The Honda CBR650F was caught doing laps on the Buddh International Circuit for possibly an ad shoot ahead of the official launch expected in July this year.
While majority of Honda India’s revenues come from the commuter space, the Japanese auto giant hasn’t forgotten about the growing middleweight performance segment altogether and is in the process of introducing the CBR650F sports bike in the country later in the year. Now, ahead of the official launch expected this July, the Honda CBR650F (with a saree guard) was spotted by our reader Gurpreet Sandhu doing laps of the Buddh International Circuit for possibly an ad shoot, so that the promotional activities can commence. The newest Honda will be joining the ranks of the Kawasaki Z800 and Benelli TNT 600i in the country as a 4-cylinder offering, brought in via the CKD route.
The Honda CBR650F is definitely a sporty looking motorcycle to come from the manufacturer, boasting of an aggressive stance. The front fascia is relatively simple with the single piece headlight cluster while the side profile is accentuated by the chiseled fairing and fuel tank design. The CBR650F is also one of the more practical bikes in its segment and gets a comfortable riding position balanced between being upright and sporty. It also gets a single seat instead of the split seat option, which can easily accommodate the rider and pillion.
In terms of power, the Honda CBR650F uses the 649cc in-line, four-cylinder engine tuned to churn out 86 HP and 63 Nm of peak torque, paired to a 6-speed gearbox. The bike is capable of doing the 0-100 km/hr sprint in under 4 seconds and has a top speed of 225 km/hr. Weighing 208 kgs, the Honda rides on 120 and 180 section tyres at the front and rear respectively while ABS is offered as standard. The CBR650F holds a lot of importance for Honda India as it will be the company’s first CKD assembled performance bike in the country and will also use locally sourced parts (5% localisation to start with) but that won’t help keep prices competitive, as Honda plans to price the bike at Rs. 8 lakhs (ex-showroom).
