Bajaj Avenger 220 DTSi vs Royal Enfield Thunderbird 350

I had never been a big fan of pulsar and always preferred apache over it and when i got a chance to ride my friends avenger i was skeptical about it. The first thing you notice after you place the key in the odd place under the seat is the loud fuel injected engine roaring to life. Surprisingly, the engine on avenger is very refined and the gear shifts are butter smooth and the bike feels torquey and powerful throughout its rev range. It puts out around 19bhp @ 8400 rpm and 17.5 nm of torque @ 7000 rpm this is 2 less both on power and torque from the P220 mill.

The bike is suited more for riders below 6 feet as for tall riders the seating posture gets a bit awkward with the legs protruding above the tank. The pillion seat is the most comfortable i have found on a bike yet.The avenger is specifically designed to be a cruiser and hence has longer wheelbase, wide seats and a relaxed riding posture which is great on highways but in city conditions makes it slightly hard to navigate in traffic. The best part is it sticks to its cruiser attitude and provides a wide range of cruising speed all the way from 70-110kmph (indicated) it feels very comfortable when pushed it reaches a top speed of 130kmph (indicated) but most of all the bike feels stable as a rock at these speeds mostly because of its long wheel base and low center of gravity. The most asked question in India "Kitne deti hai?" the bike provides a mileage of around 32-33kmpl depending on the riding conditions. The build quality is average and i feel it could have been much better.

All is good with avenger but if all you want is a cruiser then its my opinion that you will be better off with a royal enfield thunderbird 350 which gives you more of a  "feel like god" feeling than avenger can ever aspire too.Yes, it is 10k more expensive but i feel its worth much more than that. The thump of an enfield is sweet music to any biker's ears. In terms of performance also the bike produces tons of torque and i even prefer the high seating arrangement. It can also cruise at similar speeds and even gives better mileage than that of an avenger. The bike is more equipped and you also get a tachometer which is missing in the avenger. But not everyone is die hard fan of enfields and the bike weighs a ton so if you are an inexperienced rider looking for a first bike the enfield might be to huge a call considering it has got a foot more wheel base than the avenger so avenger is a better choice. The enfields have a big issue on reliability compared to avenger and with a 6 month waiting time which is a big turn off for any enthusiast.

But owning an enfield changes a persons lifestyle altogether and such is the effect of the bike which is missing on the avenger but in the Indian market where there is a dearth of cruisers at the bottom end these are the only options and both are arguable in their own right but if it was my choice to choose between these two the enfield it would be it has a legend to it and the bike gives you an attitude and road presence. All this for just 10k more i feel its totally worth it. The waiting period is long but hopefully it should be reduced soon as they are coming up with a new factory at oragadam, chennai. You dont just buy an enfield you buy a life style!!!

Credits- Sandeep Pentakota for his Avenger and inputs for the review!

The legend of Honda Activa

In the recent few years the Indian two wheeler market has seen a wide variety of scooters from almost all the brands like Honda, Suzuki, Mahindra, TVS, Hero and now Yamaha has also joined in by launching a 125cc scooter Ray. The question arises which is the best scooter and the most recognisable scooter in the Indian market is no doubt Honda Activa which is more than a decade old but has it still got enough to compete in the market? Well the Honda activa recieved an update on April 2009 by increasing of dispacement by 8cc and 1 bhp power combined with better mileage.
At the first look one would notice that activa doesnt come with any fancy equipment such as mobile charger, digital speedo, telescopic suspension, alloy wheels but its my opinion that none of this features are essential for a scooter. Activa has got the best engine in class its 110cc power plant puts out 8 BHP while most others put out only 7 BHP the only better performing scooter is suzuki access which in turn compromises on fuel efficiency. The engine is the most refined and it produces hardly any vibes and pulls cleanly till its indicated red line at 80kmph.
After owning an activa for four years and putting it through almost all kinds of terrain and usage it has never given a problem although the Honda service is pathetic most of the times there has never been a major problem with vehicle and i hardly find such reliability in any other scooter. After riding other scooters like duro, wego and access i still feel that activa is the better pick as incase of duro both pickup, topspeed and mileage are diappointing when compared to activa and in wego its pickup and mileage are the prime issues. My second choice would be access as it is nearly as good as activa the only issue being it feels bulky and refinement is low but its covered well by higher top speed and better acceleration.
So in my opinion the activa is the better scooter overall and continues to be the best and most complete package with good fuel efficiency and the highest resale value and if you are looking for a rugged commuter there is nothing better than activa as i have personally put it through its paces and am totally satisfied with it.

