Hero MotoCorp showcased its new sports bike, the HX250R at the 2014 Auto Expo in Delhi today. The HX250R as the name suggests is a quarter-litre sports bike and has been co-developed by Hero and Eric Buell Racing (EBR), with no Honda signs anywhere. This is the bike’s first outing since the unveil last week. Hero has also showcased four new products namely the RNT diesel scooter concept, the hybrid scooter Hero Leap, the Hero Dash 110cc scooter and Hero Extreme 150cc bike at its pavilion at the expo. The company has debuted a slew of new models at the event.
The HX250R measures 2085 mm in length, 735 mm in width and 1145 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 1370 mm and a ground clearance of 145 mm. Hero has used a geodesic tubular frame with the engine used a stress member. Coming to the styling, it is very reminiscent of the EBR 1190RX, especially the side fairing and the rear three-quarter. The front uses dual headlamps with integrated LED lights at the front and rear. The overall proportions seem rather slim, but we expect the design to grow on us with time. The bike currently on display is the prototype, so expect to see some changes when launched.
The HX250R has been designed with a completely new engine co-developed by Hero and its partners Eric Buell Racing, AVL and Engines Engineering. The quarter-litre bike is powered by a 249cc, single-cylinder, 4-valve engine that uses liquid cooling and fuel-injection. The engine is capable of producing a staggering 31 BHP of power and 26 Nm of torque and is mated to a 6-speed transmission. Hero has also packed in combined ABS and under seat exhaust, tipping the scales at 139 kgs, making brilliant power to weight ratio as well. Expect 0 – 100 km/hr to come up in under 8 seconds, while the top speed at an excess of 150 km/hr.
The Hero HX250R uses telescopic forks up front and a 5-step adjustable monoshock with shim valve damping at the rear. The bike is using 110/80/17 up front and 140/70/17 Pirelli Sport Demon tyres at the rear, to provide the adequate grip at high speeds. Stopping power comes from a three piston caliper with a 300 mm disc in front, while the rear uses a 200 mm disc from ByBre. Hero has also provided combined ABS as optional.
Hero has not revealed the prices as yet on the HX250R and will be officially launching the bike in September later this year. We expect the bike to be priced very aggressively in the Rs. 1.3 – 1.5 lakhs bracket, given the heavy localization Hero can manage. The bike will also be christened with a new name (hopefully no Karizma) when launched. The HX250R will be competing head to head with the Bajaj Pulsar 200SS, Honda CBR250R, KTM Duke 200 and the Yamaha R15.
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