What is Honda up to? CBR300 rumours abound

So after the JDM-specific (as in Japanese Domestic Market only) Honda CBR400RR motorcycle and the more globally applicable, emerging market ready Honda CBR500 family (sportsbike, naked and adventure tourer), the new rumours suggest that a Honda CBR300R is also being readied. The thaispy.th image being used as base is a slide from a PowerPoint presentation in Thai which has what looks like a Honda CBR250R (in the launch silver-red colour) with the only bit in English on the slide clearly says Honda CBR300R.

This is an easy image to fake, but is it a fake? The CBR250R has now been in the market for just over two years and that means a big refresh, ideally a full update, is now due.

Let us examine that market situation in the mean time. The biggest competitor to the CBR250R was the Kawasaki Ninja 250R. The Kawasaki twin sportsbike has been the largest selling Ninja for decades and has always been the dominant entry-sportsbike. Which is the crown that Honda took on with a respectably powerful single-cylinder sportsbike, the CBR250R.

Kawasaki's response has been dramatic. The Ninja 300 is a completely new motorcycle that takes on a new physical size, new displacement, all-new engine et al. And the result is a storming sportsbike that neither feels that kind of diminutive. It is far more focused as a sportsbike but has not lost the ease with which it helps new riders upgrade their skills. And there is serious power now and not just at top revs. A good solid upgrade.

In India the Kawasaki is assembled while the CBR250R is manufactured which means the former is vastly more expensive than the latter whereas in most markets they compete on price. So in India, the CBR250R gives the Ninja no sleepless nights and vice-versa.

But in the international markets there is little doubt tha the Ninja 300 looks a lot more desirable than the CBR and falls well within the A2 license norms as well which means the CBR has to upgrade its game to keep up.

And the CBR300 seems like a reasonable way to do it. The CBR250R race bikes with their stiffer suspension setups clearly say the chassis can handle more power and in that event, a relatively minor bore-stroke change can be enough to up the displacement and produce more power.

How much more power? The extra 50cc can easily produce 5PS more if the engine is stressed a little bit more. The risk is that instead of the easy-going nature of the current CBR250R, you might end up with a more serious feeling motorcycle. And I think that might actually be a nice change. A 30PS CBR300R, also, will form a good alternative to the Ninja 300 as far the battle for new rider money goes abroad.

In India, CBR sales have been steady but slow. A displacement and power bump along with suspension tweaks should, in our estimate, give the bike new legs in the market where the 200 Duke and incoming 390 Duke both have surrounded themselves with better sales and a lot more buzz. There is a storm brewing in the affordable end of the premium bikes in India, and the CBR would do well to arm itself. A displacement bump, without a doubt, will help.

Honda's emerging market comment on the CBR500 has also led to speculation that one or more of those motorcycles will come to India. We believe this will happen, but not too quickly. Honda has to seriously consider making the motorcycle here rather than importing it any form, to make it cost-effective. And that is a complex, time-consuming process.