[TheARUN]

Originally Posted by amit_purohit20

Wish other RE owners were the same.(No offence meant to anyone here) I have had a tough time having a sensible discussion with them just because they mix up hardfacts and emotions (religion as you said). There are only two options - Either they take you as a RE basher (and retaliate) or they go ahead and prove their superiority.

I have stopped discussing these topics with them because I know they wont understand till they get their emotions out and talk on engineering facts.

I respect the feelings people have for their bikes, but that should not cloud rationality.
I am happy to have many open-minded person here in this forum who would hear to both sides and decide based on hard facts rather than getting trapped in words such as cult/religion/feel/soul/bikers club etc.

Sorry If this post offends anyone, but I still believe comparison has to be on hard engineering facts and not on feelings and emotions (because feelings and emotions can't be compared)

Your bike looks awesome indeed and would really want to know more about how Hysosung has been able to use a Sportsbike motor into a cruiser bike and still has owners happy!

Being a Standard 350 Bullet owner myself, must say, I agree with you. There are two schools of thought, the selfish one and the social one, in the selfish one, you are concerned only with yourself and your bike you are not bothered about what others think of you or the bike, in the social school of thought you do with all the RE and Harley guys perceive to do. For this purpose, being selfish is not bad

So many People have been trying to drill this into my head but the penny is not dropping

You have one life, its your money, its your happiness/enjoyment you should be the one taking the decision, and if you are happy nothing else matters

[narula123]

Hi Mohan,

I am a bit late but congratulations nevertheless.

Opinions about Hyosung are very polarised but then such is life. As long as you are happy with what you ride, nothing else should matter.

Hyosungs are decent machines and though they dont match Jap engineering or Harley legacy they have their own virtues they bring to the table.

[mohan]

Incidentally the Aquila GV 650 also wins the Bloomberg-Autocar Premium Bike of the Year 2014 Award.
Read details here : http://www.autocarindia.com/auto-new...14-368244.aspx

[eltoro]

Originally Posted by mohan

Incidentally the Aquila GV 650 also wins the Bloomberg-Autocar Premium Bike of the Year 2014 Award.
Read details here : http://www.autocarindia.com/auto-new...14-368244.aspx

Hi Mohan,

I guess you have had the Aquila 650 for almost a year now. Can you please share your experience with the bike, the service from DSK and also if you have faced any major issues with the bike? Can you also share the no. of kms that you have used it for. I had been to a DSK Hyosung showroom a couple of days ago and instantly fell in love with the Aquila Pro 650 and am seriously thinking of taking the plunge.

Regards,

Vijay

[alpha1]

Originally Posted by mohan

Incidentally the Aquila GV 650 also wins the Bloomberg-Autocar Premium Bike of the Year 2014 Award.
Read details here : http://www.autocarindia.com/auto-new...14-368244.aspx

Hey Mohan, I guess I was among the firsts to commend you for going against the mob mentality but also had the reservations about DSK (based on the past track record by Garware). How has your experience been?


Also I somehow missed this earlier - but going through the tech specs - I see that the motor makes peak torque pretty high up in the RPM. Does this affect the low RPM cruising abilities in the cities?

And man, do you have more tasty pics of your bike?

Originally Posted by eltoro

Hi Mohan,

I guess you have had the Aquila 650 for almost a year now. Can you please share your experience with the bike, the service from DSK and also if you have faced any major issues with the bike? Can you also share the no. of kms that you have used it for. I had been to a DSK Hyosung showroom a couple of days ago and instantly fell in love with the Aquila Pro 650 and am seriously thinking of taking the plunge.

Regards,

Vijay

Agreed. Now that we have Triumph and Harley models in comfortable prices, the Aquila user experience becomes all the more important to make a judicious choice.



###


Why the heck is there no advertising for this bike?

[gt125]

Hi Mohan, I am on the verge of buying Aquila Pro (from Lajpat Nagar, Delhi). Your thread was extremely helpful considering not many Hyosung buyers are there in the country. Can you please help me with your long term observations for the bike? What I want to cover my bases from are any major negative surprises (talking about faulty parts rather than heating up issue or heavy weight etc) + ASS experience. I am absolutely comfortable with engine performance & ergonomics.

Also, have you modified exhaust- Tailgunner sounded absolutely beautiful but not sure how much running in is required before you can opt for it.

