Pulsar 200 NS :: Ridden!

[Sheel]

The name Pulsar is derived from the orbit. As per wiki A pulsar (portmanteau of pulsating star) is a highly magnetized, rotating neutron star that emits a beam of electromagnetic radiation

As far as the Indian connection goes, the first Pulsar was launched in 2002. It was ground breaking in terms of most respects. It accelerated like no body's business, had bench-mark top speed, good brakes, electric start, tacho meter, fuel gauge, trip meter, side-stand indicator. These features held its novelty then. Yes, almost 10 years have passed.

CBZ tried hard, RX's tried hard, but the P-180 was the street king.

Come in 2003 and the mighty Hero Honda launched the Karizma. It had 223 cubes & belt Pulsar to pulp on almost all criteria. Out for blood, Bajaj launched the first iteration of the Pulsar and was popularly christened the V1. Somehow it had better acceleration & top speed figures than the Karizma as per a popular magazine back then. It was the first time that Bajaj deployed twin spark plug tech with the V1.

The Bajaj Pulsar series brought quite a lot of segment firsts & beaters. Side stand indicator, digital fuel gauge, LED back lamps, self cancelling indicators, fuel injection, projector head-lamps, rear disc brake. Quite a few to name at one go. Many iterations came & few went, some noticeable & some not so. Pulsar 150, Pulsar 180, Pulsar 200, Pulsar 220 FI, Pulsar 220 F, Pulsar 220 N, Pulsar 135 LS.

The Pulsar 200 Naked Sports takes the game forward for Bajaj & Pulsar.

[Sheel]

Few features


Rear mono shock absorber with piggy bank, a first For Bajaj


The starter motor


The radiator


Under belly silencer, a first for an Indian manufacturer I believe


The front 280mm petal disc


Rear & front foot-peg with gear shifter (the LHS)


Gear shift pattern explained. 6 gears, as it is the current norm


One of the three spark plugs & the LC engine


The RHS front foot peg & brake lever

[Sheel]

The Riding Experience :

Honestly, if the badge was absent, most will not be able to tell, if this product is from an Indian 2 wheeler Industry, build and manufactured from grounds up here.

If not for the engine, sure for its chassis and brake.

I got the P-200 by late evening and somebody called me up for an urgent meet, though the bike was new, but was eager. The handlebar seemed a bit wide initially, but I gradually adopted, but few mm's shorter would have been sweet. This Motorcycle is an addition to the growing breed of street hooligans. Yamaha FZ and KTM-200 Duke being the other.

For commuting it is an ideal weapon. Lacks a bit of torque low down the rev-range, but nothing if you know how to work the 'box. To really rev away from that pesky vehicle, you have to take the tacho over 8,000. Lets away a fruity roar at that point. The silencer which is under the bike & exhaust juts from below changes tone when revs are on fly & you go over tar & concrete. On concrete surface with tall buildings around, it is quite vocal & is a screamer.

The lamps are adequate at best and Bajaj should have given the projector lamp treatment to this flag ship product. I like the Aprilia inspired indicator design. Looks nice.

The switches are nice and have a tactile feel to it. Seems they would see the best of harsh Indian conditions. I particularly didn't like the indicator switch feel. It doesn't feel intuitive enough.





While there is information over load on the instrumentation, they should have provided a temp gauge. One should know prior to whacking the throttle as to if the engine has reached its optimum temperature or not.

[Sheel]

Out on the open road

On roads like these a good handling bike with good dynamics is separated from the average ones.



Coming to the aspect of handling, I really do not know whether the bike was limiting or was it me. And the worst part is neither could be blamed up-front. Yes, I am coming to it, though have a look

My frame 5'11 and all of ~ 85kgs felt a bit larger for the bike and I couldn't slide, bend and attack the corner. To go properly at corners, my butt crack area used to hop over the pillion seat & I just couldn't hang and make the bike lean. My CBR on the other hand is fully rounded on its profiles. I believe well built riders might have to compromise while attacking the twisties, but why such a design. The saddle area should have been longer (it is sufficiently wide). See that stitched area, almost till there


Coming to the other aspect, the foot peg's protrude a bit and hamper a bit in hugging the tank. I usually hug the tank tightly and above the waist area let it loose. I couldn't do that. It is jutted out. Not really visible, but is a hindrance.

Another thing which sticks out like a sore thumb is the rear mud-guard design. Why can't they design a decently sized mud-guard without a hugger? It appears downright cheap & ugly. The design is a flaw as well. Despite the hugger, muck gets thrown up. Have a look.


In contrary have a look at Manson's CBR. The tire is huge, the mud guard is short, despite that it saves the back side (of both ) and looks aesthetically pleasing.


The only sore area, else everything was properly screwed upon

This too should have been looked into. Looks downright cheap & horrendous.

[Sheel]

It has few firsts it its name though and together it brings a riding experience unmatched at the price point it retails at.

Liquid cooling, 4 valves, 3 spark plugs all this works. The underbelly exhaust should be aiding mass centralization.

Sharing few pictures.

The parking lamp


The ignition console


Rear disc-brake, hugger & chain adjuster


Toggle switch to go between trip meters & re-set it

[Sheel]

Please pour any questions anyone has. I shall try to answer if I came across that aspect during my riding tenure of the P-200 NS. And provide inputs as well, looking forward to it

I think BAL should have equipped it with a FI. It would have made the bike complete.

At instances where I let off the throttle, the bike seemed to hiccup a bit. Would term it as no petrol syndrome. After happening for around a dozen times, I didn't roll the throttle off completely & kept a bit in reserve. I really have no clue as if this problem was specific to the P-200 NS I rode or across. I believe its the former, would hence give it a benefit of doubt.

