Honda has patented the CBR250RR in India and although it is patented here, it's highly unlikely that this bike will come to our shores.
Honda CBR250RR: engine, underpinnings, features
The standout feature of the CBR250RR is its liquid-cooled, 249cc, parallel-twin engine that makes 38.7hp and 23.3Nm in the standard version which rises to 42hp and 25Nm in the higher-spec SP version. This engine is mated to a 6-speed gearbox with a quickshifter. At 166kg (168kg for the SP), it's a little bit lighter than the KTM RC 390.
The Honda CBR250RR doesn’t share any of its major components with any of the Honda two-wheelers sold in India and thus there’s a very slim chance of this small screamer of a sportbike making its way to India.
Much like the Forza 350, the Hawk 11 cafe racer, the Winner X and NS125LA scooters, this trademark seems like a case of the manufacturer protecting its intellectual property in India. With established competitors like the KTM RC 390 at the more affordable end of the scale and the parallel-twin Kawasaki Ninja 300 and Ninja 400 dominating it at the premium end, the small-capacity sportbike market is quite tightly packed.
With the Yamaha R3 slated to launch soon, it leaves no room for the CBR250RR and considering that it will be an imported product, it's unlikely that its price tag will be a competitive one.
Which of these small-capacity sportbikes would you pick? Let us know in the comments section below.
Azaman Chothia
Vishal Venugopal
