Update of my previous review. This one is after I got my bike.
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At last... I got my new Unicorn.
Can anybody really beat it.. The SUPER smooth engine is a dream. You can barely hear it.
This is one of the aspects where no indian bike on road can match it.
I really look forward to driving my bike daily.
Some good points:
Super brakes
Super smooth engine.
Classy gearbox
(1 down 4 up pattern is butter smooth - No false neutrals till date)
Super good ride
Super road grip and handling. You can almost scrape your knee caps off while bending the bike on corners, but the bike won't go down.
Good acceleration. (I am no sprint racer, so can't say about people who like to test there new bikes with whether it can really attain 0-60 in 5 sec)
Since there are not many bikes on Road.... it surely turns some heads.. specially looking at the sexy muffler and tail piece.
Some things I did not like about the bike:
Super boring Horn (Like the engine.. people can barely hear it)
Bad fuel meter. (I heard it needs adjustment.. mine shows empty even with 5 litres of petrol on LEFT side of the tank..that is where the fuel ind valve is.)
Slightly uncomfortable tail piece grab handle. U can't really hold it. I guess it is just show off.
The rear light shakes a bit on bad roads.... but you won't come to know... it can be observed only by someone who is driving directly behind your bike. So you are never going to see it actually.
Cold starts are a bit of a problem for me. I don't like to start cold bike with a choke. (But the manual says so!!)
I guess, it should get resolved with the first service.
Thats it.. more after 1st service.
Amit
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Hi friends,
I have never done this in my whole life....but I, like many of you have been waiting like mad to get the first test ride of this bike since last three months.
From getting the first photographs, to going thru every article on the internet that had the word unicorn in it and also to reach the dealer at 9 in the morning to get the first test ride.....I feel crazy now.
Well....what all this definitely did was that it raised my expectations a LOT.
But Honda does not disappoint, but neither does it make me go ga ga over what I tested.
Here is my take on the bike.
Looks:
I agree, most of it is borrowed from here and there.
Honda could have come up with something more creative.
It still looks very impressive to me, the tank specially with a sexy instrument console.
But the tank does not really merge seamlessly with the side panel.
But its ok I think not many will notice that.
Tail lamps were quite cool.
Horn button was boring....very small. (they could have at least taken it from an Activa)
Also wheels, I think they should have had an option for mag wheels.
(I had very high expectations it seems)
One good thing is that it has very good knee recesses, very important to maintain good aero-dynamics at high speeds.
I am waiting for the grey and the silver colors... Any idea when will they be available?
Over all in looks...Its good. I would like to own it.
Candidly I must admit, NOTHING looks better than CBZ.
Performance:
Mind blowing for the mileage it promises.
The best part was that the bike was extremely silent.
I loved to sliently zip ahead of hapless riders on their pulsars who did not have a clue as to what overtook them.
Noise infact is a complete no no for me. I know some of you might like a much more meatier thump of the exhaust, but I would say Honda is more futuristic in this.
Mileage:
What do you expect from a 150 cc that does a 0-60 in 5 seconds?
Anything above 50 would do for me.
BTW, I think one of the reasons why Honda left out the ES could be this.
ES usually consumes more petrol as it uses an Auto-choke everytime you start using ES. (I am not an expert...my mechanic told me this fact about Kinetic....so I guess same must apply to all self starts.)
Ride and handling & comfort:
Ride was one of the best. Extermely comfortable with good suspension.
Very good upright position and is very good on your back. (V imp for me as I have a back prob)
The gearshift was very silky....As was expected. Miles ahead of it's competitor Pulsar.
Though I have not driven many bikes with 1 down 4 up gear pattern, I did not feel any problems with changing on unicorn.
As someone else mentioned, you feel total control of the machine as the gear engages progressively...so you feel the power.
The handle bar grip I thought was a bit smaller than was required.
I think they were smaller than splendor as well.
I have LARGE hands and my hands covered the entire grip, slightly touching the end part of the grip.
When you drive the unicorn, you truly feel that you are being pampered. The monoshock, though basic, is far far better than all other bikes that I have driven.
I am sure your girlfriend will be happy to sit behind you for loooong drives without getting a backache.
It also has a pretty good grip on the road, I tried some stunts on sharp turns nearly scraping the footpegs....It took all that quite lithely. (The Dealer guy vowed that he would not give me a second test ride ;))
Braking was quite good. Very good manueverability in City traffic.
Reliability:
This is where Honda overtakes everyone and all it's minute flaws are forgotten. Unlike pulsars which are known to start giving trouble (gearbox) after 2 years of use, Honda always shines. I have a Hero honda splendor since last 6 years (long time huh!)....It still gives me great satisfaction driving it, whereas when I drive my friends 2 year old pulsar, I can't wait to get out of it.
So if a Hero honda is so good.....Honda is definitely going to be helluva lot better.
Conclusion:
Looks - ok to good
Technology- Excellent
Performance - Very good
Ride - excellent
Buy it guys. No point in waiting for some more time.
New models will keep coming, and as technology moves ahead, most will be better than what is available today.
You can't wait forever can u?
No other performance bike will probably give you as much value for money with so much comfort & reliability as this one.
Bye
Amit
