I got this chance to ride a LML Beamer for a couple of days from a friend of mine, and the title of the topic says it all for me. Now, I know it reads very philosophical and you might be thinking my rockers have gone loose, but let me assure you that if you ride the Beamer for a couple of days, it will beg you for biking introspection. After the almost back to back launches of the new Honda Unicorn and the refreshed Bajaj Pulsar 150 DTSi, LML had to come up with something better than the Graptor. Holding nothing against the Graptor, its claimed bhp and torque never caught the fantasy of Indian buyers and LML were left with no option but to unveil the Beamer. Now enough of this “beating around the bush”, let me share my experiences with you all after getting Beamed(all pun intended )
Styling:-
All the 150cc bikes in the market right now sport a plastic fairing upfront, ooh except the FX variant of the Fiero from TVS. The Beamer brings about a nice and refreshing change from all that grey plastic. LML went back to the tried and tested round headlamp and chrome plated twin instrument pod. The tank is beautifully scalpted, looks the same one from the Graptor. The side panels also add to the looks of the bike because they donot sport those flasy graphics from the Graptor. The upside down fuel gauge is also unique in the otherwise normal twin instrument pod, featuring the speedo and the tacho. Though the nice blue backlight of the instrument panel in the Graptor has made way for normal lights. From the rear, what I felt was that the bike is thin, err…what I should say is that it kind of lacks mass. If you see the Beamers competition, then you would realize how the rear half of Pulsars and Unicorns are integrated with the rest of the bike. One thing I must say that the paint job is really nice though, the one I was riding was not extra-polished or waxed.
Engine & Gears:-
In the heart of the Beamer is a 150cc powerplant which develops 14bhp@8000 rpm and a maximum torque of 13Nm@5500 rpm. These figures makes it the most powerful and torquey bike in the 150cc category. The torque really shows when you breeze to 80+kmph from 30kmph in 5th gear very easily. The gearbox is a standard 1 down 4 up, and believe me it’s one of the best in 150cc class today if not the best, counting the Pulsar, Unicorn, CBZ* and Fieros. Its really slick and buttery smooth. Not a single false neutral and it will impress you over within minutes, okay, may be in an hour!
Suspension:-
This is where the party goes haywire for the Beamer. Ride as a pillion on her and you’re a*# will revolt to depart from your body. If the TVS Fiero is too softly sprung the LML Beemer is on the other side of the planet. Too stiffly sprung, the suspensions are a big letdown on the Beamer. The ride quality is poor to be the least and don’t raise your brows guys I know I am not too harsh.
Performance:-
I was just riding the bike around and not doing a road test. So not much that I can say about the performance. But I did rip her a bit and ooo yeah she responded. Zooms on to 60kmph pretty fast, feels fast and acceleration is in the same ball park with its competitors. Hardly any vibrations even in on 80+kmph speeds but the otherwise refined engine does rattles it a bit. And yes, I loved the exhaust note.
Mileage:-
Another let down here. The Beamer gives you the worst mileage in the 150cc class, ooh! I just forgot the CBZ*. The owner of the bike told me that on two highway rides that he took her, she returned a best of 60kmpl(apprx.) and generally gives 50kmpl in city rides. The competition has moved ahead, and the Unicorn, Pulsar and the Fiero scores hands down on the most important Indian biking factor.
Bottomline:-
Now guys if I start imagining myself as a road tester of motorcycles and recommend you to buy a bike, well forget the Beamer. It doesnot rides well, if you have a girlfriend you will loose her soon and other bikes give you better fuel efficiency with similar/better performance. But I am a not a road tester, I am person who happens to like motorcycles a whole lot. Therefore, I recommend MSians to go for Beamer, its fast, handles well, looks nice…well almost and more importantly is not a Pulsar, Unicorn or a CBZ. So now you can figure why I named the title as such. Its for you to decide that if you are a performance enthusiast with a limited budget or a commuter minded rider, its you vs. you!