The chronicle of the un-heroic rider continues to bore the readers!
Reference- https://mouthshut.com/review/Yezdi_Roadking-119547-1.html
A flower asked me*- “Have you whispered sweet nothings to the wind while riding your bike? Does your bike give you value for money or is it merely a pretender? .
So I had to write this.
*Warning:** *This is an awfully boring review on a outdated bike that has been into places. You might get a second-hand but not a new one. If you are still interested, read on.
*History
*I bought the Kawasaki(Bajaj) Caliber Croma on December 2001 in Faridabad based on
A. Fuel efficiency:** my daily return travel from Delhi to Faridabad was a little more than 75kms per day.
*B. Comfort & Safety:** Delhi-Mathura highway was infamous for accidents, and it was important for me to be alive(probably to write this review).
Though I was personally inclined towards the newly launched electronic Enfield *Machismo*, which vigorously supported reason B, but reason A was way too compelling opposition.
Kawasaki Caliber was the first performance bike in India to have a completely “curvy” look. The black bike with green & yellow strokes on the smooth curved tank, the front headlight cowl and the sleek & dynamic fiberglass parts looked much different from the contemporary Splendor and Yamaha’s. The classical KB100RTZ ruled Indian roads for decades with its straight cut look.
The Caliber’s curvaceous & aerodynamic design and black & violet colour was a refreshing change in 100 cc segment. I believe Kawasaki Caliber & Honda CBZ initiated the revolution of Indian bike market. The model Croma was launched with same tech specs with an added headlight cowl & front disc brakes. Later Bajaj was detached from Kawasaki, the model was replaced by 115 cc ridiculous “hoodibaba”!
*Geography
*Adapted in 2 stroke 250cc & 16 bhp Yezdi, it took me some time to adjust to a 4 stroke 110 cc, 7bhp timid two-wheeler. First few days, I was not able to hear the engine sound after starting it, and tried kicking even while it was running. There was literally no audible sound at all for the first few months.
I started traveling Faridabad- Delhi with some occasional trip to Faridabad-Gurgaon(60 km one way, through the hilly road of Haryana). I slogged the bike for the first 6 months traveling more than 10, 000 kms. I did adhere to the first 6 free service & oil change schedule. The bike came with a 1 year conditional warranty for unlimited kilometers. The only part I had to change in the first 6 month was the spark plug(which was beyond the scope of warranty). It is to be noted my commuting included driving through long stretches of knee-deep storm water during monsoons. My croma’s alloy engine never stopped throttling, not even once.
I changed job in Oct 2003 and shifted to Kolkata with lock stock & two smoking barrels. Kolkata weather is hot humid compared to dryness of north India. I had to change the Engine tuning and tighten the chain-set to get into the bad roads, potholes & tramlines of Kolkata. After 6 months of riding the shockers needed to be replaced. The exposed metals still did not catch rust, though I did not spend much time cleaning & oiling the parts, just regular servicing.
Allowing a roller coaster ride for my career, I shifted to a Bangalore in March 2004. This time I traveled in train from Kolkata to Bangalore, the bike alongwith. Thus I started driving it as soon as I landed. Bangalore, as a terrain is much undulated from the planes of Kolkata, the weather again is moderately dry and advantageous for maintaining a two-wheeler. I used the bike to commute to office and discovering different pubs located aside narrow lanes around Brigade road. It never gave any problem during my stay in Bangalore.
If you think our India tour ended here, you are wrong. In Oct 2004 I again shifted to Mumbai. Maintaining a bike in Mumbai is real tough task. One, the heavy rains, two Mumbai sucks out every second of useful time in the weekdays. Most of the suburb apartments do not care much for two wheeler parking, so it’s mostly open to sky. The bike still gave rock steady performance, even with irregular maintenance schedule. The maximum tyre puncture happened in Mumbai.
When I started thinking the bike has passed the test of time the historical 26 July deluge happened. My bike was parked in Borivali railway station parking and me, stranded at office. The bike was completely submerged under 4’ of water for 48 hrs. When I retrieved the machine it was muddy, weed laden, and looked somewhat like a mini- submarine. To my surprise a partial engine overhaul & battery change is all it needed to get back on the road in a weeks time.
*Science & beyond*
One of the first bikes to feature disc brake. The only other bike with disc brake was CBZ.I discovered the thrill of instant braking. There’s a chance one can be ejected out if the speed is high and braked hard enough.
The seat is ergonomically designed. A pillion must not touch the road with his/ her feet to avoid imbalance. With a higher rear seat the faintest chance of pillion acting funny was ruled out.
The handlebars were fitted with most of the controls – indicator switch, hi-lo beam, bake oil indicator. The cowl housed the tachometer, speedometer and milometer. Croma also had a “trip meter” to note distances for a particular trip. But the handle bar needs adjustment depending on the rider’s anthropometrics.
The best part was mileage. I had never achieved anything less than 65kmpl. Max 75 was achieved in Delhi and least was 55 in Mumbai & Bangalore.
A good bike must withstand a fall continue with the journey. Croma has a stainless still leg guard, which protects the most vulnerable parts like indicators & clutch levers from direct impact with the road. I had two falls so far, one near fatal on Surajkund road where I slid with the bike for couple of meters before halt. The scratch mark on the left handle bar, the cowl & leg guard still reminds me the joy of living.
I found one design fault- the silencer pipe always hit the rides shoe while kick starting it. With the heat of silencer the rubber sole of the shoe kept ugly black marks on the silencer.
The only drawback was, it did feel powerless and wanted one more gear beyond 60 kmph. The max speed I drove was 90kmpl in Mathura road. Beyond that smoke came out from engine.
*Mathematics *
45, 000 km in 4 cities, in adverse weather conditions including hailstorms at Delhi, infamous monsoon of Kolkata, maddening traffic in Bangalore and a deluge in Mumbai. Also survived two trans-shipment and one 36 hrs luggage van journey in train.
*Mark sheet*
One of the best performance bike ever produced India.
I cherish the good time I had with it. I am going through the dilemma like my Yezdi. I don’t want it’s gradual decay on the parking lot. Mumbai Monsoons are too harsh for a two-wheeler.
Or shall I “archive” it and wait for 10 years, and gift it to my son on his 18th birthday?