My brother studies in an engg. college on the outskirts of B’lore, his friends(Mechanical Engg. students) were involved in a research. An independent research organization made comparision study of popular bike in the market.
The study was handed over to a Professor of an Engineering college in Bangalore, there were 26 student volunteers to help the study, the data of the study however is very huge collected from owners, service centres and real testing of fairly used bikes. All bikes used for testing were having mileage of less than 10, 000kms and all bikes were owned by the students of that engineering .
The data was collected by the independent research organization to be handed over to an OEM(Company details not known to anybody). The below data is minuscule in size, it’s based on facts provided by one of my brother’s friend
Build quality research
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100cc
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Passion Pro/Splendor+(points 93/92)
Yamaha 110cc(89)
Twister 110cc(84)
125cc
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Suzuki Sling shot(94)
Glamour/Super Splendor(both 92)
Yamaha 125cc & Shine(89)
150cc
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CB Unicorn(93)
Hunk(92)
Xtreme & FZ-16(90)
Dazzler & GSR(both 88)
Misc
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- Karizma & ZMR(90)
> Suzuki Slingshot was found to be one of the finest built, next was the ever green Unicorn and Passion Pro, closely followed by Glamour, Splendor+ and super splendor which scored 92.
> Bajaj silencers were very inferior quality(the study team got feedback from owners and service centres that many Bajaj bikes needed silencer replacement even within 2 years of usage)
> The shocks on Bajaj bikes were not upto the prevailing standards in any of their product range, they faired below avg. in pot hole ride test, none of the Bajaj vehicle got 40 percent marks compared to 80 plus for all other brands.
> Surprisingly even NITROX shocks failed to impress on potholes ride test.
> Seven month old used Bajaj Pulsar 220 DTSi(6, 500kms on odo) premium bike failed emmission norm test. Further tests revealed that 4 out of 7 P220 DTSi failed emmision tests. There was no consistency as well.
> There were many user complaints about harshness of Bajaj bikes, most Bajaj bike users also wanted to know which oil is most suitable for their bikes. Gearbox quality of Bajaj bikes were highly inconsistent, some smooth gearbox becoming sticky on later days etc etc
> No TVS bike was tested, this was the requirement of the research, the reason is not known.
Fuel Efficiency Testing
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100cc
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HH Splendor+/CD Delux(71kmpl)
HH Passion Pro(68kmpl)
HMSI Twister 110cc(67 kmpl)
Bajaj Discover 100(66 kmpl)
125cc
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HH Glamour PGMFi/Stunner PGMFi(72/71 kmpl)
HH Super Splendor/HH Glamor(66/65kmpl)
HMSI Shine & Suzuki Slingshot(both 64kmpl)
150cc
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HH Hunk, HMSI Dazzler(58kmpl)
HMSI CB Unicorn, Suzuki GS150R(57kmpl)
HH Xtreme(56 kmpl)
Pulsar(54 kmpl)
FZ-16(45 kmpl)
Misc
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Karizma(44kmpl) ZMR PGMFi(51kmpl)
P220 DTSi(42kmpl) Pulsar135LS(56kmpl)
Simulated 60% highway sane driving not crossing 70kmph, 40% drive with a dozen stops and avg speed of 30kmph(city drive). All done on open/free highway without much traffic/obstructions.
HH Glamour PGMFi wins the mileage test very closely followed by it’s sibling HMSI Stunner PGMFi. HH CD-Delux remains country’s most fuel efficient in the carburetor version closely followed by the world’s largest seller Splendor+. Surprise mileage was from ZMR too, it posted 51 kmpl which is quite a good for 225cc engine(powered by PGMFi)
Hope these data is useful in selecting bike for yourself/for your friends.