2009 Bajaj Pulsar 220 Discussion Thread - First Ride Impression at Post No. 514

[pranay]

Come on Man, your opinions seem pretty biased. 0-60 figures have been proved with VBOX and they look way quicker than the Fi. You probably felt it much slower because of lesser vibes, lesser engine noise.

The speedo does have a huge error compared to the older bajaj speedos, but if you compare it to bikes like RTR and R15, they are the same. The RTR shows a 132 when it doing 122, the new P220 shows a 142 when it does a 132.5(BIke India info) , so I guess there is not much to complain there.

And why would you choose the Fi over the carb for touring? Are you sure that this is an unbiased opinion? In my view, better cruising ability is pretty important with Tourers, and the new 220 has it. Cruising at 100kmph , you would not really find so much of a difference b/w the Fi and the carb in terms of torque, moreover, even at lower speeds, is it all that much evident? Not to mention, the better engine components which would reduce wear and tear. In my opinion, the new engine with an Fi MAY probably make a better deal, but for now, i think the carb 220 is a better overall package after all - its called evolution.


And I dont understand why Bajaj could not fix that main stand. They have that beautiful test track and they couldn't figure out that the main stand played spoil sport all the time? I remember riding through the Chinnar WildLife sanctuary a few months back, all of us riding at crisp speeds and my main stand scraping all over the place. Time to remove it and learn to live without it.

I was there too to test ride the new 220 DTSi. I agree with all the points that praful has mentioned, we spent alot of time talking about the pros and cons of the bikes. I too believe that Bajaj has incorporated speedo error much more than the Fi. Why? This is the reason.

I went to test ride at the parallel road of the Bajaj PBK at Chennai, and with a pretty well built pillion (Bajaj test ride guy) who weighed atleast 75 kgs. In third gear, in a pretty short stretch the bike was able to hit 100 at the rev limiter. This is all well and good, but I know what a '100' feels like and this was no way possible in a such a small stretch of road with a pillion. I am giving my first impressions based on the ride of the test bike and it might/might not be a one off case but since this is the test bike, I presume that all bikes will be like this.

The bike is much more peakier, low end grunt is totally missing, and it takes time to pick up after 5-6K rpm , after which, it goes mad. (more to follow...meeting )

[Devilpulsarian]

I was there too to test ride the new 220 DTSi. I agree with all the points that praful has mentioned, we spent alot of time talking about the pros and cons of the bikes. I too believe that Bajaj has incorporated speedo error much more than the Fi. Why? This is the reason.

I went to test ride at the parallel road of the Bajaj PBK at Chennai, and with a pretty well built pillion (Bajaj test ride guy) who weighed atleast 75 kgs. In third gear, in a pretty short stretch the bike was able to hit 100 at the rev limiter. This is all well and good, but I know what a '100' feels like and this was no way possible in a such a small stretch of road with a pillion. I am giving my first impressions based on the ride of the test bike and it might/might not be a one off case but since this is the test bike, I presume that all bikes will be like this.

The bike is much more peakier, low end grunt is totally missing, and it takes time to pick up after 5-6K rpm , after which, it goes mad. (more to follow...meeting )

he he he.......

[Technocrat]

but I know what a '100' feels like and this was no way possible in a such a small stretch of road with a pillion. I am giving my first impressions based on the ride of the test bike and it might/might not be a one off case but since this is the test bike, I presume that all bikes will be like this.

Hmm so you are saying that the speedo has error becasue you didnt feel it was doing 100? I think more appropriate would have been checking it with another bike.

[a.umesh]

Originally Posted by rockinggokul
plz show some pics of the console and handle bar-guess u said black ones wud like to see them


^^^
here are some pic's..

[ken cool]

Originally Posted by rockinggokul
plz show some pics of the console and handle bar-guess u said black ones wud like to see them


^^^
here are some pic's..

That new Tach on the console looks pretty cool actually. One of our earlier woes when we discussed with the Bajaj engineers when they had come here was the absence of the clock. Have they integrated a clock yet?

It is one of the biggest consoles that I have seen on any bike and yet it did not have a clock!

[MG]

Have they integrated a clock yet?

Still no clock in that console.

