[deepfreak15]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

The short screen will leave you directly exposed ... a bigger screen... should sort out your turbulent air problem.

Funny story, I had placed my order for a Puig racing screen and wind deflector from their official partner in India "Retrorides" and was going to reply to your post once I received them and that was three months ago . Well in reality the first order came on time but I was told the screen was damaged and they had to re order it. Then Puig decided they could send the next shipment only in March 2021. So ended up going with the MRA sport screen and the Puig wind deflector.
Used the MRA screen on my way to Salem and added the wind deflector on my way back. To sum up my experience in one word "Immersive!". Ever since I bought the bike I have been feeling something was missing. I used get the chills when rolling on the throttle but after I changed the screen realized I was missing that wind in the face feeling. Call me stupid but for me that is part of the charm of riding a motorcycle.

In this position there is zero windblast on the chest and the wind is directly in line with my visor. For the first time I literally shed tears on the bike . But with the visor down there is no discomfort like head bobbing etc and most important no booming noise.



And with this addition I can literally direct the wind flow whichever way I want but again most important no buffeting or booming noise.





In other news, the next best accessory I bought after the Auxiliary lights. Ordered these as a duo pack from Bikegear.in . Again, with the global situation it arrived way past the committed date. Not sure if it was worth the wait and if I should have sourced a Sena locally. My only requirement was to be able to communicate verbally with my pillion as opposed to hand signals or guessing if she was comfortable or not etc. Since multi rider connectivity was not important I decided to skip on the mesh capability. Where the Freecom scores over the Sena is Audio quality, handsfree ease of use, certified weather resistant, low profile etc. Only con I could think off apart from the price was there is no service support in India for Cardo.
But its one of those things after you use for the first time you wonder how you managed all along. I like to constantly chatter with the Mrs and vice versa when riding/driving ,so the intercom feature worked like a charm and we ended up leaving it open the whole round trip Bangalore to Salem and back. I forgot to test the phone and music quality but I think it will work well





Best part is it has a very low profile and from some angles will be hard to spot and that for me is a win.

Originally Posted by Invincible8789

Thanks for the heads up to decide whether to go for this big guy ...as I’m planning to upgrade from versys650 but still haven’t zeroed this beast.

Thanks for those kind words. Happy hunting, if you are set on an ADV you are spoilt for choice.

[the_skyliner]

Thank you for such a detailed and updated review, deepfreak15! I am glued to this thread and eagerly wait for your next post.

I am close to finalizing 950S as my first big bike and this thread has been the best thing on the internet for me to read about the bike.

I have a few questions and would be great if you can answer them:

1. How bad is the heating issue in traffic? I heard that the 950 is known for producing more heat than other similar bikes when in slow moving traffic. What are you thoughts on this?

2. I read that you got the accessories fitted from 3rd party vendor. Is the price difference huge between the dealer and a generic shop?

3. How is the pillion comfort on your 950?

Thanks in advance!

[deepfreak15]

Originally Posted by the_skyliner

Thank you for such a detailed and updated review......

I am close to finalizing 950S as my first big bike..

I have a few questions and would be great if you can answer them:

Thank you very much for your kind words. The 950s comes with some more safety tech and upgraded suspension so will be totally worth it.

1. How bad is the heating issue in traffic? My only two reference points for this in peak traffic are the KTM D390 (2017) and the Multistrada. If you plan on riding in a pair of jeans you will be miserable. I always use riding pants so I don't notice the heat in traffic.

2. I read that you got the accessories fitted from 3rd party vendor. Is the price difference huge between the dealer and a generic shop?
The accessories were either fit by the dealer or myself (DIY). For mechanical fitment you could do it yourself or at an FNG but for things like Aux lights , horns etc I would suggest getting it done at the dealership. At least VST knows what they are doing and will let you know if it will void the warranty or not. Not sure about the Pune dealer.
Only word of advice I have is get everything done pre delivery, that way you wont have to worry about fitting accessories later on.


3. How is the pillion comfort on your 950?
I have never sat pillion so the only feedback I have is from the Mrs. She loves the rear seat, though she insists the panniers be fitted because under heavy acceleration it helps her stay in place and on long rides she insists on the top box too.

[the_skyliner]

Originally Posted by deepfreak15

3. How is the pillion comfort on your 950?
I have never sat pillion so the only feedback I have is from the Mrs. She loves the rear seat, though she insists the panniers be fitted because under heavy acceleration it helps her stay in place and on long rides she insists on the top box too.

Thank you for the response, deepfreak15. The statement in bold makes me happy because I am planning to ride with my wife on the pillion seat quite a few times.

I am hoping to get TD of AfricaTwin MT next week before taking the final decision.

