[drt_rdr]

Not trying to dissuade anyone from buying it. To each their own. I hope it turns out to be a good purchase for your friend. I'm still interested to know how it runs if you'd like to share. I was only replying to you.

Anyway, if your friend was a Yezdi man, maybe the upcoming Yezdi adventure bike might pull some heart strings.

P.S. Just to put some perspective on to the ground clearance stats which young riders tend to get very intense about. Generations of Indian riders, rallyists and the Indian Army (and the British Army before) have been trail and mountain riding on the Bullet.

With a ground clearance of 135 mm.

On terrain which bears no passing resemblance to the roads and tunnels that crisscross India today.

But we don't know how slow they might have needed to have gone, or how many times they would've had to turn back from taking a trail or water crossing that appeared too difficult at that GC, or how many curses they might have muttered under their breaths every time a stone or somesuch hit the underside of their bikes.

[TheHelix0202]

I think the discussions are going a little off-topic here! For whatever “little” comfort / advantage these supposed “jacked up road bikes” offer over their cousins, they cater to customers of various needs, wants and likes. Personally, I’m more comfy on an Adventure 390 and would pick it over the Duke if my primary goal was to travel long distances / over bad roads - there’s simply no competition in that. I’m not going to be nitpicking over how the Duke is a mere stone’s throw away from roughing it out over the same patch of road / no road. My spine will gladly do with the extra bit of cushioning, no complaints heard. We can’t have Africa Twins at this price range.

Anyway, I can’t wait to get my hands on this bike for a test ride. The novelty factor alone is enough, I don’t mind if it isn’t a proper ADV. The others in the market do the job better.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by drt_rdr

But we don't know how slow they might have needed to have gone, or how many times they would've had to turn back from taking a trail or water crossing that appeared too difficult at that GC, or how many curses they might have muttered under their breaths every time a stone or somesuch hit the underside of their bikes.

Oh but we do know.

I am one of those ancient Indian Bullet riders.

Pretty fast. Bash on regardless style rider as most of us were.

We did everything on our Bullets. No fancy horses for courses luxuries for us.

One man. One bike. And lucky enough to have done the bulk of my riding at a time when we still did not have roads or even the super slabs of this millennium.





Cheers, Doc

P.S. Do tell more about this Yezdi Adventure. He tried very hard to like the new Yezdis, but even without the firing, he just did not like them. Plus the dimensions and the three quarter small saddle for his two up needs.

[drt_rdr]

Not to get into a pissing contest, but my rides are some pretty ancient tech too, tiny little air cooled 150s are nothing new or fancy or even potent.

I've also had my own bit of saddle time on RE's goods in and around the hills of Karnataka\Tamil Nadu, and have had the opportunity to ride back to back over different kinds of dirt with the impulse and compare. The impulse is something on which even the least experienced member of our riding group could hop on and somehow keep rolling even in rocky, slushy conditions, while in comparison, the rest of us on the REs would be sweating bullets to keep the bikes in line and off ourselves.

The rookie on the impulse would inevitably either easily keep up or move ahead of the REs making even experienced riders look like jokers. If I had to have only one bike in my garage for life, it would have to be something like the Impulse, no doubt.

So, there's no way I can appreciate that 135 mm GC or those ~180 kilos of the stuff that were reserved for guns but they mistakenly made bikes out of. But I definitely envy the times you rode in. Wish I had that good fortune.

[Cyborg]

A 19inch front wheel cannot be compared to a 17inch front wheel/tyre period. The difference between both is primarily the ease at which the 17inch wheel equipped bike can be flicked about or it’s ease of handling which cannot be compared to the 19inch front wheel. A 19inch front wheel will always feel a little lazy to flick around or take corners with. All this is of course talking about it’s road performance. A 21inch front will of course feel even more lazier or laid back in swift direction changes on road.

