I usually travel in car for long distances since people riding bikes have become crazy and it is not safe in a place like bangalore where density of vehicles is too high.For short distance travlel I was looking for scooter which is easy to ride, light weight and economical.
After doing lot of research I shoftlisted Activa, Dio and Jupiter and took my wife along with me to take test drive and book vehicle. Honda Activa:Its a good scooter, good pick up but suspensions are bad and heavy weight.Wife dint liked it because of its bulky size so left it. Honda Dio: I personally liked older version of Dio than new one, It looks very small but it is very heavily priced.
It also has bad suspensions, one can easily injure their spine.Almost booked it but turned down at the last moment due to its small size. TVS Jupiter:Good scooter I should say. good pick up, good built, nice telescopic suspensions and price is also less competitive .Only thing let me down is its waiting period. After getting disspointed from three shortlisted scooters we saw Yamaha showroom in Rajkumar road, and had glance at Yamaha Alpha. Requested for test drive and got it immediately.
I personally liked its telescopic suspensions and its light weight, wife also liked model and booked it instantaneosly. Got it delivered after two days of booking. For initials few days it gave me very less mileage about 25 to 30 KM/L made me to blink for choosing Alpha, but slowly its mileage started increasing and started giving around 45KM/L. I basically needed scooter for short ride in city and this is satisfying my requirement. Below are few Pros and cons of this scooter I have observed till now:
Pros: Suspension: Good telescopic suspensions, with pillion it is very smooth. Fuel economy:Mileage around 45 KM/L, expecting to give more after first service. Build quality: Scooter is nicely built, even though it has fiber body I feel it has very strong body. Bakes: Brakes are very effective and confidence inspiring because of MRF wet grip tube less tyres. Manuering within city traffic: Its gem in city because of its light weight and less turning radius.
Cons: Power: It is not very highly powered like Dio and Activa.It has 7 Bhp power in comparision with around 8 Bhp of Activa and Dio.Its power transmission is very linear and I like it. It is not very slow either. I dont think so more power is required in these scooters as they are not suitable for speed drive. Yamaha’s after sales service: Lots of compliants about Yamaha service and their arrogant behaviour.