So to sum up, the Pulsar 200 NS is indeed the best bike out from BAL stable yet.

BAL has got the suspension, braking right. A sore point with the Pulsar. The brakes lacked feel & progression in earlier iterations.

Is quite loaded and is a step or two ahead of BAL products as far as build quality & riding experience goes. Not up there, but steadily climbing up the ladder.

The biggest grouse for me was with the small area for the rider. It is a street Motorcycle, but what if you wish to do Bombay - Goa- Bombay back to back. Or is it me? Frankly I am confused.

Power is stacked really up the rev-range. The way Sports Bike have. For street, it should have been spread across the rev-range.

Have doubts about the underbelly silencer? This should negate all doubts http://www.mypulsar.com/pulsar-200ns/technology.html#

I found the front tire lacking in providing feel while cornering. It simply slept through. With better tires, it should have been more of a rewarding experience.

Sharing few pictures.

Coolant reading level


Perimeter frame


Nicely done up front fender/mud-guard


Chiseled tank


Another shot


Rear three quarter


Rear disc brake oil reservoir

[Sheel]

Last set of pictures.

The best shot I got

[Technocrat]

Brilliant Report & thanks a bunch for sharing it with us

The Pulsar has really come a long way & its interesting to see that how the BAL team has managed to retain the Pulsar identity by retaining the Tank design close to the roiginal but changing almost everything about the bike.

Please keep us posted on the overall ownership & riding experience

[black12rr]

Congrats , the color is great . So CBR 250 stays along with pulsar ? , why the additional bike along with CBR ?

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by Technocrat

Brilliant Report & thanks a bunch for sharing it with us

Thanks A ride review was pending for long, hence...

Please keep us posted on the overall ownership & riding experience

I have not got the bike. It was a showroom test ride (still fresh) which arrived on Saturday. I borrowed it on Saturday evening & returned on Monday morning.

Originally Posted by black12rr

Congrats , the color is great . So CBR 250 stays along with pulsar ? , why the additional bike along with CBR ?

[ecenandu]

Brilliant review and lovely pictures .

Originally Posted by Sheel

I think BAL should have equipped it with a FI. It would have made the bike complete.

Hmm, may be its their marketing strategy, if one needs fuel injection(FI) go for the DUKE. Having said that, I am sure Bajaj will introduce FI in future. Last time when they introduced FI, it wasn't a great success.

Originally Posted by Sheel

At instances where I let off the throttle, the bike seemed to hiccup a bit. Would term it as no petrol syndrome.

Even my colleague's friends had similar problem. Accessing the carburettor in this bike is very difficult, you have to remove the seat, tank, fairing etc.

[_raVan_]

Great review along with excellent pictures Thanks for sharing the same.

If possible, please do a short comparison with the Duke.

[parik_ind]

Nice review and the pictures also show off the bike very well. Have a couple of questions though:

1. How smooth is the engine? The earlier Pulsars, while packing adequate power, had engines that leave a lot to be desired.

2. The 220 was plagued with rattling issues, any sign of that?

3. This one is very specific to my requirements - I noticed that the turn signal switch had a cancel button. Does this feature both manual and auto cancelling systems or is it just manual. More importantly can this be transplanted on to the P220?

And again, great post.

Parik

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by ecenandu

Brilliant review and lovely pictures .

Thanks.

Hmm, may be its their marketing strategy, if one needs fuel injection(FI) go for the DUKE. Having said that, I am sure Bajaj will introduce FI in future. Last time when they introduced FI, it wasn't a great success.

I honestly think P-220 FI was a better Motorcycle than the P-220 carb. The roll-ons were better and throttle response was crisp & precise.

The pricing was a damper, agreed, but with volumes, it would have come down or at least negated the effect.

Even my colleague's friends had similar problem. Accessing the carburettor in this bike is very difficult, you have to remove the seat, tank, fairing etc.

There is very little fairing to remove, its barely the head-lamp cluster. Though accessing the carb will be a chore as it isn't visible.

Please update if the issue got sorted or not.

Originally Posted by _raVan_

Great review along with excellent pictures Thanks for sharing the same.

If possible, please do a short comparison with the Duke.

Thanks.

KTM? I don't think I have an access to it. But if some one gets one in my circle, expect a short ride impression.

Originally Posted by parik_ind

Nice review and the pictures also show off the bike very well. Have a couple of questions though:

1. How smooth is the engine? The earlier Pulsars, while packing adequate power, had engines that leave a lot to be desired.

Quite smooth. The 4 valves, 3 plugs, bigger bore vs stroke and the exhaust design help. Please do take a test-ride. You shall come surprised. Not in the league of the Japanese, but a telling improvement nevertheless.

2. The 220 was plagued with rattling issues, any sign of that?

Whatever distance I rode, zilch. On one occasion, I was going very fast on a stone paved road and on a fully faired bike, the belly pan fairing would have been in my hands, thanks to a ditch. Rode through it by standing on the pegs, but no rattles.

IMO, the P-220 and Karizma's fairing aren't designed optimally. Hence, there are no rattles on the R15/CBR clans.

3. This one is very specific to my requirements - I noticed that the turn signal switch had a cancel button. Does this feature both manual and auto cancelling systems or is it just manual. More importantly can this be transplanted on to the P220?

This thing has manual cancellation only. Whether it can be retrofitted on your P-220, the Bajaj service adviser might be able to answer. It has cool blue back-lit switches though.

And again, great post.

Thanks

[ecenandu]

Originally Posted by Sheel

There is very little fairing to remove, its barely the head-lamp cluster. Though accessing the carb will be a chore as it isn't visible.
Please update if the issue got sorted or not.

Yup, the issue got resolved after fine tuning the carb. Had some problem with the piston.Opps, my bad, by fairing I meant side panel which cover the air filter.