[Nilesh5417]

Originally Posted by Sheel

What frame? Can you be more specific?

"A diamond type, steel pipe frame is deployed on the CBR250R" is what Autocar says on the link.

Price speculations are completely pointless. I seriously do not expect this bike to be priced anywhere below 2lacs exshowroom given the level of details on this bike, fit-n-finish and equipment level. Are we seriously saying that this bike will be priced even below the so-far-unseen Mojo?

Someone said that Honda may try to garner volumes by pricing it this low. I dont think this is a volume product. Its a lifestyle product. It even has ABS as an option! And when was the last time we saw a Honda product undercutting competition to garner volumes? This isn't aimed at the R15's or P220s. This is taking a shot straight at the Ninja and may definitely be less pricey than the Ninja. But i don't see it being priced in the R15 territory at all even if it is assembled in India. Has honda said they plan to manufacture it in India? I'm not so sure of this happening since its a very important product for them. They probably may not risk their exports given the history of labour trouble they face all the time in India.

Its a wait and watch game. April'11 isn't too far. I'm hoping against hope that they don't do a Bajaj with its launch but do the right thing by pricing it well.

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by Nilesh5417

"A diamond type, steel pipe frame is deployed on the CBR250R" is what Autocar says on the link.

Have a look at what MPower has posted.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/2120673-post22.html

Diamond twin-spar steel frame with 37mm telescopic forks and Pro-Link Monoshock rear suspension for outstanding handling and ride quality.

But Honda is hinting at something else.

Honda Worldwide | CBR250R

I know what Akhilesh was pointing to. But then, there would be no worry on the suspension front.

Price speculations are completely pointless.

Bunny and a host of other publications have hinted enough that it WILL be 1.45L ex-showroom for non ABS.
Manufactured in India and Thailand.

Has honda said they plan to manufacture it in India? I'm not so sure of this happening since its a very important product for them. They probably may not risk their exports given the history of labour trouble they face all the time in India

This is what he (Bunny Punia) said at a forum--

-For a single, the 250cc engine is pretty strong.
-Hit 140km/h on the limited straight on the track in 5th. should do 155 in 6th given the road
-Mighty comfy. Good for Big ppl too
-Can be a good mile muncher (Delhi-Mumbai, Bangalore-Hyd, Kolkata-Vizag, Cochin-Goa etc)
-April'10 launch. Both normal and C-ABS launch. Starting from 1.45 ex-showroom
-110mm front / 140mm rear. 17inchers.
-Engine pretty smooth, terrific low end.
-Indian version will be around 27bhp. Main point is torque at low revs
-VFR look alike speedo too!

[abhayshanu]

If the indian version will be 27 bhp, what is the international bhp?
Also if the non ABS one might be 1.45L then the ABS one can't be more than 1.6L ex-showroom, right?
Last will it be serviced by the regular honda or the SBK honda people?

[IronWolf]

The one thing which looks ugly is the exhaust. Weird proportions.

Originally Posted by n_aditya

I am happy for once that the parts aren't localized or manufactured here. One thing that will suffer is quality. I'd rather pay a premium and get parts that are reliable and have passed stringent QC measures. This does not mean that Indian companies have no quality measures. Most parts will be sourced from suppliers etc. to keep costs down and that is a risk on quality.

Disagree!
In house manufacturing or outsourced. I don't believe Honda specified parts made in India would be less reliable than a Thai Kwaker part.

Originally Posted by cruiser@0523

Not a Ninja killer but definitely and R15 killer.

Originally Posted by Sheel

The CBR is neither in 250R or R15 category

I agree with Cruiser, R15 will certainly take a beating. Why would you not spend another 40k (40k right?) for a more powerful and better looking bike?

R15 is just a R1 wannabe, but the 250R looks much more proportionate.

Originally Posted by prasadee

If all that I am reading comes true -> the Mini VFR will leave the Baby Ninja crying for Mommy. (Mommy as in Kawasaki)

Baby Ninja is a twin and in a different league. However its sales will certainly be affected. I for one would just go for the Honda 250R rather than stretch it by almost doubling my budget for the kwaker.

Last will it be serviced by the regular honda or the SBK honda people?

Am guessing regular service as this is not a SBK

Originally Posted by n_aditya

Yes, the exact same Ninja 250R is available in India. UK Spec with absolutely no changes except the addition of a saree guard and front number plate.

OT- Except that the saree Guard and most of the number plates come flying off the very same / next day.

OT- the funniest automobile part IMO is the R1 saree guard. Does this actually have a Yamaha part number?
Is the Kwacker one a original Thai part?

[typeOnegative]

I somehow do not think that the 1.5L ex-showroom price is the price at which it will be launched. All said and done i am expecting about 1.8L for the non-ABS version and about 2-2.2L for the ABS one. Ex-showroom price that is. Which in my opinion is still phenomenal value for money.

And yes, even at this price I think the bike makes far more sense than the R15 which to me (even though I am a die hard Yamaha fan) is more of a wannabe. Waiting for the response in the 250 cc category from Yamaha and Suzuki. My Ninja plans have been put on hold. It will be good if Yamaha at least can come out with a 250 version of the Fazer. I think they were going to launch one sometime back.

[balenopower]

Originally Posted by IronWolf

I agree with Cruiser, R15 will certainly take a beating. Why would you not spend another 40k (40k right?) for a more powerful and better looking bike?

R15 is just a R1 wannabe, but the 250R looks much more proportionate.

Totally disagree!! The R15 is a baby R1 and like its bigger brother promises brilliant dynamics which most bigger bikes cant match. The CBR was launched at the Bira circuit at Thailand and the R15 would literally beat the CBR as far as track is concerned( i can vouch for that cause i was there for the launch and the track session). But yes it will eat majorly into the R15's sales since most of the buying public would rather buy these bikes for show rather than how they really go. And the CBR is definitely much more bike to own than an R15.

