Could The Stylish 2021 Honda CB150 Verza Compete In India?

Published June 17, 2021
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It receives a fresh lick of paint to keep it looking sharp in the competitive commuter segment

Japanese bike maker Honda has launched the updated CB150 Verza in Indonesia. Not much has changed for the humble commuter apart from a few new colour schemes. Customers can choose between red, matte black, and black, with new vinyl that makes the bike look a lot sharper and sportier. You can choose between two variants: spoked wheels (with tubed tyres) and cast alloy wheels (with tubeless tyres).

Honda hasn’t fiddled with the rest of the bike. It continues to use an air-cooled 150cc SOHC single-cylinder motor that makes 13.04PS at 8.500rpm and 12.73Nm at 6.000rpm. The motor works in conjunction with a 5-speed transmission.

There’s no change in hardware either. The bike employs a simple telescopic fork with a disc brake up front and twin preload-adjustable shock absorbers with a drum unit at the rear. Tying everything together is a simple yet proven diamond frame.

Then there's the seat height, which at 773mm, can be easily accessed by shorter riders. It should be easier to manoeuvre in city traffic as well, thanks to a low kerb weight of just 129kg.

But what about the asking price? A starting price of IDR 20,290,000 (approximately Rs 1.04 lakh) is pretty reasonable, in our opinion. But, bikes like the Yamaha FZS-FI V3 or the TVS Apache RTR 160 in India offer better value for around the same price. The Verza, in comparison, doesn't even provide an LED headlight or an optional single-channel ABS. So, it doesn’t really make business sense for Honda to bring the bike to India.