Why - The Need ?
The summer of 2001 - My boss communicated to me that the ’’training’’ in US was gonna end. I faced the happy task of returning home to India (wiser). There was a problem, though. I was still riding my Dad’s Ol’ faithful Chetak (yuck !!! it sucks !!!! - this my impression now). I HAD to replace that with a leaner meaner machine (had been thinking of doing that since Nov 2K, but the sword of the US trip loomed heavily over my head plus I am a gr8 procrastinator). Having seen the Harleys and Hondas, and having (almost) ridden one of those kinds; I wanted something that came near that.
What do I do ? - The search
Ask friends over MSN - there are the savvy ones and not so savvy ones - many recommend passion, many swear by splendor. But they are unanimous about one thing, give a decent burial to the Chetak. (I say, yeah yeah, will do that - another story that it remained in the stables - read car porch - till recently when it was sold off to one of my dad’s drivers - we found a sucker, finally ;-)) .
I search for the models (of the bike, of course, u dirty) on yahoo - am a yahooligan since my baby days on the net (still am) - it lists me the Hero Honda site plus a few other sites. (Voila’ it came up with a funnily named site - our own MS - this was when I joined the site).
I go to Hero Honda site, check the features. When I click the links to the Passion, a gorgeous looking machine appears before me. It was (tornado) grey, a treat to the eye, love at first sight (sorry, got carried, or is it swept, away ;-))
Another brainwave, if 5/10 of my friends swear by Passion, 4/10 by Splendor - and if the same company is making both these models; shouldn’t their shares be doing well (inspiration a la’ Buffett). I check my broker’s site, they have a “long term buy” call on the share, I check the financials, don’t see any potential paper shredders, I buy 50 shares @ about Rs. 170. I was not wrong, it turned a two bagger in no time. (means I doubled my money, you dummy). And people were crying about the bear market - tsk tsk
The pre-purchase planning
I am not the guy who thinks with the heart, but with the head. Looks don’t mean much to me. I open a spreadsheet (yeah, I was an accountant) list out the models (bike, u dirty), list out their vitals (spec.s, u dirty) and of course, the price (quit being vulgar, u dirty). The final factor - price - I was really particular about. I knew what I was looking for, a decent looking bike that didn’t burn my pockets with petrol cost. Splendor cost a couple of thousand less, but then it didn’t have the dome shaped headlights and the lean mean look. So here I go.
It’s another thing, I had to wait till winter 2001 to get back to India and January 2002 to buy the bike
The Machine - Born in a Studio
The bike has a tubular double cradle frame, telescopic hydraulic fork front suspension (a mouthful, eh ? ), (I can go on like that - I have the owner’s manual with me, u know) . Other vitals trimmed down of jargon:-
- 4 Stroke - (A two-cycle or two-stroke engine has an intake / compression cycle, and a power / exhaust cycle, which provide one power stroke for every revolution of the motor. A four-stroke or four-cycle engine has an intake cycle, a compression cycle, a power cycle, and an exhaust cycle, providing one power stroke for every two revolutions of the motor).
2.Displacement - 97cc (More the cc, more power - comes with a cost of more fuel consumption per stroke - which in turn affects the mileage)
Kerb weight - 116Kgs.
Dimensions - 1980(L) x 1060 (H) x 720 mm (W)
Clutch - Multi-plate wet type Multi-disc
Fuel tank capacity - 12.8 litres (Reserve 1.1 litres)
This was an extract from the spreadsheet. The brackets tell you that I tried to cut the jargon where it mattered. The only difference I noticed with CBZ was the price (back then, the gap was unjustifiable) and the higher power (which did not matter to me). Plus it had a problem, itz too uncomfortable for a lady pillion rider unless she decides to do a horse ride. (My Mom won’t do that, I know).
Hmmm.... the right looks, the right mileage, the right riding comfort. The bride oops bike, (got carried away again) is chosen. (Am getting emotional)
The Dealer
Now choice of the dealer, that was not hard for me. There are three in our city.
No.1 was ruled out, he was a client of the old CA firm I worked for (I knew of their sloppy service before-hand).
No.2, a biggie, for whom the dealership was just another business. (Can’t expect him to put his heart into the sale, can I?). But I sized him up by getting a quote and asked for freebies (like seat cover, etc). The girl at the front desk said no way, no freebies.
No.3, a small office, nothing fancy, a cozy place plus the bonus was one of the partners is a cousin of one of my colleagues. So I zoom in on him, go with a reference. He treats me like a King. Plus, freebies abound - seat cover, front pouch, indicator beeper etc. Good service too, plus I am on first name basis with the boys there by now.
The purchase and 6 months and 5000 KMS later.......
I choose the Tornado Grey, pay the advance, I get to ride my dream machine in 2 days.
First thing I notice is the riding comfort (nopes, I am not comparing with Chetak). I get the real comfort of the drive on a long drive the next week. About 60 KMS and no sign of any fatigue on me.
A couple of months later, I get to test the braking power and stability when on a rainy day, the bus driver suddenly decided that he had enough of driving the monster. Not eager to hit his rear, I slam on both the brakes forgetting for a moment that I am driving on a surface as smooth as glass. Nothing happens, realisation dawns on me slowly(a nice friend calls me a dim light bulb) - I let out a ’’yahoo!!!’’ (yeah, I told ya - I swear by yahoo)right in the middle of the road. People are watching, but what the heck, I have my dream machine.
I get the real kick when my cuz who was back from a long foreign stay and 8 months pregnant back then, insisted on walking all the way to the parking lot to just take a look at my dream machine. (Yeah, she always made a huge fuss about what I did, always)
(Sob, sob....) I had to part with the beauty on the wheels. My company is transferring me abroad. It was difficult to say good-bye, though it was only 10 months and 7000 odd KMS on the meter. Goodbye, dear buddy.