[Senotrius]

Next step should be a strong hybrid motorbike from Bajaj. Just cause the Japs are too lazy to do it( I know Kawasaki has impractical models).
On an another note, I was just checking Google maps for EV charging stations along the NH. There are far more cng stations than EV ones; usually coupled with petrol bunks. So I don't think Bajaj was entirely wrong in pursuing this idea.

[microscopic]

Bajaj have done their homework well. They have studied the market, identified a gap and have come out with a product that is aimed at multiple user groups who look for a bike with low running costs and are skeptical to buy an EV.

They will have the first mover advantage. If this bike continues to do well, we can surely expect other manufacturers to come up with CNG bikes too.

This bike will be a hit in Tier-2/3 cities provided it proves to be reliable. In tier-2/3 cities, the queues at CNG stations are relatively shorter. Also, with increasing demand through models like this, more CNG stations would start to come up easing up the queues.

Looks wise, the bike looks conventional, and well put together. The only thing remains to be seen is the reliability of the bike. If that is taken care, this should do well definitely.

[satyamkolhe]

Originally Posted by Quicksilver85

This will be a HIT!!!
Expect to see a lot of customers lining up in rural settings, commuters in the city and also Swiggy/Zomato and other delivery guys just for the frugality.

It's not going to sell much in rural setting or even in tier 3 cities since the penetration of CNG is pretty low outside of major cities. This will be used by city folks who want affordable commuting options and delivery guys/ bike taxies mostly IMHO.

Originally Posted by Geo_Ipe

Ola S1 starts at 75k ex showroom, which may be a much more economical option.

Ola base models are obviously cheaper but the range and charging times can be a problem for people who use the vehicle for work or travel a lot on their vehicles. This is a good middle ground.

[shortbread]

Originally Posted by satyamkolhe

Ola base models are obviously cheaper but the range and charging times can be a problem for people who use the vehicle for work or travel a lot on their vehicles. This is a good middle ground.

What's the availability/queues in CNG stations like? I thought one of the struggles facing CNG penetration was a lack of widespread stations.

[aston_martyr]

Originally Posted by shortbread

What's the availability/queues in CNG stations like? I thought one of the struggles facing CNG penetration was a lack of widespread stations.

I've never seen any long queues at CNG stations(Observed while travelling in autos) Also atleast in my locality in Bangalore there are 3 CNG stations within a 1 km radius.

[satyamkolhe]

Originally Posted by shortbread

What's the availability/queues in CNG stations like? I thought one of the struggles facing CNG penetration was a lack of widespread stations.

That is why I said this won't be successful in rural areas.
And yes, CNG stations has lines but still the density is good in cities like Mumbai, Pune and Delhi and I never saw waiting time more than 20 mins whenever I have travelled in CNG cabs. This is longer than the time needed to charge a battery.

But of-course if this bikes sells in numbers, the lines will be longer but then again it only has a 2 kg tank and wont take longer to fill up.

But overall, this makes more sense to delivery guys who travel a lot in a day on their bikes. I don't see why a normal person would need to travel more than the range provided by electric scooters in a day.

[Elegant]

Why are we so negative here? An innovative product, and more importantly, by an Indian company. We should be proud. We all should realise, this is going to be a good success. CNG stations are plenty, the lines are long, but they move pretty fast. And a 2kg tank should take about 2 minutes to fill. This is the optimum vehicle for those who want the EV low cost running, but don't have provision for charging. I saw that Bajaj just to prove that it is safe, made a truck to run over the Freedom 125. Come on guys, it is a good innovation, and not just an innovative product but is useful in many cases as well. You save the upfront costs as compared to a non niggle prone EV, get the same efficiency figures, a faster refill time. This is perfect.

[efuture]

This is a fantastic 2wheeler for city and even great for villagers who might never use it beyond 100km per day.