KTM Duke 200 vs CBR 250r

This is the biggest dilemma for all the bike buyers who have 1.5 lakh burning a hole in their pocket to trade for some outright raw horsepower. To buy the aggressive duke or the faster and calmer CBR by pushing their budget a little. Although they both produce the same 25bhp they are two completely different bikes altogether one is a mental machine which seems to be happiest when revved hard and shows little strain at high revs and loves to scream the other is a calmer machine which build up power as the revs build up and feels anchored at speed.

Chennai-Mahabalipuram Trip

Just like everyone else 4 months ago even i was in the same dilemma but i had experience of the duke as one of my friend had bought it and on the first ride i had my doubts about using it regularly as a commuter with all its screaming plus wanted something for the long rides as well so i jumped in for the CBR. Another main reason being that since he already owned a ktm i didnt want one anymore as its exclusivity was already lost.

So as soon as i my bike delivered we wanted to make a ride and we didnt want to go far so we decided to hit off to mahabalipuram which is a ride of around 200kms in total and in the onward journey we wanted to stick to our bikes and push them a little we dared not to open them up into a head to head race as enroute we saw a lot of cops who were waiting on a lazy saturday afternoon to spoil the mood of the commuters who were on the lighter side of law.
The cbr was at home and felt comfortable cruising at wide range of speeds and with the help of synthetic oil and speed petrol it barely had any vibrations and it was a relaxing experience and it clearly showed its characteristics as a sports tourer. Also i found out that the duke is no match for the cbr in straight line performance after 100kmph the bike steadily loses ground and when the duke hits its rev limiter at 136-138 kmph the cbr just cruises by.
Once we had reached the destination we decided to do some burnouts on the beach to save some tread on tires as both bikes were still quite new and on the return i hopped on to the duke and although i was in no mood to ride fast the bike seduces you to speed and paying no heed to the low fuel warning i ripped the vehicle and pushed the vehicle to 10,500rpm and also weight of the rider does make a difference under same conditions my friend could not push it above 125kmph. Also duke is much more suited for short runs as there is no bound to your joy as you start off but as the ride progresses you feel irritated more and more in CBR its opposite as the ride goes on you feel like riding as much as possible.

Performance

The duke with its short gearing and blitzing acceleration with a loud engine feels most comfortable in city and although no doubt it is capable of doing long runs CBR would be a more preferred choice both produce 25 bhp but the CBR produces 22.9 NM of torque which is even more than the ninja while the duke because of its short stroke engine makes do with only 19 NM of torque. I feel it can do much more but because of its rev limiter its limited to 138 which it achieves in a reasonable time with the CBR too although it has torque advantage it heavier weight allows the bike to accelerate to 135 from where on it takes time to achieve its top speed of around 160kmph (indicated).

Handling

The duke handles much better thanks to its weight advantage and stickier nylogrips and in traffic its nimble on its feet and can squeeze through with ease and can achieve incredible angles of lean which i realised the hard way from the pillion seat and is as good as an R15 the bike which set the benchmark for handling in Indian bike market. The CBR on the other hand feels lazy and because of the fairing and at 169kgs its even heavier than a royal enfield classic!! it shows and is not easy in traffic combined with the lean forward position does make it uncomfortable while getting stuck in traffic but on the highway it feels much more weighed down and stable compared to the duke which starts to vibrate post 120kmph.

