7 performance bikes of India. Review on Maintaining a Bike

Sorry guys, I could not put this review under Twenty Best Bikes.

There are bikes and then there are performance bikes. I am dealing only with performance bikes in India in this revu. This revu is only for those guyz who like performance bikes and don’t cry for mileage Go indulge.

RD 350(LT and HT)(27-37 bhp)- You want me to speak about this bike?, cos’ if you want, then in any case you aint gonna buy the bike. This bike is for men(men who own a petrol pump or who have their links in Saudi Arabia), who aren’t afraid  of expensive spares, expensive maintenance, and the awful mileage. Uffff, what a bike. The first time I rode it, nearly fell off. Does 0-60 in 3.5 seconds, 0-100 in 7.5 seconds, 0-150 in 15 seconds. Top speed of 160 kmph. What can I say about it. U have to ride it to believe it. It is just not the raw figures of the 0-60 or 0-100 but in the manner it does them. The handling is scary at high speeds(cos’ it is a 1980’s product). This is the bike you want if you cannot afford that Kinetic Comet cos’ it feels a mile faster and also guzzles  petrol much faster. How does 15 kmpl sound to you?

Yamaha RX 100(11 bhp)- How cud I leave out the RX. It begs to be driven rashly and then lets out one of the most erotic sounds one can hear on a motorcycle. It is a very affordable bike, available for around 5k to 10k in gud condition. It had a 0-60 time of 6 seconds which looked like something around 4 seconds and a top speed of 105-110 kmph. But the bad thing is the mileage figure of around 35-40. Performance enthusiasts wont mind that but the common man wud. But then the common man wouldn’t buy the RX 100 for its mileage.Its initial pik up is awesome but after 50-60 kmph the pulsar 150 overtakes it. 2 strokes are never meant to be stock. So a ported(modified) RX can do a 0-60 in around 3.5 seconds and blast to top speed of 130 kmph and kick karizma’s and pulsar 180’s a**. RX 100 is one long lasting bike which can be gauged from the fact that there are many RX’s out there alive and kicking.

Suzuki Shogun(14.4 bhp)- If there is a bike which takes my breath away, this is it. It is an absolute hoot to drive in the city owing to its fast acceleration and fantablous soundtrack coupled with good handling. It is even more fun to drive than the RX 100 cos’ it is already overported. It does a 0-60 kmph in 5.5 seconds and has a top speed of 110-115 kmph. It out accelerates a pulsar 150 till its top speed but is below the performance of the 180 and karizma but feels a lot lot faster. But it was expensive when it was in production. This accounts for the highish price of a shogun. It retails for abot 10k to 16 k second hand. It is rightly known as the BOSS. It has the soundtrack of a dirt bike. But there is a big downside, obviously its mileage. Its FE was a scant 25-30 kmpl which further went down if driven very rashly. Spares are available but buy only if u can afford the FE. But there is a very very big disadvantage- you have to rebore the piston after every 20000 Kms.

Yamaha RXZ(14bhp)- Hurry all u 2 stroke terrorists, there is no time to lose. Buy this bike right now as the govt of India is going to make this bike history in about 6 months. This is the only 2 stroke performance bike in production right now. It is an absolutely brilliant machine which can teach some 4 strokes a lesson. The Yamaha is given poor rubber, but put on fat tyres and you have a hooligan bike to ride around town.It’s performance is right now is a little less(comparatively) because of the emission norms but if u put the proton exhaust and port the engine, then the bike will do 0-60 in 4seconds and scream to a top speed of 130-135 kmph. Wud return around 35 kmpl. Damn, Yamaha is absolutely ignoring this bike but concentrating on commuters like Fazer, crux etc. Buy this bike if u want to buy a brand new 2 stroker.

Kinetic Comet(27bhp)- It is the closest you can get to a genuine sportsbike in India. Has got an awesome combination of looks, performance and handling. But the prime interest deflating factor is the Price. 1.75 lakh for a 250 cc bike. Ha ha ha. No thank you very much. If this bike was priced for around a lakh, it would have sold ten times more than it sells now. But as a certain Mr Sidhu says - if ifs and buts were pots and pans then there would be no thinkers. 0-60 kmph is downed in 4 seconds and 0-100 kmph is done away in 10 seconds flat.Top speed is 140 kmph. Milage is pretty much satisfactory with 25 kmpl.

Bajaj Pulsar 180(all versions)(15-16.5bhp)- The most affordable perfomance bike needs no introduction. Launched late 2001, it kicked CBZ’s and fiero’s arses flat. Had a character to kill for. Naked steetfighter looks with 15 bhp of unadulterated power meant that it was on every youngsters wishlist. 0-60kmph was done away in 5 seconds with a top speed of 120 kmph. After nearly 2 years, to face the onslaught of HH Karizma, Bajaj upgraded the pulsars and out came the “karizma beater” Pulsar 180 DTSi. It was a marvel in itself. It did a 0-60 run in a blazing 4.5 seconds and 0-100 in another 9-10 seconds  and  with a top speed of 128 kmph put itself on the top of the performance charts. Now, Bajaj has seen that nobody can achieve the top speed in the city and so come up with the mini dtsi. Looks much better and accelerates as fast if not faster than the older version. Low end torque is brilliant and at 4000 rpm in top gear twist the throttle and the dtsi takes off like a diwali rocket, but the top speed has been compromised with. Mileage given is the same at about 45kmpl.  The top speed now is just 115 kmph. Buy if you want more performance than the p150 then go for this bike.

HH Karizma(17 bhp)- Hero Honda guys should breath easy, the pulsar 180 has fallen in the top speed stakes. Jokes aside, if you’ve got the moolah, this is the bike to buy. It has the performance, the presence and handling like no other. It doesn’t feel as fast as it is going,  totally contradicting the two strokers. This is a poser’s bike no doubt. I have a pulsar 180, and whenever I challenge a  karizma, the poor guys don’t want to race with me. I don’t know why have they bought the bike for? Mileage? Naah,  just for the image that only a karizma can provide. So it is right now the fastest production bike in India. It is capable of doing a 0-60 run in 4.5seconds and can demolish 0-100 kmph run in 15 seconds. Mileage given is a paltry 30 kmpl which falls down drastically if driven rashly.

All these bikes are excellent in their respects. It is up to you to decide which is the one which fits your pocket

. Take care until next time, this is Karan signing off.