I very avidly remember the advertisement aired often on Doordarshan. A Japanese tourist is lost on his way and gets a lift from a bike rider who is on his way to office. So many huge…..hmm…..hurdles come his way and he overcomes them all with ease saying “Suzuki samurai; no problem”. Yeah, this is one bike that is totally forgotten by many a people, why even me. Now it gives me pain than pleasure to say good-bye to this two-stroke, out of fashion, bike from TVS-Suzuki. In a country ruled by 4-stroke stylers, a rather low profile 2-stroke bike would never be preferred. Same is the case here. Whatever revised graphics they put in, they simply couldn’t make the bike any better. A halfhearted effort form TVS only ensured this. But for a 7-year old, the bike looks quite contemporary. Seriously speaking, the Bajaj Boxer looks very much similar to this. This reflects on the amount of progress the Indian Automobile Industry has made. An ordinary paint finish, so to say, the bike doesn’t offer much of a colour choice.
Coming to the build, the headlamp is in the ‘OK’ category. Tail lamp is decent and the body is pretty acceptable. The sour spot is the nasty looking pair of mirrors which besides being a horror to look at, afford very little or no adjustment. An engine-cum-handlebar look is really lousy. No flashers, a rather fumbling switch board, poor body strength and what not, this bike lacks more than expected. On the whole the bike with low-rent looks and cheap feel belongs to a bygone era.
Powering this mediocre Samurai is a two-stroke air-cooled power plant. A power of 7.8 bhp is not bad for a two stroker. Moreover the engine is smooth and free revving. Vibrations are felt through the foot pegs when the vehicle is put through some strenuous tests. A poor gearbox and not too grippy tyres have let the engine down.
Conventional shock absorbers, Ceriani type forks, cradle chassis and the regular aspects have ruled the roost. But the ride quality leaves much to be desired. Take it on our rural roads and then you’ll know, what I mean when I say, “ It’ll murder your back”. Those brakes…..grrr…..they singularly are the worst part. Riding my Cousin’s ( not Lyla) bike, I had to face the horror of being hung as a portrait and be worshipped, for I would have lost my life with these sluggish brakes. This was in May. Not too long before I became a mouthshut member. With all its wiggles and waggles, they almost let me down and I was facing “the demon”, the municipal transport bus, by a feet’s distance. I’ll never forget that day. Thanks to my riding skills and ethics.
You might ask me on what aspect does this bike impress? Probably none. Imagine a two-stroke bike being beaten in both acceleration and top speed by a four-stroke!!! The performance of the bike is rather poor. When it comes to normal drives, it comes out an unconvincing winner, but under testing Indian conditions, the bike is a pathetic loser. The poor tyre quality adds up to the embarrassment. With a fuel efficiency of 45 kmpl, I might say, it can be thrown out of your thought books of buying a vehicle.
At the end of the day the pressing question is why? Why on earth would anybody want a two stroker if mileage were at the top of his mind? A two-stroker is associated with performance and if it returns good mileage, that is an added bonus. But this bike, that simply does not perform is not on the cards.
I would say, the Suzuki Samurai is well past its “ No Problem” prime and it is nearing its end. Its time to bid adieus to it. For a few hundred bucks, you can get a four stroker, looks good and outperforms Samurai.
So Samurai, your times up ( The Pink Floyd way). Pack your bags and retire. I only wish that your soul would rest in peace.