Honda Hornet 2.0

There is an air of familiarity in the design of the Hornet 2.0. It looks quite similar to its predecessor: the CB Hornet 160R. The sharp tank extensions, edgy body panels, and the chunky gold USD fork keep up the sporty trait that one associates with the Hornet name. You get a small belly pan too that protects the chunky cat-con. The exhaust is short and stubby with a blacked-out muffler cover. The Hornet 2.0 arrives in four colours: grey, blue, red and black. There is also a Repsol edition, replete with the colours of Honda's factory MotThere is an air of familiarity in the design of the Hornet 2.0. It looks quite similar to its predecessor: the CB Hornet 160R. The sharp tank extensions, edgy body panels, and the chunky gold USD fork keep up the sporty trait that one associates with the Hornet name. You get a small belly pan too that protects the chunky cat-con. The exhaust is short and stubby with a blacked-out muffler cover. The Hornet 2.0 arrives in four colours with new snazzy graphics: Pearl Igneous Black, Matte Sangria Red Metallic, Matte Marvel Blue Metallic and Matte Axis Grey Metallic.

Honda comes with an all-LED lighting. The aggressive toothed face is reminiscent of the older 160cc Hornet but it looks better on the new bike with those fat gold USDs. A blue backlit LCD digital cluster displays odometer, trip, gear position indicator, speedometer, bar-type tachometer, a clock and a fuel gauge. Sadly, there’s no range or distance-to-empty feature. Honda kitting the Hornet 2.0 with an engine kill switch was obvious but you also get a hazard toggle switch on the naked.

The 2023 Honda Hornet 2.0 is powered by a 184cc, single-cylinder, air-cooled BS6.2 /OBD-2 compliant engine producing 17.27PS at 8,500rpm and 15.9Nm at 6,000rpm and comes paired with a five-speed transmission. What’s new in the 2023 model is that it now gets assist and slipper clutch. Suspension duties are taken care of by an upside-down (USD) fork and a preload adjustable monoshock affixed to a box-section swingarm. 276mm front and 220mm rear petal disc brakes bring the Hornet 2.0 to a halt, but only a single-channel ABS system is offered.

Honda aims to position the 2023 Hornet 2.0 between the 160cc and 200cc bikes in India with decent kit on offer. Hence, the TVS Apache RTR 180 2V is its only primary rival with the Bajaj Pulsar 180F being discontinued. But considering its pricing, the larger Pulsar NS 200 and Apache RTR 200 4V are on par with the new Honda naked.