Originally Posted by IronWolf

Baby Ninja is a twin and in a different league. However its sales will certainly be affected. I for one would just go for the Honda 250R rather than stretch it by almost doubling my budget for the kwaker.

yes it might affect the Kwackers sales too, but i really dont think the same kind of people would look at these two bikes. The baby kwacker is double the cylinders, double the price and if not doubly quick, it is substantially quicker. For someone who can buy a CBR at 1.5 lakh, 3 lakh is too far a budget to stretch and similarly for someone who can buy the kwacker, the CBR is definitely a size smaller and again a cylinder lesser.

[kailashnj]

Well nothing can beat the way R15 handles. The handling is very sweet, not sure about the honda's handling as I have not seen it or driven it.

And as very well put up by balenopower - person looking for Ninja will not buy the CBR and vice versa.

But if the price is at 1.5lacs as said by the SBK sales advisor from Saki Naka then it surely be a hit - as we all know what brand following Honda badge claims in India

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by IronWolf

R15 is just a R1 wannabe,

I forgive you as its pretty obvious you haven't RIDDEN it

I agree on all points made by balenopower.

[sriramv.iyer]

Disclaimer: I own an R15

Actually, what I have seen that 90% of people only exploit 60-70% capabilities of the bike they own, esp R15.

When the bikes are products of extreme engineering like R15, Ninja 250 etc (not talking about big SBKs here), the extent to which an average Joe pushes it to its limits is certainly way off peak.

And generally, people don't care. If they can get 70-80% performance at half the price, they'll gladly take the cheaper option. (They don't use the top anyway)

I am sure if priced right, CBR250 will convert lot of people going for Ninja 250.

---------------
Coda:
R15 chassis is AWESOME. I have fit the new experimental rear tires from YAMAHA/MRF () and they ROCK too. I recently took a super-fast exit in the elevated highway at e.city, Bangalore and made a mess of my calculations regarding the curve ahead. All I had to do was to bend sharply and quickly! The bike just held and I was out of a possible crash situation in a jiffy! That's when I realized the value of R15! Even an average biker like me could appreciate the extreme engineering that goes into this bike.

My only grudge is the low-end torque [Heard CBR250 has an excellent LET, and I've been spoiled by ZMA too]

[IronWolf]

BalenoPower and Sheel. R15- I have ridden it.. I like it.

Read what I said after ...

R15 is just a R1 wannabe

I was only talking about its looks and proportions.

As for R15 Vs CBR250R on track. I will just wait for a real shoot which is sure to come very shortly.

[captrajesh]

This was the bike Honda India was supposed to launch when they stepped foot in India, which I was eagerly awaiting. Going by their market survey, they launched Unicorn instead.

Better late than never, though I've now passed my prime to go for it.

[RX135]

Originally Posted by IronWolf

As for R15 Vs CBR250R on track. I will just wait for a real shoot which is sure to come very shortly.

Wouldn't that be quite unfair match? R15 vs CBR150R can be an interesting contest, but why R15 vs CBR250R? CBR has advantage of 100cc and around 9 PS over R15.

IMHO, in real life situation, people who would opt for Ninja over CBR will be of 2 category:

• Looking for best in class acceleration, refinement of 2 cylinders, and more importantly, willing to pay 100% premium for all these.
• Wannabes, who can afford Ninja over CBR250R and want to show off, thanks to its exclusivity.

[EssYouWe]

Originally Posted by balenopower

Totally disagree!! The R15 is a baby R1 and like its bigger brother promises brilliant dynamics which most bigger bikes cant match. The CBR was launched at the Bira circuit at Thailand and the R15 would literally beat the CBR as far as track is concerned( i can vouch for that cause i was there for the launch and the track session). But yes it will eat majorly into the R15's sales since most of the buying public would rather buy these bikes for show rather than how they really go. And the CBR is definitely much more bike to own than an R15.

Absolutely agree on the handling front. R15 is probably the only bike that needs to a super dumb rider to crash!

It is absolutely awesome if one knows how to keep it on the boil.

I am truly tired of people going on and on about R15 ka patla tyre and FZ16 ka mota tyre!

Are these track figures for R15 v/s CBR 150 or the 250? The 250 should be faster, seems so on paper.

[cruiser@0523]

Originally Posted by EssYouWe

I am truly tired of people going on and on about R15 ka patla tyre and FZ16 ka mota tyre!
.

I have seen people going for other bikes because "R15 is one lakh and still has such a skinny tyre"
What they dont know is that the tyre in question is the best available on any indian manufactured bike.

[NST440]

I have driven the kawasaki back at my stay in Bangkok for around ten days and it was quite a big head turner i must tell you, the only sad part is its gigantic price tag in India, now Honda CBR250 seems quite stylish too but somehow my mind is telling me that its price tag sure would not be around 1.5L according to my experience of pricing in India but I am sure going to buy if it stays on its word. No bike i guess is cheap in India, its just the thought, we get RE classis 500 for around 1.3L and the Pulsars are not that cheap too, being a Bajaj brand.

Our thought of getting a ''mileage wala'' bike has crept so deep in the Indian consumer that i still recall people asking about mileage of RE classis or Ninja before buying them!! Good mileage is always welcome but its high time for the Indian consumer to know that power & style comes at a sacrifice.I sincerely wish that the definition of biking should change 360 degree.

Another thing is if Honda comes at a 1.5L price tag, the sight of the bike would become more common hence gradually making it a part and parcel of the bikes seen usually on road, these are contradictory thoughts, one side I wish its price should be 1.5L on the other hand i just dont want it to end up like pulsars and Yamahas seen on the road.