Valheru Rides!

So it’s been a couple of days since the new Guerrilla 450 made it’s debut and I’ve had a good amount of time to sit and think about this bike. I’m not going to mention much about the actual reveal event itself, as I am well aware these can be divisive and frankly I am getting old, if it was up for me they would all be in the style of the recent Bullet 350 launch. Thank hell it’s not up to me, eh?

Is it just a Himmy without the fairings?

I’ve been crunching the numbers overnight and the simple answer is: No. It is the same frame, but that doesn’t really make a difference in regard to the overall image and style of the bike. The Meteor and Bullet are both built on the J platform but you wouldn’t insinuate the Bullet was just a black coloured Meteor….

I digressed a tad, but the Guerrilla has a lower ground clearance, seat height and weight. The latter gives it a kerb weigh the same as my Meteor, considering the power & torque increases, that’s a recipe for a monster. I’m waiting for inevitable Indian highway drag races to confirm this, but I’m pretty confident this will not only out accelerate, but provide a more balanced platform as a “Go anywhere” roadster. I will be interested to see what kind of accessories are available for this new platform to help customise it further.

Controls?

Ok this one has got me slightly in a tizz. I quite like the lar-de-dar LCD screen that incorporates Tripper, it’s situated better on the Guerrilla rather than sticking up on a stalk like it is on the Himmy. As a slight annoyance it is offset and on the right hand side of the handlebars. I assume this is because I am used to it being on the let when I ride the Meteor. On the basic version you can get the analogue dash (a la Meteor/Scram/Shotgun) we know and love. However, in a quirk of fate it’s actually in reverse with the tripper pod on the left Vs being on the right. I have no idea why this is a thing and for some reason it slightly irks me.

I have spotted one minor detail that is a distraction, ride modes. I’m not really a fan of ride modes, I see them as a needless dalliance away from the usual position of minimal additional features. Again though, in this case I’m probably not the quintessential target audience.

Good will Hunter?

I do have to wonder though, what is going to happen to the current Hunter offering? When you consider it is roughly £4000 (excluding some of the Motogb sell offs recently) Vs the £5000 list price of the Guerrilla, for so much more bike. Granted they are slightly different bikes, you sit on the Hunter so it often feels like a small bike Vs how we’ve seen riders sitting on the Guerrilla, they do however perform very similar roles and if I was in the market for a roadster I’d probably overlook the Hunter in favour of this.

Do I think it’s going to shift, both on the highway drag races and the shop floors? Ohh hell yes, and maybe we will even see a slightly different genre of rider behind the visors, it’s just a shame the fuel tank is so small….