[sreejithkk]

Hope all are doing great.
I am 40 year old and 6'2" tall person and currently looking for a commuter bike for my daily commute. I recently moved to a new job and the location is 16 KM away and the travel includes narrow roads, so commute by car will take 50 minutes where a 2 wheeler can reach there in 25 to 30 minutes.

I am looking for a bike with following qualities:
Refined Engine (Vibe free at least till 75 to 80 Kmph).
Should have a great/Plush ride quality.
Should have neutral/Forward set foot peg. (The rear set foot pegs always cause a pain on my angles/knees after a 20+ minutes of riding. So had to eliminate the great bikes like Gixxer and FZ except FZ-X)
Neutral handling is sufficient and pickup is not at all a priority for my use case.

Note: I stopped regular use of motor cycles since 2012 and using car for commute and Activa for grocery runs. I had a Honda Shine from 2006 to 2009. It was a wrong bike for me mainly because the harsh engine vibration post 60 KMPH and extremely hard ride quality, even after setting the rear shocks to softest pre-load. I even felt the bikes like old HH Glamour and Passion were way better than the shine, in terms of ride quality and refinement.

Currently I have shortlisted Unicorn 160 BS6, and FZ-X. Also still contemplating on Classic 350/Bullet 350 (If they launch with J series platform) and Highness 350, though these cost about 2.3 L onroad, which is slightly above my budget (1.5 to 2L) and for my use case, these 350 would be an overkill.

I yet to test ride these. Have ridden the BS4 Unicorn 150 extensively and found the refinement and the plush ride quality is great for my requirement. Also have ridden the UCE Bullet and Classic and felt the ride quality is stiffer.
Yet to test ride the FZ-X.

My mind is almost set on Unicorn but confusion is, is it still worth buying it in 2022, or will FZ-X provide superior ride quality/refinement? (The best bike that fit my requirement, out of all the bikes that I extensively ridden is Suzuki GS 150R. It has better refinement and ride quality than Unicorn, but sadly it is no longer in production).

[aargee]

If you're thinking in terms of Unicorn, Shine or basically in the 150cc segment & do not want to exceed 80 Kmph while having comfort as top priority, then I cannot help thinking about CB 200X or Hero xPulse. Both of them are good vehicles, can maintain 80 Kmph, offers comfortable ride (better than 150cc commuter segment) & also fits to your budget. Main benefit of these 2 being great suspensions to withstand abuse.

[shancz]

Originally Posted by sreejithkk

My mind is almost set on Unicorn but confusion is, is it still worth buying it in 2022, or will FZ-X provide superior ride quality/refinement?

IMO it doesn't make sense to buy the Unicorn in 2022 and like the GS150R this too should either have been updated or retired. Tragically both were exemplary machines for what they offered and I agree with your views on the GS150R.

Haven't ridden the FZ-X so can't comment on it, just TD and find out if it works for you.
The new Classic 350 does have the J series engine.

I would suggest to TD the following :
- Xpulse 200 4V
- Xtreme 160R
- RTR 160 4V
- CB 200X
- Pulsar N/F 250

[Sebring]

The Unicorn is an evergreen bike with the smoothest engine and gear box combo, till date, for the segment. My sibling has one for 15 years now and I'm yet to test ride another wonder like this one. I'd choose one even today

[shancz]

Good point by Sebring above.

If you're still unable to find something like the Unicorn also try the X-Blade. Same engine.

Do check out our ramblings on the GS150R over here if interested : GS150R (The last of enthusiast ICE motorcycles upto 400cc).

[Sridhar K]

Originally Posted by aargee

Both of them are good vehicles, can maintain 80 Kmph, offers comfortable ride (better than 150cc commuter segment) & also fits to your budget. Main benefit of these 2 being great suspensions to withstand abuse.

Attachment 2286908

Thanks for this recommendation. I am on the same boat as Sreejit. I drive in the southern suburbs of Chennai with not so great roads, endless, poorly designed speed breakers and cuts on the roads. Hence bikes with good and abuse friendly suspension will be of great help.

Good commuter bike, refined engine, off road/bad road friendly, good handling, braking, good gearing for city and power to take it on occasional high way trips of max 100Kms one way, short turn radius are the requirements.

