Have you ever been in a situation, and I'm sure you have, where someone tells you, "These noodles taste fabulous with Strawberry ice-cream! You just have to try some!"? And you go, "Okaaay... Maybe later..." And then "later" does arrive, and you just end up sampling some, and then wish you hadn't, because you'd rather savor Satan's home cooking than that crap to be honest..
And the same applies everywhere - food, clothes, colors, shapes, sizes, appearances overall, music, cars, bikes, animals.. Then there's how you would deal with things, everyone is different, and has different tastes. Whatever happened to the good old saying "to each his own"? One man's music is another man's noise...
Colors are subjective, looks even more so. Some people say a red Karizma is beautiful, I loathe every inch of it! If I ever, and quote me on this, were to have a Karizma, it would be a stripped-down, bare bones version, with just the chassis, engine, light, free-flow end can, a single seat, round headlamp and light clip-ons - and all the weight-saving bits I can find... No fairing, panels and an exhaust can that weighs a ton.
And the same to the BMW 5 series. Some may think it's ugly, but I think it's gorgeous, with it's wide eyes, which don't look the bit because of it's sweeping eyeline... And then there's it's flowing lines, that accentuate it's length and fitness. Then the back, with the stretched tail lamp assembly and, for some, that glorious "M" badge!
So there. The next time you're about to tell someone to try something that suits your taste, don't say, "This is awesome, you have to try some...". Instead, say, "I think this tastes great, you should try some, you might like it..."
And just so you know, I always suggest a bike or car for someone, but that's based on practicality and requirement, not looks.
And I never pick the color...
Monday, June 30, 2008
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Charting courses...
Soaring fuel prices notwithstanding, there's an onslaught of cubes happening and it doesn't seem to have any sort of end in sight. In fact, this is only the beginning!
But first, I want to make something perfectly clear. Personally, I feel the YZF-R15 should have been launched in the BCs rather than ADs... Well, at least a couple of years earlier. It's a fabulous motorcycle, but the hard truth is, in this day and age of rising fuel prices, and depleting fuel sources; it will not find too many takers, especially in our country. True, it is everything an average Indian motorcyclist wanted - which just so happens to be a 100cc, 100kph, 100kpl, Rs. 10000 bike... Which of course, is not entirely possible.. I'm not saying the R15 is something close, I'm saying it's just something else!
It is that kind of bike that looks a little like the sort of thing our population of idiots (which is quite substantial) would want their CBZs or Pulsars to look like, after a whole round of mods... I don't mean everyone who gets the odd fairing, or a paint job, or even a loud exhaust can; I'm talking about owners of bikes like the "Ducati 959 Turbo" or a "KTM Ninja GSX600 FireBlade Sports" with a billion exhausts on either side! On that note, what the R15 is, is a refined, modern 150cc bike, which is powerful, and light enough to destroy all the 150s we have now, as well as a whole bunch of larger capacity motorcycles...
The R15 is a very good thing to have happened, although it happened a little too late. Yamaha could have done the right thing and launched their concept Gladiator in production form 2 years ago, with the R15 following a year later. But they didn't. Anyway, it's happened, and I'm happy it finally did. But, there's another bit they had showed off, but still haven't delivered - the Fazer YS250.
Surely, the reason Yamaha didn't launch the bike could not solely be because they "could not get the price inside the 100000 bracket". It's hideous to try and imagine that, now that they're 150 costs 110000! (;p) Obviously, we are looking at a 180000+ price tag for the Fazer, without the half-fairing even... That aside, there are many bikes that would be ideal for our country - in terms of practicality and desirability alike. So, the point of writing this bit, for me, is to bring "to the fore" the ideal bikes which, according to me, should be here ASAP!
With the stupid "800cc and above" rule, practicality obviously takes a firm back seat! So we can rule out the likes of a 400 or even a 600, without passing homologation, which, by our standards, will again take another decade or so.
First off, the Suzuki Bandit 1250S. Yes, 1255cc may sound huge, but how does 11-odd kgm at 3700rpm sound? Add the near 100bhp output to that and you have an extremely fun, and capable machine. I'm sure Suzuki have it in their list of probables, because it isn't the only one they probably have in mind. The Hayabusa is, undoubtedly the most famous of the lot, and Suzuki spokesmen have, on numerous occassions, confirmed their plans to launch the 1300 here. In fact, you can actually buy the old Hayabusa from a Suzuki showroom near you for about 13.7 lakh. Old I say, because their new 1340 is here, and has taken the crown of fastest hyperbike away from Kawasaki's ZX-14. With an output of 200bhp from the 1340 inline 4, and 180+ horses at the rear wheel, it is very, very brutal! The GSX 1000R too is likely to make it here shortly, since the R1's here already. And I would dearly like the GSR600 to be here here as well...
