2020 Honda CBR150R Launched In Indonesia. Here's Why It's Unlikely To Come To India

Honda’s affiliate company in Indonesia, PT Astra Honda, has launched the 2020 CBR150R in the country. For 2020, the faired bike comes in three new colour variants: Dominator Matte Black, matte black and Victory Black Red. The other two colour options, Honda Racing Red and MotoGP Edition, have been carried over in the 2020 version. Apart from the new colours, the bike also gets a slightly taller windscreen for better aerodynamics. The 2020 Honda CBR150R’s price starts from IDR 34,934,000 (around Rs 1.80 lakh) for the standard non-ABS variant and IDR 38,934,000 (about Rs 2.01 lakh) for the standard ABS version, on-road Jakarta.

The new-generation motorcycle continues to be powered by a 149.16cc single-cylinder, fuel-injected, liquid-cooled motor. It churns out 17.1PS at 9000rpm and 14.4Nm at 7000rpm, working alongside a 6-speed transmission. In comparison, the Yamaha YZF-R15 V3.0 BS6 sold in India makes 18.6PS at 10,000rpm and 14.1Nm at 8500rpm from its 155cc single-cylinder engine with Variable Valve Actuation (VVA).

Underpinnings include a telescopic fork up front and a Pro-link monoshock at the rear - both with five-level adjustability. The bike comes to a halt using petal discs on both ends with ABS offered as an option. Other notable features include an all-LED lighting system and a fully digital instrument console.

Honda has been selling the CBR150R in Indonesia for quite some time now. It is unlikely to come to India because of a number of reasons. Firstly, the bike does not comply with Euro 5/ BS6 emission norms yet. Secondly, being a conservative brand, it makes better sense for Honda to concentrate on the transition from BS4 to BS6 compliance of its existing products rather than investing time and resources into launching an all-new motorcycle here. And thirdly, even if Honda manages to bring the bike in India, it will end up being too expensive and Honda may find it hard to match up to the R15 V3’s reasonably competitive price tag of Rs 1.45 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi).

Moreover, the whole enthusiast’s motorcycle segment is slowly moving towards higher capacities and bringing in a 150cc performance bike at this point of time wouldn’t make sound business sense for Honda. Even Aprilia had initially planned to launch the RS 150 and Tuono 150 in India, but later scrapped the plans in favour of bigger-capacity bikes. You can read all about it here.