[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by speedy

It really does not pinch or bother..its just that the right price should be charged with profit. I can understand the store is a south bombay address and the overheads are higher..at the end its a friend only who has made money..so no issues.
Thank you. Soon she will change her cloths to get even more "SEXY".

Of course mate, I was joking!
Please do share photographs of your baby after she changes clothes.

[Akhilash95]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Never head of a guard for radiator. Isn't the skid plate suppose to work to save the radiator too?

The fins of the radiator can be damaged by pebbles and debris thrown by the front tyre resulting in inefficient cooling. A radiator guard is usually a plastic/metal mesh. Something like this

[speedy]

Originally Posted by Cyborg

Of course mate, I was joking!
Please do share photographs of your baby after she changes clothes.

Oh yes i would. Estoril Blue (to match my car) with Akrapovic slip on twin exhausts

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by Akhilash95

The fins of the radiator can be damaged by pebbles and debris thrown by the front tyre resulting in inefficient cooling. A radiator guard is usually a plastic/metal mesh. Something like this

Akhilash, Sorry if i wasnt clear. I know whats a radiator gaurd. I meant I didnt hear there is one for Bonnie.

I also mentioned in my earlier plate that there is a skid plate that goes behind the radiator and can act as a skid preventive tool as well as radiator protector

[Akhilash95]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Akhilash, Sorry if i wasnt clear. I know whats a radiator gaurd. I meant I didnt hear there is one for Bonnie.

Sorry for misinterpreting your words :P

There is an oil cooler guard from R&G Racing for bonneville.

[mobike008]

Short Review of the Triumph Tiger Explorer

During one of the rides with Triumph guys in Hyderabad a few weeks ago, I had the good fortune to ride the Triumph Tiger Explorer 1200 for a distance of nearly 20kms.

I have been thinking of writing a short impression of this bike for a while.

Here you go :-

Tiger feels like a true blood offroader and is extremely tall and even for my 6.ft.1in frame, I had to practically mount the bike due to its height and overall has massive dimensions in terms of height/width and length.

It's stand out feature its massive tank. Even after wrapping my legs around it, it felt like I just grasped part of it. Its a feeling of sitting on a huge monster with gorilla sized proportions

Thumbed the starter and it roared to life (It was fitted with Arrows Exhuast) and had a lovely throaty growl. Slot the gear which is smooth like any other triumph bike and you can instantly feel the power (137 PS) and torque.

This ride was on the Bangalore highway and took up the bike to speeds that cannot be mentioned here, one look at it's digital speedo almost gave me a scare but, didnt feel that speed at all. It felt really stable and one particular feature of this bike is when you leave the throttle, bike RPM drops and acts like in 4-wheelers (braking with gears) and drops speeds without even using the brakes.

Just a small jab to rear brake and front lever and Tiger would slow down alarmingly fast and rock solid with almost zilch swaying. Braking is surreal. Felt like being in a car. Thats how good the brakes are...

Seats are extremely comfortable and felt like those Natuzzi sofas. With this deadly combination, getting tired on a Tiger is difficult proposition and it can munch miles with utmost ease and aplomb for many miles before you can even get remotely tired

Overall, its a comfortable, very powerful cruiser/offroader with an overall superior feel to almost every technical component of the bike. But, alas I personally feel this model is a misfit for our country which is emerging into big cruisers and this model is more of an offroader and will find very few takers as its meant for places which has no roads and taking such an expensive bike on to such terrain,very few people in India would even consider it. They would rather do it on a Bullet.

In my opinion, most prospective Indian buyers will instead settle for a Storm or Rocket which are proper cruisers and in all probability will get more eye-balls for the price paid

At 24 lakhs OTR, its beyond reach for most of us but, its one heck of a bike. SIGH !!!

P.S: Iam hoping Haroon/or Ram adds their comments from their experience on a similar bike !!

[Haroon]

Mods- I tried multi-quote after the first post so dont know how to do it. Pls do delete the duplicate post. Thanks

Originally Posted by speedy

Oh yes i would. Estoril Blue (to match my car) with Akrapovic slip on twin exhausts

Speedy- You can also consider the CS-1 from V&H. I have installed it on my Concours14 and its roar is wonderful. While cruising it gives a nice muted growl, but once you open-up the throttle its roar is amazing, yet not too intrusive or ear shattering.

Originally Posted by mobike008

Short Review of the Triumph Tiger Explorer
During one of the rides with Triumph guys in Hyderabad a few weeks ago, I had the good fortune to ride the Triumph Tiger Explorer 1200 for a distance of nearly 20kms.


Overall, its a comfortable, very powerful cruiser/offroader with an overall superior feel to almost every technical component of the bike. But, alas I personally feel this model is a misfit for our country which is emerging into big cruisers and this model is more of an offroader and will find very few takers as its meant for places which has no roads and taking such an expensive bike on to such terrain,very few people in India would even consider it. They would rather do it on a Bullet.

