Honda unveiled its first flex-fuel bike, the XRE 300, at the Auto Expo 2023. It can run on petrol as well as ethanol. Honda company has started road testing of this bike in India. Currently, the company is selling this bike in Brazil.
The Honda XRE 300 bike is powered by a 291.6 cc single-cylinder, air-cooled engine capable of running on flex fuel. When running on petrol, the bike produces 25.4 bhp power and 27.6 Nm torque; when running on ethanol (widely used in Brazil), it produces 25.6 bhp power and 28 Nm torque. The engine of the bike is mated to a 5-speed gearbox.
It is an off-road dirt bike that will rival the Royal Enfield Himalayan in India. The Honda XRE 300 has 19-inch spoke wheels at the front and 17-inch at the rear. The weight of this bike is 148 kg. The bike gets telescopic forks at the front and a mono-shock suspension unit at the rear.
Brakes are handled by 256 mm disc at the front and 220 mm disc at the rear with dual-channel ABS. The bike has standard features, including an LCD instrument cluster, LED lighting and ABS.
The company is considering launching this bike in India. Once launched in the country, it will compete with the KTM 390 Adventure, BMW G 310 GS and the Royal Enfield Himalayan. The Honda XRE 300 could be priced at around Rs 2 lakh (ex-showroom).