Hyosung Aquila 250 Review Road Test - Performance, Features

V-twin engines and cruisers are not really the quintessential rider’s way of life. The single cylinder 15+ bhp work of art is what keeps him or her going. Nowadays the likes of scooterettes are wheeling around apart from other oddities of life. With the advent of “Biking” kudos to the efforts of biking communities and manufacturers it has become not just a culture but a way of life for most who follow this cult. Speaking of cult, one of the oldest cults known is that of the V-twin cylindered wide handled bar riders of the west. Following suit the makers of the east wanted their own hot rod too.

This eagle of the Gods stands on the laurels of its own and that of its elder sibling (the Aquila 650), is the Aquila 250. While the Aquila 650 managed to surprise us in the not so recent past (read review), the smaller one was not less a package in her own rights. Our tester Savio Tavadia got astride a milky white Aquila 250 for a test and here is what he has to say about the cheapest two-cylinder cruiser in the country…

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Aquila 250 Review – Design & Build Quality

Its not for the first time India has got the Aquila! We had one during Kinetic times as well and it looked ominous and it still does too and a lot fresher. Specially in this white color and with that different riding posture, you are almost always a point of attraction and this has possibly one of the best road presence among all the 250 ccs in the market. Apart from this white, which is an India-exclusive, Hyosung also offers the motorcycle in black and red. They have recently launched a limited edition set which comprises of Brown, black and green colours.

The twin-pot instrument cluster, complemented by a round headlamp, upside-down front forks and chrome-embellished rear view mirrors present a nice little shiny front posture. As soon as you move to the sides, you will be greeted by more chrome, truckloads of it actually!

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Everything looks almost in place till the time you do not see (or know) its elder sibling Aquila Pro GV650. The 250 Aquila starts to look at least half a generation older in comparison to the very sporty 650. But then since we do not have many options we will prefer being ignorant.

Build quality is typical Hyosung – about decently good. There are a few areas which could have been better done, but overall the feel it exudes is – all fine and shiny!

Aquila 250 Review – Comfort & Convenience

This is an area where the outliers are on both sides of the battlefield. The handle bar positioning is ideal for riders of all heights, preferably that side of 5’7″, coupled with the nice seating position. This makes it a tad bit easier for riders on the leaner side as well as women wanting to cruise on the highway. The saddle was quite comfortable with the rear seat doubling up as a backrest while clocking up on the miles. A better heat shield on the exhaust would save the pillion a scorch on foot. Lack of dampening showed up on the RVMs at higher speeds.

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Though the Aquila may not have a plethora of accessories, it should be offered with a backrest.

Aquila 250 Review – Engine & Performance

Facts first – This Aquila produces 26.21 bhp of maximum power at a high 9500 rpm and a maximum torque of 21.37 Nm at 7000 rpm from its DOHC V-Twin 249 cc Oil-Cooled motor. Not really unimpressive figures these but when you factor in the weight of 179 kg you understand that there are some compromises you may have to make. And it shows in the overall performance of the motorcycle.

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For starters and people who want to have this as a chic magnet, this is a nice little ‘powerful‘ motorcycle which can take you places and ensure you get all the gazes on those traffic lights. However, if you intend to do a little more, then things may not be very enjoyable.

Power starts to build up early and you can enjoy low speed rides but as soon as you try to outdo your peer on that CBR250R, you start to notice that lack of power and the relatively noisy engine but then cruisers are not meant for street races, anyways! Vibrations start creeping in at around 5500-6000 rpm and as you continue revving it up, things become intolerable at some point high up (which I couldn’t even note down!). Then there is a wee bit of an issue with the fuel delivery and there are a few jerks which play spoilsport to your ride.

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We are not complaining about the motor, it is fairly juicy but we would urge Hyosung to work on the fuel delivery as well as the roughness of the engine. There is no knocking at low speeds (of around 40 kmph) in top gear but the five speed gearbox is not one of the finest around. It requires high efforts and gets notchy specially during high rev gear changes.

We did top speeds of around 120 kmph on the speedo and its 0 to 100 kmph is marginally quicker or probably very close to Pulsar 220!

Aquila 250 – Handling & Braking

For the field riders it might just be a home ground situation, but here it needed some getting used to. If you have been ‘enticed’ in the past and are past the ‘avenged’ state of mind this is definitely your waltz. Shinko tyres perform their duties fairly decently on concrete, tarmac or even dusty roads with the exception of wet roads.

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And yes I hit every speed breaker with varying speeds to find out if there were any sparks down under and surprisingly, there is a lot of practical ground clearance. As is with cruisers, lower suspension travel ensures the ride quality and shock-absorption is not that great and it is the same case with the 250 Aquila.

The front disc is quite effective in slowing the mammoth down a few points down on the Speedo. The rear brake lacks sensitivity and is not very effective!

Aquila 250 Review – Verdict

For those of you who have outgrown the Avengers, do not want to take chances with the very young Renegades and are looking at something bigger, here is Aquila 250 for you. At a shade under 3 Lakh for the ex-showroom price, the quarter liter cruiser is a pricey affair but that is how it is! If you want a motorcycle which can turn as many heads as possible and you can compromise on a few bits that we have listed above, this is your best bet in anything around this money.

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Good numbers so far suggest that there are a lot of takers for good looking chunky machines likes this and till there is no competition around, Aquila 250 is a fairly decent buy.

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