Cheers,
GT

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[abhiram.soma]

Hey Mohan, way back in 2013 after going through your ownership review, I had bought a Aquila GV 650. My one and a half year of ownership has been very blissfully and I should thank your thread for helping me make the decision. Now that the news of Hyosung being locally manufactured by DSK have come, I'm contemplating on selling of the vehicle for the fear of price drop once the locally manufactured ones come into the market.

Need suggestions on this

[ACM]

Originally Posted by abhiram.soma

Hey Mohan, way back in 2013 after going through your ownership review, I had bought a Aquila GV 650. My one and a half year of ownership has been very blissfully and I should thank your thread for helping me make the decision. Now that the news of Hyosung being locally manufactured by DSK have come, I'm contemplating on selling of the vehicle for the fear of price drop once the locally manufactured ones come into the market.

Need suggestions on this

Wouldn't your bike have already dropped significant value? There doesn't seem any merit in selling rightnow unless you are not happy with the bike or want to upgrade. A 2013 hyosung may not garner more than 45-55% of original list price excluding tax today. If you were to check out the classifieds there are always way more hyosungs for sale compared to say Harley's though they are I believe sold in much lower numbers. Not too sure on the exact sale numbers so do correct me on this but definitely sure about the numbers up for sale on bike specific websites.

That said it seems to be a good vehicle continue using it if happy with it.

Also Hyosung is likely to manufacture the 650 CC models later and the 250 CC one earlier.

[abhiram.soma]

Originally Posted by ACM

A 2013 hyosung may not garner more than 45-55% of original list price excluding tax today. If you were to check out the classifieds there are always way more hyosungs for sale compared to say Harley's though they are I believe sold in much lower numbers.

That said it seems to be a good vehicle continue using it if happy with it.

Also Hyosung is likely to manufacture the 650 CC models later and the 250 CC one earlier.

Dear ACM, I'm actually very happy with the vehicle, however I'm looking at the percieved value of the same once the production starts locally, like how the elantra price had dropped by 50% in 2006, if i'm not wrong.

I'm very happy using the vehicle and have no complaints what so ever against it.

May be sell it and buy a low run Harley iron 883 is what my plan is. Will sell it only if I get a good price for it.

[mohan]

Its 2 years and 16,000 kms on my Aquila.
Here is the Summary of all the "Good" and "bad" about this bike.

THE GOOD:

1. Never did the vehicle refuse to start at any given time in the last 2 years.
2. Very reliable ,rugged.
3. The Bridgestone tires manufactured in Japan are very good and have done wonderful in all weathers.
4. The DSK service has been impeccable and at no time did I have any room for complaints. The DSK Pune staff is very courteous and technical.
5. Once you get tuned to this bike, city travel,handling and cornering becomes a breeze.
6. Good fuel consumption averages, mixed 22-30 km/litre.
7. Very smooth and refined engine as compared to other cruisers available at this price range.
8. Quality of the parts is good ,those that were defective were promptly replaced. The Petrol tank started showing rusting at some places, it was replaced with a brand new Petrol tank. Chrome foot pegs showed signs of paint peeling and were replaced with new ones without resorting to any haggling.
9. The vehicle is a "crowd gatherer", wherever I went, the black and chrome never failed to attract the crowd.
10. In the last 2 years covered entirely by warranty, I just had to spend for oil and service charges. Not a single new part had to be bought .
11. Having a global presence, you can order many after market parts for this bike.

DSK had themselves made certain alterations in my exhaust for a better sound.
Although it sounded and worked well, I noted that whenever I wanted to go to higher speeds, the frame used to shudder.
When I brought this ,to the notice of the staff, they changed the entire exhaust at "no cost" to me.
Thereafter the bike turned out to be very smooth.
I fixed up LED light,18V, both sides.
Changed from footpegs to proper foot rests for comfortable long travel
No other modifications done to my bike, although I was suggested to fix a K&n air and oil filter and ECU remap. I didnt do it, since I did not need it.

