Oct 07, 2006 09:49 PM
2328 Views
(Updated Nov 02, 2006 11:01 PM)
1) First decide ur usage, what u want from ur bike, like:
a)Power(HP): Are u a motorsport freak?how much power u want from ur bike u decide, remember more power costs more money and worst more power means more running costs which is a very important factor in selecting a bike.Also consider whether u always want to travel double seat if u will most of the time go for Higher HP u might feel the lack of power when ur double seat when ur driving a 8HP bike.
General rules
8hp: sufficient for city commuting and sometimes long drives.Gives good mileage
12HP: good for long drives gives optimum balance between power and fuel efficieny when u plan to do long drives.
Greater than 12HP: Its all yours boss, theres no limit to it, the more the better for a man just at the expense of money so if u are the one who wants a lot of horses under ur seat go for it.
b) CC - Cubic centimetre displacement of engine:
Directly related to a bikes power(HP) so around 8HP to 10HP is 100 to 125 cc.
12 HP is nearly 150 cc and greater than that means more CC. Why is CC important for you?
1) More CC means less mileage
2) More CC means more power
3) More CC means more reliability for your engine
4) More CC and less power means ur engine is stretched less for developing power which in means greater life and reliability for your engine.
c) Stability: Stability is important especially when u do long drives, not much important if u do city driving, but very important for long drives worth investing money for a bigger bike if u go for long drives even only at weekends. MORE CC, MEANS MORE POWER, MEANS BIGGER BIKE means more stability for you.(Offcourse u have to consider the features provide by the bike manufacutrer such as Rectangular swing arm, chassiss design, Tyre sizes, wheelbase and weight of vehicle well CG too but u cant see or measure it urself so leave it upto bike manufacturers. If u regularly go long drives on weekends go for a 12HP bike presently available they do give quite a lot of stability then there 8HP counter parts.
d) Braking system:
Go for disck brake if u go for long drives also good for city commuting its a safety feature so dont compromise on it. Go for drum brakes only if u really drive slow and do defensive driving and u really dont want to shell that extra money on this safety feature.
Disc brakes pros: Good braking, gradual braking no jerks, feel of assurance that ur bike will stop in time.Disc brakes are dangerous is wrong just u need to practice using them before u apply them suddenly in a panick situation, dont blame the brakes if u fall its ur fault that u didnt practice them good.
Cons: High initial price, More maintenance cost of hydraulic fluid(oil) and hoses.Disc pads cost more than drum brake pads but disc pads last nearly twice then drum pads so think over it.
e) Daily running and fuel efficiency: If ur daily driving is more try to choose a bike of less CC and less power so that u gain on fuel efficiency, if u have money go for a bigger bike but as KMS pass and ur tank gets more and more thirsty u need to think about it. On an average 100 CC(8HP) means around 55 to 60 kms/litre 125 CC(8to 10 HP) means 50 to 55 kms/litre and 150 cc means 42 to 50 kms/litre. 180 CC means 35 to 42 kms/litre and 180 plus 25 kms/litre depending upon power and CC.
f)Long drives:
If you are a long drive freak like me for whom kilometeres covered matter more than the speed at which u cover them go for as less a CC u can go so that u can keep ur fuel costs to a bare minimum. But also remember that the less the CC more the engines become unreliable as there life becomes shorter.Less CC more power means engine is severely stretched and life and reliability will suffer, especially more as u will be driving for long distances at higher speeds so wear and tear more.Best compromise is to go for a 12HP will give u a decent 45 kms/litre and a reasonable reliability and stability too. For really long drives always better to go for higher than 180 cc. Well personally I have a victor 110 cc and I drive between 50 to 55 sometimes 60 plus for 400 kms a day and still havent faced any problems with a fuel efficency of 55 to 60 kms/litre.But I always feel that a 12 HP bike would have been better with a compromiseon fuel efficiency. Further continued in the comment section
