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Help!
The Plot.
I have been residing in Mumbai for the past 10 Years. Never rode a bike in Mumbai so far. I used to own a bike from 2002 to 2005 a Honda CD 100 in my college days in a relatively quitter town. I loved biking since then but couldn’t afford one to my liking then. Post that once I shifted to Mumbai for work, I never got the heart to ride in a city that was congested with traffic, with a lot of other priorities in work I settled for a car and have drove a couple of them since. Now I am at a position that I can afford a bike for 7.5 Lacs TOPS. I figured that if I don’t give biking a shot at my age (I’m 36). I will find it increasingly difficult to get accustomed to biking as the years passes me by. So i doubled my life insurance cover took a hefty health insurance too and then went on to convince my better half. (That apparently took about 3 months before she said Ok)
The Dilemma.
Trouble is I am going to be riding a bike after about 13 long years (Exclusions are the one’s that I rode in Goa, Avenger, Eliminator etc.).
The bike that I so keenly wanted to ride was Kawasaki 300, However, it was a short love affair until I set my eyes to Ninja 650 and the fact that it offers a better riding position. Now I wanted to go for one, after reading and going through countless reviews I was in Love with what the bike has to offer, what also helped me was the fact that it had been reviewed as a beginner’s bike, the plus was ABS. The trouble is that the showroom guys are just letting me ride it within the building premises. It’s a daunting task for a newbie to zero in on the bike when you can’t ride it above 2nd gear on a test ride! Anyway I had worked up my finances to finally go for it.
It was at that time that I thought of exploring HD and visited the showroom and loved the HD Street Rod, what a road presence, the dealer offered me a test ride of about 5 Kms in traffic and I thoroughly enjoyed that ride but the only thing that nagged me was that my palms were hurting for about 10 minutes after the test ride. Furthermore, the engine was radiating too much of heat. Despite of all that the road presence was awesome and I felt much more in control riding it. The 205mm ground clearance was an added advantage for if I want to take it for a ride outside city (Within city also one finds speed breakers of all shapes and sizes as they are private property of people residing in that location.) The problem is that I don’t know if I can go for about 100 Kms non-stop on this bike for the riding stance is far more aggressive, but I suppose one can build muscle memory if one starts riding it often. 100-150 Kms ride every month out of Mumbai is a prerequisite.
The pros and Cons are listed here for both the bikes that I can gather from short rides.
2017 Ninja 650
Pros: Reliable, Trusted, Comfortable, can be used for Touring, Excellent Rideability in traffic (I have learned it from reviews only), Doesn’t heat up in Traffic, Cheaper by a lac then HD Street Rod.
Cons: Low Ground Clearance (130mm), Not as good road presence as HD St.Rod, Service issues as quoted by many, Not much customizable options( They lack basic accessories also that is provided by Kawasaki, other brand options however are aplenty)
Harley Davidson Street Rod
Pros: Great Rideability in traffic, Superb road presence, Harley Davidson’s reliability (Hopefully), numerous customizable options. Excellent ground clearance.
Cons: Heat, Aggressive riding stance, not suitable for touring (or does it?), Deadpan console.
About The Rider
I’m 5feet 10, lean and I would label myself as a cautious rider. What I want is that I should be able to commute to office twice or thrice in a week, 16 Kms one way in Insane Traffic. Go for a touring of about 100-150 Kms one way once a month. 500 to 1000 Kms twice in a year.
Potholes and speed breakers should not pose a problem for the bike. (BTW is 130mm Ground Clearance that bad that it will scrape every speed breaker?)
*Also which one offers a better resale value A Ninja 650 or Harley Street Rod assuming both are in good condition 2 years down the line?
Now I am confused and hell I need to book a bike within a week or two.
I have ruled out every other bike. (Versys is good but I do not want to stretch my budget beyond 7.5 Lacs anyhow)
If my questions sound a bit nonsensical, kindly pardon me. I would also appreciate if any fellow rider who owns a HD Street Rod can throw a light on commuting within the city or going distances with it.
Need your help!
