Honda CB 300R sportsbike SOLD out for 2019: New bookings to get delivered next year?

Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India launched the CB 300R a few months ago, and the sportsbike is now sold out for 2019. Honda received no less than 500 bookings for the CB 300R. This has exhausted India’s yearly quota for the  motorcycle, which is imported as a completely knocked down (CKD) kit from Thailand and assembled by Honda in India. Launched in January, the Honda CB 300R received 400 bookings in February itself, and waiting period stood at 3 months. It remains to be seen if Honda manages to import more units of the CB 300R and meet the additional demand, which seems to exist.

The CB 300R was launched at Rs. 2.41 lakhs, ex-showroom India. It mainly rivals the KTM Duke 390, and to a certain  extent the 650cc Royal Enfield Interceptor, which is actually Rs. 4,000 cheaper than the CB 300R. The bike uses a 286  cc, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled four stroke engine that produces 30 BHP of peak power at 8,000 rpm and 27.4 Nm of peak torque at 6,500 rpm.

The engine is paired to a 6-speed gearbox. Honda offers disc brakes on both wheels, and offers an anti-lock braking system (ABS) as standard. ABS on the Honda CB 300R gets a inertia measurement unit (IMU). The motorcycle is available in two colours: Matte Axis Gray Metallic & Candy Chromosphere Red.

The Honda CB 300R is positioned as a sporty motorcycle for everyday use during the weekdays, and for riding to  weekend destinations at the end of the week. The ergonomics of the motorcycle are aggressive but relaxed enough to afford a relatively upright riding position. For touring though, the motorcycle would require a few modifications  including a tall flyscreen that offers good wind protection, and luggage carriers. Honda offers a slew of official  accessories through its 23 ‘My Wings’ dealerships across India. The range of accessories gives the Honda CB 300R a  decent amount of customize-ability while keeping the warranty intact.

The popularity of the Honda CB 300R proves that there a lot of buyers who were waiting for a refined and reliable  motorcycle in this space from one of the mainstream Japanese motorcycle makers. In future, this segment will see  Suzuki launching the Gixxer 250 that will be powered by a 250cc, parallel twin petrol engine. Yamaha could also bring the new R3 to India but with a high amount of localization to make it as cheap as the Kawasaki Ninja 300R, or even cheaper. Husqvarna is also readying up two new motorcycles for India, in the form of the Vitpilen 401 retro cafe racer and the Svartpilen Scrambler.