The engine has a now common layout of 4-valves, a double overhead cam and an under-square bore to stroke relation, makes for a quick revving and free breathing engine. And so it is with this little Honda motor. The 149cc engine produces almost 18 BHP but a very high 10500 rpm. The same story repeats itself for peak torque which at 12.66 Nm is again met at a high 8500 rpm.
The 6-speed box, though slick and smooth, further adds to the pilot work levels here. This makes for a bike that needs to be revved hard and high to get to its promised performance levels. Not that the engine does not like to rev but then doing it say for an hour during a longish cross-city commute is stressful for the rider at least if not for the bike.
The R15 peaks a couple of thousand rpm’s below this 150 from Honda and so apparently this 150 is a handful when used within city. The engine showed no signs of fatigue though and neither did it appear to heat up more than normal during the short stint we had the bike for. We cannot give any specific mileage figures after just a few hours of usage but somewhere between 30-35 kmpl seems relevant.