My friend who is also having an RTR Fi joeled his bike & he too faced the same issues. He re-mapped the ECU & all those stuffs & continued to face issues at intial point. But now its ok. I think it will gradually be fine after some km's under your belt. Anyway I will cross check with him once I meet him.

If you are going fro 55w then certainly you will have to go for complete DC conversion. Also you will need some good battery like amaron. You can get these modifications done from JC road. Many shops are there with bike apparels. Check out Moto-cross.
Go through this link fro more info.

Apache RTR160(2011) 18 month review

After 6700km on the odo, all free services and one paid service from TVS later, I gave the RTR 160 to a trusted local mechanic for a full service. I had my doubts as to whether it will backfire (still do, it'll take a few weeks of reliable running to make me believe).

The service was thorough, with every part being taken out and serviced (I was present for most of the service time). Out came the default TVS oil and in went the Shell AX7 semi synthetic oil.

Motor gurus out there: what should I pay attention to, esp when serviced at non-authorized workshops?


My RTR 160, gleaming after service

A few observations about the service, and general pointers for typical RTR problems:
- TVS service centers, at least the ones I've been to (in Bangalore), seem crap. They don't take care of the bike very well. If you can, find a good local mechanic and get it serviced. If you live in central/north/north west Bangalore, PM me and I'll tell you a couple of places I personally vouch for.

For example, the mechanic pointed out that the wheel and steering was misaligned (likely from a fall I had 7 months ago, after which I've been to the SVC twice and apparently it was not fixed). It was fixed in the service and instantly, handling improved a lot.

- After 4-5k kms, change to semi synth oil (I used Shell AX7). I'm still not convinced of the effectiveness of full synth oil (plus the fact that nothing comes near the 10w30 TVS recommends for RTR).

Rode 10 kms under 4k RPM (man that was hard!) and then opened full throttle on airport road for another 20km soon after service, and the effect is pronounced. Engine revs better now, and power delivery even at low RPM (say under 3k) seems smoother and torquey.

Here's an anecdote that tells you all you need - at around 65kmph in 5th gear, I was trying to upshift. Why? Because the power felt unusually high, which I previously felt only if I was riding at the same speed in 4th gear.

- Get the toe shifter and associated parts lubricated properly. Makes a world of difference to the smoothness. I'd had it done before service, and it was smoother. After change to semi synth oil, the gear shifts are like butter. I've rode a friend's FZ a lot, and the RTR now actually compares to the famed Jap gearboxes in terms of smoothness.

If you've got gear shifting troubles, do these two things (lube+semi synth oil).

Next up, when I've saved up enough, is grippy Michelin M45/Pirelli Sport Demon tyres (still not decided which) in stock size for confidence while cornering. It is a shame that such a great handler is burdened by those terrible stock TVS tyres (esp. in wet weather).

Also considering doing AC to DC conversion and 55w headlamps.

Nicely written Not all TVS SVC s are bad, you just need to get to know some mechs and they will greet you with a smile when ever you go to SVC.

That said thanks to gixxer I also got in touch with a good mech outside SVC with whom I trust my bike with now.

Regarding tires, I found MRF Zappers to be good, PSD s are just too heavy and they are too soft(Better grip but it wont last long). Get Zapper Q 110 for Rear and Zapper FS for front, its the best combo I have ridden for 160, you will loose out on the initial pick up but top end increases by +5kmph(I checked a lot to make sure it wasnt a speedo error).

If you want you can swap foam type air filter with Suzuki GS150 paper element(~Rs 200) air filter to get a little bit more throttle response.

+1 to that... Actually I service from Tristar TVS, Domlur. So far good experience. Also I always give my bike to one Mr. Lokesh who is good enough & explains things to you pretty well. He checks the bike personally before servicing & after servicing make sure everything is sorted out.
That said thanks to gixxer I also got in touch with a good mech outside SVC with whom I trust my bike with now.
+5kmph..Thatz cool...But zapper tires are heavy right. So normally their top-end speed will reduce, right?
The only problem here is we cant clean this air filters the way its stocks are normally cleaned. So have to be careful if giving servicing in TVS SVC.

Yes 110 is heavy, but when you plonk in 110 it will also have an effect on gearing ratios, so top end is gained at cost of acceleration, if sprockets are changed suitably that initial pick up will be back again, but I dont mind loosing a bit as I found it a lot stable while cornering.
You need to blow air to clean paper type air filters.

I dont want to upsize to 110, TVS have put 100 after a lot of research, upsizing usually affects the bike dynamics esp when cornering. And main reason for changing tyres itself is to corner wiyh confidence.

[QUOTE=susheelkumar;869732]My friend who is also having an RTR Fi joeled his bike & he too faced the same issues. He re-mapped the ECU & all those stuffs & continued to face issues at intial point. But now its ok. I think it will gradually be fine after some km's under your belt. Anyway I will cross check with him once I
Meet him[QUOTE]


Sorry susheel, this is me only andrew here. Goddamn I am psyched with this problem now.

1. Read somewhere that air filter shouldn't be washed in petrol. Talked to my mechanic and he insists on petrol, saying he's been doing this for 18 yrs and all such BS. Think I'll have to get a new foam filter and make sure no service mechs touch it....

2. I think the engine is running a bit lean after service - since the engine now seems to take way longer from 90-115 kmph. Talked to the mechanic and he insists it is perfectly tuned, saying "I can tune it richer if you want, but mileage will drop 4-5 kmpl". I'm more concerned about damage to engine and/or spark plug rather than mileage, so getting a balanced tune is important for me. Is there any other tell-tale signs of it? If I can be sure about the lean mix, I'll tune it myself to a more balanced AFR (already looked up the DIY thread here on xBHP).

3. Have any of you got the AC-DC conversion done + powerful headlamps (say 55W)? I'm just a bit worried about the reliability, especially as I'll be touring a bit from now. Other RTR owners suggested it can be done from JC Road in Bangalore, can anyone share his experience getting it done there? Which shop, time for work, cost etc...

If this conversion is risky, another alternative I see is getting a 35W Philips/Osram lamps that are more focused etc. But that is really a last resort, there is only so much a 35W can do.

4. Another tweak for touring: can a mobile charger be accomodated on the bike? I read about this on a RE Bullet mod thread, wondering if something similar can be done on our RTR. Either an AC plug (using normal charger) or a DC (using car charger) would work fine, if at all possible. Can be a great help, since mobile phones are useful in so many ways (GPS, camera, not to mention calls and sms) and don't last even 18 hrs.

Beast eyes

Nice Pics there, and congrats for new bike.

Thanx bro.....

Mr.Apache

Hey guys! I have an Apache RTR Fi 2008 model which has covered 34000 kms. During the recent service i got the chain-set and sprockets changed at the TVS svc. I have noticed a change in my speeds @ 5k RPM in the 5th gear. earlier it used to be 65-66 but now its 71-72. The bike is running fine , i just wanted to know the reason behind this. I noticed the rear sprocket is 44T, dunno about front sprocket. is it because of the change of sprockets?? I have no idea about the size of the old sprockets.

There is no problem in chain or sprockets, but little bit problem will be there in digital speedometer. Just wait and watch it will be corrected by itself (as it happened in my case) otherwise take it to ASC.

Nic pic. Did you replace the pilots with yellow ones?