Both bikes return post 30kmpl and depend on the rider and if pitted against each other i feel the duke provides more fuel efficiency and also it has a console which provides with all the information you need and some you dont. As far as the looks are concerned its a personal choice while one looks like a full bred sports bike the duke is a naked bike. In terms of build quality and equipment i feel duke is better Ex. duke gets braided stainless steel brake lines as a standard, also the finishing is superb the honda which is also commendable could be better for the price.

Its my opinion that both the bikes are totally different and cater to people with different characters and this is the best duo which showcase with similar power output how different can two bikes get. If you are looking more for city commuting the duke is better and CBR is more comfortable for touring. Both the bikes have the pros an cons but they are insanely fun to ride and at the end of the day that is why you buy them so its better to choose the bike which puts the widest smile on your face and sincerely neither can be stated as a clear winner.

Credits- Jayadev Somasundaran for pictures and the bike :-)

Activa Review & Ride

I was eager for my 1^st ever vehicle and I had no hope of getting a bike so I settled for a scooter. Incidentally the day before we went to buy the vehicle the New Honda Activa was launched. I chose it because it was and is the best performing scooter the only other competitor was Suzuki Access but it produced almost identical power and Honda was much more refined. 

Since I was their first customer for the new activa I could get the vehicle delivered in just 5 days. My first two years with the activa was very normal and I barely got to ride it as I still had not got my  licence it was filled with short high speed runs with fully open throttle and I managed to cover only around 3000kms.

THE TRIP                                                                                                                                  

My first real experience with the activa was when I rode it from Bangalore to Chennai. Many people were against the idea and suggested it’s insane to drive a scooter on a highway and I would be stranded. I still had made up my mind for it and on 20^th July 2011 early morning I set off from Bangalore I was quickly out of the city and touched the highway.

 I had decided not to strain the engine and was maintaining a constant speed of about 50 kmph. I travelled the 1^st 80 kms to hosur wer I had stopped for breakfast seeing the tank is still nearly full I set off and drove on. The best thing about a two wheeler is you never have to pay toll.

I only had to stop near Ambur for quick refuel as activa’s tank could hold only 5.5 litres of fuel. By the time I had so much of confidence on the vehicle that I planned a detour to Elagiri and took the diversion of the boring national highway onto the state highway and drove up the hill. Since I was travelling alone the activa did not have any problem with the steep incline.

After a quick tour of the hill I set back on my path towards Chennai. I had reached the national highway near vellore and rode the last stretch and reached Chennai around 4 in the evening with a near empty fuel tank and an exhausted me. I had realised every vehicle has the potential provided if care is taken.

STYLING, BUILD QUALITY & ERGONOMICS

As activa was designed to be a commuter vehicle it was not designed to be aesthetically appealing but once you live with it you would learn to like it and also it does not have any fancy digital console and still has the analogue speedometer and I personally feel for a scooter it’s more than sufficient. The new activa has better ground clearance and looks somewhat bigger than the older version. Most of the panels are made out of metal except the headlight cover and front panel and I feel Honda should have made them metallic as well. The overall build quality is good and the plastics on the new activa do feel rich. The only issue I had is with paint flaking off and it exposed rust both undercarriage and on the body panels. Even the seating posture is good and the leg space is excellent if you choose not to have the front compartment.

COMFORT, HANDLING & BRAKING

The activa which I had purchased was the non-deluxe version and hence did not come with the nylogrips and also missed the combi brake but it handles brilliantly as long as you drive below 60kmph after which the activa becomes nervous mostly because of its small wheels. I really don’t see the point of a combi brake on activa as I feel it deprives the user of choosing the brake force and is only suited for amateur riders. The new activa’s suspension is more stiffer than the old activa but is still quite comfortable for both the driver and pillion rider. Although it is a heavy vehicle it definitely does not feel bulky when navigating through city streets and going through the traffic. The brakes on the activa are as expected for a scooter and drum brakes are always better as far as scooters is concerned. Although applying the front brake would rise the front of the vehicle due to improper front suspension setting it still is good but you could easily lock up the front wheel if you apply the brakes improperly.