In my opinion, most prospective Indian buyers will instead settle for a Storm or Rocket which are proper cruisers and in all probability will get more eye-balls for the price paid

At 24 lakhs OTR, its beyond reach for most of us but, its one heck of a bike. SIGH !!!

P.S: Iam hoping Haroon/or Ram adds their comments from their experience on a similar bike !!

Avi- Nice initial quick review of the Tiger. Your observations are spot on. And these are indeed monsters on our highways

Yes, the price is a put off and thats the single biggest thing that goes against these bikes. Otherwise, they are absolutely wonderful touring bikes. If you do a ride of about 1500-2000kms on that bike in India, your whole perspective about the bike's suitability to indian roads will change. Frankly its a very heavy dirt bike and while its capable to do off-road riding, you dont necessarily have to be riding it off road standing on the footpegs like those Paris Dakar images.....Way back in 2010 when I brought down the GS on Carnet for our South India ride, it was also a test of how well I would enjoy this bike in India if I were to permanently import it. And I can tell you, it passed the test with flying colors and in 2014 I permanently imported it. Since Indian touring can go thru a variety of roads, bad roads and no roads! the versatility of these adventure touring bikes with their higher ground clearance, long travel suspension, imposing size and large fuel tank all work in its favor. You can even afford small spills with some decent engine & body protection guards. Sure like many of the large cruisers/superbikes, handling them in bumper to bumper city traffic will need some effort (just as you would with a Fatboy, Storm, Busa etc), but these bikes with their wider handlebars and upright seating position etc are way more easier to maneuver than sports bikes or cruisers esp when the roads are not of high quality. Plus they have spacious accommodations for a pillion as well as hard/soft luggage. Frankly, after being used to just gliding over small bumps and road cuttings (for laying water pipes etc), small potholes etc on my GS, I am now having to 're-engineer' my riding style on my new sport touring bike- Concours14 which needs little more delicate handling on such surfaces!

My personal take- In the premium touring segment, while the Goldwing, Electra Glide or K1600GTL etc are supremely comfortable bikes, in the Indian touring context the adventure touring bikes will be more enjoyable & relevant with the varied road conditions we have.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by Haroon

My personal take- In the premium touring segment, while the Goldwing, Electra Glide or K1600GTL etc are supremely comfortable bikes, in the Indian touring context the adventure touring bikes will be more enjoyable & relevant with the varied road conditions we have.

Thanks for that wonderful explanation and I totally concur with your views.

My mention of Tiger not suitable for Indian market ( just yet) is because of us being an emerging player in these high-end motorcycles. Otherwise, its a dangerously competent motorcycle

Maybe in another 5-10 years, bikes like Tiger and BMW K1600 will have a significant role to play as by then Iam expecting our high-end motorcycle market would have matured to a large extent and Indian customers would be eyeing these beautiful toys as smaller capacity engines would cease to interest them

P.S: Can you please share a pic of your Kawa Concurs 14 here? How different is it from your GS?

[pawan_pullarwar]

Today I rode Triumph Tiger 800XC, never expected she will be so much fun to ride. After getting down from my Ninja, I sat down on Tiger, tried to make bike straight from the side stand and failed, pushed hard and there I (5'7" height) bring it on my feet. Another tough task when my wife was climbing on the bike (she is 5'3").

Everything settled put bike in first gear, and I was really thinking am I really riding Tiger 800 XC or my KTM Duke, it feels so much light, so much easy when it is running. Rider is free from all the bike fatigue and he would like to go on and on and on. Seating position, handle bar, cushioning suspension, eager throttle, smooth engine, I just wanted to ride it atleast 4-5 hours without getting down from the bike.

[Haroon]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Maybe in another 5-10 years, bikes like Tiger and BMW K1600 will have a significant role to play as by then Iam expecting our high-end motorcycle market would have matured to a large extent and Indian customers would be eyeing these beautiful toys as smaller capacity engines would cease to interest them

P.S: Can you please share a pic of your Kawa Concurs 14 here? How different is it from your GS?

Avi- I partly agree on the premium luxury touring bikes probably selling in more numbers in the coming 5-10 years due to more bikers wanting/being able to afford them. However, unless we have many more thousands of miles of 'silky smooth expressways', the rides on these huge luxury barges are not going to get any more enjoyable. Whereas the Adventure touring bikes like the Tiger, GS (I am hoping the Kawi KLZ1000 & Suz DL650/1000 will also come soon) will be a lot more fun even with the present kind of mix n match of road conditions that we have all across the country.

