Most of the times a product that’s hyped very much, disappoints you very badly! Thankfully I didn’t buy those hypes and just sticked to my objectives of a bike. I am pretty satisfied with this bike for the price I paid.
Like many of you, I too had faced a great confusion in selecting a two-wheeler for myself.
Karizma had the looks(don’t sue me if you don’t agree!) and power but is out-dated. I still don’t know why Hero Honda is producing them. Its time they moved on. Karizma is that one bike which changed the two-wheeler market in India and opened ways for others. Despite that, its old and needs to be upgraded or replaced.
Pulsar 220 is too loud and looks more like a wanna-be. It was out of my consideration from the beginning.
R15? Everything is fine but why chassis is so broad. That takes away the beauty it could have been.
FZ16? Its just 150 cc pal. That hurts.
The choice was not as difficult as it seemed in the beginning. It was Pulsar 200!
Despite all these, its so close between Pulsar 200, R15 and FZ 16.
Pulsar 200 bought. What next?
The reality.
Power:
From day1 till it completed the running-in period, the most difficult task was to keep it below 55. Its power is awsome. Meets expectations for 200 cc two wheeler. After I completed the running-in, 60 has become new 40. Its brilliant even at 100+
*Handling:
*I travel through a road that suffers from the worst traffic of Mumbai and worst road. But handling has never been a problem. However, slow speed handling is difficult. The generous turning radius simply adds to your woes.
But its a true bliss when you start going at 85+. Even at 110(speedo reading) its very stable and gives you lots of confidence. As it reaches 115 you start getting cautious. I have pushed it till 118(speedo reading) and stopped accelerating after that. It could have been pushed further, but I didn’t wanna take a risk!
Fuel Efficiency:
I am spellbound in this front. During the running-in period it used to give an average of 57 to 60 kmpl. That’s when I religously kept the speedo below 55 km/hr. After the running period, its giving an average around 47 to 50 kmpl which I think is beyond even my wildest imagination. That’s really unexpected from a 200 cc bike which is running at 80+ for 60% of the travelling time. More than 50% of my commuting road is highway. That might have made the difference. Still average its giving is mind-boggling.(I sometimes doubt if I Bajaj has cheated me giving 150cc bike in place of 200 cc:). But it gets cleared when I twist the throttle)
There are people who talk as if its rubbish to talk about Fuel efficiency when you’re spending 80K on the bike. I have got to tell them, its time we got conscious about fuel efficiency of the vehicles we use and reduce the pollution. Its not about money but about environment. I plead everyone to get maximum efficiency out of whichever vehicle they’re using.
Comfort:
Riding position is really cool. This coolness comes with a little pain. Your palms and elbow starts hurting. One thing you can do is buy a pair of gloves and goggles. That solves the problem? NO. It makes you look even more cooler.:)
Apart from that its a very comfortable ride without any hassles. I ride for 45 min at a stretch sometimes which includes passing through that worst road I told you about. Its very comfortable ride irrespective of those hurdles.
*Quality:
*I didn’t expect much from a Bajaj product. I suggest you too don’t do that grave mistake! Bike as it was delivered to me had rear brakes just for the name sake. Virtually I was riding only on front disc brakes(Now that’s some adventure biking!). I had to get it fixed immediately. I thought rear brakes(Or the lack of it) was the reason I fell off from the bike twice! NO. It was because there was problem with the wheel alignment. I had to get it fixed too. Then there was a problem with the battery. I had to get it replaced. Thankfully under the warranty. Phew!
Electricals:
Now I already told you about the battery problem. But there was a problem with the electric ignition too. I question Bajaj the wisdom behind removing the kick starter! I mean, its a welcome move to keep the sporty look and feel of the bike. But when you’re known for poor quality electricals, why taking risk?
All the digital console on this bike lie. No more arguments!
Head lamp, I feel, is very weak. Thanks to the great traffic sense of the people of this country, they drive with high beam on inside city traffic. So, the vehicles coming from opposite direction make you almost a night-blind when you’re on this bike!
*Service:
*Pathetic.! Saying even a word more is praising them. Believe me!
After all that’s said and done, I feel happy with my choice at the end of the day. Because, its worth every penny I have spent on it.(Then it depends on how much worth 80K is for you.)
It looks great and feels great riding. There are positives. And then there are negatives to compensate it.
I would say, don’t fall for the hype. Have realistic expectations, it will surely exceed them.
*Quick Miscellaneous Statistics:
*Top Speed: 118 km/hr(achieved on speedo) I think, it can be pushed even further.
0-60 km/hr:~4-5 sec(Achieved)
0-100 km/hr:~15 sec
Fuel efficiency: 49 kmpl(Average after running-in)
Okay. Thats all, Foks.
Sign Off.