[silver_falcon_46]

I was there too to test ride the new 220 DTSi. I agree with all the points that praful has mentioned, we spent alot of time talking about the pros and cons of the bikes. I too believe that Bajaj has incorporated speedo error much more than the Fi. Why? This is the reason.

I went to test ride at the parallel road of the Bajaj PBK at Chennai, and with a pretty well built pillion (Bajaj test ride guy) who weighed atleast 75 kgs. In third gear, in a pretty short stretch the bike was able to hit 100 at the rev limiter. This is all well and good, but I know what a '100' feels like and this was no way possible in a such a small stretch of road with a pillion. I am giving my first impressions based on the ride of the test bike and it might/might not be a one off case but since this is the test bike, I presume that all bikes will be like this.

The bike is much more peakier, low end grunt is totally missing, and it takes time to pick up after 5-6K rpm , after which, it goes mad. (more to follow...meeting )

I would agree with your point Pranay, but , you cannot really go by mere "feeling" of speed. Just to give you an idea, when I drove the Octavia, I could not believe my eyes that I was doing a 120kmph (comparing to an Accent) on a small stretch of road, and what is the reason? Its just a better car compared to an Accent, it is well built, makes lesser noise, is effortlessly powerful and hence the FEEL of speed is not there. But I cant deny that the Octy is slower than an Accent can I?

When you ride a better bike, I guess its the same feeling isn't it? We'll sorted out , effortless engine makes you actually disillusioned to the fact that it MAY not actually be doing a 100kmph. Like Technocrat mentioned, it would've made a lot more sense if you took your 220 Fi alongside the carb to see if there was any difference. And I dont think a 5-6kmph optimistic speedo(compared to 220Fi) would've made you feel the way you do now.


Nice Tacho there, nice font for the numbers. It would've been nice if they changed that needle to a uniform straight needle.Would've looked more neat.

Was it MG who mentioned that the speedo selfcheck was more quicker now? Is it really quicker?

[Praful]

I would agree with your point Pranay, but , you cannot really go by mere "feeling" of speed. Just to give you an idea, when I drove the Octavia, I could not believe my eyes that I was doing a 120kmph (comparing to an Accent) on a small stretch of road, and what is the reason? Its just a better car compared to an Accent, it is well built, makes lesser noise, is effortlessly powerful and hence the FEEL of speed is not there. But I cant deny that the Octy is slower than an Accent can I?

When you ride a better bike, I guess its the same feeling isn't it? We'll sorted out , effortless engine makes you actually disillusioned to the fact that it MAY not actually be doing a 100kmph. Like Technocrat mentioned, it would've made a lot more sense if you took your 220 Fi alongside the carb to see if there was any difference. And I dont think a 5-6kmph optimistic speedo(compared to 220Fi) would've made you feel the way you do now.

Ok here's a few facts....We all know (as per the various mag's ride report out there!) Bajaj has only made the 5th gear taller....i.e. the remaining gear ratios are retained...Correct?

Now the 220Fi hits 89 Kmph on hitting rev limiter in 3rd gear!

Either Bajaj has altered the gear ratios OR there is gross amounts of speedo error!

[insanebiker]

Ok here's a few facts....We all know (as per the various mag's ride report out there!) Bajaj has only made the 5th gear taller....i.e. the remaining gear ratios are retained...Correct?

Now the 220Fi hits 89 Kmph on hitting rev limiter in 3rd gear!

Either Bajaj has altered the gear ratios OR there is gross amounts of speedo error!

Both are not tuned the same way right?

The power characteristic curves of both bikes vary i guess.

[silver_falcon_46]

Ok here's a few facts....We all know (as per the various mag's ride report out there!) Bajaj has only made the 5th gear taller....i.e. the remaining gear ratios are retained...Correct?

Now the 220Fi hits 89 Kmph on hitting rev limiter in 3rd gear!

Either Bajaj has altered the gear ratios OR there is gross amounts of speedo error!

Not really, the new 220 has 36 teeth behind, which means all the gears have been affected + the 5th gear (maybe?). So, it is quite possible that the figures were correct? Maybe you can check with a 220 carb owner regarding the sprocket teeth behind.

Both are not tuned the same way right?