As for my C14, I have not had the chance to take many pics as I have been tied up with work/travel, so just enjoying the limited time I get on the bike. Have to take some detailed pics soon. Its been one helluva ride. I enjoy the brute power of the I-4 that can launch like a cruise missile. But coming from the GS, I had to put a handlebar raiser to make it 'comfortable'. Also miss the vibrations of the BMW Boxer engine...! Although the sitting stance is now somewhat upright, it still feels a bit on the sporty side as against sitting on a horse on the GS. But single biggest difference is the front suspension- after being used to BMW's excellent front tele-lever suspension (where the front mono-shock is located under the fuel tank and takes all the shock absorbing function, whereas the front fork is only to steer the bike), all other kinds of front suspension will feel hard. For the looks I changed the rim color to silver and for the sound (and to get rid of the huge and ugly potato launcher stock exhaust), I went with the V&H CS1. That is just music to the ears...very mild during cruising and a majestic roar when you open up the throttle. Here are couple of pics before some of the upgrades were done. Hope not to hijack your thread further

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by pawan_pullarwar

Today I rode Triumph Tiger 800XC, never expected she will be so much fun to ride.

Tiger 800 XC vs. Tiger Explorer is like Bonnie SE vs. T100.

Iam given to understand from folks who rode both that it's much more flickable due to its size and shorter front wheel and easier to do stunts of standing on footpegs while overcoming obstacles due to its much lighter weight. Besides, being far easier on the pocket too.

Btw, you both look really good on Tiger. So are you cancelling your Bonnie booking and buying the Tiger 800?

Originally Posted by Haroon

Avi- I partly agree on the premium luxury touring bikes probably selling in more numbers in the coming 5-10 years due to more bikers wanting/being able to afford them. will be a lot more fun even with the present kind of mix n match of road conditions that we have all across the country.

Haroon, I agree that bikes like Tiger can easily tame the present mix and match road conditions but, how many people have the interest/passion or inclination to take a Tiger and go to places like Ladhak/North East etc? Maybe a handful....Because India is slowly but, steadily getting into liesure biking due to higher disposal incomes and iam sure we will get to a stage where it'll be as common for a Tiger to go to Ladhak as a bullet goes now

Thanks for sharing the picture of your Kawasaki. Its indeed a beautiful machine and looks outstanding in black color

[harsha.muvva]

Originally Posted by Haroon

I went with the V&H CS1. That is just music to the ears...very mild during cruising and a majestic roar when you open up the throttle. Here are couple of pics before some of the upgrades were done. Hope not to hijack your thread further

Lovely kwacker!
This is not something which we get to see here!
Congarts on the mean machine

Heard V&H here on a z1000. Must say,it sounds too good!

Expecting a thread on your ownership experience!

P.S : sorry for going OT avi 😁

Regards,
Harsha

[pawan_pullarwar]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Btw, you both look really good on Tiger. So are you cancelling your Bonnie booking and buying the Tiger 800?

Thanks for compliments. If it would have been under 10 lakh might have thought of buying it.

I was going through the specs of both the bikes Tiger and Bonneville, found strange observation related to FE and weight of both the bikes.

Tiger 800 XC

tank capacity 19l (Tiger)
tank capacity 16l (Bonny)

wet weight 215 kilo (Tiger)
wet weight 225 kilo (Bonny)

max power 95PS @ 9300 (Tiger)
max torque 79NM @ 7850 (Tiger)

max power 68PS @ 7500 (Bonny)
max torque 68NM @ 5800 (Bonny)

Fuel Consumption - urban 49.6mpg = 21 KMPL (Tiger)
Fuel Consumption - 56mph/90kph 75.3 mpg = 32 KMPL (Tiger)
Fuel Consumption - 75mph/120kph 74.3 mpg = 31.5 KMPL (Tiger)

Fuel Consumption - urban 51.2mpg = 21 KMPL (Bonny)
Fuel Consumption - 56mph/90kph 68.0 mpg = 28 KMPL (Bonny)
Fuel Consumption - 75mph/120kph 55.6 mpg = 23.6 KMPL (Bonny)


Tiger's 3 cylinder engine gives better mileage and is light weight with extra 3 liter fuel than Bonny's twin cylinder engine. At highway crusing speed Tiger gives amazing mileage 31.5 vs 23.6 from bonny.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by pawan_pullarwar

Tiger's 3 cylinder engine gives better mileage and is light weight with extra 3 liter fuel than Bonny's twin cylinder engine. At highway crusing speed Tiger gives amazing mileage 31.5 vs 23.6 from bonny.

Those figures look good on paper but, I would take them with a pinch of salt as I havent gotten more than 18kmpl from my Bonnie till date.

Perhaps it may increase as I munch more miles ( Current Odo Reading : 1700kms) but, overall Tiger may give slightly better FE owing to the additional cylinder but, only real world experience can tell the right FE figures.

[r_nairtvm]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Those figures look good on paper but, I would take them with a pinch of salt as I havent gotten more than 18kmpl from my Bonnie till date.

Perhaps it may increase as I munch more miles

High hopes Avi.

You are already getting what you will. Again a lot depends on your right hand, but, realistically not much



Best Regards & Ride Safe

Ram