All-new Honda CBR250R?
We've done our homework, and this is what we've come up with: a new generation CBR250R will be launched in Thailand next weekHonda Thailand has launched a new CBR150R, complete with styling hues from the CBR1000RR and VFR1200F. Just take a look at the accompanying photos for confirmation.
That’s mildly absorbing news, but what follows next week will certainly be more arresting from a local standpoint when an all-new ‘worldwide’ CBR250R is set to be launched in Thailand – a machine which is destined to be the first CBR250R sold on local soil since 1998.
And it’s tipped to be a clone of the CBR150R.
Honda has made no secret of the fact that its Thai subsidiary is going to become a massively important hub for motorcycle production in the future, focussing heavily on new, worldwide-bound technology, while the likes of India and Indonesia target volume-orientated expansion.
Honda has already made its strategic intentions clear with the PCX125 scooter with engine stop-start technology, which the Bikesales Network recently sampled at the Australian press launch.
And now the Thai line of attack is set to continue with the release of the CBR250R in Bangkok next week, with the Bikesales Network on location to report back from the front line and put the new machine through its paces.
Mind you, we could still have eggs on our faces, as Honda is set to deliver up to eight news models over the next month (most of them at EICMA in Milan it must be said), so there’s a chance the CBR250R may not be the machine we’re ogling over next week…
But we’ll push on nonetheless, and we expect the new CBR250R to be appreciably lighter and more powerful than the likes of the Hyosung GT250R and Kawasaki Ninja 250, which continues to be the most desirable entry-level bike in Australia – although its tooling and mechanicals are positively ancient.
That’s been one of Kawasaki’s trump cards to maintain a competitive price, but we expect the Thai-made CBR250R to match the Ninja 250 cent for cent when it goes on sale in Australia – if not eclipse it.
Honda Thailand has been spending large chunks of baht developing infrastructure provisions for ‘big bikes’, which includes building a massive service centre, a showroom, and a test track called ‘Honda Big Wing’ in Bangkok.
Keep an eye on the Bikesales Network for all the news from Thailand, starting October 27.
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