Announcement

**leon_nerd** · 07-15-2009, 02:55 PM

RTO- Really Torturing Office

.

I can understand what you went through. The problem with govt. departments is they don't have any clear cut process laid in front of you. You will be made to run here and there. Whenever you meet a person they will then redirect you to complete something else "first" before you come to them. I have had this Sarkari experience. It is disgusting, frustrating and leaves you wanting to kill those people. I once planned to carry out a sting operation on my own if the officials made me run here and there again

but lucking I had a letter from his boss and he was scared to death and was "forced to work" :P.

Anyways, it is good to see you finally getting through with the legal formalities and the appreciate your courage to unviel some of the less-talked about aspects of MT. But, of course it is a machine to love. No matter what it is cut out for, if the biker is ready, the bike is ready too

. All the best !!!

**Streetfighter** · 07-15-2009, 03:13 PM

Originally posted by gsferrari View Post

Phew...at least the bike was thoroughly cleaned up because I had delivered it looking like it had been dragged through a construction site. I am not happy that they filled up Full-Synthetic oil so early in the run-in period without advising me on it properly. I feel that the service center put "Making Money" ahead of "Doing what is right for the customer". I plan to switch back to Mineral oil in 2nd service unless someone advises me that this is a stupid thing to do.

Saturday and Sunday - The ride to Kolhapur and from there on to Mumbai was largely wet...and uneventful. I discovered that the MT-01 is NOT suitable for long distances on motorways. Even the Zma has more wind protection. Also, the Zma manages the same cruising speeds of the MT-01 without stress and still delivers incredible mileage per tank of gas so the stoppage time is also less.

Bangalore - Kolhapur on the Zma took me 9 hours
Bangalore - Kolhapur on the MT-01 too me 12 hours
Kolhapur - Mumbai on the Zma took me 6 hours
Kolhapur - Mumbai on the MT-01 took me 8 hours

I know the MT-01 isn't intended for touring but the magnitude of the suckage left me feeling rather disappointed. The MT-01 is unwieldy in traffic so it is awful to ride around in the city. It is not suited for the motorways. It needs clean and high-octane fuel which you don't find everywhere. It has a range of 225kms per full tank of gasoline which doesn't take you very far.

It is a fantastic motorcycle but is more suited for showboating and short rides than any meaningful touring...at least in India. The seat, while comfortable up to 200kms, gets painful after that and decidedly uncomfortable by 300kms.

I still love the MT-01 but I might be taking my Zma off the market again

Surprised that they filled it up with synthetic. Synthetic is a strict no no on dry sump machines and especially on the MT. There are numerous reports on clutch slippage due to synthetic. At best semi synth should be used but best results are with mineral oil. Planet wheels of Bangalore who came down to service my bike used the Yam lube mineral oil, why did Orion use synth and why did you choose orion over planet wheels?

Again I'm pretty surprised you find the seat uncomfortable. I mean compared to a sports bike the MT's seat is supposedly the most comfortable one around. You can always modify the seat with gel inserts (from abroad) for even better comfort.

I don't know what a ZMA is but what's your cruising speed on the MT and what's it on the ZMA? Did it take you longer due to the weather? Agreed the MT is not the perfect solution for long highway rides but shouldn't it be considerably better than a small capacity Indian bike? Get a screen buddy, I hear it makes a world of a difference, yeah it looks shite but very effective.

Get some tips for touring on the UK forum; there are more than a couple of people there who've done over a 1000 miles in a single 24 hr period.

I'd be interested to hear more of your thoughts on the downsides.

IMO it is as comfortable in traffic as any other litre sportsbike, of course it will never be a 100-200c Indian bike. And lastly, yes, the ideal application is showboating which is what I use mine for almost exclusively

**nand15** · 07-15-2009, 03:27 PM

whoa!!!

^^ hey you reaally don't know what a ZMA is or you joking ??? . anyway ZMA is the Hero Honda Karizma .