The power and torque characteristic curves of both bikes vary i guess.

How does Torque curve characteristics alter the speed you hit on the limiter?

[insanebiker]

How does Torque curve characteristics alter the speed you hit on the limiter?

Yeh,u r right. Edited my post.

[Praful]

Hi praful, at what time u were there in the Probiking showroom ?? i was too present on saturday around 11~11.30, ripping the hell out of the bike...Though am not a 220 FI owner, the obervations and yours coincide with mine... Reg the 220 in 200 avator in the FB form, Hell, i have put a Big NO for that...

I was there till about 11.30.

@Praful : My question is plain and simple.

Is it worth the HYPE?

After a small ride of about 1 km I am in no position for a longer term ownership experience of the bike.

But IMHO, the bike is a tad to overhyped.

Come on Man, your opinions seem pretty biased. 0-60 figures have been proved with VBOX and they look way quicker than the Fi. You probably felt it much slower because of lesser vibes, lesser engine noise.

Why do I need to be biased dude, I've been waiting for Bajaj to improve for eons now. Had hopes on this bike, but I guess I expected more. Going by all reviews, had set the expectation bar too high and it clearly did not match those expecatations.
About feeling slower...well I did ride to the show room and back...so I do have pretty decent idea about the difference in grunt! Let the bike hit Blore showrooms you would know.
Infact I asked the showroom guy to get down and inside the showroom compound itself I just wanted to see what happens when you twist the wrist in first gear, the surge present in the Fi was missing here.

The speedo does have a huge error compared to the older bajaj speedos, but if you compare it to bikes like RTR and R15, they are the same. The RTR shows a 132 when it doing 122, the new P220 shows a 142 when it does a 132.5(BIke India info) , so I guess there is not much to complain there.

Exactly, the the speedo error is very much like the R15/RTR!

And why would you choose the Fi over the carb for touring? Are you sure that this is an unbiased opinion? In my view, better cruising ability is pretty important with Tourers, and the new 220 has it. Cruising at 100kmph , you would not really find so much of a difference b/w the Fi and the carb in terms of torque, moreover, even at lower speeds, is it all that much evident? Not to mention, the better engine components which would reduce wear and tear. In my opinion, the new engine with an Fi MAY probably make a better deal, but for now, i think the carb 220 is a better overall package after all - its called evolution.

You POV is absoultely correct, 100Kmph. The newer 220 should be doing lesser RPMs @ 100 coz its got a taller 5th gear!
I am saying its not better for Touring, primarily for its comparatively narrower powerband & missing low-end torque. Which IMO are important for touring.

Replies above!

Not really, the new 220 has 36 teeth behind, which means all the gears have been affected + the 5th gear (maybe?). So, it is quite possible that the figures were correct? Maybe you can check with a 220 carb owner regarding the sprocket teeth behind.

Are you sure about 36T thing? I'm hearing bou this now.....

Anyways, even if they have dropped 1T in the rear, it will definitely not make a difference to the tune of 11 kmph!

[silver_falcon_46]

I cannot really say much since I have not ridden the new bike. All I'm saying is that there maybe OTHER factors for you to say some things that you mentioned, thats all. Low end torque missing is BAD, narrow powerband BAD, but is it significant enough? I don't know yet, but you mentioned it was very very evident. If your not going by mere FEELING then I hope it doesn't disappoint me. Let me give you my reviews after I thoroughly test it

Are you sure about 36T thing? I'm hearing bou this now.....

Anyways, even if they have dropped 1T in the rear, it will definitely not make a difference to the tune of 11 kmph!

Was mentioned by Santoosh, not 100% sure, you might wana cross check that.

1T = 4kmph + error?

[prabhubravo]

How does Torque curve characteristics alter the speed you hit on the limiter?

You have to bring in Clutch slippage into account. If clutch slippage is less, then the speed at the rear wheel will be higher. So you can roughly say more torque at red line means higher speed.

[silver_falcon_46]

You have to bring in Clutch slippage into account. If clutch slippage is less, then the speed at the rear wheel will be higher. So you can roughly say more torque at red line means higher speed.

Hehehe, yes, if clutch slippage is there you can hit the limiter at 10kmph also