Hero XPulse 200 & 200T: Production versions leaked ahead of launch

The Hero XPulse 200 is lined up for launch in India in the next few weeks, and the on-off road motorcycle will be  offered in two variants – a full blown off road machine and a tourer. The XPulse 200 will be the on-off road machine  with steel spoked wheels, tubed tyres with an off-road pattern and a taller stance while the 200T will be the touring  version with alloy wheels and tubeless tyres. Both the Hero XPulse 200 and 200T are expected to be priced at a little  under Rs. 1 lakh each. Both motorcycles will get single channel ABS as standard. Here are some pictures of the  production versions.

Images courtesy MotoPixelTV

As the pictures reveal, the XPulse 200 has a taller stance and rides on a 21 inch front wheel and an 18 inch rear  wheel. Ground clearance is an impressive 220 mm. The motorcycle also gets knuckle guards, a proper bash plate, a high set mudguard, fork gaiters and a high set exhaust. All these bits are aimed at off-road riding, and the Hero XPulse promises to be India’s cheapest ADV motorcycle. Coming to the XPulse 200T, the motorcycle gets a taller headlamp fairing to offer good wind protection to the rider, a exhaust that’s placed lower, a fiber engine cover, 19 inch front and 18 inch rear alloy wheels, road biased tubeless tyres, and mounts for panniers and a top box.

Both motorcycles use an identical 200cc, four stroke single cylinder engine. The air cooled, fuel injected motor puts  out 18 Bhp of peak power at 8,000 rpm and 17 Nm of peak torque ay 6,500 rpm. A five speed manual gearbox is standard. Both bikes get high travel suspension: Telescopic front forks with 220 mm travel and a rear monoshock with 180 mm of travel. A full digital instrument cluster with Bluetooth connectivity for turn-by-turn navigation is likely to be standard on both bikes. A USB mobile phone charging socket is also likely to be offered on both motorcycles as standard fare.

While Hero is yet to reveal the kerb weight of the XPulse 200 and 200T, we expect it to be about 140 kilograms, which will make it light enough for everyday use, and also proper trails. In fact, the light weights of the motorcycles  will ensure that the performance is more than adequate for daily riding. A cruising speed of 80-100 Kph is likely,  with a top speed of about 125-130 Kph. These motorcycles won’t be bought for 0-100 Kph sprints though. They’re meant to be ridden at a high pace even over bad roads, where other motorcycles will have to slow down significantly.

In urban environments, potholes and speed breakers are likely to be simply dispatched with disdain, and on the whole, the Xpulse 200 and 200T promise to be the most fun bikes that Hero MotoCorp has ever produced. As for competition, there’s no direct competition for both these motorcycles presently. The Royal Enfield Himalayan 400, which costs about Rs. 2 lakhs on-road, is the next cheapest ADV bike that’s sold in India presently.