I had considered it, infact i had finalized it in my mind. And it's exactly 'why' you think i didn't consider it.

PLUS

* TVS Service (Personally, my family has had bad experiences, although they can tolerate and are okay with such service i cannot)
* Engine sound and Vibrations (Agreed engine is very powerful but it's not refined, i don't like it's sound quite opposite to popular opinion)
* Too common on roads. Unicorns particularly UniDazs aren't common in my part of the country. Pulsars, Apaches, Discovers are too common.

If its a 'Long lasting' bike you want shy of a lakh rupees, the get the Zma. It has a few compromises to the ones you've mentioned, but it'll all maku up for in the ride quality it has. It's probably the only bike in the world which you can hop on and just ride.

Hey! For some reason i'm not liking dazzler anymore (name is the biggest turn off, they've got a lipstick by that name) and i thought i was making too many compromises.


Now my heart and mind are saying Apache, which gives same mileage if ridden properly and higher power, style, kill switch & clip on HB (these two my favorite features).


What are your suggestions for my first bike guys? I'm 5' 7" and growing, currently thin as stick and weigh 50 kilos (coz of 12th pressure, but that'll be okay soon)

Planning to bring my sweetheart (whichever it's gonna be) home on 4th April (Yugadi). Should i buy then or should i wait.

go for unicorn dazzler, well my personal 5 years with honda experience i am telling u. Don't miss this opportunity u will regret it later. As for Karizma well since u r looking for millage well dude u will never get it on karizma, yes but honda can easily satisfy u with that no questions or answers on this one. Above all honda has got low maintenance chart where as karizma is very expensive it is like merc in car segment.

You say that you will retain your bike for 6 to 7 years...then it has to be a Honda engine bike. Honda engines stand for reliability.
Karizma weighs at 150 Kgs and may be difficult to use in traffic in city....Unicorn is good..Dazzler has the same 150cc engine with high lift cam giving you better power delivery.
If you are worried about mileage Karizma is out of contention(30 to 35 in city)..but a CBZ Xtreme crash guard can be fitted..go to Karizma/karizma R thread in Owner's experience forum and see page 202..you will see the pictures of Karizma with a CBZ Xtreme crash guard.
Go for the Dazzler ..you will have power, and good mileage with less engine problems...just my thought.

Plastics are there in all bikes, don't go by opinions, see the bike & ride yourself.... if you feel dazzler has 'excessive' plastics, then go for Unicorn, other close contenders would be Hunk/ GS150R/ Xtreme. Fz is light and a beauty for traffics

See , I would recommend the apache RTR 160 for the following reasons :

Budget : U said that u have a budget of 1Lakh , Apache is well under a lakh.
Mileage: Gives a Good mileage of 50 kmpl.
Looks : Looks nice, LED Tail lamps Give an edge over any other motorcycle in
that segment.
Power : It has a lot of it, Trust me on that !!!
Digital Console : U want it , The bike has it !!!
Ergonomics : See u r 5'7" so the bike is good for u ,( i have driven both the
apaches n i didnt fine them comfortable coz i m 5'10") n the bike
is not all that heavy so it wld be fine for u.Remember whichever
bike u choose , dont saddle up more than you can handle!!
So thts it , now it is upto u which 1 do u want!!!!!

Go for passion+ if you want a long lasting bike!!

just for your info regarding maintenance of dazzler. I was 2nd or 3rd owner of dazzler in delhi, till date iv had no issues with the bike whatsoever. Afaik The bike has the maximum service intervals of any of its compititors. Although honda bikes are expected to have a problem free performance for a long time and they manage to perform that way too but if you do end up with an issue, let me tell you Honda part are costlier as compared to others.
The front rim for e.g cost 6800INR alone. But as long as you have insurance that shall not be a big issue. Other than that the bike is great, im 5'7" too and believe me 150-200kms a day are no issue at all. No sore ass, no body pain. Looks on the other hand are very subjective but it tends to grow on you and you will like it in a while.

cheers, happy riding.

Dazzler is almost out of Contention now

Reason:-

* Looks like a very small bike, It looked like a Passion Head on the other day, already awkward & subjective looks got more awkward that day, broke my heart.

* Boring Handlebar, feels like it's direct from Splendor & no kill switch. Where as i like that silver handle bar on Apache and the kill switch, i imagine myself riding it and i don't feel like i'm riding an inferior bike or have compromised on something.

* Mileage is 60KMPL only if ridden well, if ripped then can go down upto 40KM just like the Apache

* Riding position is like an uncle's bike.

