Honda is displaying the SFA 150 Concept at various shows. It may turn into a production motorcycle soon and would be a KTM Duke 200 competitor.
The entry-level street-fighter market has been largely dominated by KTM in India and the Duke 200 and Yamaha MT-125 abroad. Honda seems to be interested in getting into this segment because it has a lot of potential for growth. Honda showcased the SFA 150 in Indonesia last year but did not reveal any details about the bike or any information about the launch date. Now, the bike has been showcased at the 2015 Osaka Motorcycle Show. We think that the motorcycle might become a production model in the near future.
The Honda SFA 150 Concept design looks radical and has plenty of attention-grabbing components. However, the production model might not feature all such components in order to keep costs in check because buyers in this segment are price sensitive. The exhaust partially visible under the seat hasn’t been seen on other bikes and looks different indeed. The headlight design is uber cool but might be changed to a more cost-effective unit. The trellis frame on the bike seems to be inspired from bikes from manufacturers like KTM and Ducati who have been using these frames since years.
We hope Honda starts producing this bike and launches it in India soon to add some spark to its Indian portfolio. This would also give good competition to the Duke 200 which has been on a dream run since the time it was launched. The fact that Honda bikes are very proven will help the street-fighter sell well in our market. The only concern that most of us have is that Honda might change a bit too many components on the production model and then it would totally lose the charm that the concept has.
