I have been looking for a bike to upgrade from my old Hero Honda passion. Done a lot of search in mothshut and the like. Budget was Rs50, 000 ~ . So read all 125cc bike’s review. But at last decided to buy the 110cc Honda cb twister. I bought the lowest version. That is without self start(i highly recommend self start) or disc brake(not necessary at all). It cost me Rs 49, 000 on the road. As a penny pincher I wanted to get the max out of my money spent. lols.
The rides in the run in period were awesome. No vibration, unbelievable torque (in 4 th gear u can ride as low as 20km/hr with pillion). Mileage 70 kmpl. I maintained a speed less than 45kmhr. No sudden acceleration.
After the second service I started ripping it off. Most of the time full throttle, sudden acceleration and 90+ kp/hr in highways. Even then I got a mileage of 50kmpl.
I also tried smooth and defensive riding. 50 - 55 km/hr speed and no sudden acceleration which gave me a mileage of 82kmpl.
Which indicates that mileage strictly depends upon ur riding style.
What I liked:
1.The terrific mileage (82 kmpl)
2.Brake. You can bring it to stand still from high speed within no time. Gives you a lot of confidence. Thanks to the front tyre. Guys believe me the braking ability is solely depends upon the type of rubber used in the tyre not the type of brake. Mine is the regular drum brake.
It doesn’t get heated up even after long rides (i ride back to my home every weekend which is 80km away. Most of the time 90+km/hr). Around 97km/hr is the max speed shown in the speedo.
Value for money (compared to Passion)
Torque. You dont need to shift down all the time as u do in ur 100cc bikes.
What I did not like:
1.Hard suspension. Buy it only if your town has smooth roads.
Over use of plastic.
Vibration above 45km/hr
4.You need to oil the chain every other week.
The reputation of most of the Honda dealers are poor. Although I didn’t have any bad experience so far. Let’s wait and watch.
Overall, I don’t have any regret on my purchase. If you are a matured rider living in a city which has got good roads go for it. But if you want to zoom through the traffic leaving everybody behind buy any 150cc or above bikes.
At the time of my purchase the new Yamaha 150cc commuter bike was not released. Now you can also consider it (Rs58000 on road) or the Gladiator 125 CC (Rs54000, disc and self start)
Tips to new budding bikers: Speed only in deserted roads
Do not over take from left side of a vehicle
If you dont get enough time to avoid a pothole, lift ur back from the seat (but no need to stand upright). This will avoid back pain and wont lose control on bike(in high speed). Your legs should not slip from the footrest.
During verry slow moving traffic. Hold the handle lose. You will get more balance.
Help fellow riders in the night using low beam.
Dont wait till night to turn on the head light. Turn it on by 5 - 5.30 pm. It will help others on road to spot you and avoid an accident.
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EDIT:- (on 10th Dec ’10) : Completed 6000kms. Still it appears and feels new. Mileage is still the more or less same(worst:45, Normal:65, best:83+) Gear shifting is very smooth now. No other changes(good or bad) as such. By the way, I did a test. On a rainy day I was riding at 50kmphr. The road was wet. I suddenly pulled in the front brake. Didn’t touch the rear brk. But it didn’t skid. Again, this time on a dry surface I tried only the rear brk and it was skidding like anything. So rely only on the front brake.
Got a puncher once. I didn’t even know that there was a puncher. Thanks to the tubeless tire, I could ride a few kilometers to the puncher shop and fix it for only Rs75 in 10 minutes. Where as while I was using Passion I got puncher and it was a nightmare. The bike swayed to the wrong side(right side ..lols) . I thought I was about to die :) . But fortunately, I could bring it to halt without any accident. Then I needed to find a puncher shop and bring that guy. He took the wheel to the shop. Since the tube got tore needed to replace it. 2 hours and Rs300(cost of tube+auto charge+ repair charge) gone. Most importantly, the shrill in ur spine when the bike swayed out of control. But, this time no hustles with the Twister.
My service center experience was not that bad. They gave me a call after 2 days of service to check if there is any issue with the service. Once they did a chain tightening without making me waiting too much. Nice.
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Edit:-(April 7 2011): Completed 11000kms. Still looks new, Mileage still the same. But it gave me a trouble near 10000kms. It started stalling every now and then. Once it stopped all of a sudden in the road. Took to the service center. They told the starting coil is broken. :( . Since they dont have it in their stock they gave the part outside and repaired(wind) it. And charged me Rs496. Not good for a new bike. While sitting in service center lobby waiting for the bike I missed Hero Honda deluxe. But Again when the bike arrived and I started speeding (90+ kmphr). The feeling just disappeared. :). By the way, Guys, I need ur advice..I want to upgrade the bike. I saved a few thousands. Bike I have in mind is Second hand Karizma. I searched in the net and found it as an awesome bike to ride, 125kmph top speed and decent power but with very less mileage(25 to 40). It looks bit aged coz of the new comers in the market. Parts are difficult to get. Lot of bikes are available under Rs50, 000 (3 to 4 years old). With these facts in mind what do you think?