Hero Splendor iSmart 110 Road Test Review

Life is all about making yourself and the things around you better. We constantly strive to improve ourselves and stay relevant. Same is true with the automotive industry. With new products coming every day and competition from overseas companies on the rise, Indian two wheeler manufacturer, Hero Motocorp decided  that their much loved and successful commuter bike needed an increment as well. Thus the Splendor was morphed into the Splendor iSmart 110.

The all new Splendor 110 gets a complete overhaul in terms of looks. It now gets a small cowl up front and new stylish dual tone graphics. The turn indicators get a sleeker look and the tail lamp also looks great but I am not a big fan of the plastic cladding under the fuel tank. While this new design of the Splendor 110 might not be too eye catchy by today’s standards, it surely has improved by leaps and bounds compared to what the previous iteration looked like.

The engine also has received an update. As the name suggest, now the Splendor is powered by a 110cc engine rather than a 100cc one. This 110cc engine puts out a respectable 9.3hp @ 7500rpm and 9Nm of torque at 5500rpm. Just like the older Splendors this one is zippy when tackling the congested city roads. Acceleration comes easy till about 45-50kmph after which you start to feel the dip. According to me, 60-65kmph would be the sweet spot for cruising on highways but you can go all the way up to 87kmph if you like but beware that you will feel the bike struggle at such high speeds. While the 4 speed transmission is good under city conditions, people who travel on highways will miss the presence of a fifth gear as it eats up the first three gears rather quickly. Maneuvering the bike is pretty easy due to its aerodynamic design and light weight of 115kgs. There is also a 165mm ground clearance so you can be assured that the bike won’t bottom out in most situations.

You get a telescopic fork suspension in the front and adjustable swing arm in the rear. The suspension is slightly stiff so bad roads and potholes will be felt but overall we did not have any gripes with it. The 130mm drum brake in the front and the 110mm drum in the rear do a decent job of decelerating and stopping the bike but they could have done with a bit more bite or Hero could have included an option to add a front disc. The tyres are thin and make for some great cornering experience although one must be careful that if you push too hard you might slip as well.

A while back I got to spend some time with the Hero Achiever 150 and I really admired the three features that it had – Hero's i3s, side stand indicator and AOH. I was more than delighted to see those three features make an appearance even on a commuter bike like the Splendor iSmart 110. It really shows the company’s dedication to provide safety to its riders across all their product range. Hero’s intelligent smart start and stop (i3s) technology switches off the bike if you are idling in neutral for more than 5 seconds and also starts the bike just by pulling the clutch. This is a handy feature that saves fuel and makes starting your bike easier as well. However, if for some reason you do not want the feature you can simply turn it off using a big blue switch on the right side of the handlebar. The side stand indicator on the meter console is also a very practical feature as people tend to forget to pull the side stand up when they are in a hurry or not paying attention, if you have the stand open then the indicator will glow in bright red to remind you. Finally the automatic headlamp on (AHO) feature keeps the headlamp of the Splendor 110 on at all times.

The meter console is a mix of an analogue and digital. A big dial in the center shows you your speed and the smaller one on its left indicates the fuel level. On the right you see a digital display that show you the kilometers covered and a trip meter. I really like the elongated design of the grip on the handlebar, they really give the rider a feeling as if he/she is riding a fast bike. The rest of the switches on the handlebar are in very much within reach and easy to toggle.

What Hero has done with the new Splendor iSmart 110 is that it has made a commuter bike that has the look and feel of a bike from a segment above and several practical features. At Rs 53,530 (ex-showroom Delh), to be honest, it’s is a great deal.