ENGINE & TRANSMISSON

As with all Hondas the engine is super refined and is really smooth once the engine is tuned and the 110cc of Honda produces around 8 BHP of power and 0.9 KGM of torque but in terms of performance its much ahead of other scooters like access because of its refinement and the best part of activa is that the acceleration is quite linear throughout unlike other scooters. If you are willing to push it you can reach a maximum of 90kmph and it is quite respectable for a 110cc scooter. The acceleration too is not bad it does 0 to 60 in 10 seconds and the best acceleration is between 40 to 60kmph. The transmission used in activa is variomatic and is the best in any scooter so far especially in terms of durability after my trip I was scared to give the vehicle for servicing as I feared I might have burnt the centrifugal clutch and the belt but I was surprised when the Honda mechanic said they were in good condition. And there was no significant damage to any major component even after my reckless driving.

MILEAGE

I was surprised to find out the activa returned 50 kmpl on careful driving and during the trip it gave mileage of almost 55 kmpl but if u drive in the city under normal condition you should expect around 45kmpl. The reduction in mileage compared to bikes is because of the variomatic transmission it saps quite some power.

POINTS TO NOTE

·         Honda service in most of the places is unsatisfactory; mostly you get your vehicle back with an oil change and a water service. They don’t bother to check your complaints.

·         The activa could do with a better headlight as the one provided is not at all adequate.

·         The vehicle is really good for all those who are new to two wheelers as it is easy to command in the city.

·         It is a very durable vehicle and can accommodate any driving style.

·         Mileage is directly proportional to the accelerator given.

CONCLUSION

If you want to purchase a scooter there is no better deal as of yet and it is a vehicle which is very durable and can take in a lot of abuse and if driven properly you can even expect a good mileage and while the acceleration is good you would definitely feel the need for better top speed but I guess that’s good too considering it has got just 110cc. The refinement is fabulous and u can take it for long trips as long as you know about your vehicle and don’t try to push it too hard. After driving over 14,000kms I still feel the vehicle is as good as new. So overall it is one brilliant vehicle which is truly the top of its class.

Chennai-Bangalore-Elagiri CBR250R

After waiting a long time finally i decided to go ahead with  Chennai-Bangalore trip it was a total of nearly 1000kms of riding so I inspected the bike and made sure everything was ready to go. I had left Chennai by Friday afternoon in hope to reach Bangalore by night fall and was soon on the Bangalore highway which was quite busy with traffic and also there were works going on so decided to maintain the bike at a constant 100kmph. I began to enjoy the ride and for the first time came to know the enemy of speed biking on the highway WIND!!! It was a big struggle with the wind as even at 100kmph the wind is strong enough to blow the bike from one lane to other but I was really glad I was doing this trip with the CBR as its heavy and lean forward nature help to steer against the wind and decided to take a break near vellore for some coffee before setting of again I was running late mostly because of the works and was suddenly stopped by clanking of the chain when I stopped to inspect my chain slider was hanging on the side.

 I got rid of the small rubber piece and continued with occasional clanking of the chain. I had managed to reach hosur by sunset and after tanking up the bike and a quick bite dashed off to Bangalore only to find myself drenched in a shower so I decided to slow down and ride on the left managed to hit Bangalore outskirts by 7 and was freezing because of the shower combined with wind sheer and reached my destination by 8.

After two days of roaming around in Bangalore it was time to ride back again in the meanwhile I managed to get the chain slider fixed and also a screw had rattled out of the fairing both were fixed in no time and this time I decided to make a detour to elagiri on the way back to Chennai and set off early in the morning after a quick breakfast and pit stop at hosur was on the way back and reached elagiri by mid noon and just loved the ride uphill it was brilliant and the climate was just perfect although clouds were looming above there was no rain after reaching the top had a tea and circled once before getting back on my way to Chennai. The rest of the trip was uneventful and I reached Chennai by 4 in the evening the bike on the other hand showed little signs of strain and felt like it could do many km’s more at a stretch. I was delighted by the entire experience it was just fabulous and loved it to bits. More so delighted by the bike returning 42kmpl for the trip but the bike was running on speed97 its still awesome to get such high mileage from a 250cc bike.