Everyone of us took Hero as lightly as any other manufacturer who will go down the doldrums after their split with Honda. However, with each passing month, not only did Hero manage to hold on to their sales, but bettered them at a few occasions as well.
And the real shocker came in a couple of months back when Hero surprised everyone with not one but two announcements! One was the introduction of their 150cc turbocharged diesel engine which produces 35Nm of humongous torque. And the second one was the unveiling of their first ever quarter liter – HX250R!
Among other biggies, Hero also showcased the HX250R at the Auto Expo which drew in a lot of crowd and interest. The most striking features of HX250R are its specs, underseat exhaust and those muscular looks. Let us take a quick first look of one of the most awaited motorcycles in India.
STYLING:
Unlike the vertically stacked circular headlamps of the soon-to-be-launched 2014 Karizma R & ZMR, HX250R carries two distinct horizontally placed headlamps, which are unfortunately 35Watt each and appear similar to the older Honda Fireblade! The highlight of the headlamp, however, are those Daytime Running Lights (DRLs). The visor, as has been, Hero’s latest trend, is too long but we are not sure how would a smaller visor look on that high body.
The side blinkers are clear lens and pointed but do not appear to be flexible. The regular RVMs are hooked onto the fairing. We suggest Hero to make them non-glossy!
Moving to the sides, we begin to see the real character of the bike. It looks extremely muscular with edgy contours and not many curves. Hero calls this ‘Lightning Bolt’ design theme. There is this ‘HERO’ logo which shines with pride on the engine, the tank suddenly rises and the seating posture looks aggressive but not super-sport low. The handlebars are set higher, so we can expect a similar riding posture like the upcoming Pulsar SS200.
At the rear, we see a lot of action. The underseat exhaust is a segment first in the country and should help in better handling obviously apart from lending that ‘coolness’ factor. How hot does it become on long rides, this is one thing we will really be interested in understanding.
There is a new number plate assembly which also carries the detached brake light, side blinkers and reflectors.
HX250R also goes onto become the second Hero bike which comes with a (red coloured) monoshock absorber (first was Impulse) which is not totally centered, but instead is a little left-aligned. There is the half chain cover and a small hugger. In the wake of rules, the production version of HX250R is expected to come with a bigger hugger like the Pulsar NS200.
HX250R Tyres & Brakes:
Another highlight are the tyres. The display bike at the Auto Expo sported Pirelli Sports Demon tyres, which we all know are fantastic leechers! The front is 110/80 and the rear is 140/70 wide, both tubeless and both 17 inchers. Will the production HX continue with the same SDs? we do not know yet!
HX250R comes with a left-side mounted 300mm front disc brake with 3-piston callipers (regular bikes get 2-pistons) and a smaller 220 rear disc. Hero will offer ABS, most probably as an option and HX also gets the combination brakes we have already known.
Engine & Performance:
This is probably the highlight of the bike. Being a 249cc liquid cooled single cylinder DOHC motor, HX250R produces segment best 31bhp of freaking power output. According to Hero’s claims, 0-60kmph takes a flash of an eyelid, a whip of the throttle or 2.7 seconds on the watch.
It comes with two modes – Power and Economy. This fuel injected motor is mated to a 6-speed gearbox. And when we say, it weighs only 139kgs what will be the power to weight ratio? Go and calculate 😉
Other Miscellaneous Bits:
HX250R gets a ground clearance of 145mm which is on the lower side. We wish Hero has designed the under-fairing in a way that it doesn’t kiss the irregular tarmac of our cities too often.
On the instrumentation front, HX250R comes with a digital console which displays speedometer, tachometer, trip meters, fuel gauge and a few other bits which even we are unaware of at this moment. The tank capacity is 12.9 liters and since Hero has not talked about the fuel efficiency figures at all till now, we can’t really judge the range the bike will provide in a tank full of fuel.
Also See: 240kmph Hero Hastur: First Impressions Review [With 40 Pics Mega Gallery]
HX250R Launch & Price (Expected)
As we have revealed in an earlier post, the auto expo display bike was not production-ready and Hero doesn’t want to launch a half-tested bike. So do not expect a launch anytime very soon in the market. We expect an end-2014 or early 2015 launch of the HX250R in the Indian market.
Considering that this will be Hero’s first without-Honda bike, we believe they would want to be real aggressive in the market. A price tag of somewhere around Rs 1.4-1.5 Lakh Ex-Showroom is what we expect at this point of time.
Following these two videos is the picture gallery. Do not miss it
HX250R Walkaround Video Uncut:
HX250R Official Video:
HX250R Picture Gallery:
