The CBR250 is Honda’s flagship model in India, realeased inn 2011 and still going strong as one of India’s most popular sport bikes. The term’sport bike’ may be misleading, as the CBR is more inclined towards touring than towards motorsports but there have been several international motorsport events where the CBR has proved it’s competency as a sport bike.
The CBR has been designed as a very well-balanced bike. So yes, while it may not excel in any one particular domain, it gives a well-balanced performance overall which is extremely satisfying. If I were to choose adjectives which best describe the CBR, words like "comfortable’ and’reliable’ would come first. It’s not a brash, mad machine like the KTMs. It has a mature behavior which matches it’s sedate looks.
Coming to usability, the CBR is extremely flexible across all situations. While the 170kg weight and the high turning radius may seem like an issue at first, you will quickly realize that the bike is very flickable considering it’s size and weight, and navigating through jampacked traffic is easy and effortless. Once the road opens up and you touch the highway, the CBR reaches 120 @ 7500RPM effortlessly and can cruise at that speed all day long without an issue. When pushed, it has the capacity to cross 160km/h and there are people who have actually done that. Do I need to add that it’s the only sport bike where two persons can sit comfortably? If you have ever seen the pillion seat on a R15v2 or a KTM, you would know what I mean. The riding position is also one of the most comfortable among all sportbikes and it is possibble to cover 1000+ kms in a day(I can say this with confidence as I have covered Bangalore-Chennai-Bangalore, total 750kms in one day without any issues)
Service and maintence: The CBR is a very reliable and llow-maintenance bike. If you service it at regular intervals, it will keep running as smoothly as new, without any issues. It’s not highly demanding in terms of service either, you’d only need to keep the chains clean and well-lubed and you’d need to get your valve shims replaced once in a while. Spares are affordable, though not exactly cheap. I’ve had two major crashes and in both cases, the cost for repair was below my expectatioms. So the overall build quality is also impressive.
Conslusion: It’s not the fastest, it’s not the best looking, it’s not the most affordable. But it’s definitely the most reliable, most comfortable and most refined bike. It’s best suited for touring and long rides, but its flexible enough to be used as a daily commuter as well.
Model: CBR250RA/ABS/2013
kms done: 34350
Fuel economy: 30 in city and 37 in highways