Honda Might Be Working On A Royal Enfield Himalayan Rival

The rivalry between Honda and Royal Enfield in the 350cc roadster segment is well-documented over the last few years. And now, according to certain documents that have surfaced online, it seems like Honda might be working on a Royal Enfield Himalayan rival. 

First of all, though, these documents do not reflect the actual design the bike will have but rather mere illustrations of what components this 350cc ADV might contain. Looking at the documents, it seems like Honda might also develop a scrambler out of that ADV, like Royal Enfield did with the Royal Enfield Scram 411. So, the bike in development will get a protective structure around the headlight that will extend towards the sides of the tank and also act as luggage mounting points. It also gets a luggage rack at the rear. The upcoming ADV will be equipped with a windscreen, high-rise fender, split-seat and spoked wheels. 

The 350cc ADV will be based on the Honda CB350’s platform and as such will be powered by the same 348.36cc, air-cooled, single-cylinder engine producing 21PS and 30Nm. That said, Honda is likely to retune this motor to better suit the upcoming bike’s adventure aspiration. It will get a telescopic fork with fork gaiters and twin shock absorber suspension setup. It is expected to get disc brakes at both ends with dual-channel ABS.

Now, it is a bit surprising that Honda is using a 350CC air-cooled motor for its upcoming ADV as Royal Enfield has moved on from their own 411cc air-cooled motor to the new liquid-cooled 450cc ‘Sherpa’ engine in the Himalayan 450. But, then from another perspective, the new Himalayan is not a simple beginner-friendly workhorse machine anymore like the Himalayan 411 used to be. So, Honda coming up with a 350cc ADV powered by an air-cooled motor might fit that void quite well, if they do it right. 

The production version of the upcoming 350cc ADV from Honda is still some time away and we expect it to be launched by the end of 2025.

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