**gsferrari** · 07-15-2009, 03:30 PM

Originally posted by Streetfighter View Post

Surprised that they filled it up with synthetic. Synthetic is a strict no no on dry sump machines and especially on the MT. There are numerous reports on clutch slippage due to synthetic. At best semi synth should be used but best results are with mineral oil. Planet wheels of Bangalore who came down to service my bike used the Yam lube mineral oil, why did Orion use synth and why did you choose orion over planet wheels?

I'll head over to malad and switch to Mineral. I did experience clutch slippage during my ride...revs build up but no speed. I'm calling yamaha to get a refund on the Agip the dealer used.

Again I'm pretty surprised you find the seat uncomfortable. I mean compared to a sports bike the MT's seat is supposedly the most comfortable one around. You can always modify the seat with gel inserts (from abroad) for even better comfort.

It isn't bad...I think the heat buildup under the seat over time causes problems. I'm thinking of putting a layer of insulation under the seat AND doing some comfort mode on top.

I don't know what a ZMA is but what's your cruising speed on the MT and what's it on the ZMA? Did it take you longer due to the weather? Agreed the MT is not the perfect solution for long highway rides but shouldn't it be considerably better than a small capacity Indian bike? Get a screen buddy, I hear it makes a world of a difference, yeah it looks shite but very effective.

The Zma is the Karizma and I was able to sustain 100kmph true speed over long distances on this bike. I was doing similar...maybe slightly faster speeds on the MT01. Similar weather but less stoppage time - that is the only difference. I am getting a screen or even that fugly front fairing just to make it easier to live with on long rides.

IMO it is as comfortable in traffic as any other litre sportsbike, of course it will never be a 100-200c Indian bike. And lastly, yes, the ideal application is showboating which is what I use mine for almost exclusively

It is more comfortable in traffic than a faired sportsbike because it doesn't heat up as fast and the heat has more area to escape from. It is also easier to chuck around in traffic. It is VERY heavy though and at slow speeds and crawling traffic - pushing it around is a nightmare.

Showboating is the ideal application as you said

When this bike shows up - it DEMANDS attention!

**Nio** · 07-15-2009, 03:38 PM

RTO= Rectal Terrorist outfit

Thats a nice one..
but all your difficulties for Thor are neutralised by the time you spend on its saddle... It must be pure awesomeness to ride that beauty

**Streetfighter** · 07-15-2009, 04:14 PM

Originally posted by gsferrari View Post

It isn't bad...I think the heat buildup under the seat over time causes problems. I'm thinking of putting a layer of insulation under the seat AND doing some comfort mode on top.

This is one problem; the heat emanates from under the seat a little to the front where the header joints are. Sometimes during 35 degree day rides in heavy stop and go traffic here the heat has caused so much discomfort that I had to stop to cool down my thighs and nuts. Though once it gets moving the heat disappears. I don't ride much in traffic so never thought of doing something about this but for you some good heat shielding or insulation around the suspect area may help.

Originally posted by gsferrari View Post

The Zma is the Karizma and I was able to sustain 100kmph true speed over long distances on this bike. I was doing similar...maybe slightly faster speeds on the MT01. Similar weather but less stoppage time - that is the only difference. I am getting a screen or even that fugly front fairing just to make it easier to live with on long rides.

Why're you cruising at 100 on the EMTEEEE? Come on dude; wring its damn neck. Get a nice decently priced screen, plenty after markets available, just check on the uk forum for wind protection.

Originally posted by gsferrari View Post

It is more comfortable in traffic than a faired sportsbike because it doesn't heat up as fast and the heat has more area to escape from. It is also easier to chuck around in traffic. It is VERY heavy though and at slow speeds and crawling traffic - pushing it around is a nightmare.

I've never experienced this kind of problem. You just need to get used to it IMO.

Originally posted by gsferrari View Post

Showboating is the ideal application as you said

When this bike shows up - it DEMANDS attention!

