Honda’s Upcoming Hero Splendor Rival’s Details Leaked Through Patent Image

An image of Honda’s upcoming 100cc commuter has surfaced online, revealing interesting details

[UPDATE: Honda has launched the Shine 100 in India at Rs 64,900. Head to our launch story for all the details]

Days after Honda confirmed its intentions to launch a 100cc commuter in India, an image of a patent filed by the bikemaker has now surfaced online. Interestingly, the bike in the picture uses a sloper engine, a format that Hero and Honda jointly used in the Hero Honda Splendor ever since the bike was launched back in the 90s. Does it make sense then, in today’s day and age, for a modern day commuter? 

It Does Make Sense!

Sloper engines are named the way they are mainly due to the unusually high angle of the cylinder head to the crankcase. What it brings is cost effectiveness, which should help Honda give it a price that’ll ‘positively shock’ us as they’ve promised. And if the upcoming commuter has the evergreen Hero Splendor in its crosshairs, immaculate pricing will be the key. 

If the Japanese marque eventually decides to bring in this format, the brand could also market it as being the ‘OG’ sloper, invoking a sense of nostalgia among the people who have fond memories with these engines from the 90s. 

BREAKING: This Is The Sportiest Hero Scooter!

Suzuki’s First Electric Two-wheeler To Be Launched In 2024

Ultraviolette F77 Review: 5 Likes & 3 Dislikes

Or Does It?

It all sounds perfect doesn’t it? Not really. You see, post their split from Hero in December 2010, Honda never really used a sloper engine for any of their bikes. What’s an even bigger issue is that there’s no secondary catalytic converter to be seen on the bike. That means the engine doesn’t even seem to be BS6 compliant, leave alone compliance with the upcoming OBD-II norms that are all slated to roll out in India from April 2023.

Honda will be putting all these speculations to rest soon as the upcoming bike could be here as early as March this year. If Honda does utilize the full potential of this engine, it could very well be priced around the Rs 62,000 (ex-showroom) mark. Once here, it’ll go up against the Hero HF 100 and the HF Deluxe.