Honda SP160: Which bikes will it rival?

The Honda Unicorn’s popularity remains unchallenged in the 150cc space despite its age and the fact that it has remained the same visually for well over a decade now. Banking on that success, Honda is now gearing up to launch the SP160, which uses the same engine as the long-standing Unicorn. To give you an idea of where it stands amongst its 150/160cc peers, purely on the basis of the engine and its output, we’ve stacked it up against some other popular choices.

For the purpose of this comparison, we will be comparing it to the Bajaj Pulsar P150, Hero Xtreme 160R 2V, Yamaha FZ-FI V4 DLX and the TVS Apache RTR 160 2V. Sportier 160cc offerings like the Bajaj Pulsar N160, TVS Apache RTR 160 4V and the newly launched Hero Xtreme 160R 4V aren’t a part of this comparison because of their higher output figures and more modern 4-valve engines (except the N160).

Except for the Yamaha FZ-FI V4 DLX, the Honda SP160 makes less power than every other bike here. But the real focus of this simple air-cooled mill is to make life in the city easy, where most of its target audience will be spending most of their time. Which is why it delivers all 14Nm of its torque (the largest number here) at 5,500rpm (the lowest peak torque rpm number).

Currently, the Honda Unicorn is priced at Rs 1,09,800 (ex-showroom, India) and when the SP160 is launched next month, we expect it to be priced around that same ballpark. The SP160 will most likely be available in two variants, with the primary difference being the option of either a disc or drum brake at the rear.