1,419,000 (tax included); a 232cc Meguro S1 stands alongside as the entry of the resurrected range.

What makes the bike work is what the brand lacks as machine: the air-cooled parallel twin has no performance bragging rights, so Kawasaki sells time and story — an emblem with a century of history — for customers who want to ride a legend slowly rather than chase specification sheets.

The 1924 marque lives: K3 (773cc twin, from Feb 2021) and S1 sit in Kawasaki's retro range; 2026 K3 on sale from Nov 2025 at ¥1,419,000.

The W800 platform meant the revival needed a new badge, tank and wheels rather than a new engine — development cost stayed low enough to justify a niche line

The Meguro emblem carried genuine prewar heritage with a recognized place in Japanese motorcycle history, so the story was credible rather than invented

The neo-classic boom and the near-disappearance of new air-cooled twins gave the K3 a scarcity moat no sportbike could match

Sweet-spot pricing above the standard W800 but below true collectors' machines let the brand claim a flagship slot inside Kawasaki's own retro lineup

Reviving a dormant heritage name is cheap when the platform exists; Kawasaki dressed its W800 in Meguro's emblem, turning a retro bike into a premium story.

By 2026 the revived Meguro formed a stable two-model sub-family (K3 flagship, S1 entry) inside Kawasaki's lineup, updated year after year for the Japanese home market, with the 2026 K3 announced at ¥1,419,000. Kawasaki's own brand pages now present Meguro as the root of the W line — the 1924 name restored as live marketing for the entire retro heritage range.