Prices of Honda CB125 Hornet are yet to be announced while bookings open from 1st August 2025
Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India (HMSI) has just unveiled a new entrant into the highly competitive 125cc segment. This new bike, called CB125 Hornet will open for bookings from 1st August 2025 and will compete in this space with TVS Raider, Hero Xtreme 125R and Bajaj Pulsar N125.
While each of these competitors are also strong in terms of demand, let us see what the Honda CB125 Hornet brings with it so as to set itself apart. This comparison will be assessed in terms of design, features and performance. However, price of the newest Honda entrant into this arena is yet to be announced.
Honda CB125 Hornet Vs Rivals – Performance
Even as each of these rivals are in the 125cc segment and get a 5 speed gearbox as standard, there are some differences in engine performance. The TVS Raider offers the highest peak power at 11.7 Nm at 6,000 rpm with iGo assist. Conversely, the Honda CB125 Hornet shapes up at 11.2 Nm at 6,000 rpm while Hero Xtreme 125R offers 10.5 Nm at 6,500 rpm and Bajaj Pulsar N125 is capable of 11 Nm torque at 6,000 rpm.
In terms of power, the Pulsar 125 offers higher than its rivals at 12 hp at 8,500 rpm while the new Honda CB125 Hornet is the lowest at 11.2 hp at 7,500 rpm. Another area of differentiation is where the kick start feature is concerned. Here, only the N125 and Xtreme 125R come in with a kick start option which is missing on the Raider and CB125 Hornet.
Specs & Components
Honda CB125 Hornet is also exclusive in the fact that it is the only one among its rivals to get USD fork while the other come in with RSU telescopic units with monoshock as standard. In braking, it is the 240 mm disc/drum brake that is offered across Honda CB125 Hornet, TVS Raider and Hero Xtreme 125R while their Bajaj Pulsar counterpart receives a 230mm disc/drum brake.
It has to be noted that Hero Xtreme 125 offers the largest disc at the front at 276 mm with ABS variant. Only the Hero Xtreme 125R and Honda CB125 Hornet come equipped with ABS, which is single-channel, working on front disc brakes. None of these bikes are offered with rear disc brakes, even as an option.
Where overall weight and dimensions are concerned, the Honda Hornet is at 124 kgs while the TVS Raider gets a 1 kg edge over this new comer with a kerb weight of 123 kgs. Hero Xtreme 125R and Bajaj Pulsar N125 stand significantly heavier at 136 kgs and 127 kgs respectively. The new Hornet also has the lowest ground clearance at 166mm but the longest wheel base at 1330 mm.
Seat height is at 796 mm, higher than the TVS Raider that stands at 780mm and Hero Xtreme and Bajaj Pulsar N125 that are at 794mm and 795mm respectively. The Pulsar ground clearance is in view of its ADV-reminiscent styling and larger fork gaiters. The new Honda CB125 Hornet receives the largest fuel tank with capacity of 12 liters while its rivals TVS Raider and Hero Xtreme 125R have 10 liter tank capacity Bajaj Pulsar N125 has the smallest tank capacity of 9.5 liter.
Pricing & Availability
Finally we assess each of these rivals in terms of pricing. Though the price of Honda CB125 Hornet is yet to be announced, it could be offered in a similar ballpark as the TVS Raider that is priced from Rs 87,010 – 1.02 lakh. Hero Xtreme 125R is priced higher at Rs 98,425 – 1.02 lakh while the Bajaj Pulsar is now priced at Rs 95,213 – 99,213. If these, the Honda CB125 Hornet is only offered in a single variant. Price should be revealed shortly prior to booking opening on 1st August 2025.
Features
All four motorcycles offer similar lighting features with LED headlamps, DRLs and LED tail lights. It is the TVS Raider that is offered with bulb indicators while the other three have LED indicators. Honda Hornet and TVS Raider also receive TFT displays while the Bajaj Pulsar N125 and Hero Xtreme 125R get LCD displays.
The Raider’s 5 inch TFT display unit sports Bluetooth connectivity, SmartXconnect tech, and even voice commands while Hornet receives a 4.2 inch TFT screen with Bluetooth pairing through the Honda Roadsync app. Also among the 4 competitors, all except the Hero Xtreme 125R receive silent start function.
Source: Bike - rushlane.com
