latest updates from the bikeindia.in website says HH are launching upgraded (cosmetically that is)glamour and glamour fi plus an electric start cd-deluxe which means of the promised 12 new bikes in 18 months or something....8 are already over....4 more to come ,no hopes of anything from HH for this year ............as of honda releasing 3 bikes ,its announced (bikeindia.in) two of those - CBR1000 and CB1000 which are like sports and naked bike combination like Yamaha R1 and MT 01 .....which means one more bike to go ......i am sure its cbr150 (Yamaha releasing R15 sibling of R1 llly CBR150 is the sibling of CBR1000.....)

HH new Zma ....how big can the R be in the new version as the existing one is BIG .....

The CBR 150 is defly not a miniature of the CBR1000RR.......

One of things to consider for touring is mileage, a difference of 5kmpl extra will fetch you a lot more range and eventually a lot of difference in your touring budget. The next thing would be high speed cruising. This is one aspect the Bajaj bikes lack. Even though they can do good top speeds, i found cruising on my P200 a little pain inspite of changing to the P220 rear sprocket(diff of only 1 teeth). That way the R15 is awesome - 100kmph can be done at 6k rpm and thats peace! BUt then when I compared the mileage of the two bikes when we had traversed the same path, i figured that the 150cc R15 managed the same mileage of my 200. (41kmpl on that particular ride) which makes me wonder what was the benefit of that 6th gear, but then of course we did a lot of high speed runs. On a steady cruising speed the 6th gear will do its bit to give the engine and you peace of mind. Karizma is super refined and reliable as compared to the Bajaj but then I found the mileage comparatively less and of course cruising rpm higher than the R15. When I first saw the R15 I thought it would be a horrible touring machine with a pretty cramped leg position. All that changed after I rode it for a certain distance and realized the position was just perfect. I am 5ft 10, I'm sure a 6feet+ person may struggle with the leg position for long distances, but for me the R15 would be the ideal touring machine.

fishtailing

this is something i came upon while reading ananth's topic for choosing a best tourer available in the market (Zma/TBTS/avenger 200/r15) ,Zma "fishtails" in cross winds at 80kmph+.....can somebody throw light on this becoz as i know ,when u have cross winds ,u will have stability issues ,isnt this common for all bikes...only thing is the weight of ur bike which keeps u planted on the road ....R15 is aerodynamic but when u have wind flowing against u (in the direction of ur motion) ....it will have issues like any other bike if wind flows perpendicular to it ......correct me if i am wrong .......

i feel" FISHTAILING can be reduced if ur bike weighs more which means its stable and is planted on road without much issues (relatively) " hence the order TBTS>ZMA>R15 in their stability

@ roshan3440: kindly refer to this post..!

+1 to Silver_Falcon! R15 can give you upto 48 on highways with Extra Premium petrol under steady cruising speeds of around 100. Above 7K RPM the fuel consumption goes up though (never below 40). No issues with the seating position, once you get over your initial apprehension. Find it munching up miles compared to a ZMA.
I had considered the same vehicles 6 months back, but ruled out Karizma due to lack of new age features&P220 since I personally feel Bajaj lacks the reliability quotient. RTR is good too, but haven't really seen its cruising capabilities at around 100. R15 with its liquid cooling should not disappoint you on long rides!

If a person is willing to bear the 30 grand odd premium that the R15 commands over the Zma, and all things such as the riding posture etc being acceptable as well, the R15 trumps the Zma.

In my case, since i too am in the market for a bike that'll be used for weekend thrashes and city runs for roughly 50kms a day, ive decided to plonk for a Zma R.

The 30 grand will get me more than enough fuel to offset the R15s better mileage. The peg-bar relationship on the Zma is super comfy (I currently ride a Uni) and my dad won't have trouble in riding a Zma once in a while.
So all things considered, ive settled on a Zma R.
An FI Zma will definitely be outta my reach as the current one itself is a bit of a stretch.

Hope my reasoning helps you in choosing a bike for yourself

Cheers..!!

In another thread I discussed the same point and someone threw light saying that the Zma does 100kmph at 6250rpm compared the R15 which is about 7k rpm. Nevertheless there is a huge difference b/w engines that redline at 10k rpm and 8k rpm. I would bank on the R15.

Yes, My friend&I exchanged bikes&tested out the ZMA&R15 on a 4 lane highway. Noted difference in initial pickup-the ZMA is as smooth as the R15 while revving(his ZMA had done 75K kms.)&does reach 100 at less than 6.5K RPM. Oddly, the ZMA's redline starts at 8200 RPM. I did take it all the way upto 9K RPM. It clocked 137 something then. I was scared to take it beyond that as my other friend's ZMA had stalled a couple of weeks back when he was redlining at 140. Surprising, but the R15 could overtake it even at that speed(137)&it was still nowhere near the redline (10.5K RPM)!

finally the day came

I decided and went ahead with Zma two days back...loving it....still in run-in after which i will definitely have a blast with it ...long distances,twisties ....hmmmm cant wait ..thanks all u guys who shared their honest opinions in this thread .....i guess this thread can be closed now ...

Congrats Roshan! All the best with your new bike. Please follow all run-in instructions carefully&wish you many years of troublefree riding!

run-in

it says first 1000 kms max 60kmph,no ripping and not to open throttle completely when idling .....that's it .......is that it .....anything in particular i should watch for during run-in becoz till now 70 is max what i have done and wont cross that for sure for some time ie 999.9 kms .....

Do not rev beyond 3-3.5K RPM in any gear; havin said that, do subject your bike to mild bursts of acceleration upto 6K after an oil change at 500 km. DO NOT REDLINE YOUR BIKE IN THE RUNNIN IN PERIOD + change your engine oil at 100, 500 and finally at 1000 km. This should ensure absolutely flawless performance for the comin thousands of kilometers. Dont know if the ZMA has an oil filter/strainer...if it does, ensure that you clean it at 500 and then at 1000 km service.

1000 km DONE

on my way back from Mysore - Bangalore this morning ,the ODO said 1000 KM.....and that was the time i took the bike to 7k for the first time on the highway (by not ripping but during criusing)......it did 110kmph and with pillion the bike was so composed ,i couldnt stop smiling ....the way the bike handled with pillion......From now on ,Long rides on the weekend would become a routine and as per milieage it supppose to be giving me 35+ city and highway combined which is not bad at all for my expectations

Happy that i bought Zma over FZ16 ....

Seat is an issue,really soft but over the last fifteen days,the seat is gettin a bit comfy over long distances......hopefully it will imporve and dont have to go for a new one.....

@roshan3440: Niranjan has explained most of the nitty-gritties of run-in period. Following those should, indeed ensure flawless performance for years to come!
You have made a very wise decision&I'm sure you will not regret buying the ZMA.
As for soft seats, they are better for long distance. I have tried the P220 vs.my R15 on long rides&found R15's soft seat to be much more comfy, within 50kms.I could make out the difference! Thats another reason why I have not added any seat cover to it!