[deepfreak15]

For reasons unknown CrAzY dRiVeR had decided to abandon his Versys in Bangalore and run away to Kerala at the first hint of the corona virus. He was finally re united with his bike on Friday and to celebrate that a few of us decided to ride to Coorg, spend the night and ride back the next day.
We decided to stay at http://www.greenpasturescoorg.com/ with the sole intent of Riding-Eating-Sleeping-Eating-Riding (in that order)


Coffee and motorcycles - what a lovely combination. The coffee was sourced from their own estate and to die for, I lost count of the number of cups I had.


Lovely winding roads with smooth tarmac.


The bikes in all their glory after a good hard ride





As the temps dropped we were treated to a warm bonfire with amazing food

From L-R ebmrajesh,KarthikK,CrAzY dRiVeR, Yours truly

#Rule11 was not violated!

The next day morning was treated to some lovely misty weather and the sight of our bikes drenched in it.




For some reason all our bikes were covered in spiderwebs






























All set for the ride back home.


Time flies and its been a year with this bike, service is due next week so will update this thread with my service experience and my thoughts on living with an ADV.

[abhi_tjet]

Beautiful lineup of bikes, nice place to stay and wonderful weather! What more one can ask for?

A nice, crisp, quick travelogue there.

[the_skyliner]

Nice pictures, deepfreak15! Looks like a fun filled ride.

Booked a Multi 950S a couple of weeks ago and expecting delivery sometime this or next week. Your thread has given me kind of an idea what to expect and also what all DIY I can manage.

Don't want to hijack your thread but I think this is the only Multi 950 thread on the forum.

[deepfreak15]

Having lived with the bike for a year and 9700kms now, I thought it would be a good time to pen a few random thoughts and re visit some of those likes and dislikes. But first, let me get the annual service update out of the way.

Annual Service:
The annual service is as the name suggests, once a year or every 15000 Kms. Booked an appointment as is the norm and these are the things I brought to the attention of the Service manager
-Weak brakes: The lever had too much play and the initial bite was gone, bleeding the brakes at an FNG didnt help at all
-Silencer cover screws missing: After my 1000kms check up I noticed a screw had fallen off and since the plate was held up by another two screws left it that way only to find one by one the other screws fell off. Zip ties to the rescue.
-Rust on manifold
-Gear indicator has a mind of its own, sometimes it would grace me by showing "N" when I slotted in neutral but most of the time would show its stubborn Italian character and show "2". This wasnt a deal breaker unless I wanted to put the side stand down, then the engine would cut out.

VST group (Local Ducati dealer) is a large group and in my experience with them not everything has been perfect but when things went wrong their behavior proved they value reputation over financial gain. So I have no reason to have a strong inclination to stick around when they are servicing my bike, not that they would allow you too, they have a strict policy against customer's on the shop floor when the bike is being serviced. Dropped the bike off and considering how much I hate riding/driving in Bangalore traffic told them to take their time and ill pick up the bike the next day even they were ready to hand it over on the same day. The only thing I haven't gotten used too is how nonchalantly they brush off my "thought up/imagined" worries saying the bike is built to a standard and im over thinking it. Case in point when I pointed to what I thought was rust they insisted it was only red mud caked on a hot silencer (Later when I scratched some of it out it didn't smell like rust). Also they are pretty ok if you carry your own engine oil as long as its the same as the OEM spec and considering the great Republic sale on Amazon comes around the same time, I manage to save a bit of money.
Sunil, the service manager only insists on changing what needs to be changed, nothing less nothing more, so when he said the air filter was clogged beyond its usefulness I approved replacing with a new one.
So the next day got the bike with everything back to the way it was supposed to be apart for that stubborn gear indicator, apparently they tried to teach it the correct gears (yes, this is the technical term - Gear learning) but I guess my bike takes after me and would stick to showing "2" instead of "N" and all this outside the service center. When I went to drop the bike off and pick it up on both occasions it would always show "N". During my next visit will get the part replaced under warranty.

~12000 a year with no major parts to be changed/replaced is fine by me.





Tyres seem to be holding up pretty ok so far.





I still believe ALL Ducati's should be in this shade unless its the Diavel, then it has to be matt black



Be still my beating heart! Having done a couple of track days I know that even if I can afford it I wouldn't be able to do justice to this bike, that still didnt stop me from going weak at the knees.