Also this chasis looks perfect for an electric variant. I did a similar setup in a discover few years back which itself had good space. Freedom has lot more space than the old conventional chassis and this can easily accomodate ~5kWh battery pack. Also ample space is there for a big performance motor as well. Bajaj has a fantastic platform for "alternate fuel" 2wheelers compared to anyone else in the market

[Ragavsr]

Originally Posted by satyamkolhe

I don't see why a normal person would need to travel more than the range provided by electric scooters in a day.

Well, range is not the only reason to not get an electric scooter. That it is a scooter in the first place is a problem in itself. Scooters have poor ride quality, worse brakes and poor comfort and something like a bare basic 100cc motorcycle is better than any scooter anyway.

That is where it scores, and there would be more than 40000 buyers lining up for this every month.

Across Gujarat, there are abundant CNG pumps even on highways and there are no queues whatsoever.

[WiseFool]

From a safety standpoint how will it fare? Like in cases of accidents or something like a simple skid will that end up blowing up the bike?

[gauravanekar]

I’m extremely bullish on this product. They have got the design right. A work horse that this machine looks like is loaded with utilitarian features. A 250 to 300 km range is good enough for normal use.

[amit_purohit20]

Originally Posted by WiseFool

From a safety standpoint how will it fair? Like in cases of accidents or something like a simple skid will that end up blowing up the bike?

What I liked about Bajaj was pro-actively marketing the bike as a safe one. With the various pictures and videos they have shown I bet they have done enough background work to ensure that the bike is safe in an accident.

I don't think they would like to loose their valuable investment if they are proven otherwise ie. that their bikes are proved unsafe.

Just notice that the trellis frame also covers the CNG cylinder not only from the sides but also from the top to a certain extent. I think there is a lot of thought gone in while designing the trellis frame to protect the CNG cylinder.

I am only worried about is a new jargon being created in two wheeler industry - "top heavy". We already use "front heavy" for Dominar series.
The CNG cylinder is 16kg and with such a heavy weight just below the seat ie. quite some distance from the ground, there is quite a probability the bike would behave different in terms of handling than regular 125 cc bikes. With the petrol tank full it might add near 2 kg more on the top part.

I am also not happy with the 825 mm seat height. My Bajaj Platina has a seat height of 810 mm, I am 5' 7" and still cannot touch both my feet on the ground. I expect Freedom to have a little wider seat and with the added 15 mm added it would not be a good thing for short riders.

I still wish that this bike is a success and Bajaj gets back the profits which they have thought of through this project. Why? - Because I do not want them to stop innovating because of the fear of failure.

[ToThePoint]

Originally Posted by amit_purohit20

I am only worried about is a new jargon being created in two wheeler industry - "top heavy". We already use "front heavy" for Dominar series.
The CNG cylinder is 16kg and with such a heavy weight just below the seat ie. quite some distance from the ground, there is quite a probability the bike would behave different in terms of handling than regular 125 cc bikes. With the petrol tank full it might add near 2 kg more on the top part.

The bike's CNG tank capacity is 2kg. 16kg would be a household LPG cylinder

[amit_purohit20]

Originally Posted by ToThePoint

The bike's CNG tank capacity is 2kg. 16kg would be a household LPG cylinder

Sir 2 kg is the weight of the CNG gas which the gas cylinder can hold. Please check the weight of the cylinder is 16 kg and with the gas included it weighs 18 kg.

For your kind information cylinders in cars weigh as much as 90 kgs whereas they hold around 10 to 12 kg of gas weight.

[Sk8r]

Originally Posted by Elegant

Why are we so negative here?

It's because most of us in this forum are protected from the freaking high fuel cost and not aware of it's impact on almost ~80% of India's population. This if placed well, will be a hit among the urban dwellers too apart from rural population / delivery partners.

Remember, not everyone buys a bike for road trips. Some do it for livelihood too.

Kudos to Rajiv Bajaj, he is probably the sole industrialists to have a spine to talk about issues like insane taxes Link