Comet Capers. Review on Hyosung Comet GT250

DISCLAIMER: I AM THE EXECUTIVE EDITOR FOR BIKE INDIA MAGAZINE, AND FIRST WROTE THIS REVIEW (BELOW) FOR THE MAGAZINE. THIS REVIEW IS BEING POSTED HERE SO IT CAN REACH A WIDER AUDIENCE.

My daily home-office-home commute used to be all of 70km (when I lived in Mumbai) and driving a car to work every day was a nightmare. What I really needed was a lightweight, reliable and fuel-efficient two-wheeler which would make commuting hassle-free. Something that would start up every morning without fail, not require me to change gears or use a kick-start, give me some lockable space to stow a helmet and my lunchbox, and be easy to park. So of course, I bought a bright red Hyosung Comet GT250. Er.., yes. The Comet is fairly light and flickable, does about 20-22 km/l, and has proved to be completely reliable. It also has electric start, and though there’s no space to store a helmet and/or a jacket, there’s some lockable storage space below the passenger seat. Enough space for two sandwiches anyway. Not bad, eh?

But seriously, over the last few months, the bike has surprised me with how good it is at the daily commute thing. The ergonomics are spot on and the bike puts the rider in a nice, sporty tuck which feels just right. Clip-ons will certainly look sportier but the stock handlebar provides adequate leverage and makes the bike easy to steer in tight situations. Accommodation for a pillion passenger is paltry though and especially for women, it’s none too easy to clamber on to the high-perched rear seat. Regarding the engine, 30bhp and 21Nm isn’t a great deal to begin with, in a bike that weighs 135kg dry.

And then, most of the power is stacked away in the upper reaches of the rev range. But at least it doesn’t kill you with boredom. The Comet’s DOHC, 4-valves-per-cylinder, 249cc, air-and-oil cooled V-twin sounds good and is great fun once you get it spinning. A free-flow system that provides some aural enhancement would be welcome – an HSRC (Hyosung Sports Racing Co.) pipe is available in some markets abroad and I wish Kinetic would make it available here in India as well. What’s important is, the Comet’s 75-degree V-twin stays smooth right up to its 11,000rpm redline and never sounds rough or thrashy. I’ve seen 140 km/h on the speedo on various occasions though I suspect that measured top speed would be around 130 km/h.

The engine needs some lusty revving if you want to launch the bike hard from a standing start and you need to slip the clutch a bit while getting off the line. Ideally, I would have appreciated a bit more grunt low down, especially for impromptu stoplight GPs. The clutch, at least, is light and the five-speed gearbox is slick and notch-free. The one complaint that I do have is that finding neutral, with the engine running, can sometimes be difficult – especially after a long, hard run. I was rather hoping that this would improve with time, but things haven’t changed even after clocking around 5,000km on the bike. (Yes, I did ride at least 70km every day, but I also get to use other bikes, hence that figure…) The other gripe I have is with the brakes.

The Comet has a 300mm disc at the front, with twin-piston calipers, and a 230mm disc at the back, with single piston calipers. This combo should be sufficient for a 250, but the brakes lack feel and power. Hauling the bike down from 130 km/h, the front brake lever comes right back to the bar and things can get hairy if you need to stop in a hurry. I’ve made sure that calipers are properly adjusted, checked to see if the discs were warped (they weren’t), and had the system bled, but things haven’t really improved much. Also tried to find some steel braided lines but just couldn’t get any that would fit the Comet. If you can afford it, I’d say fitting twin discs at the front is the way to go. Since both legs on the front fork have the necessary lugs anyway, this shouldn’t be too difficult, though you’d probably also have to replace the stock master cylinder with a bigger one, which could be hard to find. On to the best bits now.

And without any question, the Comet’s handling is where it’s at. The chassis is happy being slung around bends as hard as you dare and the 110/70 (front) and 150/70 (rear) tubeless Shinkos are grippy enough – at least in the dry. You have to be a bit more careful in the wet, but then the Shinkos’ rubber compound is probably meant to strike a balance between grip and longevity. And yes, the tyres are not suitable for bad roads. Mumbai might be the ‘commercial capital’ of India, but the roads are just rubbish and you wince each time the bike thuds through a pothole – there is very little tyre sidewall to cushion the impact. Low profile rubber and our kind of roads don’t get along very well. Maintaining the right tyre pressure also seems to be very crucial on the Comet and you may want to experiment a bit to find what works best for you. For me, 33psi/36psi front/rear works well. The Comet’s 41mm USD front forks are very cool to look at, and work very well too. They offer 4.7 inches of travel but are not adjustable, which is a pity.

The spring rates and damping are fine for me, but lightweight riders may find the forks a bit stiffly sprung. The rear spring is adjustable for preload and for me, it works best on its hardest setting. Anything less firm makes for a more comfortable ride, but then the bike floats and wallows too much. Again, lighter riders may want to experiment with the settings. Keeping the shock on its stiffest setting also increases rear ride height slightly, which quickens the steering a bit and vastly improves the Comet’s cornering abilities. On the modifications front, I’ve had both 90 and 92.5 main jets replaced with 100s, and the stock (messy…) intake tract has been chopped and cleaned up for straight, less restrictive air flow. I always run 91-Octane petrol and when I can find it, Speed 97. The bike runs smoothest on Speed 97 and revs quicker, though top speed remains unchanged at 140 km/h. On the cards is increasing the ride height at the back (or pulling up the front forks by 5mm), finding braided lines for the front brakes and having all three baffle plates in the muffler drilled, so I can hear more of that V-twin rumble. Finally, has it been worth spending all that money on the Comet?

Yes, every single bit of it! I only hope more manufacturers take the cue from Kinetic and make bigger and more powerful bikes available in this country.