My thoughts on owning and riding an ADV:

Let me get the not so good out of the way first.
No matter what anyone tells you, big ADVs are not the answer if all you are looking for is a comfortable bike. On the move, Yes! Nothing comes close to how supremely comfortable they are when you are gobbling up miles and some bikes like the Mutlistrada throw in that bit of zing where you can have some naughty fun while covering large distances. But apart from that, its a lot of hard work and needs a lot of thinking. No matter how many YouTube videos you watch and no matter how easy the service guys seem to maneuver the bike when not riding it is downright difficult (at least for me). Every off bike maneuver has to the carefully thought out and executed with the utmost concentration and even then you can be caught unaware with some one bumping into you or you suddenly lose grip and the safest alternative is putting the bike down gently. Having spent years in the gym and seeing how the bike takes being dropped, lifting the bike or something on the bike breaking are the least of my worries. The biggest thing to take a hit is your ego and pride (at least in my case). What I am trying to say is big ADVs make a ton of sense and serve my purpose to the "T", what you need to be aware off is what your use case is going to be and what your own limits are, if you can reconcile those two you wont be disappointed. Hopefully its only been a year for me and Im sure given a few more years I will start feeling much confident moving the bike around when Im off the bike.

For reference , the bike on the left is what I used to think was the heaviest and unwieldy (not on the move) bike.


Now for the good parts

My wife loves the bike, period! Any trip if I ask "Car or bike" her answer is always "Bike" and she gives me that weird look as if to say I don't have an option.
Riding the bike in the city is a pleasantly huge surprise, at least compared to my previous bike the D390. I can easily out maneouver 100cc commuters and it has none of the jerkiness of the KTM in lower gears. Of course the engine heats up but serves you right if you try to ride in plain old jeans.
So in short, nothing has changed in my "Likes" section, in fact I have only grown to love this bike more and the fact that my better half once in a while says "For once in your life you made the right choice in bikes" is the icing on the cake!

Originally Posted by the_skyliner

Booked a Multi 950S a couple of weeks ago and expecting delivery sometime this or next week.

Awesome news and Congrats! Having seen the new multi 950 up close Im pretty sure you wont be disappointed at all! Thanks for the kind words and looking forward to your ownership review (the current updates justify a new thread)

[sportymonk]

Silk White and also Silk in Ride . The detailed review of ownership was a good insight. Congratulations and Safe Ride.

[deepfreak15]

With nothing new to report on the Multi thought Id take this opportunity to introduce you to an addition of its Italian Cousin in the family stable.

Background: My Dad belongs to that group of people who grew up thinking Royal Enfield was the ONLY REAL bike manufacturer. So while he did start his motorcycling days with a Lambretta he ended up buying an RE 350 Bullet way back in 1986. He used that for many years and around 5 years ago somehow he thought buying an Activa would make his life easier. He sold his bike for a premium and ended up with an Activa. 6 months later and a couple of falls from the scooter he promptly sold it and bought a Classic 500

Now 5 years later he has come to the realization the Classic 500 while easy to ride is a pig to manoeuvre around and for a man in his 70s thats a hassle he would like to do without. I firmly believe that at this age he shouldnt be riding around on a two wheeler but instead a small city run-around hatch is the need of the hour. However in his eyes cars (no matter how small) are a luxury and inconvenience.
Since he had a bad experience with the Activa (I attribute it to the tiny wheels and almost no rake) I decided to take him scooter shopping and a larger wheel size was my biggest criteria. With that in mind took him to the local TVS dealer to check out the Jupiter. Surprisingly he hated the Jupiter (looks) and headed straight for the Ntorq. This was a promising turn of events, if he liked the Ntorq then there was hope me might be ok with the Aprilia SR160, with proper suspension and 14" rims it might be the best thing to transition into from a motorcycle. Sadly he felt it was too sporty but agreed to test ride the SXR160. I guess he felt it was too bulky and the fact that the handle bar moves independent of the front head unit must have put him off. We were stepping out of the showroom when we both saw this standing.

I had no idea Vespa had this colour scheme and one look at the Gold rims we both knew we this was it!. So without much ado promptly bought the scooter
Buying Experience
Initially it was a bit strange, while they were obliging and happy to give him a test ride when it came to asking for the price they seemed clueless and said the new price list for the month of August hadnt come and they would let me know. I waited for a day but no news, so I called the Vespa India helpline and told them I really wanted to buy the scooter but the dealer wasnt billing it. They promptly conferenced the call with the dealer and I had the quotation in 5 minutes. Things ran smoothly from there on. Promptly paid up (~ 1.48 Lakhs) and the vehicle was delivered the next day. I had no idea scooters are so expensive these days, I almost choked when I was told the Ntorq was 1.10 Lakhs on road.

Mr Srinivasan from India Motors was a pleasure to deal with

.

Young chap with a great attitude. He followed up on all the paper work and even though it only took a day kept in touch with progress updates and overall made the experience very premium.

