PULSAR 150 DTSI - Rules the Roost. Review on Bajaj Pulsar

This is my latest review on the latest pulsar.

This is the article extracted from THE HINDU issue dated 27th DEC 2006 (metroplus).

SO it is as follows

Typically, a 150cc bikecouples an adequate dose of power and performance with style, allowing one to keep his nose ahead of most other Indian vehicles. And yet, such a bike doesn’t concede too much by way of fuel economy. But the moot question is this – with four strong contenders for the top title, which one leads the pack?

Design and engineering:

The Pulsar, with its lower front end and smashing new panels, easily retains our ‘best looking Indian bike’ crown. TVS’ macho Apache comes in number two on style, even as the big and otherwise smart-looking Hero Honda CBZ X-treme is unfortunately let down by a confused front fairing. Honda has faltered in leaving the Unicorn virtually ‘as-is’ since October 2004 in a fast- evolving market. It’s also the only bike without snazzy alloy rims. While the Unicorn’s analogue instruments are

attractive and better looking than the brushed alloy- surrounded X-treme and simple Apache’s fascia,

none of them come close to the featurepacked Pulsar 150’s newage digital gauges. Light years ahead, this fascia automatically adjusts illumination levels for best viewing, during day or night. The Pulsar’s bold analogue rev counter provides minimal lag, while its smart digital speedometer dominates an elegantly amber backlit console. Fuel-level, odometer and twin-trip facilities are digitally displayed, while additionally a redline flashes out ‘it’s time to shift a gear’ at 9000 rpm — this light also doubles as low-fuel level warning when fuel level dips under four litres. A side-stand warning lamp is another nice safety feature on the Bajaj.

Powertrain & performance:

All four bikes deploy four-stroke and aircooled engines that work using a single-cylinder very capacity. The Unicorn and X-treme share engines in distinct states of tune—the Xtreme making more power with its segment leading 14.2 bhp made at 8000 rpm. The Unicorn manages

13.3 bhp at 8000 rpm The Pulsar’s DTS-i power pack is the strongest sounding engine of the

four and feeds its rear wheel 14.09 bhp at 8500 rpm, while the Apache pumps out 13.5 bhp at the same engine speed. All these 150s use a onedown- four-up shifting five-speed gearbox and benefit from equally satisfactory gear-shifting abilities, although the two Hondas carve a slight edge in this respect. We put all four bikes to test on acceleration runs with the same rider, on equally full-fuel loads, at the same time, on the same day, to see just which 150cc is the fastest of them all. We found the Pulsar 150 and CBZ Xtreme unbelievably close, going neck to neck at 60 kph, the Bajaj clocking 5.42seconds on its fastest run and the X breathing down its neck at 5.43sec. The Unicorn took 5.89sec and the Apache was slowest at 5.93sec, which pegs this pair significantly slower and on par with one another. Upping the speeds, we found a similar story unfolding at the 100 kph barrier. Here, the CBZ led the pack fastest at 22.04sec, and the Pulsar coming in just a fraction slower at 22.53sec. The Unicorn managed third place with 23.34sec and the Apache once again proved the slowest at 24.25sec. Ride & handling Riding positions are a mixed bag on these four bikes. Honda’s Unicorn is the most upright of the lot, the Apache and Pulsar are slightly sportier, and the X-treme decidedly sporty with rear-set riding pegs and a rider weight-forward stance that has you dropping nicely into its handlebars. All bikes have equally comfortable seats. The Xtreme’s rear suspension is too harsh on its rider’s spine – not a bike for those with weak backs. With the shortest wheelbase, the Apache has the quickest handling in slower city conditions, however, X-treme offers the best handling of the lot. Not that the Unicorn and Pulsar are poor-handling bikes. Braking is equally sure-footed and powerful on all these 150s, which each offer a disc front brake and drum rear brake. Fuel economy In the city, the Unicorn proved most frugal to proffer 51kilometres per litre (kpl), where the Apache gave 50.5kpl and the Pulsar delivered just short at 50.3kpl. The Xtreme provided mileage a notch lower than the other bikes at 47.4kpl. Putting the bikes through their paces on the highway, we found the Pulsar 150 top the charts with 54.3kpl, followed by the Apache (53.9kpl), the Unicorn (53.6kpl) and the X-treme (48.2kpl). What we say The new Pulsar 150 DTS-i rules the roost in the 150cc segment. The plain-looking Unicorn’s dropped from being our favourite of yesteryear to a letdown today – Honda’s failure to upgrade it doesn’t say much. Add to this, you get shortcomings like a waiting period for a new bike and an unsatisfactory service network. The sporty CBZ sequel is an honest effort from Hero Honda, and does offer the best handling of any 150 bike in India. Hero Honda might have done better to price the bike slightly lower, though. The well-rounded Apache is a smart-handling city bike, offering specifications that make it second only to Bajaj’s latest 150. But today’s winner is the new Pulsar, which remains India’s best-looking bike, with its finally hassle-free gearbox, top drawer features and impressive performance. It wouldn’t be stretching it too far if we predict that someday this motorcycle will write itsmaker a bigger success story.