Honda. Amidst rumors of a new 100cc hair dryer, um, motorcycle, I will go out and say they are being stupid. With Bajaj promoting 125s to replace 100s, it's only fair to say that an upgraded and price-trimmed Shine would be the better way to go. And it wouldn't hurt their image to have a CBR 1000RR FireBlade to gawk at in their window, while you're out buying a Unicorn. Nor would a Hornet 900 or a VFR800 Interceptor, or even the bloody GoldWing, though it would take up the space of a dozen Unicorns and a million Activas put together.. Crikey! They have it all, but they're just not doing anything, are they?!
Kawasaki's new Ninja 250R will hit ProBiking showrooms "soon", according the Bajaj boffins... At 2.2 lakh it is a rather good deal, considering you get excellent service and assurance of a worry-less after-crash period.. :D Then, there's the Z1000 - a personal favorite of mine. Big, yet compact, and brutally good looking! It's sharp, aggressive stance is fantastic and if I had to go out and buy a bike today, given the money, it would be this one. Okay it would be the R1, but that aside, the Z1000 is a very good choice, and they have indeed shortlisted it for launch here, along with a Vulcan (1600 or 2000 no one knows), the Ninja ZX-6R and the ghastly ER-6n...
Away from the little far-eastern island now, Aprilia, MV Agusta, BMW and Ducati are all rather well-known brands. And to say that I'm glad Ducati have roared in would be an understatement. Even so, the fact that they came with their carrier ship full of Italy's finest, was the best bit of news I'd had in a while. We have all their bikes on offer, save for the RR Desmo.. That might make it here sometime too, hopefully. So too for the BMWs and Aprilias. There are so many bikes that we could actually "use" here. Like the Benelli TNT, which just recently got options - an 899 and an 1130! Both sufficiently practical and economical enough to have around here, and yet, be rip-roaring fun at the same time!
On that note, I can say it's finally growing, our bike options; the market too, and so too, the mindset of the people. Realisation is dawning amongst the masses and they are beginning to slowly accept the fact that a bike costing as much as a bungalow, can indeed be faster that a car that costs as much as Paris! And I'm in no mood to discuss our import duty structure at this point... In fact, I'd rather not say anything, than risk being gruesomely sentenced on multiple counts of blasphemy.
Cheers to biking then!
But first, I want to make something perfectly clear. Personally, I feel the YZF-R15 should have been launched in the BCs rather than ADs... Well, at least a couple of years earlier. It's a fabulous motorcycle, but the hard truth is, in this day and age of rising fuel prices, and depleting fuel sources; it will not find too many takers, especially in our country. True, it is everything an average Indian motorcyclist wanted - which just so happens to be a 100cc, 100kph, 100kpl, Rs. 10000 bike... Which of course, is not entirely possible.. I'm not saying the R15 is something close, I'm saying it's just something else!
It is that kind of bike that looks a little like the sort of thing our population of idiots (which is quite substantial) would want their CBZs or Pulsars to look like, after a whole round of mods... I don't mean everyone who gets the odd fairing, or a paint job, or even a loud exhaust can; I'm talking about owners of bikes like the "Ducati 959 Turbo" or a "KTM Ninja GSX600 FireBlade Sports" with a billion exhausts on either side! On that note, what the R15 is, is a refined, modern 150cc bike, which is powerful, and light enough to destroy all the 150s we have now, as well as a whole bunch of larger capacity motorcycles...
The R15 is a very good thing to have happened, although it happened a little too late. Yamaha could have done the right thing and launched their concept Gladiator in production form 2 years ago, with the R15 following a year later. But they didn't. Anyway, it's happened, and I'm happy it finally did. But, there's another bit they had showed off, but still haven't delivered - the Fazer YS250.
Surely, the reason Yamaha didn't launch the bike could not solely be because they "could not get the price inside the 100000 bracket". It's hideous to try and imagine that, now that they're 150 costs 110000! (;p) Obviously, we are looking at a 180000+ price tag for the Fazer, without the half-fairing even... That aside, there are many bikes that would be ideal for our country - in terms of practicality and desirability alike. So, the point of writing this bit, for me, is to bring "to the fore" the ideal bikes which, according to me, should be here ASAP!
With the stupid "800cc and above" rule, practicality obviously takes a firm back seat! So we can rule out the likes of a 400 or even a 600, without passing homologation, which, by our standards, will again take another decade or so.
