The Hero XPulse is highly awaited in the market and will be launched later this year. It will become the most affordable dual-purpose bike
Hero showcased the all-new XPulse at the 2018 Auto Expo in India. The all-new bike is dubbed as Hero’s one of the biggest launches in recent times and is a highly-awaited bike. Hero MotoCorp is expected to launch the all-new product later this year and it will become the most affordable ADV in the country. Hero is expected to launch the bike priced at around Rs. 1 lakh (ex-showroom) and it could be launched in two variants.
The all-new Hero XPulse is based on the Hero Xtreme 200’s platform. It gets the same chassis and is powered by the same engine too. The XPulse will be the spiritual successor of the Hero Impulse, which was launched in the market a few years back and was discontinued due to the extremely low sales. Often, the Impulse was criticised for being underpowered. However, the XPulse will deal with that issue.
The all-new Hero XPulse 200 is powered by a 200cc, air-cooled, single-cylinder engine that generates a maximum power of 18 bhp and peak torque of 17 Nm. The engine gets fuel-injection and a single overhead camshaft. The engine is already available with the Hero Xtreme 200 and in the XPulse it will offer a similar five-speed transmission.
However, Hero is expected to change the gear ratios to suit the ADV. The exact weight of the Hero XPulse is not known but it will be lower than 140 kg, which will make it quite peppy and fun-to-ride on the off-roading trails.
The XPulse will come with the long-travel suspension at the front and rear. This will help the bike to absorb all the rough surfaces without much problem. The front forks get travel of 190 mm and the rear monoshock offers 180 mm of travel. It gets a 21-inch tyre at the front and an 18-inch set-up in the rear.
Hero showcased the bike with spoked rims, which will get tubed tyres. The final specs may change in the production bike. With the upcoming safety rules making ABS mandatory for all two-wheelers powered by 125cc or bigger capacity engine, the XPulse is expected to offer single-channel ABS unit. The bike gets a high ground clearance of 220 mm and features like LED headlamps.