THE BAD

1. Although most parts are easily available, it took me a long time to source the original Hyosung battery when I needed a replacement. My left sided air intake panel needs a change ,however this part is yet to be made available( booked 15 days ago).
2. As with most cruisers in this price bracket , the suspension is on the stiffer side . Long stretches of highway are consumed without as much as battling an eyelid, but when it comes to rough roads, your speed would come down drastically, so also your comfort level; because of the stiff suspension. Although the front and rear suspension are adjustable, employing the maximum setting also would still leave you wanting for a softer suspension.
3. I pushed the Aquila to very high speeds in a crouched position, but realistically travelling more than higher three digits builds up a lot of wind drag and your helmet starts singing eerie songs for you. This could have been helped by a wind shield.

4)City signal-to-signal commute can make you feel the engine heat through your trousers. But so did the HD or the CB1000 I rode.

5) The Aquila has a good range of torque through all the RPM range, but I wished it was better in the "Mid-range", so that shifting gears in the city traffic wouldn't be so frequent .

Oh yes, in the 16,000 km stint , the radiator fan did fail once .Although there were no issues on the highway, once I entered the city, fortunately Pune, the engine heat started mounting. Had to use the "stop-and-go" solution. The fan was changed and thereafter the next 13000 km there was no problem.

Overall it was a very satisfying stint with my Aquila.

The bike is extremely VFM, still is a pleasure to ride.
I would recommend this bike to anybody who wants to put up long hauls comfortably and reliably.
The longest haul was 850 km in a day Mumbai-Hampi, without any undue fatigue.

I am retiring the Aquila from its service, it will however continue to stay with me.

I plan to purchase the Benelli GT 600 tourer, since it has what I need :
1) Strong mid-range torque 2) Softer suspension 3 ) Better ground clearance
4) DSK service 5) and an affordable price .

Will update you with the Benelli GT 600 experience.

[himanshugoswami]

Mohan, good to hear that you are happy with DSK service. That is one of the biggest apprehensions in my mind. On paper, the Aquila GV 650 is a better buy than the HD street 750 or the Superlow, but I am very apprehensive about the ownership experience, especially since I am based in Delhi and not Pune. Queries to DSK have so far gone unanswered, so that really doesn't inspire confidence either!

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by mohan

Will update you with the Benelli GT 600 experience.

Cool, Appears that the Aquila has indeed given you a trouble free experience apart from the Clutch Cable, battery & Exhaust. Pretty much the wear and tear of a vehicle over those 2 years. (Exhaust being an exception but I think it was fiddled with).

Congrats on your decision to go ahead with Benelli 600GT, looking forward for your experience on it.

[nitinrawatdun]

I own a thunderbird 350 now, and this is the bike i always dream about when considering for an upgrade(Will gift it to myself on my 30th birthday).
I have been in love with the sheer presence of this bike when you see it in front of your eyes. Giant rear tire, broad fuel tank and handle bar, and aptly chromed.
FE of 24 is really good for those kind of horses, though the only downside is the digital instrument cluster(doesn't suit the cruiser, more apt for GT650) and the fuel tank capacity.

Originally Posted by mohan

Its 2 years and 16,000 kms on my Aquila.
Here is the Summary of all the "Good" and "bad" about this bike.

The longest haul was 850 km in a day Mumbai-Hampi ,without any undue fatigue.

I am retiring the Aquila from its service ,it will however continue to stay with me.

I plan to purchase the Benelli GT 600 tourer ,since it has what I need :
1) Strong mid-range torque 2) Softer suspension 3 ) Better ground clearance
4) DSK service 5) and an affordable price .

Will update you with the Benelli GT 600 experience.

850 Kms in a day is a lot, i once really regretted my decision to ride from Hyderabad to Pune in a single day! Kudos to you Sir.

Can you please provide me an estimation of the service costs and repairs during the course of 2 years of your ownership?

Also are you upgrading to Benelli tourer for a better suspension and ride quality of aquila on bad roads?

[mohan]

Originally Posted by nitinrawatdun

Also are you upgrading to Benelli tourer for a better suspension and ride quality of aquila on bad roads?

Hello,Nitin,the cost of ownership is not high at all,very much affordable.
I have now upgraded to a Triumph Tiger XRX.

[nitinrawatdun]

Originally Posted by mohan

Hello,Nitin,the cost of ownership is not high at all,very much affordable.
I have now upgraded to a Triumph Tiger XRX.

Thanks Dr. Mohan. I think i will be more than happy with anything ~50K range per annum for maintenance on Aquila.
And many congratulation on the Tiger, that's one serious off roader you've got for yourself. A trip to Leh is on cards i believe.