Yamaha XSR 250 could be underpinned by the same platform as the FZ25 and is expected to use the 249 cc engine air/oil cooled engine
The speculations surrounding the arrival of the Yamaha XSR 155 to India have been there for many years and nothing has really come into fruition yet as no official confirmation has been made by the brand. To everyone’s surprise, Yamaha has been spotted testing a new motorcycle at Yamuna Expressway and the initial sighting suggests a number of key details.
The prototype appears to be in the initial testing phase and it looks to have adopted design language from the XSR sports heritage range. However, it wears alloy wheels similar to that of the FZ25. The XSR 155 sits at the bottom of the Japanese’s sports heritage range and the upcoming 250 cc could be slotted between the XSR 155 and XSR 700.
The neo retro roadster may be underpinned by the diamond tubular frame as opposed to the deltabox frame that can be found in the R15 V3, MT15 and XSR 155. Yamaha already sells the MT25 in international markets and the powertrain used is a twin-cylinder liquid-cooled unit producing around 36 horsepower and it may not make its way to India due to cost reasons.
And instead, Yamaha will more likely use the 249 cc single-cylinder air/oil cooled engine employed in the FZ25 producing around 20.5 bhp maximum power and 20 Nm of peak torque. The engine is paired with a five-speed transmission. With a neo retro roadster appeal, we do expect Yamaha to cram in more performance numbers into the mix in the XSR 250.
The spy images show the relaxed rider’s positioning, upright handlebars, front and rear disc brakes, a large fuel tank, relaxed footpeg positioning, telescopic front forks, monoshock rear suspension, and yet to be finalised front and rear end while an LCD instrument cluster is a high possibility. We do expect the test mule to evolve further in the coming months to give us more details.
The Yamaha XSR 250 may only see the light sometime early next year and it could be positioned above the FZ25, which currently costs around Rs. 1.54 lakh (ex-showroom), to compete against Dominar 250, higher priced Duke 250 and others in the Rs. 1.80 lakh vicinity of its own.
With better performance characteristics, it could be pitched against the entry-level Royal Enfield 350 cc, Jawa 42 and Honda CB350 motorcycles with good long touring characteristics in a different styling package, and it will be interesting to see how the test mule evolves.