Vespa Racing Sixties (125)

Powered by a 125cc 9.92PS engine this variant should do the job. The only reason we didnt consider the 150cc was because it came with a 30 day waiting period

Truth be told the rims was what triggered the purchase. There is something exotic about an Italian with Golden rims.

The Italians know how to pull of beauty in symmetry

This scooter is based on the SXL variant (rectangle headlight)

What started with a hunt for a scooter with large dia rims we ended up with a weird combination (10'' rear and 11" front). Luckily we know someone who deals in tyres

The suspension looks beefy but these are early days so no real feedback. By law vehicles below 150cc need to have combi braking system and I hate that system but if we needed ABS had to wait for 30days

The Center hump wont allow you to carry much there but Im happy. At least that will ensure the vehicle is not treated like a goods vehicle.

For reference a size 9 shoe, looks like there is decent room



Though the pillion foot position always fouls with the rider's legs when manoeuvring with legs down. There has to be some logic behind this but beats me

The rear-view mirror design isn't great and has very limited adjustability

The left hand side controls include High/low beam switch (engagement is via some quirky Italian design you have to pull it with your thumb, not press), Indicators and horn

And the right hand side includes a Mode button (for the tripmeter, no engine modes), DRL/Headlight toggle and the start button. There is no brake lever lock. I think this is a miss from Vespa.

The console is basic but legible and just the way I like it (Prominently Analogue)

There is a neat cut out to view the brake fluid level but not very easy to view

Storage Options

Hook up front to hang stuff off but no load rating mentioned



Not sure what you can keep in these two slots on the front apron but I personally wouldn't risk keeping a mobile phone here






Under seat storage with boot light



Fits a helmet (havent tried a full face yet)



USB charging socket included

Lighting

All LED setup

DRL only



High beam



Low beam

[deepfreak15]

One of the best seats I have come across on a 2 wheeler. Feels firm and is shaped extremely well. Looks good too!





Both Center stand and side stand came as standard

Accessories

While the dealer had a load of protection options in case you dropped the scooter but in my opinion it looked ugly so we opted only for the rear grab rail. The dealer threw in a helmet and was kind enough to even give us a choice of which we would like to pick

Helmet made by steelbird and since it has the ISI mark must be really really safe as per our Govt

Comes with cool looking rear vents



Drop down visor included



Now this is bad design. There is no way you can touch that valvle without touching the exhaust pipe (unless you have tiny hands)

Riding impressions
I have only ridden pillion on the scooter and early days it looks promising. Does not feel underpowered, the suspension feels plush and the seat firm. Time will tell.


Time to retire this old workhorse. It has had a very tough life. Used every day in all weather. Put through extreme load carrying situations (Think light truck tyres etc). Eventually would like to restore it to showroom condition and keep it as a Sunday morning ride option.

PS: The eagled eyed among you would have noticed an anomaly, let me address that (A mutt and a sack)

The mutt is our resident attention seeker and the sack is his tug of war toy. Dont let those looks fool you. That sack is strategically positioned. This is his way of daring you to pick up the other end if you can. He does this with a ball too. Will keep it as close to his muzzle and gently nudge it in your direction

If that fails and you ignore him, he will directly plonk himself in front of you and intermittently sigh loudly like an old lady sitting in heavens waiting room waiting for her final call.

and turn around once in a while just to check if you are still there

Posting a couple of his pics because he took the effort to show off

The last time he paid this much attention to a vehicle he ended up chewing a rear view light and a foot rest. Once a Rottie decides to chew on something its a lost cause. But we still adore him

[kamilharis]

Congrats on this unique scooter, the color combination is so cool and it looks 'so ITALIAN'.!

Yes, the scooters are priced so high these days, but at least you got something unique with that amount of money.

And the photos were excellent, keep them coming.

[nerdgalore]

The light blue and red color combination looks absolutely stunning. And the gold rims are cherry on the cake. Many congratulations on owning the beauty

[Cyborg]

Lovely scooter and attractive colour combination. Racing Sixties . Love your Rottwieler more though what’s his name?

Since the smaller wheels on the Activa were uncomfortable, how do you find the 11/10 front/rear combination on this one. While riding a Vespa (earlier model) with the 10 inch front wheel, I found the handle very twitchy. Cannot explain it better, it was a distinctly uncomfortable feeling.

Cheers

[W.A.G.7]

That scoot looks cool. Those golden wheels - look classy. Maybe if we had seen them on a website, they might not have looked so attractive. But these are classy. Overall, loved the scooter pics and your description. Congratulations on your purchase and wish you many happy kilometres on it! Please update the riding experience so far; in a bit more detail. And out of curiosity, since your father has size 9 footwear (which you have shown on the footboard), what's his height? Did he find the scooter low, just right or a bit high for his height?