Hero MotoCorp recently ventured into the Premium 160cc Sporty Commuter segment of India with the new Xtreme 160R. Hero Xtreme 160R is an extremely good motorcycle from the house of this Indian two-wheeler giant. Just a few weeks ago, we extensively rode this motorcycle and shared with you our detailed First Ride Review. You can read our detailed Test Ride Review by clicking HERE. The new Xtreme 160R is a very potential motorcycle. It has a lot of positives but a few downsides too. So, today we list for you the Pros and Cons of the new 2020 Hero Xtreme 160R BS6.
Before we begin, let me tell you that you can hit the play button above or can continue to scroll down and read our textual description about the Pros and Cons of the new Hero Xtreme 160R. We will be listing 5 Pros and 3 Cons of this motorcycle and these positives and negatives are based on our riding experience of the Xtreme 160R. We have also conducted a Top Speed and Acceleration Test and the Mileage Test of this motorcycle and all those videos are available on our YouTube channel. So, make sure you subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell icon so that you never miss such amazing motoring updates from 91Wheels.
Pros and Cons of the 2020 Hero Xtreme 160R BS6
Pros
Price
Hero MotoCorp is always known for pricing its motorcycles aggressively and same is the case with the Xtreme 160R. The new Hero Xtreme 160R is the second most affordable motorcycle in its class, the most affordable being the Apache 160 2V. The Xtreme 160R is available in two variants: Front Disc and Dual Disc and both of them get a single-channel ABS. The Front Disc variant is priced at Rs. 99,950 while the Dual Disc variant is priced at Rs. 1,03,500. All prices stick to Ex-showroom, Delhi. The Xtreme 160R's base model is just about 1900 rupees expensive than the base model of the Apache 160 2V and it undercuts the pricing of all other rivals.
Latest Price (Ex-showroom Delhi) Comparison of all 160cc Sporty Commuters:
| Apache 160 2V | X-Blade | Xtreme 160R | Apache 160 4V | FZ-S V3 | Pulsar NS 160 | Gixxer 155 |
| Rs. 98,050 (single disc) Rs. 1,01,050 (double disc) | Rs. 1,06,687 (single-disc) Rs. 1,10,968 (double disc) | Rs. 99,950 (single disc) Rs. 1,03,500 (double disc) | Rs. 1,04,000 (single disc) Rs. 1,07,050 (double disc) | Rs. 1,03,700 Rs. 1,05,200 (Dark Knight) | Rs. 1,06,899 lakhs | Rs. 1,13,941 |
Great City Performer
The Hero Xtreme 160R is a very good city performer. It has great low-end and mid-range punch. The Xtreme 160R is powered by a BS6-compliant 163cc, single-cylinder, air-cooled engine with XSens fuel-injection technology. This motor churns out 15.2 PS of power at 8500 RPM and 14 Nm of torque at 6500 RPM. The engine comes coupled to a 5-speed manual gearbox. These aren't class-leading figures but the performance is definitely more than adequate for intra-city commutes.
Extremely Fuel-efficient
The Hero Xtreme 160R will offer you cheap thrills without burning a hole in your pocket. As we have already mentioned before, it is very affordable and is a great city performer. But, though it is a powerful motorcycle, it doesn't compromise on fuel efficiency. The Xtreme 160R BS6 will deliver around 45-50 kmpl of mileage in real-world conditions. We also conducted a fuel economy run on this motorcycle for 150 kilometres inside Delhi-NCR on a weekend. Since it was a weekend, so we encountered less traffic and the motorcycle delivered a very good mileage of 52.5 kmpl.
Too many Features for its Price
The Xtreme 160R is an affordable 160cc Sporty Commuter and this motorcycle offers you so much bang for your buck. Its suspension duties are handled by 37 mm telescopic front forks which are sourced from Showa. It gets a mono-shock absorber at the rear with 7-step adjustability. Moreover, it gets petal disc brakes at either end with a single-channel ABS. Some other class-leading features include all-LED lighting, hazard lamps, etc. It also gets an all-digital instrument cluster loaded with a ton of information. All in all, the Xtreme 160R is a very feature-loaded motorcycle.
Agile and Nimble Handling
Hero Xtreme 160R is the lightest motorcycle in its class. The Front Disc brake variant of the motorcycle weighs just 138.5 kilograms while the Dual Disc brake variant weighs 139.5 kilograms. The Xtreme 160R is extremely light and its light-weight character aids in its handling characteristics. The motorcycle is very agile and it offers precise handling. The suspension set-up of the motorcycle is also very good, it is on the softer side but you can even adjust it as per your taste. The Xtreme 160R is a very nimble machine and you will love to ride it in the city filtering through traffic. Enough of praise, now let's talk about the areas where there is need for improvement.
Cons
Weak Top-end Performance
As we have already mentioned in the Pros section that the Xtreme 160R is a very good city performer. But, it is not a great motorcycle for highway runs. The motorcycle has good low-end and mid-range performance but it lacks top-end grunt. It cruises very comfortably between 70-90 kmph but post 90-95 kmph it starts feeling out of breath. The top speed which we could manage to achieve on the Xtreme 160R is 114 kmph on the speedometer and that too only on a long straight road. Its rivals like the Apache 160 4V and the Pulsar NS 160 have far better top-end performance.
Instrument Cluster Lacks Information
The Xtreme 160R gets an inverted all-digital instrument cluster loaded with a ton of information but it misses out on some useful features. For instance, it doesn't get a gear-position indicator and it lacks a fuel-economy display too. Moreover, this LCD screen is a small unit and also the font size should have been slightly bigger, especially that of the tachometer.
Pillion Seat Comfort
The Hero Xtreme 160R is a very comfortable motorcycle for the rider but it lacks pillion comfort. The motorcycle has a very narrow pillion seat, so healthy pillions won't be comfortable on it. Also, the pillion seat is raised too high which might not be liked by its targeted audience as it is more of a sporty commuter than that of a proper sports bike.
So, these were the Pros and Cons of the new 2020 Hero Xtreme 160R BS6. We have not included the looks of the motorcycle in its pros and cons section as it is a subjective topic but we personally love how the Xtreme 160R looks. The Hero Xtreme 160R is definitely one of the best 160cc motorcycles one can currently buy in India. What are your thoughts on the new Xtreme 160R? Tell us in the comments below. You can also join our 91Wheels Two-wheelers group (click via mobile to join) curated exclusively for the fans, enthusiasts and the owners.
