Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

first of all, considering you hated the unreliability of the pulsar, i would say that any RE bike should not be on your list. read thru any RE thread on xBhp to understand what i mean. or ask your friend whose bike you borrowed.

secondly, i don't know where this concept has come from, that bikes need to be "rested" after "x" number of kilometres. as long as proper cooling is happening (air cooled bikes generally have no issues here and oil cooled bikes have radiators) the bike will run indefinitely till the rider gets tired.

in my opinion, you should stick to any yamaha hero or honda bike of the 125-150 cc category.

Mumbai traffic is heavy so a light bike is important and this category is the best for your requirements.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

Sure, I will test drive a hornet asap to decide what to do. But I did check this frn and cousin using it. They all said in initial 3years they haven't seen high mantainance. Surprisingly they never suffered from silencer falling off. But the TBTS did suffer coz of FI going kaput and he changed it into carb and is going good since then. That's the only reason it was in my list.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

I have rode Apache 160 n 180 for 300 KMS stretch. I never got strained in my back, it gets more torque on higher Speed that keeps you moving.

My friend own it he have never experienced after sales problem and Reliability is good.

My suggestion is to Test ride Hornet, Pulsar AS200 and TVS180.

Im waiting for Apache 200

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

in any case, their reliability is definitely low as compared to almost any other brand,
and for your long distance city commute needs, a lighter bike is recommended ...

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

Im staying away from pulsar after I met accident when P220 failed to engage gear while crossing.

I suggest Apache or Hornet

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

Aye sir. So that will help me save some money too. What if I chuck pillion (since its my colleague most of the time) Duke 200? What would you buy if u were in place ?

Will test drive Apache too.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

while apache is a bike i love (i had it for 7 yrs) i would not recommend it for u because of the following 3 reasons:
1. daily driving distance
2. Riding position is very performance focused, not commuting focused and
3. its a performance oriented bike, it loves being ridden hard. since you are not looking for that kind of riding, you wont be getting what you want.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

What bike would u take if u were in my position?

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

why dont u try cbr 150...it will be good commuter n tourer....u can get it preowned for 70 to 90k.....the amount of riding you will be doing every year is substantial...u must consider Japanese stuff because re bajaj even tvs might give u trouble on long run....hoping u have or must have driven cbr before taking a decision. .
.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

Nope, haven't tried it coz its fared. A frn owns it for couple of years now and seems pretty satisfied though.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

Why not consider the Avenger series. I've seen quite a few on the roads here in mumbai looks cool and can do commute as well as light touring with ease + spares & maintenance will not hurt you.

BTW While there's general opinions about bike brands on their reliability don't go by it totally, eg RE is bad, Bajaj is not good, Honda can be bought eyes closed etc. These are general perceptions & differs significantly from each individual & most of the time Rants get more attention than praises esp in case of RE & Bajaj, & the reverse happens when people experience trouble with Honda, Kawasaki which are deemed as one-off instances, all of these are established companies & would'nt be so if their bikes were really all that bad. So while you keep these things in mind don't let that alone narrow your choices, go with the bike which best suits your needs.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

But a new one. Nothing like a new bike. Maintain it like a baby. Care it well and enjoy to the fullest.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

in your position, i would go in for the honda unicorn 160.
it satisfies all your conditions, daily commute, touring ability, high reliability, smooth engine, goodish mileage, not very performance oriented but should be comfortable, not bajaj. i would have said the hornet but you are not looking for performance, and its a brand new bike, teething problems will be there.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

I own a RTR 180 ABS, and it is a great machine. You are right about the slightly aggressive posture. While it isn't an issue on one-time rides of over 100 km, it does strain your back when you are clocking close to 100 km day after day.

I understand that that's the general opinion, but I'm hoping that with careful maintenance, the RTR will live for long.

My RTR 180 ABS has close to 9.5k on the odo, and so far it's been great! There is a ever-so-slight dip in performance from when it was brand new (or maybe its just what I think, considering I have grown accustomed to the bike). I have had no problems with the after-sales service. I can't speak for all SVCs, but the mechanics here are understanding and patient, and RTRs are probably the lowest-maintenance bikes in their segment. If you can manage to bug the SVC to rectify the minor nags, then it's a ride that you will grow ever so fond of .

Be warned though, that the mechanics are a bit reluctant to touch certain parts of the ABS model. But this shouldn't stop you from getting it.

I guess you will have to make a few well-thought-out compromises here and there. There will be specific areas where you wish your ride could have been better; believe me, almost everyone does. Even now, I sometimes try to shift up from the fifth gear, because the engine feels it has more to offer

And as I mentioned above, be prepared to hit the gym if you plan to ride the Apache for about 80 km daily. I didn't, and after about seven or eight months (riding about 100 kms daily, mostly highways), I am experiencing slight lower-back pains. I am planning to drag myself to the gym soon, but you know how that is.

Oh, and did I mention it's probably the only bike with ABS for under 1L?

Riding it once may not have been a bad experience, but without proper exercise, it does strain your back when you're commuting as far as 100 kms daily. Trust me on this one.

And that's the thing about the Apache 200: it's been coming for about an year and half now.

Re: Suggestion on new bike under 1.5lac

Are you sure bro, Heard i may launch on feb Mid after Auto- Expo and On road in March