In my limited riding of the KTM twins, it’s just not the same. The Duke has its own appeal versus the Adventure with its height and better suspension. Think of a speed breaker or our bad roads on the Duke the ease of flying over it just cannot be compared to the Adventure. On the Adventure just stand on the pegs and the bike just flies over it, no fuss no stress at all. Plus the extra goodies like the traction control, lean sensitive ABS etc just cannot be discounted. However great a rider you are, the extra technology can save you a fall and that is priceless.

This Benelli will suit some people for sure but those looking for some proper oomph will be disappointed. An experienced rider may get bored of the performance level pretty fast. That’s why Ebonho your friends experience will be interesting to know.

Cheers

[ebonho]

https://youtu.be/1AO9zOT-B_s

Nice. Light, slim, flickable. 153 kilos. 140 kmph top with a 100 kilo 6'3" rider. It's no slouch, happy to see. Sounds great too. Not unlike a KTM. Nice fat throaty silencer opening too.

4 piston petal discs with ABS. Suspension feels nice, even with the relatively short 120 mm travel. 2A USB covered watertight charging port on the tank. Looks like the Euro version is shod with Metzelers. 17 liter tank.

Cheers, Doc

[ebonho]

Another nice review. From Turkey this time.

https://youtu.be/Or2tpY6xXoM

P.S. Pakistani boys reporting 31 kmpl in ride it like you stole it mode.

Cheers, Doc

[neil.jericho]

The on road price is Rs 3.37L here in Kerala. The bike is expected to reach our local showrooms this week.

[neil.jericho]

I got to take a quick look at the TRK 251 in the local Benelli showroom. It feels nice,comfortable and well put together but visually isnt too intimidating. Ironically the TRK 502 looks like a mammoth next to its smaller sibling.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

I got to take a quick look at the TRK 251 in the local Benelli showroom. It feels nice,comfortable and well put together but visually isnt too intimidating. Ironically the TRK 502 looks like a mammoth next to its smaller sibling.

Though after seeing the Yezdi (and the Himalayan) this does look a bit too "plasticky" for a serious adventure, 150 kilos versus 200 for the competition (even the KTM is fat now) is just too massive a draw to be ignored.

Huge. Huge.

Those who like fat bikes of course for them even 200+ can be explained away.

But once you get used to the feel of muscling a light bike, you cannot and will not go back to fatter bikes.

Power ceases to be a consideration beyond a point in the mountains, and unless you do all your riding on the GQ, a fat bike (underpowered too) gets on your nerves pretty quickly.

Cheers, Doc

[SoumenD]

First review from Indian media I guess? As per the reviewer its a neither here, nor there motorcycle.

https://youtu.be/MtvuNSpKUE8

[bf1983]

This bike seems to have everything going against it -

- Low power and torque, even a Himalayan is faster to 100 kph.

- Vibey engine which again affects crusing speed.

- Low suspension travel which makes off roading a no no and also affects its usage on bad roads.

- Bad clutch and clunky gear box. Since on our roads we change gears so often thats a pretty big drawback.

- Poor service network and high price put the final nail in its coffin.

The only real reason to get this bike would be exclusivity at a low price point. You won't find many on the roads so you can be sure you will get a lot of eyeballs.

[ebonho]

https://youtu.be/t8L-Uro79_A

Slower than Himalayan? Lol

This bike is properly fast. Take a look at the video ...

Cheers, Doc

[bf1983]

Originally Posted by ebonho

https://Youtu.be/t8L-Uro79_A

Slower than Himalayan? Lol

This bike is properly fast. Take a look at the video ...

Cheers, Doc

Was referring to acceleration tests. I clearly said 0 to 100. Most roads don't allow bikes to exceed 100 and even then this bike has lot of vibes post 90 kph as per Zigwheels which means you wouldn't wish to exceed those speeds for long.

[ebonho]

https://youtu.be/eZnNTMivlGI

Another video (somewhere in Europe by the look of it) that reaffirms that this is a properly fast quarter liter bike, in Adventure trim.

Cheers, Doc