The 250cc category has always been a huge thing overseas, partly down to racing regulations, but also due to various tax and licensing regulations over the decades. Neither of those things has ever played a significant role in India, and it’s perhaps why the 250s never really became a big thing here. For years, the Honda CBR250R was the only significant player, and it was only post 2017, when Bajaj made a significant push through the KTMs, Husqvarnas, Dominars and Pulsars (as well as Suzuki with its 250s), that this segment started to have a sizable number of players.
Despite that, the 250s never found massive success in India, and TVS hasn’t made their life any easier with its brand-new 300. Sure, the Apache RTX 300 has been priced extremely competitively at launch to create a stir, so let’s ignore the fact that it currently costs up to Rs 40,000 less than its rival from KTM. However, even if the prices were more closely matched, there’s a lot going in favour of a 300. It can not only offer more peak power but a meatier torque spread at lower revs. The result is that a well-engineered 300 doesn’t just look better on the spec sheet but should also offer a more effortless riding experience. A simple case of more is more.
So far, the 250s found themselves in a comfortable spot in the market, being noticeably more capable than the smaller 200s, but also significantly more affordable than the bigger 400s. The only real threat they faced was from the 310cc Apache RR and RTR 310, but those bikes simply couldn’t be priced as aggressively as the latest 300cc RTX, partly owing to the fact that they were built on the shared TVS-BMW platform.
There was also the fact that the 310s had earned a reputation of being expensive in terms of spares and service, even more so than their 400cc rivals. Now that TVS has made its own brand-new 300cc platform, those two issues should be neatly addressed.
Another unexpected blow to the 250s comes in the new GST regulations. The fact that bikes above 350cc are now saddled under the 40 percent bracket while those below it are taxed much lower at 18 percent is hugely beneficial to a 300. That’s because it enables a big price gap to the larger capacity models – evident in the huge, Rs 1 lakh-plus price difference between the RTX 300 and the KTM 390 Adventure or Royal Enfield Himalayan 450.
Nevertheless, be it a 250 or 300, the premium motorcycle space in India is on the upswing, and motorcycles in this space will find growing success. But within that liquid-cooled, performance-oriented sector, it’s looking like 300s will have more appeal, and TVS has positioned itself in this space very cleverly. After all, the RTX 300 is just the first model on this new platform, and more will surely follow.
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