Honda’s Royal Enfield Hunter 350-rival leaked in patent image

• Seems to be based on the Hornet 2.0
• Likely to be a rival to the Royal Enfield Hunter 350 and TVS Ronin

Honda might soon launch a new neo-retro roadster in India. We have got our hands on a patent image of this motorcycle which gives away a lot of details about it.

The upside-down forks, alloy wheels, and the petal-type disc brake with a Nissin caliper look identical to the Hornet 2.0 that has been on sale in India for a long time now. Similarly, the single-cylinder, air-cooled powerplant, along with the single downtube chassis, bears a close visual resemblance to the Hornet 2.0 that is powered by a 184cc motor. What’s more interesting is that a closer inspection reveals that the crankcase looks more similar to the CB190R that has been on sale in select markets. Moreover, the USD forks look chunkier than the Hornet 2.0 and the tyres seem wider and a different tread pattern.

While it seems to be based on the same platform as the Hornet 2.0, or the CB190R, the design is definitely fresh and eye-catchy. It follows Honda’s neo-sports café design philosophy to a certain extent but there are some distinctive visual elements like a round headlamp with split LED headlamp, tiny round turn blinkers, and a small instrument cluster. The visual freshness continues on to the sculpted fuel tank which looks muscular and blends with the stubby tail section accommodating a single-piece seat. The rear end looks clean with a swingarm-mounted license plate holder.

With this motorcycle, Honda will certainly take on the affordable, neo-retro segment which currently comprises the Royal Enfield Hunter 350 and TVS Ronin. Even if Honda pegs it a little higher than the Hornet 2.0, which costs Rs. 1.43 lakh (ex-showroom), it will sit close to its arch-rivals. Stay tuned as we will bring you more details about this bike soon.