* All my friends hate it, everyone is advising me against it, quite few guys like it here in Belgaum, Karnataka

* Maintenance, well that's subjective too, all you Hondaites take good care of your bikes that's why your bikes last longer. Where as a guy buying an Apache or a Pulsar, Begins to rip it from the first day (they never do a proper run in), they rarely see any service other than a wash or oil change once in a year and they rip it anywhere including off road, I think i can manage to do a proper run in from your intellectual help. And Honda bikes come with too many manufacture defects -- I have a friend's friend who had bought a stunner and it was giving him 25KMPL + when some cable was cut, he had to wait for 2 weeks to get that cable. Honda SVC not very pleasing in my region from what i've heard + spares are a HUGE problem where as Bajaj and TVS spares are available for a cheap price in any auto spares shop.

* It costs 77,000 + Accessories cost in Karnataka and i think these are too many compromises for a bike of that price.


And hey guys i'm considering Karizma R (Black Cast cost 88K, Redcast cost 89K here onroad but i can understand only if someone could tell me what is this Karizma Caste system ), Apache (The handle bar is a treat for my eyes, If apache, then which one do you advise? Fi, HE or 180? More over there was a news recently TVS is gonna launch new upgraded Apaches, so should i wait?), Pulsar (not the current one, if anything upcoming that fits my needs). Karizma fits me budget (plus I have a childhood friend in the near by town Hubli and his family owns Chadha Motors, a Hero Honda showroom) but just the mileage & crash guard are sort of a problem, I need a mileage of 45+ (Are there any ways to increase the mileage and how high can it be made)


See these are my needs now:-

*Looks (it should be a biggish bike, Not FZ please, i hate that bike, it shows off like a wannabe from every nanometer of itself)
*Mileage (I expect 50-60 from a 150cc and 45 from a 200+ cc bike).
*Reliability (I can do the regular maintenance and care stuff).
*Power.
*Cornering -- I love banking/leaning on the corners more than anything on a two wheeler, I do it with my mom's Scooty ES regularly and i've done it on discover 135 too and everytime i do it people stare at me like "Wow!", everytime i ride i never turn it like normal, I bank it & i used to do the same with my Hero Ranger DTB, Give me any other 2 wheeler and i'll do the same with it. Although in my 5 years of vehicle riding i've never ever fallen while banking but on scooty it is s**t scary, it feels like i'm gonna fall off, the handle shakes and the double stand gets scrubbed -- And on DTB paddle used to get scrubbed.

Bottom line is, i should be able to bend it like ROSSI without any fear
*Value for money.
*Future prospects (Brandname growth, Production line, Resale value)

You are royally confused.

And for everyone who think i'm short @ 5' 7" and very weak.
Guys mind you i still have 4 years of growth left and moreover i'm weak at the moment because i'm in Science 12th (Understand my HAAALATH )


There are many in my college (11th and 12th are college in K'taka) who're shorter & ride R15s, ZMRs, P220, sometimes an RE bullet that too without a license.

Almost everyone of my peers have a set of wheels in my college including girls. Pulsars, Stunners, FZs, Fazers, Apaches and a few R15s or REs are a standard issue for boys, well at the least their dad's splendors & Dio, Rodeo, Activa, Pleasure are standard issue for girls.

Where as i walk on foot or ride my mom's 2 stroke Scooty ES (not even girls ride it here) and i'm the pillion everytime mom rides. Can you imagine or feel my pain? I'm a 17 and half year old who sits behind his mom on a 2 stroke 65cc scooty watching helplessly his peers (including girls) race ahead with their Pulsars and Dios. Does anyone feel my pain? and plus public transport sucks here. That's why i desperately need a bike.

Peers get their set of wheels in 11th that too without license or even knowing how to ride. Where as i'm getting it after 12th with a license well a learner's at the least after 5 years of riding experience in all conditions.

Well yeah that's why i'm crying for help. One thing i'm not confused about though, i need mileage 45+

Don't sweat.

I believe you are lucky enough to have parents who won't allow under-age riding/driving and I really hope they won't allow/tolerate reckless & irresponsible (lid-less) riding.

Wishing you many miles of happiness, Happy buying

Bro i don't ride recklessly and trust me on that, i bank only when i see or believe there's no one coming on the other side of the corner and even if somebody comes then i quickly recover from the bank countersteering. I ride fast only when there is enough space on the road.

Unlike my peers ride recklessly, one guy last year had his legs amputated when he hit a milkman's M80 on his karizma. And another person from the neighboring college had been to Kolhapur in the neighboring state with his GF on his R15 to celebrate his B'day in McDonalds (there's no McD here), he had an accident and died on spot on the NH4 highway and i hear his girl friend is now in a half dead state. There are many cases like this.

I've never once had an accident in these 5 years of riding, not even a minor one on a motor vehicle, but i've had my share on the bicycles in the childhood. I admit i was close many times though, but everytime i've always pulled myself out of that situation.