200cc sporty fully-faired motorcycle segment is heating up with the launch of new Karizma XMR 210 on August 29th, 2023
Automotive rivalry is often very amusing. This is especially true when manufacturers actively take a dig at each other. Like Chevy and Ford trolling each other in the US and Tata Motors trolling Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai in India. Hero MotoCorp is set to launch the new Karizma, but Bajaj Auto just couldn’t hold back from pulling their leg. Hero MotoCorp used ‘Ride Your Legend’ tagline in Karizma XMR 210’s new instrument cluster. Now Bajaj Pulsar’s official Instagram channel trolls Karizma. Let’s take a look.
Bajaj Trolls Hero Karizma – Rivalry reboot!
This is not the first time Bajaj trolled other bikemakers. We have seen Bajaj’s innovative ‘Haathi Mat Paalo’ adverts, taking a dig at Royal Enfield. Now, their focus is the new Karizma. Historically speaking, Hero’s Karizma line has always rivalled semi-faired and fully-faired Pulsar 220 and Pulsar RS respectively.
Bajaj Pulsar trolled Karizma by positioning itself as ‘The Original Legend Killer’ with a Pulsar NS in the background doing a wheelie. There is a text below it in French that could mean “Tonight, we’ll give you a volley”? And in the text box, it mentioned “Who am I talking about? IFKYK (If You Know You Know)” followed by a Winking Smiley.
For a long time, Hero didn’t have the Karizma on sale and Xtreme 200S was the only alternative to fill in Karizma’s shoes. Xtreme 200S is a fully-faired machine from Hero, which recently got the 4V update. That said, sales and popularity have never been Xtreme 200S’ forte. Bajaj didn’t troll Xtreme 200S before. Maybe because Bajaj didn’t see Xtreme 200S as a direct threat, unlike Karizma XMR 210. That said, Hero has worked really hard to create a proper enthusiast machine that takes the fight directly to the Pulsar RS200.
Will ‘Legend’ prove more popular than ‘Legend Killer’?
Pulsar RS200 gets a KTM-sourced 199.5cc single-cylinder engine with 24.1 bhp of power and 18.7 Nm of torque. Iit is not exactly identical to the 200 Duke’s engine. Pulsar RS200 only gets an SOHC setup as opposed to a DOHC setup on 200 Duke. But it boasts a liquid-cooling setup, a 4V head and a 6-speed gearbox.
As seen with new Karizma teaser, XMR 210 gets a DOHC config, liquid cooling and 6-speed gearbox. A 4V head is highly likely too. On paper, Hero Karizma XMR 210 already has an upper hand even before unveiling. The fairing looks sharp and will pack some sort of tubular chassis.
With a large fully digital instrument cluster with Bluetooth smartphone integration and other modern features, Karizma feels more modern and tech-savvy. Add to it LED headlights and turn indicators along with new switchgear, Karizma has come a long way and it would be interesting to see how it would stack up against the Pulsar RS200. Hero will launch the new Karizma XMR 210 on August 29th, 2023.
