Honda is planning to relaunch the popular CBR650R sportbike in India soon. According to our sources, the fully-faired, middleweight, inline-four sportbike should be making a return to our shores in the coming weeks.
UPDATE: Honda has now confirmed the relaunch of the CB650R naked bike via a teaser on its social media platform, which you can see below.
- The 648cc, four-cylinder mill makes 95hp, 63Nm
- Both Honda 650s now get E-Clutch tech
- The naked CB650R is expected to be relaunched alongside
Honda CBR650R launching soon, CB650R expected too
The Honda CBR650R has always been a popular model in India, combining the desirable fully-faired design with a reasonable rider triangle and the sought-after inline-four sound. For 2025, the CBR650R has received Honda’s E-Clutch technology, which eliminates the need for the rider to use the clutch lever while shifting or coming to a halt. This system weighs just 3kg, the same as Yamaha’s Y-AMT found on the MT-09 and MT-07 naked bikes.
Powering the CBR650R is the tried-and-tested 648cc,inline-four, four-cylinder mill, which is rated for 95hp at a lofty 12,000rpm and 63Nm of torque at a heady 9,500rpm. A 6-speed gearbox is mated to this mill, with the E-Clutch available on a separate variant. The standard CBR650R weighs 208kg, and when equipped with the E-Clutch, it weighs 211kg. The seat height stands at a reasonable 810mm, although the 130mm ground clearance number is a little worrying in the Indian context.
The latest CBR650R also gets sharper looks and a 5-inch TFT dash that can be paired with your smartphone via Bluetooth for the usual raft of call/notification alerts and music playback functionality. Two colours are on offer: the traditional Honda red and a stealthier matte black option.
There is also the strong likelihood of the naked CB650R being launched alongside the CBR, as Honda has always sold both models side-by-side in India. The CB also gets a nip-and-tuck as well as the E-Clutch tech.
The last recorded price for the previous CBR650R was Rs 9.35 lakh (ex-showroom, India), and when the updated bike comes here, we expect a bump in price. Upon relaunch, the CBR650R will lock horns with the Triumph Daytona 660 (Rs 9.72 lakh) and the Suzuki GSX-8R (Rs 9.25 lakh).
Ved Janve
Vishal Venugopal
