If and when launched in India, Suzuki’s version of TR300 will rival the likes of Royal Enfield Meteor 350, Jawa Perak and Honda CB350
Entry-level retro-styled motorcycles never go out of flavour. This segment of 300-400cc of classic bikes is currently dominated by Royal Enfield in India. However, many new manufacturers have dived into this space and found reasonable success, for example, Honda and Jawa. It appears Suzuki too is planning to venture into this space.
Haojoe, Suzuki’s Chinese partner, has been developing a new entry-level cruiser motorcycle named TR300. Design patents of the 300cc bike have been leaked online which reveal a cruiser with a traditional retro design. The 300cc cruiser space in China is currently occupied by Qingqi KR GV300, Benda Jinjila 300 and Honda CM300.
Traditional Cruiser Design
Starting with its design, TR300 sports a low-slung profile of a conventional cruiser. Upfront, it features an oblong-shaped headlamp cluster with chrome bezels and flanked by a small LED turn indicator on each side and is accompanied by a small windscreen on top.
Behind the tiny flyscreen, an instrument display is placed which is likely to be an LCD unit. The most attractive highlights, however, are a teardrop-shaped fuel tank and chunky front and rear fenders which resemble Kawasaki Vulcan S to a certain extent.
A stubby black exhaust setup and dual-spoke alloy wheels lend a hint of modernity to the cruiser. Other notable styling highlights include an upright handlebar and split-style seats with a low-set rider seating position.
More importantly, it is underpinned by the same platform as the one underpinning Suzuki’s naked streetfighter GSX S300. This also means that TR300 also shares the same powertrain as GSX S300 and its very own sibling Haojue DR300.
Mechanical Specs
TR300 will be powered by a 298cc liquid-cooled, parallel-twin engine that delivers an output of 28.8 bhp of power and 27.8 Nm of peak torque. This motor could be paired with a six-speed gearbox. The patent images also reveal its hardware configurations which feature a rather simple setup of telescopic forks at front and dual shock absorbers at rear.
The bike will ride on 17-inch alloy wheels shod by chunky tyres while anchorage will be handled by single disc brakes at both ends. A dual-channel ABS should also be offered as standard to assist the braking setup.
It is safe to say that Haojue TR300 flaunts some very basic and rudimentary components. However, this could likely translate to a very affordable price tag which is the need for any entry-level vehicle in the Chinese market. Therefore, a rebadged TR300, carrying a Suzuki logo, makes perfect sense for the budget-centric and cruiser-friendly Indian market.
Source: Bike - rushlane.com
