Safe and comfortable. Review on Kinetic Honda DX

Let us review this vehicle based on what one has to look for in a scooter. Safety, comfort, after sales service, and economy. I owned Kinetic Honda DX scooter for six years.

Let us look at first safety, which should be the paramount factor for purchasing a two- wheeler. In my view, this scooter has much better balance than those with their engine mounted on one side. It is common sense that better balance is the most important factor in determining the safety of a two wheel vehicle. Better balance also reduces the scope for skidding to one side when sudden brakes are applied in an emergency situation.

I found this practically, I skidded and fell down from the scooter when I applied sudden brakes while going at about 45 Kmph on my Chetak on a clean (no sand on the road) dry road in Delhi. In a similar situation at a higher speed my Kinetic did not skid on a slightly wet road. The second reason why the Kinetic is a safer vehicle is its superior suspension. Good suspension, besides providing comfort to the driver, keeps good traction on the road and makes driving safe.

Next issue is comfort. Kinetic is in a different class in this respect. It has no gears. This makes a lot of difference when you have to travel is a stop and go traffic. There is no need to operate the clutch and change gears; I got blisters on my hands within a few weeks after I began riding my first scooter a Chetak.

As indicated above the suspension is good and my 30 km daily commute never made me feel tired. The vehicle has both kick start and self start; again gives a lot of advantage when the vehicle stops in the middle of the traffic or at a traffic light ? you do not have to get off the vehicle and kick start. The seats are better designed and comfortable particularly to the pillion rider.

After sales service at the time I owned the vehicle was definitely not as good as what was possible for a Chetak; any mechanic could fix a Bajaj. Kinetic requires gentle handling. But the need to visit a mechanic is much less. In fact I found the vehicle very reliable ? did not have to visit mechanics except for regular service.

Economy. Kinetic is more expensive to maintain. Although I did not find much difference in fuel economy compared to a Chetak, spares parts are expensive. Then one has compare the additional cost with the difference in ride quality, convenience and safety. Overall I feel Kinetic gives value for money though not the cheapest one to keep.

Now let us look at other issues. I used to use this scooter to go from my newly developing colony to the nearest town. There was no road for a couple of kilometers. I never had problem in doing cross country alone; it used to take the rough, but not when my wife was on the pillion seat. Since the body is low, with a pillion rider, it used to hit the ground when I tried to jump the scooter across small the bunds you find in open agriculture fields. One has to be careful about this issue while going on a bumpy road with a pillion rider.

The second issue is with the silencer, it has to de-carbonated periodically. I did not know this; and after running some 7,000 km one day it refused to start. I pushed it a couple of kilometers to a mechanic. He simply punctured the silencer and started it to demonstrate to me what I should have done to start it when the silencer got clogged. De-carbonating should be done as required to have good fuel economy.

Its battery requires care; periodically acid level has to be checked and topped up. Topping up is a delicate operation as the battery has very small openings.

Glove compartment is quite small; one need a basket in the front but that can cause problems if you are a tall person

I never had a puncture on the front wheel; fixing that could be problematic.

Overall, on balance, I feel buying it is a value for money proposition. A very convenient vehicle for women.