prashantbhardwaj

I have been riding a Pulsar 220 DTSi for past two years. No matter what the conditions be the motorcycle never failed to impress me. But life moves on... One good thing is replaced by another and i did the same.

I would use this thread to write a review and comparison of the two motorcycles as and when i ride some more on the new possession.

But first, here are a few pics of my new Classic 500 Desert Storm:

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The Fastest Indian!!

sunilg

Transition approved and moved.

Congratulations Prashant!

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vikhyath

Great pics there!

Waiting for a review (and more pics)

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surendran

Good bike and great photos too...........
happy riding.............

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Lonely Rider

Great Pics... guess it is time to change your signature LOL

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prashantbhardwaj

Thanks SunilG!!

You will have to wait for the pics.. maybe for a couple of weeks, when i take it up the himalyan roads.

Thanks surendran!!

Thanks Lonely Rider...

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prashantbhardwaj

Over 1000 Kms on the Odo, I feel great when I ride this monstrous bullet. Yes, monstrous… that’s what it makes me feel when I throttle it up. The Torque is something any motorcycle enthusiast will notice and eventually fall in love with. I rode the DS, which I have named as Thor after the Mystical Lighting God, for more than 700 Kms and I switched back to my P220 for a day. I thought it was good to switch between the two motorcycles if you have to write a comparison between the two.

The first thing one will notice is the weight. Yes, Thor is heavy and the stats provided by the respective manufacturers’ state that it is 37 KGs heavier than my beloved P220. The weight does go towards the positive side, if we are thinking about the stability, but then I have to wait and see the effects of the weight when I take it to the slush and nullahs.

The next thing one notices is the Console. While the P220 has the digital, backlit console the Thor has the traditional analogue meter. Am not sure if I can compare anything in this department as both the consoles seems to add the touch to the overall feel of the motorcycle.

The P220 had only electric start as the ignition mechanism and the starter assembly was one of the best when it was launched. Throughout my 2 years of ownership of this motorcycle, the starter never let me down. It never gave any problems with cold start or starter failure. On the other hand, the Thor has Electric start and Kick assembly as the starting mechanism. The Kick is heavy and I expect it to be so. It starts a 500 CC engine and should be heavy but the electric starter is not upto the mark. How can it be… The Motorcycle I had before this was appreciated by many for having such a brilliant and responsive electric start and thus I am not sure if I can rate Thor over P220 on this front.

Start the bike and you can definitely feel the difference of 280 CCs. The Cold start is not a problem in both the motorcycles but then again, I will wait to take the Thor at really cold places and then rate it for Cold Start capabilities.
So the motorcycle has started… Put the engine in 1st gear and the difference in Engine is in evident as soon as you release the throttle. Both the motorcycles put you ahead of traffic but the initial torque of Thor is way more than P220 and is felt easily as the speedometer rotates and then comes the second gear. Here is when the P220 zooms ahead of the Thor, reason being the gear box.P220 had an amazing gear box and I never ended up at any wrong gear or a false neutral but then Thor has Royal Enfield Trademark gear box where they have a neutral between each and every gear and many a times one just ends up in a false neutral. Am I happy with the Gear box? No am not but eventually I will get accustomed to it.

When one is riding for a long distance, the riding posture contributes a lot for a comfortable ride. P220 had a crouched posture and initially I had problems in my wrists and mid shoulder coz of the clip-on handles but then, they faded off as and when my body adjusted to this riding posture. Thor, on the other side has an upright posture which is considered good for long distance rides. I agree that it is comfortable but then the springs below the rider’s seat turn out to be discomforting as one rides for long stretches and result in back pain.

Now comes the braking. P220 had front/rear disc brake assembly and they performed their job well. There were times when it had wheel lock but that was due to sudden braking and not due to any fault with the disc assembly. Thor on the other hand has front disc and rear as drum. As the bike is new, the brakes perform well as of now and I will wait to see the effect of time on the quality of the brakes and how frequent I have to get them adjusted.

These were the major things which one considers while comparing two motorcycles. Let us go into the intricate details and the places where one does not tend to wander off. Places like Engine smoothness and Chain set and tire type and the paint finish.

Thor’s piston sweeps 500 CCs of volume and at speed of 60 or 70 KMpH, one hardly notices any harshness in the engine. It runs butter smooth or let us just say, as of now. I will wait to see the effect of kilometers on it. P220 had an eminent problem of engine harshness and it is something I have always agreed to.

The Chain of Thor is relatively bigger than P220 and is on the right side of the chassis. P220 had an o - ring type of chain which had better bonding within the chain links and was less susceptible to breakage and loosening but on the other hand, it need a lot of care as the sludge and mud used to reside within the gaps of the o-ring. I will wait to see the effect of such things on Thor.

The last and the most important factor about a motorcycle is the tire. P220 had tubeless tires and it was a major reason for me to head out to any place without any second thought but now, I have a motorcycle with tube type tires. It is something that sends out jitters when I think of a puncture. Yes, I know many would say that it is not a big deal but then, for me, the one pampered by tubeless tires for two years of riding, it does bring around a little bit of discomfort.

This is the effects of transition I had and the one I was able to notice as of now. I will write more of it as and when I ride more.

Disclaimer: This is not a comparison between the two aforementioned motorcycles but what I felt as a transition from one to another.

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Rony

Congratulations bro for such an awesome buy but I think you are bit paranoid about it. Don't worry, the bull won't fail you. Just take good care of it and I am sure it would serve you well. Looking forward to more ownership reviews for this illusive bull. I have booked mine a month back and the infamous wait continues !

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