We’re a little over a week away from the Suzuki Gixxer 250’s official launch on May 20. Now, images of what appear to be a brochure have leaked online, revealing what the bike will look like, and its technical details.
The image reveals that the upcoming motorcycle will be called the Gixxer SF 250. Design elements like the sharp grooves on the tank that allow for the rider to grip on it better, and the grooved indents on the upper half are cues also seen on the smaller Gixxer 150. The headlight, a silhouette of which we’ve seen before in the teaser image Suzuki released earlier, hangs off the front end, giving the motorcycle a more aggressive look. Other elements that are obvious at first sight are the golden finish on the engine, the use of a clip-on handlebar and the chrome-tipped double barrel exhaust, which is visually identical to the one on the smaller Gixxer.
Aesthetics aside, what we’re more interested about are the technical specifications. The brochure shows that the Suzuki Gixxer SF 250 will be powered by a 249cc, single-cylinder, SOHC oil-cooled engine that makes 26.5hp at 9,000rpm and 22.6Nm of torque at 7,500rpm. The fuel-injected engine will come mated to a 6-speed gearbox. In comparison, the Gixxer 250's most direct rival, the Yamaha Fazer 25 produces 20.9hp at 8,000rpm and 20Nm at 6,000rpm.
What is also revealed is that suspension will be taken care of by a telescopic fork at the front and a monoshock at the rear, while braking will be handled by a disc brake at both ends. The bike comes equipped with dual-channel ABS, and other noteworthy details are a fuel tank capacity of 12 litres and a kerb weight of 161kg – 4kg more than the Yamaha Fazer 25.
Suzuki has priced its bikes relatively competitively so far, but towards the premium end of the market. We expect it to do the same with the Gixxer 250, but are intrigued to see where the final pricing will be. Power wise, it makes a whole lot more than its direct rival, the Rs 1.43 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) Yamaha Fazer 25, and it also offers a six-speed gearbox against the Yamaha's five speed unit. In fact, with this amount of power, the Gixxer SF 250 is on par with the Honda CBR250R, which costs a whole lot more at Rs 1.94 lakh. We're hoping to see the Suzuki priced more realistically and closer to the Yamaha and the Bajaj Pulsar RS200, which also makes for a direct rival. Stay tuned to know all the details when this bike launches on May 20.
Ved Janve
Azaman Chothia