**MavericK46** · 07-15-2009, 04:14 PM

@gs: The sheer hatred towards the Chennai RTO seems to indicate that you haven't had to endure shittiness (so to speak) in/from any government institution before.

The lunch break timings and the rude/obnoxious/indifferent behaviour accorded by the people who're hired by the system that was created 'Of the people, For the people and By the people' is and has always been exactly as you've described it. Im sure that a ride on Thor would've been enough to blow all those Rectal-Terrorist experiences away

P.S: Would Yamaha actually relent to give you a refund on the Synth Agip that the dealer used? However, in your defense, it is a very stupid mistake committed by the dealer. Also, why did you pick Orion over Bangalore Wheels? Im guessing its because Phwoar has taken up residence there for the last three months.

**gsferrari** · 07-15-2009, 04:20 PM

Originally posted by MavericK46 View Post

Also, why did you pick Orion over Bangalore Wheels? Im guessing its because Phwoar has taken up residence there for the last three months.

1. Orion was recommended by another MT-01 owner
2. Uday who owns Orion is a rider himself - I had a much better equation with him
3. After Akhil's experience at BW - I didn't want to go there for service
4. During PDI - BW didn't bother to tighten the mirrors OR fill air in the tires. The pressures were dangerously low.

**jayprashanth** · 07-15-2009, 04:41 PM

Congo GSF. Enjoy the monster torque.

Cheers,

Jay

**MavericK46** · 07-15-2009, 05:10 PM

Originally posted by gsferrari View Post

1. Orion was recommended by another MT-01 owner
2. Uday who owns Orion is a rider himself - I had a much better equation with him
3. After Akhil's experience at BW - I didn't want to go there for service
4. During PDI - BW didn't bother to tighten the mirrors OR fill air in the tires. The pressures were dangerously low.

Phew. That was more than enough justification. However, Orion too don't get a 10/10 due to the oil screw-up.
Was the general servicing pretty decent though?

**Haroon** · 07-15-2009, 05:39 PM

@ gsferrari. The whole RTO thing is so frustrating. But anyway, alls well that ends well. So just have to take it with a pinch of salt I guess. Did you try asking for an 'RTI Form'. That worked for me once at the sub-registrar's office for getting the 'khatha' for my apartment.

As for windshield & seat, I had a similar problem with my Kawi Z1000. I already had a 'Maier typhoon sport windshield' and that really stopped almost all of the windblast to the chest. I agree it sure does compromise a little on the killer looks of the bike, but then the ride is a lot more enjoyable.
For the seat, what I noticed on my bike was that when we sweat during a longer ride, our bottom gets softer and then it starts to hurt. If thats the case I suggest without altering the seat, put a small covering of 'sheep skin (with the fur I mean)'. If that works, you can put elastic harness on the sheep skin, so it can be fixed or removed when you want to do touring.

**ken cool** · 07-15-2009, 06:00 PM

@GS:Totally agree with your views about RTO! We share the same hatred towards such government organisations. They have total apathy towards the public. Thanks for sharing. Loved reading every bit of your narrative.

**WiZ** · 07-15-2009, 11:54 PM

The RTO made me run all around for not having a crash bar in my Karizma,despite telling him a million time's that the bike didnt come with one.I suffered a lot for my registration.

Well,if an MT-01 was made to sweat this much,then my case seems to be so much negligible.

**rossiter** · 07-16-2009, 12:03 AM

The similarity of GS' case and mine is staggering. Even I was made to run around for paperwork, when I couldn't wait to roar off into the distance. Very frustrating indeed.

**KwokFist** · 07-16-2009, 08:56 AM

Nice write up GS, enjoyed reading through it all!. Its unfortunate that you had to undergo so much trouble for a 20 min job. The pictures were nice.

Congrats on owning the MT!

Announcement

Finally...I've been Thorqued...

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment