Honda has officially unveiled the long-awaited twin-cylinder CBR250RR in Indonesia and plans to have the bike in showrooms before the end of the year.
While the company has confirmed it will also be available in Japan at a later date, there’s still no official word on the bike’s availability in other markets. Strong rumours suggest that a big-bore, 350cc version is under development for export markets with no licensing or tax reasons to remain under a 250cc capacity cap.
Although Honda has shown the bike, which is virtually identical to the Light Weight Super Sport concept revealed last year, specifications are still thin on the ground. The engine is an all-new, twin-cam, eight-valve parallel twin and should make around 30kW. Honda’s stated target is to outperform its rivals, the main one being the 27kW Yamaha R25. In export form, if the 350cc rumours prove true, around 35kW should be on the cards.
The engine sits in a tubular steel frame, with an aluminium ‘Gull Arm’ swingarm at the back and non-adjustable upside-down forks ahead.
The headlights, which were leaked in patent drawings earlier this year, are LED units with separate daytime running lights in eyebrows above the main headlamps. A similar solution is likely to be adopted by the forthcoming new CBR1000RR Fireblade, along with the two stacked exhaust end cans. The bigger bike may also adopt other elements of the CBR250RR styling such as the slash-cut cooling vents and unusual aerodynamics around the belly pan, which is designed to increase cooling air flow around the engine and exhaust.
By Ben Purvis