Honda Highness, classic 350, meteor, java 42, Yezdi roadster/scrambler, Highness are on my list but may prefer something lighter like CB200 or Xpulse or FZ-X. FZ250. Prefer bikes without fairing and retro looks (Optional)

[tj123]

Originally Posted by Sebring

My sibling has one for 15 years now and I'm yet to test ride another wonder like this one. I'd choose one even today

I still have a 2005 model and it run butter smooth, never had any major issues just had periodic maintenance. I think the simple robust Honda design which makes it such a reliable bike..

[aargee]

Originally Posted by Sebring

The Unicorn is an evergreen bike with the smoothest engine and gear box combo, till date, for the segment. My sibling has one for 15 years now and I'm yet to test ride another wonder like this one. I'd choose one even today

Originally Posted by tj123

I still have a 2005 model and it run butter smooth, never had any major issues just had periodic maintenance. I think the simple robust Honda design which makes it such a reliable bike..

Gentlemen, HMSI's - Unicorn, XBlade, Hornet, Trigger (then) & Hero's - CBZ (now Xtreme), Hunk (then) Achiever (then), Impulse (old) all of them had the same 149cc engine from Honda; ditto, no changes except for graphics & body panels; may be, XBlade & Hornet are 160 now (remember Unicorn was CB 150 which got upgraded to CB 160 1.5 over a decade ago).

Despite that, Unicorn carried the smoothest engine of the entire lot. Why? That's Honda precision!! Not even Hero engineering could copy that legacy. But then, Trigger carrying the same legacy & precision as Unicorn 150 still failed to trigger the masses like Unicorn. Why?

Unicorn was family man's motorcycle while Trigger had a mild bump up in power, if I'm not wrong yet had several features better than Unicorn as well; but when it boils down to the national question of India - kitna deti hai nothing wins like Unicorn!! A goddamn 60 Kmpl with 13 liter tank; once my good friend & I rode from Chennai to Tirupati, he was on his CB Unicorn & I was on Rx. I had to refuel on return, but for him? His damn tank still had more than 60% of fuel when he reached home considering the round trip was close to 300 Km!!

I think it was Dr ebonho who said this - boring Japanese or soul-less motorcycle!! That's a perfect statement!! One end of spectrum is boring, carries some amount of fun in the middle & the other end of spectrum is reliability; a rock solid, bullet proof reliability & that's Japanese engineering. Pure value for money.

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by aargee

Despite that, Unicorn carried the smoothest engine of the entire lot. Why? That's Honda precision!! Not even Hero engineering could copy that legacy. But then, Trigger carrying the same legacy & precision as Unicorn 150 still failed to trigger the masses like Unicorn. Why?

Your analysis is spot on. Actually, the Dazzler was the 1st evolution of the Unicorn, with more features, at a higher price than the Unicorn. However, it flopped badly. Probably Honda couldn't digest that, so they tried again with the Trigger, only for it to meet the same fate as the Dazzler.

[sai_ace]

For those going nostalgic with their 2005 era Unicorn - it would be a folly to compare that with the current gen. The original unicorn was of a different breed - no features but that engine was divine. Mechanicals were very sorted out. The new unicorns as experienced by a few friends are quite poor in terms of quality or refinement - with frequent issues and niggles. So much improved is the competition that the RTR 160 4V sets the benchmark for refinement.

IMHO - please test ride bikes across the spectrum. You have a healthy budget for a commuter - 1.5L to 2L. Test rides are free. Check them ALL out - Ride everything, even an Aerox. When it comes to choosing , just don't compromise on ABS - Dual channel ABS is the only way to go.

PS: As a recommendation I would suggest the RTR 200 4V. Decent Power, great safety, terrific refinement.

[jomson13]

Originally Posted by sreejithkk

Hope all are doing great.
I am 40 year old and 6'2" tall person and currently looking for a commuter bike for my daily commute. I recently moved to a new job and the location is 16 KM away and the travel includes narrow roads, so commute by car will take 50 minutes where a 2 wheeler can reach there in 25 to 30 minutes.

Originally Posted by sai_ace

PS: As a recommendation I would suggest the RTR 200 4V. Decent Power, great safety, terrific refinement.

I side with sai, the RTR 200 4v is a brilliant bike. I recently sold mine after 3 years and 30k kms. Have done all kinds of terrain on the bike, its not the best in terms of long ride comfort, but its more than sufficient for the city.

