I am a 32 years old banker residing in Kolkata. Had a Vespa Select for 5-6 years in Lucknow but sold it 5 years ago and havent touched any two wheeler since then. My office is 10 kms from my residence. When I first decided to buy a bike I thought I'd be having a few choices but after reasearching for about a couple of weeks, I found that actually I had very little of it. I wanted to buy a 125-150 cc bike with understated looks but solid reliable performance. A few bikes that I had shortlisted & researched were :-
1) HH Hunk (HH CBZ was out of stock) - Very Good pickup, Good handling & good mileage for its class.
2) Bajaj Pulsar - Good value for money & easily the most common bike in its category with Good Pickup, above average handling and "nothing to write home about" fuel efficiency. Maintenence is cheap.
3) Honda Unicorn - Seems to be the best 150 cc bike money can buy in India. Very Good pickup, Excellent handling, top mileage for its class, understated looks. Only flaw I could gather was relatively narrow tyres for a 150 cc bike but overall very much the kind of bike I wanted.
4) Honda Shine - Again great value for money with OK looks. Rejected as lots of negative feedback claiming "Vibration at speeds above 45-50".
5) Yamaha Gladiator - Reasonably good pickup and handling & the best bet in 125 cc if servicing/spares is not an issue with the buyer.
6) Yamaha FZ16 - Late entrant in my list but boy what an entry. No questions asked about its looks and performance. It beats the living lights out of competition but the two big IFS were (1) It would cost me 7 grands more than the Unicorn and give me a feeling I had better bought a second hand car instead. (2) No confirmed word on mileage with some quarters pegging it as low as 30.
So after losing a couple of nights of sleep over which bike to choose, I found myself in the Honda showroom finalising on the Unicorn & discussing delivery details. I had already wasted almost a month in my reasearch and commuting to office was getting more agonising every passing day. As it was November end and my Bank account was empty, I decided to swipe my card. To my amazement, the guy said that the company has a policy prohibiting the use of cards and asked me to pay in cash/cheque/DD. I was extremely exasperated at this and just didnt know what to do.
Then a strange thing happened. All of a sudden memories of 10 years ago flashed before my eyes and I started recalling how badly I wanted the RX135 and couldnt buy it as my parents wouldnt allow. How I had dreamt of owning a Yamaha during my teenage years and later had to dismiss the idea as two strokes were banned & had gone out of production and I developed a distaste for 4-strokes. Yes, I couldnt own a 2-stroke Yammie but at least I could own a 4-stroke Yammie. And the issue was sealed then. I went to the Yamaha showroom, swiped my card and booked the FZ16. It was Nov 25 and the bike was promised in 20 days time. There was nothing to do but wait eternally.....
After dying a thousand deaths during the next 25 days, finally I woke up to D-Day (read Delivery Day). Completed the delivery formalities in a jiffy and was finally handed over the key. Cant tell you how scared I was to get a chance to drive the legend. Made a short prayer, pushed shift to gear 1 and let go. For the first few moments felt as if I wouldnt be able to balance the bike but no sooner did I shifted to 2nd gear, I felt as if I had rode it all my life. What happended next is indescribable. I rode the bike for the next hour & a half stopping only once to refuel. Since then have rode it for 250 kms approx and this is what I have for reporting :-
PROS
(1) Looks - No need to comment. (Update) On second thoughts I'd like to warn about the color. If you go for Lava Red, as I have done, be prepared to get "Normal Red". The color delivered is not that shown in ads.
(2) Handling - Impeccable. Simply out of the world. The bike moves on road like a Cartini (knife) through butter. Guess tyres, monocross suspension and weight balancing have a lot to contribute. Nobody can touch Yamaha when it comes to handling. They really make biking a joy; even in Kolkata traffic.
(3) Pickup - Great from whatever I've seen (upto 60-70 kmph). Havent really had the chance to test this as the bike is still in break-in
(4) Handle bar grip, seating posture, etc are very good. Didnt feel slightest pain even after driving 20 kms. on the trot.
(5) Mileage - Yet to be tested. Will update. (Update) First reserve to reserve check has given me a mileage of 43. However, considering I'm not a particularly good driver and have used a lot of clutch as also the fact that the bike has been used in congested traffic, I'd say the mileage is competitive. After servicing it should come out to about 48-50.
(6) Neutral indicator - Godsend relief for those who have trouble switching to neutral
(7) Console - A lot has been said about this but personally I feel it's not as bad as some may report. Obviously doesnt look as good as an analog.
(8) Horn - Again not very loud as many have reported but I feel "It is the bike which should make the statement, not the horn". Loud horns look cheap.
CONS
(1) No kick start - I shudder at the thought of having to drag the vehicle
(2) Toe lever for Gear - In spite of having excellent gear transmission, this can really spoil your shoes, especially if they are soft leather. (Update) After driving around for over 300 kms, my leather shoes have not shown any signs of wear & tear courtesy the slick gear transmission.
(3) No utility box, etc. - forget all else, where would you keep the bike papers. Though there's a little space below the seat cover, the mechanic recommends not to keep anything there as it will likely obstruct the air filter. (Update) Would somebody please suggest a way out for carrying bike papers. I'm tired of carrying them on my person.
(4) Seat for Pillion rider not very comfortable. Doesnt matter if you plan to ride alone
(5) I'd rather have the horn button on the right and start button on the left. Others may prefer the way it is. Again location of the fuel lever is a bit uncomfortable.
(6) Yamaha recommends unleaded petrol, so you have to be choosy about your refueling station.
(7) You'd do well to get mud guards installed, especially on the front wheel as the fat tyres have a tendency to kick up a lot of dirt.
(8) Availability of spares and qualified personnel for servicing (what with bikes getting rather "digitalised" these days) is a worry. (Update) Accessories are not available easily and you may have to do some customisation in case you wish to go for crash guard.
Dont be bothered by the long list of cons. Most of it is just trifles, (except the lack of kickstart). I'm extremely happy with the performance of the bike and would readily recommend it. Once you ride the FZ you get know just why expertise in "metal engineering" is important not only in making keyboards but also making bikes. Its a perfect example in man and machine in harmony.
Lastly, to those of you who have sold out on their yammies, I'll signoff by reminding you of an old Volkswagen Beetle ad (with necessary modifications) - "If you sold your soul in the early 2000s, here's a chance to buy it back".
