[reihem]

I think the posts on not getting permission for the purchase, while hilarious are also very very true. If you can afford a car, especially a C, D or D+ (which is what a super bike will cost you at the least), getting wife/mother to sign off on a super bike is hard.

the knowledge that it won't be used a often as a car might contribute to the inertia as well, but if ROI was all we worried about we wouldn't spend on foreign holidays or any other passing indulgence for that matter.

[COMMUTER]

The place where there is a high concentration of people who are financially capable of buying these motorcycles are getting saturated with these high capacity machines. This damps the enthusiasm of the prospective buyers who are more focussed on standing out of the crowd.

Other people who stretch their budget to purchase these machines instead of a car are getting pinched by the maintenance costs of the superbikes. They are desperately looking for a way out which is apparent to others.

The more knowledgeable people might be put off by heat generated by the high capacity machines, sparsity of spares, vandalism etc.

There are some people who can thrust all others reasons aside, but get bogged down with the thought of facing a situation where their children might take off after them at a much younger stage giving rise to nightmares which will prove vexing thus stopping the purchase. The influence of media can be acutely felt in this aspect with news and net being replete with incidents of youngsters getting killed while riding high power machines.

My Dad had an RE350 and went on long rides often. I took off after him by going on many long rides (mostly 300kms but rarely over 600kms too) decades after he sold off his motorcycle. Though he dissuaded me from making him buy an RE for me he couldn't stop me from begging my way to an Apache 160. Had he been riding a HH Splendour, convincing me to opt for something similar would have been a cakewalk, sparing my Mom a lot of sleepless nights.

[Urban_Nomad]

Originally Posted by GTO

Am disappointed with this.....

Why are you disappointed? This is a great sign IMO. It tells me that most buyers in this segment are mature and level headed. They are buying products that are relevant to the Indian scene. Sub 500 cc bikes such as the Duke 390, Ninja, R3 etc put down "usable" power and still have enough in reserve to make the hair on the back of your neck stand up

Unfortunately, people who are buying an expensive bike to fulfill a lifelong dream or actually use that monstrous power in a proper setting like a racetrack (Bhpian "Narula" comes to mind for the latter) are too few and far between. At least up North, you will see most of these big bike owners riding around lidless (forget riding gear), revving the nuts off their stationary bikes while struggling to lean their bikes over to make a simple corner

Not just in India, people the world over are gravitating towards "more manageable" small bikes; especially in the Adventure touring segment. just visit any such relevant forum and everyone everywhere is looking for a lightweight, 4 - 500 odd cc ADV motorcycle that will be easier to handle in the rough stuff, easier to pick up when the inevitable slide + crash occurs and doesn't cost an arm and leg to buy / run / fix

I would conclude by saying that even if I had the cash to buy a 1000 cc behemoth, I simply wouldn't. I am an average Joe that rides in the real world and needs a motorcycle to do just that

[djpeesh]

It's been almost 4 years of riding my Bonnie around Bombay and quite honestly, our climate coupled with an air cooled engine pretty much turn you off city riding.

I remember riding to work used to be bliss without any traffic (at 8 am - Bandra to Lower Parel). But in the evening, that same journey would be agony. The Bonnie would be snarling and would frequently cut out, the heat would be unbearable (both the ambient temperature and the engine). I was relieved to get home by the end of it. To add to it, I was always ATGATT and even a mesh jacket didn't help. By the time I was home, I smelled like a hobo (from sweat and the general pollution, I had soot on my face and was generally in a rotten mood).

Compare that to driving to work. In the morning, the sealink would be relatively traffic free. In the evening, after clearing the gridlock at Worli, it was smooth sailing most of the time to Bandra. You had aircon, the radio, an automatic transmission.

The icing on the cake was dealing with hotel security guards.. I frequently had meetings at hotels in Bombay. With a car, you never ever deal with security as much as I did when riding the Bonnie. In a car, you drive up to the hotel, the security guard does a cursory security check, salutes you and you drop off the car with the valet.

With the Bonnie, you had to first find out were bikes allowed. At ALL five stars in Bombay, they do not allow bikes. In fact, at the Taj Lands End, I was even threatened by the security guard who said that if I leave my Bonnie OUTSIDE the gate, he would call the police and say it was a suspicious vehicle. I remember telling the manager about it and he said the security guard was free to do whatever he liked as the management had said no motorcycles as they kept the unwanted elements out or some such (I emailed the then CEO of the Taj after that and as expected got no response).

After a while, I got fed up of taking the Bonnie to work as if I had a meeting, I would have to leave the bike at the office (and that involved it getting clamped for leaving it overnight, etc). or fighting every single time. Uber or driving myself was a less stressful and hypertension inducing way to commute.