The Plot.
I have been residing in Mumbai for the past 10 Years. Never rode a bike in Mumbai so far. I used to own a bike from 2002 to 2005 a Honda CD 100 in my college days in a relatively quitter town. I loved biking since then but couldn’t afford one to my liking then. Post that once I shifted to Mumbai for work, I never got the heart to ride in a city that was congested with traffic, with a lot of other priorities in work I settled for a car and have drove a couple of them since. Now I am at a position that I can afford a bike for 7.5 Lacs TOPS. I figured that if I don’t give biking a shot at my age (I’m 36). I will find it increasingly difficult to get accustomed to biking as the years passes me by. So i doubled my life insurance cover took a hefty health insurance too and then went on to convince my better half. (That apparently took about 3 months before she said Ok)
The Dilemma.
Trouble is I am going to be riding a bike after about 13 long years (Exclusions are the one’s that I rode in Goa, Avenger, Eliminator etc.).
The bike that I so keenly wanted to ride was Kawasaki 300, However, it was a short love affair until I set my eyes to Ninja 650 and the fact that it offers a better riding position. Now I wanted to go for one, after reading and going through countless reviews I was in Love with what the bike has to offer, what also helped me was the fact that it had been reviewed as a beginner’s bike, the plus was ABS. The trouble is that the showroom guys are just letting me ride it within the building premises. It’s a daunting task for a newbie to zero in on the bike when you can’t ride it above 2nd gear on a test ride! Anyway I had worked up my finances to finally go for it.
It was at that time that I thought of exploring HD and visited the showroom and loved the HD Street Rod, what a road presence, the dealer offered me a test ride of about 5 Kms in traffic and I thoroughly enjoyed that ride but the only thing that nagged me was that my palms were hurting for about 10 minutes after the test ride. Furthermore, the engine was radiating too much of heat. Despite of all that the road presence was awesome and I felt much more in control riding it. The 205mm ground clearance was an added advantage for if I want to take it for a ride outside city (Within city also one finds speed breakers of all shapes and sizes as they are private property of people residing in that location.) The problem is that I don’t know if I can go for about 100 Kms non-stop on this bike for the riding stance is far more aggressive, but I suppose one can build muscle memory if one starts riding it often. 100-150 Kms ride every month out of Mumbai is a prerequisite.
The pros and Cons are listed here for both the bikes that I can gather from short rides.
2017 Ninja 650
Pros: Reliable, Trusted, Comfortable, can be used for Touring, Excellent Rideability in traffic (I have learned it from reviews only), Doesn’t heat up in Traffic, Cheaper by a lac then HD Street Rod.
Cons: Low Ground Clearance (130mm), Not as good road presence as HD St.Rod, Service issues as quoted by many, Not much customizable options( They lack basic accessories also that is provided by Kawasaki, other brand options however are aplenty)
Harley Davidson Street Rod
Pros: Great Rideability in traffic, Superb road presence, Harley Davidson’s reliability (Hopefully), numerous customizable options. Excellent ground clearance.
Cons: Heat, Aggressive riding stance, not suitable for touring (or does it?), Deadpan console.
About The Rider
I’m 5feet 10, lean and I would label myself as a cautious rider. What I want is that I should be able to commute to office twice or thrice in a week, 16 Kms one way in Insane Traffic. Go for a touring of about 100-150 Kms one way once a month. 500 to 1000 Kms twice in a year.
Potholes and speed breakers should not pose a problem for the bike. (BTW is 130mm Ground Clearance that bad that it will scrape every speed breaker?)
*Also which one offers a better resale value A Ninja 650 or Harley Street Rod assuming both are in good condition 2 years down the line?
Now I am confused and hell I need to book a bike within a week or two.
I have ruled out every other bike. (Versys is good but I do not want to stretch my budget beyond 7.5 Lacs anyhow)
If my questions sound a bit nonsensical, kindly pardon me. I would also appreciate if any fellow rider who owns a HD Street Rod can throw a light on commuting within the city or going distances with it.
Need your help!
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