At a price of around one lakh, this is a bike to die for only if you are a die-hard fan of this type of sports bike design.
when I got the first karizma, it had just been released in indian market and there was nothing like it. it was selling like hot cakes for youngsters who preferred its sleek sporty design. my friend had purchased the bike and moved to a different city for a job. So, I was the lucky person who could actually use the bike.
My first ride on such a sporty bike was sheer joy. It had power delivery that felt different from the RX 100 I had ridden earlier
the approx 200 cc bike was easy to control for me despite its size and I loved the stance you could ride it in.
The high compression ratio f the engine gave it good pickup and at every turn and stop light I could leave like I did not even stop. the latest Karizma has a Maximum Power: 17.0@7000 BHP@RPM and Maximum Torque: 18.35@6000 Nm@rpm. AT that time these numbers would have beeen dream figures.for any bike. Alloy wheels were not available at the time for both wheels if I remember correctly.
the only thing I liked about it in 2003 was the styling that was not found in any other bike.
The Fuel Efficiency was a letdown as 40 kmpl could never be achieved and I regularly got 25-30 km/l mileage.this petrol bike has come up with new versions every few years since then and even though I hate this bike for the low fuel efficiency and some parameters of its engine performance; I must say I was thrilled by its looks and the easy to ride position of the seat.
Another bad experience was the servicing hassle as they had a long wait and even then I could never match the dates when they had available slots.
So anyone who loves this bike would get a salute from me because of a stylish easy to ride bike, but I would rather look for a more efficient engine.