First off, the Suzuki Bandit 1250S. Yes, 1255cc may sound huge, but how does 11-odd kgm at 3700rpm sound? Add the near 100bhp output to that and you have an extremely fun, and capable machine. I'm sure Suzuki have it in their list of probables, because it isn't the only one they probably have in mind. The Hayabusa is, undoubtedly the most famous of the lot, and Suzuki spokesmen have, on numerous occassions, confirmed their plans to launch the 1300 here. In fact, you can actually buy the old Hayabusa from a Suzuki showroom near you for about 13.7 lakh. Old I say, because their new 1340 is here, and has taken the crown of fastest hyperbike away from Kawasaki's ZX-14. With an output of 200bhp from the 1340 inline 4, and 180+ horses at the rear wheel, it is very, very brutal! The GSX 1000R too is likely to make it here shortly, since the R1's here already. And I would dearly like the GSR600 to be here here as well...
Honda. Amidst rumors of a new 100cc hair dryer, um, motorcycle, I will go out and say they are being stupid. With Bajaj promoting 125s to replace 100s, it's only fair to say that an upgraded and price-trimmed Shine would be the better way to go. And it wouldn't hurt their image to have a CBR 1000RR FireBlade to gawk at in their window, while you're out buying a Unicorn. Nor would a Hornet 900 or a VFR800 Interceptor, or even the bloody GoldWing, though it would take up the space of a dozen Unicorns and a million Activas put together.. Crikey! They have it all, but they're just not doing anything, are they?!
Kawasaki's new Ninja 250R will hit ProBiking showrooms "soon", according the Bajaj boffins... At 2.2 lakh it is a rather good deal, considering you get excellent service and assurance of a worry-less after-crash period.. :D Then, there's the Z1000 - a personal favorite of mine. Big, yet compact, and brutally good looking! It's sharp, aggressive stance is fantastic and if I had to go out and buy a bike today, given the money, it would be this one. Okay it would be the R1, but that aside, the Z1000 is a very good choice, and they have indeed shortlisted it for launch here, along with a Vulcan (1600 or 2000 no one knows), the Ninja ZX-6R and the ghastly ER-6n...
Away from the little far-eastern island now, Aprilia, MV Agusta, BMW and Ducati are all rather well-known brands. And to say that I'm glad Ducati have roared in would be an understatement. Even so, the fact that they came with their carrier ship full of Italy's finest, was the best bit of news I'd had in a while. We have all their bikes on offer, save for the RR Desmo.. That might make it here sometime too, hopefully. So too for the BMWs and Aprilias. There are so many bikes that we could actually "use" here. Like the Benelli TNT, which just recently got options - an 899 and an 1130! Both sufficiently practical and economical enough to have around here, and yet, be rip-roaring fun at the same time!
On that note, I can say it's finally growing, our bike options; the market too, and so too, the mindset of the people. Realisation is dawning amongst the masses and they are beginning to slowly accept the fact that a bike costing as much as a bungalow, can indeed be faster that a car that costs as much as Paris! And I'm in no mood to discuss our import duty structure at this point... In fact, I'd rather not say anything, than risk being gruesomely sentenced on multiple counts of blasphemy.
Cheers to biking then!
At the fore....
After riding, IMO, the top 4 bikes (non-Bullet and non-import) our country has to offer - The Karizma first, the Apache RTR, then the Pulsar 220 and now the YZF-R15, I can safely say that they all have their good, bad and ugly points...
The Karizma is awesomely smooth, at almost any engine speeds below 6krpm, but that's it... It's an old, aging piece of featureless metal and plastic that I detest (even more today than I did when it launched as a 223cc, 16.76bhp bike), more so with it's gigantic "R" stickers and inexplicable, hideous engine cowl, and grotesque yellow dials that wouldn't be out of place whatsoever on a 1969 taxicab! The PGMFI version is long overdue, and it better come with a couple of more steeds, else it will be flattened by bikes over 70cc less creating equal power - like the R15...
The Apache RTR160 has divine handling - the best of the lot, but is an absolute microbe when it comes to feel! The bike is tiny, if you're over 4 feet tall that is! That's the only reason I bought a 220 and not the RTR160. The acceleration is good, ditto braking. The top end though is not what you would expect - nothing the 18.5bhp performance kit won't fix though! But then again, it pushes the cost up to Karizma territory.. And now with those ugly tank extensions, which are unneeded dead weight, since the bike doesn't have an oil cooler. The RTR now has another big ugly point...
The Pulsar 220 has all the goodies a riding enthusiast would savor - FI, nice riding position, with clip-on handlebars, flashy digital gauges and lots of lights everywhere you look! There are discs front and back; nice, bright projector lamp for a good night stint, tubeless tyres for lesser worries and other bits likes the oil cooler and the split seats. Then you notice the rear brake is wooden, and only bites when you're doing 8000kph! Well, 70 or so, but you get my point. It's ferocious power delivery is complemented with very stable handling and a good front brake, if only you don't lock up that is... Always wear your pads n helmet if U plan to do below 70kph! Overall, a good, almost economical bike, that's a joy on long rides, though your wrists may cry for some ice after a long stint...
