Honda CB300R BS6 price: what we expect

Honda unveiled the CB300R meets BS6 at India Bike Week earlier this month. The company has announced that it will be available from January 22, 2022, when Honda is likely to reveal pricing.

What’s even more interesting is that Honda will strongly locate the CB300R BS6. We already know that the company’s new plant in Gujarat will manufacture engines with a capacity of 250cc and above, including the Honda CB300Rthe heart. So all of this points to a possibility: to make the CB300R BS6 competitively priced.

Kawasaki style:

the Kawasaki Ninja 300 was a capable 300cc faired motorcycle but was not within the reach of enthusiasts due to its high price tag. In fact, when the bike was brought to India via the CKD (Completely Knocked Down) route, it cost Rs 3.6 lakh (in 2018, ex-Delhi showroom). That’s a steep price for what ultimately is a 300cc bike. Then in July 2018, Kawasaki reduces the price by about 17.2% by releasing a highly localized version of the Ninja 300, priced at Rs 2.98 lakh (ex-Delhi showroom).

If Honda were to follow in Kawasaki’s footsteps, we would expect the Honda CB300R BS6 to be considerably more affordable as well. The BS4 compliant iteration previously cost 2.41 lakh Rs (ex-Delhi showroom) before being discontinued in 2020 because it did not meet the new BS6 emission standards. According to Kawasaki’s logic, if Honda reduced the price of the CB300R by around 17.2%, it would cost just under Rs 2 lakh (ex-showroom).

Even though Honda charged around 10,000 rupees for implementing emissions-limiting components (and also tuning the engine for a bit more horsepower), as well as the power-assisted slip clutch and cosmetic touches like the front fork. gold finish, at Rs 2.10 lakh, it would still be a neo-retro nude at the exorbitant price.

Power of dreams? More like stuck at ground reality:

Honda has never really been a player in offering competitive prices for its products. Almost all of his two-wheelers have ordered a pretty premium for what they offer. A perfect example is the Honda CB200X. Priced at Rs 1,44,500, this is a set of Rs 12,262 more expensive than the Honda Hornet 2.0 while offering only a more chic body, and no advantages on the mechanical or functional level.

So if you apply Honda’s logic in the case of the CB300R and then add in aspects like inflation and rising raw material costs, you could get a motorcycle that could be more expensive than its BS4 version, despite all the advantages of localization. We wouldn’t be surprised if Honda prices the bike reasonably priced, say around Rs 2.50 lakh (ex-showroom) for the CB300R BS6. Do you think its light weight (weighs just 146kg) and gorgeous neo-retro design, and the Honda badge are enough to outweigh the likelihood that it will sell for a higher price tag? Let us know in the comments below.