The Xpulse 421 has been clicked for the first time after nearly two years since it was announced at the EICMA 2024 in Italy
Hero Xpulse 421 was first teased at the EICMA 2024 in Italy. It was expected to break cover at the previous edition of Milan Motorcycle Show in Nov 2025 but Hero didn’t showcase it at the event. With a few months left in EICMA 2026, the brand’s biggest adventure bike has resurfaced out of nowhere as first images of the Xpulse 421 have emerged on web from the snow-clad Ladakh during the test runs. The spy images show the ADV motorcycle undergoing cold-weather high-altitude testing while clicked on camera at one of the high mountain passes.
The test mule of the Xpulse 421 is wearing heavy camouflage. However, despite that, we can clearly see the purpose-built bike carrying a high-mounted LED headlight in the front fairing. The side profile is pretty sleek as compared to the front fascia while the seat and tank are designed to enable “saddling” which is quite common for the motorcycling community during long distance journeys to avoid tiredness.
Likely to be sitting on a steel trellis frame, Hero Xpulse 421 will come with USD front forks with long-travel and rear monoshock absorber. While the front suspension could get compression and rebound, the rear one might boast of preload adjustability. The adventure bike is expected to ride on 21-inch front and 18-inch rear wheels which will be fitted with dual-purpose tyres.
It is still not clear whether Hero would introduce tubed tyres or tubeless ones as we see in the KTM 390 Adventure S. The stopping power could come from a front disc brake with radially mounted calipers and a single disc unit at the rear. The spy images also show a digital instrument console with colored TFT screen and Smartphone connectivity via Bluetooth.
Needless to mention, Hero Xpulse 421 will be equipped with a plethora of modern bells and whistles in the form of ride modes, cruise control, traction control, and switchable ABS among others. Mechanically, as the spy pics show, it will debut an all-new single-cylinder liquid-cooled engine in the Indian market. The power and torque figures are not in public domain yet.
We expect the Xpulse 421 to deliver similar power and torque as the Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 and KTM 390 Adventure. The engine will be offered with a 6-speed gearbox while a quickshifter will also be offered as standard feature on the higher variants. We sincerely hope to see the Xpulse 421 making its grand debut at the EICMA 2026, which is a few months away from now.
