Honda CB350RS Launched

The latest from Honda BigWing is the Honda CB350RS and it has been launched at Rs 1.96 lakh (ex-showroom), that is Rs 9,500 more than the regular CB350.

After the success of the Honda CB350 platform, the Japanese marque have launched another variant of the Honda H’ness CB350; the Honda CB350RS and interestingly, Honda are saying that ‘RS’ stands for Road Sailing…right. Visually, the CB350RS can be told apart from the regular CB350 quite easily. Firstly, it is being offered in bright dual-tone colours; red-black and yellow-black. Apart from the obvious badging on the side panels, the CB350RS gets a 17-inch rear wheel with a 150/70 tyre (the CB350 has an 18-incher with 130/70 rubber), slightly different seat, fork boots, bash plate, and a redesigned tail section which includes a slightly different exhaust. By the way, Honda have opted to use matte black paint generously on this one and chrome has only been used for some crucial highlights.

No surprises in the power department because the Honda CB350RS will also use the same 348.36-cc, air-cooled, four-valve, single-cylinder engine as the CB350. It is mated to a five-speed gearbox and dishes out 21 hp at 5,500 rpm and a peak torque of 30 Nm at 3,000 rpm.

In terms of technology, the Honda CB350RS also gets the same kit as the CB350, this includes switchable traction control and a rather informative digital-analogue console that displays useful essentials including real-time fuel-efficiency and distance to empty. Braking is managed by a 310-mm disc at the front and a 240-mm disc at the rear supplemented with the safety of dual-channel ABS. During the launch, Honda announced that mass production for the motorcycle is underway and it is expected to reach showrooms in March. In the meantime, they have opened bookings at all Honda BigWing dealerships across the country.