I had the carb / non abs one. That one had a nice grunt when pushed hard. I haven't ridden the new FI one but you should definitely try it out.
Its a very reliable and robust motorcycle.

[Samegoodkid]

Apart from the other bikes mentioned above, quick list from my side for you to check out:
1) Yamaha Fz-25 : I understand and have heard that it is better than it's predecessor and is more VFM.
2) Pulsar NS 200: Although mechanically old, it still is by far the best pulsar I have ridden. (haven't tried the newer 250 cc ones though)
3) Bajaj Dominar 250/400: The best VFM bike in my opinion (esp the 400 version) in India.


Are you also open for used motorcycles?


cheers!!

[Famagusta]

Hi there!
I'd very much like to suggest the TVS Apache RTR 160 4v to you. If you can find time, you should definitely take a test ride and decide for yourself.
My dad has a 50+50km commute to work every day and takes a local train.
But when lockdown kicked in, he had no option but to ride to work as other options were either too uncomfortable or way too expensive on a daily basis. So, his first idea was to buy a unicorn.
After test riding it, we both were convinced that 1.25L (on-road Karnataka) was absolutely not gonna justify the motorcycle. The old carb-Unicorn was great. But in the FI era, it had really bogged down and I've heard from my FNG as well as dealerships that it has reliability issues. So, I urged my 55-year-old father to TR a Yamaha FZ. he did and didn't like it much (not to forget the "I'm not young for such a motorcycle" mindset.
Nevertheless, I was really insisting he try the RTR. but our state road tax is such that a new FZ was 1.27L, while the apache was 1.47L in June 2021. A big price difference, but what happened was that we ended up buying the RTR 160 4v.
My dad is 6 foot tall and he is absolutely comfortable in it. He rode it for 100km every day for over a year, with no complaints of any sort. Having had a back, knee, and wrist pain history, he still had no complaints with the motorcycle.
The Xpulse 200 is another great option. But still, something about the TVS is unmatchable [it gave a steady FE of 53-57kmpl throughout].
My cousin who is 6'2" also rode this motorcycle a lot and he was really really impressed with the ergonomics and overall dynamics. It is a true VFM motorcycle that does a lot of things right while being free-revving and great to ride, and not burning a hole in any pockets. Bottom-line: The Unicorn is a simple and great motorcycle, no doubt. But it doesn't justify it's pricetag in 2022 and the FZ-X, I honestly have no idea. Ultimately, Do ask around and definitely take a test ride before ruling out the Apache 4v.
Happy choosing!

[sreejithkk]

Thanks a lot for the suggestions. Will definitely go ahead with the test ride for Xpulse and apache probably by next weekend as I have never ridden these (Except the original RTR that came somewhere in 2008). Initially I did not consider Apache mainly because of the rearset foot pegs. I have extensively ridden FZ 150, FZ 250 and Gixer 150 earlier and while all these were great in terms of refinement, the biggest grouse for me was the rear set foot peg, which actually cause a pain in my calf/angle after 30+ mins riding. Never found this issue in the bikes with forward set footpeg like old Unicorn, erstwhile GS 150R and even basic commuters like Glamour, Passion etc. Really wondering, apart from better handling, what is the advantage of rearset foot peg as now a days almost all great bikes comes with rearset foot pegs.

[Amil]

Originally Posted by sreejithkk

Really wondering, apart from better handling, what is the advantage of rearset foot peg as now a days almost all great bikes comes with rearset foot pegs.

No advantage as such. It mainly depends on the height of the handlebar.. Higher the handlebar is, more forward the footpegs are. This defines your riding position. More aggressive riding position = rear footpegs + lower handlebar. If you imagine a bike with a high handlebar + rear set footpeg, the rider would literally be riding on his sack The cruiser type bikes will always have front set footpegs with higher handlebars as its the most comfortable position to ride longer hours. You will be actually sitting on your butt while riding.

Since you are 6'2 an ADV type bike would really suit you well and be comfortable not just for daily use but also if you plan to go out of town for weekend road trips on your bike. Tall person with a small bike looks weird and since you are 40, could cause joint pains due to uncomfortable riding position. I would say try out all the taller bikes and then decide which one gives you most comfort. At this age point comfort is what really matters. Choose one with the most relaxed position for longer durations. I was confused between CB350RS and Meteor 350 but ultimately went with Meteor coz of the sheer comfort.