After its earlier spottings just yesterday by a Gaadi.com reader, now we have a set of spyshots coming from leading media house Autocar India. It seems the new product from Hero Motocorp is definitely in its advanced stages of testing.
However, what could play spoilsport with many Hero fans is the possibility of this new bike getting powered by the same 225cc mill. If this goes true this might just be a big letdown considering the changing times.
The current mill on the Hero Karizma ZMR is terribly underpowered by segment standards, churning out 17PS in all. Though there could be an increase in the power figures to give the Pulsar 220 some-butterflies-in-the-stomach, majority might not be impressed if Hero decides to continue with a 225cc engine, even if it is fuel-injected and liquid-cooled.
Hero Motocorp needs to shed its commuter-bike-maker image and thought process if they really want to make a cut with the booming premium segment buyers in India. And a quarter-litre mill blessed with reliability as well as the finesse will definitely go a long way in handing it a brand makeover.
Nevertheless, the rest of the Autocar reporting is pretty much in sync with what had been uncovered earlier. The test mules were wrapped up in covers, but that couldn’t hide the tell-tale fairing. They were equipped with clear-lens turn-signal lamps, alloy footrests as well as sporty clip-ons.
Unlike the previous ZMR, we wish that this bike should not look disproportionate. The rear of the bike goes sky-high in a typical sports-bike manner (R15 v2.0 inspiration?), with the original rear-mudguard having been shown the door for a tyre hugger accompanied by a very stubby rear-mudguard. The only caveat is that it still looks malnourished when viewed from the rear, majorly because of the profile of the rear tyre.
The bike carries telescopic forks on the front and we can spot a set of gas-charged inverted rear-shocks on one of the bikes. Though the end-cans seem to have developed rust on one of the bikes, that doesn’t hide the resemblance to the muffler tips of the current Karizma range. Front discs should be standard, though nothing can be said about the rear as one of the test mules had rear discs but another was equipped with the conventional drum brakes.
The rear tyres appear to be the popular MRF Nylogrip Zappers, courtesy the pattern. A letdown is that the swingarm appears to be rectangular, not the elliptical ones used on some bigger Pulsars. Hero Motocorp still has a lot of homework to do!!
Autocar states that Hero is playing their cards pretty close to their chest at the moment, hence no indication of the price. A reasonable expectation of the launch date could be somewhere near the festive season.
Keep tuned to us as we try to get more about these supposedly new updated Hero Karizma ZMR bikes for you!
