- Received new features for 2024
- India launch not confirmed yet
Honda India has recently filed design patents for as many as four motorcycles that are not yet available in India. One of these offerings is the Japanese brand’s mid-size sportbike, the CBR500R. Now, this doesn’t necessarily point at the bike’s imminent India arrival since Honda has a record of patenting bikes in India but not launching them here. However, the company might surprise us this time since the popularity of the mid-size segment is increasing in India by the day.
The CBR500R gets the same engine as the NX500, which we rode recently, but with minor tweaks to suit its sportbike character. This 471cc, parallel-twin, liquid-cooled engine produces 47bhp and delivers all that power with utmost smoothness and refinement, as we have observed with the NX500. With a kerb weight of 192kg, it’s slightly on the heavier side but a low seat height of 785mm should make it manageable for riders of all kinds of build. The fuel tank is a sizeable 17.1-litre unit.
The motorcycle received its biggest mechanical update in 2022 when it received upside-down forks in place of telescopic units. More desirable changes came this year in the form of an NX500-like five-inch TFT screen which shows plenty of information and offers Bluetooth connectivity. Plus, there’s traction control, dual-channel ABS, and full-LED lighting. The 2024 model is also sharper and sportier than before with slight tweaks to its bodywork which is more in line with bigger CBR models now.
If the Honda CBR500R comes to India, it will compete against the Aprilia RS 457, Yamaha R3, Kawasaki Ninja 500, and the KTM RC 390 which is due for a major update soon.