At least the Bonnie looked like a Bullet and most of the time no one fiddled around with it. With most other superbikes, you have the element of people messing with it as well.

[pixantz]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Quite right, however quite sad to generalise this trend for the market too.

I believe the market is finally maturing from snob value to selecting big motorcycles that are actually suitable for the Indian context. I can see many BHP'ians upgrading to bikes like the Versys 650, Tiger 800, Ninja 1000 etc over the likes of the Harleys, Zs, litre class superbikes etc. See any of the ownership report for these kind of bikes and you see how they are being used the way a big bike should be - rather than spending time inside the garage waiting it out for different seasons to get over - monsoons cause roads are wet, summer because bike heats up and what not!

Infact, I think the future has good potential for 500cc plus capacity motorbikes -

The market is slowly but steadily moving upwards, for sure.

Very true. The "bigger bike" phenomenon has finally arrived in India and is here to stay. Though we are roughly about 30 years behind the world in this aspect. People are getting into the groove and naturally it will take some time for things to normalize and get into rhythm. And that's lovely!

I used to cringe at people going gung-ho about the puny 100cc's as if it was the most powerful thing on the planet. But things are certainly getting hot, and how!

Basically its just good for the realization to sink in that more of our fellow countrymen are really getting to know actual biking more up-close. Only better times ahead!

[Rathore_13]

Originally Posted by timuseravan

I completely disagree! As a matter of fact I see more and more people of newer generation (freshers joining my office) riding these days as compared to when I myself was a fresher. And here the thing: people don't need 1600cc "big bikes" to ride or enjoy riding.
I don't know the road/traffic conditions of Chandigarh. But in Pune/Bangalore and most Indian cities daily office commute with Harley at peak times will be pure torture.
Also I have way more fun riding my Duke than I had riding Street 750 and Iron 883.

Yeah but how many of the new gen are buying big bikes?
That's what the thread is about.

Also, I'm not suggesting that big bikes mean more fun in crowded cities. Riding in Pune/Bengaluru is definitely torture. And therefore I bought the big-bore-torque monster. Someone living in Chandigarh can afford the lifestyle. I wouldn't think about owning a HD in Pune/Bengaluru. In those cities I would choose Uber or self drive. And if someone put a gun to my head, then maybe ride a cramped 390 or 200.

[AtheK]

Forget Superbikes I struggle to take the rr310 to office daily, the standstill traffic means I am torturing both me and the machine. I have switched back to rtr for my office commute. I think if I need to upgrade now, I will probably settle for a ninja 400 for the refinement or best case a ninja 650 and call it a day. Never am I going to buy anything else.

[PrasannaDhana]

Originally Posted by Rathore_13

. And if someone put a gun to my head, then maybe ride a cramped 390 or 200.

Duke 200 is cramped, new 390s aren't!

Originally Posted by AtheK

Forget Superbikes I struggle to take the rr310 to office daily, the standstill traffic means I am torturing both me and the machine.

Come on! Even a 100cc is a torture to ride in a city like Bangalore. Don't stop using the RR. RR runs much cooler than the segment 300 singles.

There are people who ride 1000cc to work everyday. One of my friends rides his FZ1 in Chennai traffic every single day and is happy about it.

More importantly it is our mindset that influences our riding. I sometimes ride my rc390 in 40 degrees sun, cold weather and in rain. Sometimes I become lazy enough that I prefer one of my cars even in the most pleasant weather.

Personally if I spend 10+ on a bike, I will make sure I use it. Why should we keep it parked when it is a depreciating disaster? I would rather use it to my heart's content.

PS: People who think superbikes cannot be used everyday, there is this Lambo owner who did a 4000 km road-trip around our beautiful country. 4000km in a Lambo!!

[pixantz]

So basically though the "Big Bike" scene is surely and strongly growing rapidly here, which is awesome, the quality of life index still doesn't favor any normal guy going for one and only the ones with considerable earning power or ones with lots of green/magenta paper rolls already stashed away are so far capable of procuring one. But all these guys can do mostly is commute on it. And these bikes are not really meant solely for commuting. Are they? But the current owner/s profile is effectively reducing them to ultimately be 'office commuters'!

But I guess that will change to. And then the main concern will not be about the big bikes "commuter" capabilities.

[jpcoolguy]

With the tiny amount of sales (roughly 0.05% of the total two wheeler sales in a year!!!), one new launch or removal/downturn of a famous bike is going to impact the 500+ CC bikes segment most and would be volatile to say the least.

The recent downtrend is mostly due to the dip in sales of HD Street 750 which constitute almost 50% of the total 500+ CC bikes segment. And this is even with the new Kawasaki launches notwithstanding, which are again anyway will have minimal sales.

