Honda Africa Twin India Launch Delayed

First showcased at the 2016 Auto Expo, the Honda Africa Twin will now make its entry into the Indian market by mid-2017.

Those who were waiting to get their hands on the new Honda CRF1000L Africa Twin adventure motorcycle will now have to wait a little more. HMSI's senior vice president YS Guleria has recently stated that the bike will be launched by mid-2017. The delay can be credited to the assembly training and setup of the assembly line as the bike will be brought in via the CKD route. Another fact revealed is that the Indian-spec model of the adventure bike will come with just the DCT dual-clutch automatic transmission, and the standard 6-speed manual gearbox will not make its way to our shores. Also, just 5 per cent of the components will be localised on the bike, which is not enough to make it as cost effective as initially expected.

First showcased at the 2016 Auto Expo in India, the Honda Africa Twin is a litre-class adventure motorcycle with a rugged go-anywhere design. Powering the bike is a 998cc parallel-twin motor which makes 95PS of power at 7,500rpm and delivers a peak torque of 98Nm at 6,000rpm. The bike will come blessed with features like ABS and three-stage traction control as a part of the advanced electronics package. The ABS is switchable and can be disabled for the rear wheel only too. The suspension setup is fully adjustable, comprising of beefy 45mm inverted front forks with 230mm of travel and rear monoshock with 220mm of travel. The seat height of 870mm is adjustable and there are also low and high seat options to match customers’ requirements.

According to the engine capacity, the Honda Africa Twin will rival the Suzuki V-Storm 1000 and the Kawasaki Versys 1000. Moreover, the bike will also rival the likes of the BMW R1200GS, Triumph Tiger Explorer and The Ducati Multistrada which are powered by higher capacity engines. After the not so effective CKD import, the Honda Africa Twin is expected to be priced around Rs 14 lakh in the Indian market.