The YZF-R15 is one of those... Before proceeding, if you're saying, "It's a 150 that costs 1.1 lakh!", please don't read on, and don't bother buying the bike either...
Ah.. You can't decide if you want it for one reason, or the other, or both, but then again, there seems to be a reason not to buy it too, if only you could figure it out! It's a 150, but it makes 17hp, and gives a fuel economy of about 30kpl. It costs as much as a Machismo 500, but looks like a million bucks! It has discs both sides, and effective ones at that! It's fairing is as wide as an H3, and is gonna make it awesome fun to park.. It has tyres that would nicely suit that bicycle you rode as a kid, but it corners like it was on rails. The white backlight and double headlamps (no projector) are good night time buddies.. The Deltabox frame, gas-damped link-type monoshock, 6-speed gearbox and liquid cooled 4V engine all come together in one tight package, making it worth every penny. It feels very substantial, the riding position is awesome, the tank recesses are just right, even if you're 9 feet tall; and most importantly, it makes you feel 10 years old!
I can now sum it all up and say - the RTR160 and the Karizma aside, choosing between the R15 and the Pulsar 220, is sort of like choosing between a Lotus Elise and Lancer ! It's really hard! The Apache is a sort of S2000... The Karizma? Well, that's like a Merc C200K... We all would rather have the C350!
The Karizma is awesomely smooth, at almost any engine speeds below 6krpm, but that's it... It's an old, aging piece of featureless metal and plastic that I detest (even more today than I did when it launched as a 223cc, 16.76bhp bike), more so with it's gigantic "R" stickers and inexplicable, hideous engine cowl, and grotesque yellow dials that wouldn't be out of place whatsoever on a 1969 taxicab! The PGMFI version is long overdue, and it better come with a couple of more steeds, else it will be flattened by bikes over 70cc less creating equal power - like the R15...
The Apache RTR160 has divine handling - the best of the lot, but is an absolute microbe when it comes to feel! The bike is tiny, if you're over 4 feet tall that is! That's the only reason I bought a 220 and not the RTR160. The acceleration is good, ditto braking. The top end though is not what you would expect - nothing the 18.5bhp performance kit won't fix though! But then again, it pushes the cost up to Karizma territory.. And now with those ugly tank extensions, which are unneeded dead weight, since the bike doesn't have an oil cooler. The RTR now has another big ugly point...
The Pulsar 220 has all the goodies a riding enthusiast would savor - FI, nice riding position, with clip-on handlebars, flashy digital gauges and lots of lights everywhere you look! There are discs front and back; nice, bright projector lamp for a good night stint, tubeless tyres for lesser worries and other bits likes the oil cooler and the split seats. Then you notice the rear brake is wooden, and only bites when you're doing 8000kph! Well, 70 or so, but you get my point. It's ferocious power delivery is complemented with very stable handling and a good front brake, if only you don't lock up that is... Always wear your pads n helmet if U plan to do below 70kph! Overall, a good, almost economical bike, that's a joy on long rides, though your wrists may cry for some ice after a long stint...
The YZF-R15 is one of those... Before proceeding, if you're saying, "It's a 150 that costs 1.1 lakh!", please don't read on, and don't bother buying the bike either...
Ah.. You can't decide if you want it for one reason, or the other, or both, but then again, there seems to be a reason not to buy it too, if only you could figure it out! It's a 150, but it makes 17hp, and gives a fuel economy of about 30kpl. It costs as much as a Machismo 500, but looks like a million bucks! It has discs both sides, and effective ones at that! It's fairing is as wide as an H3, and is gonna make it awesome fun to park.. It has tyres that would nicely suit that bicycle you rode as a kid, but it corners like it was on rails. The white backlight and double headlamps (no projector) are good night time buddies.. The Deltabox frame, gas-damped link-type monoshock, 6-speed gearbox and liquid cooled 4V engine all come together in one tight package, making it worth every penny. It feels very substantial, the riding position is awesome, the tank recesses are just right, even if you're 9 feet tall; and most importantly, it makes you feel 10 years old!
I can now sum it all up and say - the RTR160 and the Karizma aside, choosing between the R15 and the Pulsar 220, is sort of like choosing between a Lotus Elise and Lancer ! It's really hard! The Apache is a sort of S2000... The Karizma? Well, that's like a Merc C200K... We all would rather have the C350!
And if you're wondering why the Pulsar 200 isn't discussed above, it's only because I have considered all the manufacturers flagships. The P200, is in some eyes, a more practical alternative (or should I say traditional alternative, with no FI, rear disc and fairing..) to the Pulsar 220. In some ways, I would agree, but then again, I would rather have the whole chicken fried, than just the breast and a leg piece BBQd...
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