The 125cc motorcycle space is a special place for Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India. Alongwith leading the automatic scooter segment with its immensely popular Honda Activa, HMSI is also the undisputed leader in the 125cc segment, with its popular 125cc motorcycle Honda CB Shine. With a frugal, yet refined motor, comfortable ride and reliability, the Honda CB Shine is indeed a favourite, accounting for over 46 per cent market share in the 125cc motorcycle segment in India. And that’s not all – the Honda CB Shine is also the highest selling Honda motorcycle in the world.
But not one to rest on these laurels alone, HMSI is now aiming to grab an even bigger slice of the 125cc motorcycle market by extending the CB Shine range. So, enter the new Honda CB Shine SP – the 15th product launched by Honda in India this year. And like the bestselling Honda CB Shine, there are lofty targets for the CB Shine SP as well. HMSI aims to sell around 3 lakh Honda CB Shine SP bikes in the next one year, taking the overall sales of the CB Shine range to over 11 lakh units.
So, what is the Honda CB Shine SP? And is it as good as the management at HMSI seem to think? We take a close look at the new Honda CB Shine SP and a brief ride as well, to see if it’s got what it takes to rake in the sales registers for HMSI.
Looks & Styling
The Honda CB Shine SP has been positioned just above the existing CB Shine as a premium product. Overall, the CB Shine SP retains a similar design silhouette of the CB Shine, with of course some new ‘premium’ bits, which lend some sportiness and freshness to the bike.
So, the CB Shine SP has new body graphics, 3D Honda emblem on the fuel tank, redesigned and dual tone side panels, blacked out engine, new alloy wheels, new headlamp unit, new part digital, part analog instrument panel, and a new chrome finish exhaust cover. In all, the CB Shine SP can, at best be called a facelift of the existing CB Shine, though it’s certainly a handsome looking bike from all angles.
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