Rectification Satyamzma: 18.9 hp @10,500 rpm, and 1.37kg/m @ 8,500 rpm.

These are the numbers that really disgust me after having bought a Yamaha FZ16 Fazer!!!
This Honda 150 just smokes out an R15....and no need to comment about how far my FZ16 Fazer lags behind: I look elsewhere when I see one, so agile and fast they are (already imported in Vietnam)!!!

I will also add the obvious, enormous difference in quality! I am sorry for India, but the lousy finish of the Yam FZ 16, compared to the near perfect one of the Thai made Honda CBR 150 R does a lot of damage to the reputation of your otherwise so lovable country: lousy welds, lousy paint (frame rusts in two months!!!) lousy plastic moldings, lousy alloy moldings: the list is infinite!

Not to mention, besides the remarkable liquid cooled injection engine, the real Deltabox frame, the rear disc brake as standard (replaced the drum disc on my Yam: huge difference!), and the featherweight of 127 kg (against 140+ for the Yam!)...

I am sorry to have to say: buy the (Thai made) Honda CBR 150, NOT the (India made) Yamaha FZ16.

The only problem here in Vietnam, is the gianormous tax (+ huge profit by importer because of the local Honda fame) that makes is come at a whopping 6,000 US Dollars (!!!). Mind it: the much lower grade Yamaha FZ16 Fazer is at 4,500 USD (5,000 by the time it's got a rear disc brake): You happy, lucky, Indian people who don't have to suffer such robbery and will even buy a CBR 250 R at half that price!!!

4500 USD for a Yamaha FZ16?? Duh! Thats some seriously deprived country you have as far as motorcycles go!

P.S. Vietnam is on my must visit countries list

Cheers,
Shamik

@ martin_sky77

If the R15 was designed for European market then for sure the engine could have been over square.

But this is for India, prior to R15 no one could have cranked upto 10,500RPM here, on any bike upto the 220CC. R15 is a Race replica, which was cunningly designed for streets and CBR is more of a Track bike.

The CBR churning 19Hp at 10,500RPM doesn't make much sense here. Everyday users will feel the Engine painful, keeping it at higher RPMs always.

Moreover R15 will beat CBR many times in Fuel Consumption. So even if the CBR 150 is launched here, it will merely boost the sales for Yamaha.

The RTR was launched long before R15 came in and it revvs way beyond the R15.

Tell a prospective Yamaha customer that the R15 will better the CBR150R in FE only and not in performance. These are performance bikes, the FE might differ only by max 5kmpl, that shouldnt bother much. I think you should first check how quick the CBR was over the R15 when a test was conducted at the MMSC a couple of years back.

The CBR150R of Thailand gets a different frame/chassis (kind of like a perimeter frame) compared to the CBR250R.

If HMSI does launch a 150 cc CBR150R in India, it's not necessary that the it gets a different frame (like the one sold in Thailand).. chances are that the smaller CBR150R might get a similar tubular frame of the current CBR250R.


It's amusing that the scene is kinda opposite in India.. i.e. for the quality of parts/finish on Honda CBR250R and Yamaha R15/FZ-16/S

It is more than amusing: it's really strange!!

After having posted this not-so-nice comment about the finish of the Yamaha FZ16 compared to the Honda CBR125R, I stopped at a shop where the CBR250R was on show. What a disappointment!!!

I could spot the same defects as those I had sadly observed on my Yamaha: pitted alloy parts (wheels specially, which, on the Yamaha, certainly explain the pressure drop of the big tubeless rear tyre ), incomplete painting of the frame, showing already little rusted parts (on a brand new bike!) behind the small parts welded to it....!
Just beside this 250 was a 150: just perfect, spotless, not a defect I could notice!

Actually, I had noticed the same difference between the well finished R15 and the not-so-well finished FZ, and the here-above comments just make me feel that, both of these bikes (R15 and CBR150) being exported to Europe (with 125cc. only, this being the limit those without a "big" bike license can ride), wouldn't these makers pay more attention to these products than to those for us, the "third world" countries???

I really tend to think this way, as also the higher technology for these bikes obviously shows: real delta frame, high performance engines....nothing like the ordinary tubular frame of both the CBR250 or the FZ, the latter being fitted with a two valve, air cooled, carburetor engine....things you can forget about selling in EU!!!

Does not change anything to the fact that I regret to have this Yam instead of the Honda! Too late now: the loss on the already very high price we pay here if I would sell this Yamaha - which I still like very much somehow for its road behavior, plus the US$ 1,500 extra price tag of the CBR150 would make the exchange ridiculous!

it's really strange though i am yet to find any such prob in my 5 year old ZMA

Hope the CBR150 when and if released doesn't get the same treatment from the dealers which the dazzler got.

A confirmed launch in march with a price tag of around 1.2 L

Am not going to comment on the quality though

:-P Lets hope the quality to be better after many issues with the 250R,better late than never!

That would be bang in the Yamaha R15 league.. But we all know what a gem the R15 is (especially with the V2.0 upgrade) in every sense for a 150 cc.

I read its top is around true 150+km/hr? is this info true? If YES then my next question would be will it's power of 18.98PS be restricted according to indian norms, which is the damn reason always given??

My opinion in bold below.

I see only place where R15 can beat CBR150R is handling. And that is also because we are lacking of information on this aspect. Some pages back I read an Indian who had an opportunity to test ride it saying it does not handle as well as R15.

Nevertheless, I just want Honda to launch this bike ASAP with no restriction in displacement and of course no quality issues. Waiting till next March will be a big pain.

On the other note, I feel, it might turn cannibalistic by eating CBR250R's market. Any takes on this?

A couple of racers & journalists got a first hand experience of the CBR 150R on Honda One make race. I believe the R15 V2.0 has kicked the goal posts forward.

You can't negate a 100cc 6-7bhp, 10nm of torque advantage any which way

The pricing will be key factor, if they will manage to price it below R15 they might see some decent numbers. If they price it close to R15 then most of the potential customer will end up opting for 250R instead of 150R.

Sheel, himself is a testimony of the same, as initially he was planning for R15V.20 but eventually opted for CBR 250 as the price difference was not really substantial.