The HD Street 750 used to sell an average of 275-350 units per month earlier (during 2014, 2015 period) which has come down to around 100-150 units per month now. And that surely will have a very big impact on the total sales of 500+ CC bikes.

However, this may tend to change once the RE 650 twins or Duke 790 Single is launched since they are the volume players and mass market manufacturers. Add the Bajaj-Triumph partnership to the equation, there will surely will be some improvement in the sales of 500+ CC bikes in upcoming years.

But then, they have to deal with KTM Adv 390 / BMW 310 twins, once launched, and sure they again will steal a few numbers from the 500+ CC bikes.

[AtheK]

Originally Posted by PrasannaDhana

Duke 200 is cramped, new 390s aren't!



Come on! Even a 100cc is a torture to ride in a city like Bangalore. Don't stop using the RR. RR runs much cooler than the segment 300 singles.

There are people who ride 1000cc to work everyday. One of my friends rides his FZ1 in Chennai traffic every single day and is happy about it.

More importantly it is our mindset that influences our riding. I sometimes ride my rc390 in 40 degrees sun, cold weather and in rain. Sometimes I become lazy enough that I prefer one of my cars even in the most pleasant weather.

I was initially going to an office which was 25 kms from my place, it was still good to ride the RR, as it was a considerable distance. Now the new office is 6 kms, but the time taken is almost the same as earlier, so you can imagine my plight. The last 3 Kms are a drag with choked traffic due to ongoing metro work. It's not mainly about the heat, it is an added inconvenience of extra weight and the fear of some one scratching the bike, both during commute and in jam packed parking.

Riding long is a preference, but as many said for people who use the bike in city traffic for almost 80% of commute, they would need a secondary bike.

PS: RR is not even close to a superbike still the struggle :(

[Red Liner]

I hate using the Versys in Bangalore on a daily basis. What an idiotic affair! Now with the overall increase in temperature, wearing all the bloody gear, and navigating multiple imbeciles and speed breakers before I reach wherever I need to.

I wonder what the fun is there. Unless folks like some kind of depraved self inflicting BDSM.

I also find friends using their kawasaki's to commute in Bangalore having to do much more maintenance every 6,000 kms.

A duke 390 with a lower weight fares better - but again the whole idea of the gear, lid etc. Indian city commutes are not ideal places to be.

Chennai Oh My Lord! Just the humidity will kill me on a motorcycle.

I love the motorcycle on the highways and mountains though. Since I'm not a family man, riding helps me...almost meditate.

[farhadtarapore]

Those above are precisely my reasons as well. I had considered the Triumphs and the Versys before settling in on a Duke 390. But the constant heat, stop and go traffic made me sell that off.

A 100cc gearless scooter is more than enough for pottering about in the city. For the highways, it's the comfort of the XUV. I truly HATE putting on that steaming hot gear and riding on the highways, not one ounce of fun in that.

[reddream]

Just to add my perspective of big bikes. Being a 40 something person, grew up with dreams of owning a fast super bike. The first chance I got in 2012 to own a N650 jumped on it and after that ridden a few super bikes.

The things I learnt :
1. Riding these bikes are not as comfortable as the bikes we are used (150cc). In long rides when you are tired of riding 150kmph + in a sporty position (even N650) you start fighting to ride a ZMR ( laid back riding position, light and comfy). No seasoned riders ride faster than 120 anyway. And the number of extra fuel stops sucks. Extra tyre wear, extra careful parking, not worth it at times.

2. You need to be really committed to riding and that means waking up at 4-5am on Sundays. After some time you wonder if it is really fun.

3. Speed kills. Seen enough great riders bite the dust. Is it really worth it ? You need to try it once but not get addicted to it. I am getting all my fix of speed on racing simulators.

4. Riding on the track. Except the rush when opening the throttle on straights, riding a R15 is fun for me. You make a mistake in the corner and you know you screwed it on a slower bike. In a big bike you open the throttle and you feel you are fast, but really ?

I just have an Hero Impulse now. Modded it a little and enjoy the riding / touring / adventure on it. Find it plenty fast on country roads. Don't feel guilty of pushing my luck. Don't feel bad that I have a bike which costs only 30k seeing only 5k mileage a year.

[MadRasTan4986]

Originally Posted by PrasannaDhana

Personally if I spend 10+ on a bike, I will make sure I use it. Why should we keep it parked when it is a depreciating disaster? I would rather use it to my heart's content.

I'm completely with you on this Prasanna. Well put. But I do feel certain bikes do require more TLC and need to be pampered and be ridden only when the roads are free. Sure it finally comes down to the rider and if he's willing to put up with it for the love of riding.