Dream comes home: Honda CBR 250R Std (Red) “Mods: Feel free to merge this with other Baby Ceeber threads if you feel necessary”
Hi Folks,
Though we already have a few posts on this bike by now, I felt like penning down my unusual experience at procuring this dream machine.
Background: I have been an avid amateur biker since my teen days – having owned a CBZ and ZMA till 2007. My longest ride back then had been Chennai – Hyderabad (750kms approx) non-stop. Then came a time that I felt the need of graduating to a four wheeler, and as money was not in free flow – I had to give up my ZMA for downpayment of my SWIFT. A year passed by and I started feeling the need for a bike all over again. Choosing the perfect Bike: I have always had a thing for full fairing bikes. Though I love cruisers and muscle bikes for the occasional rides, I always felt myself looking better on the fairing bikes. But being as choosy as I am in terms of looks, I just could not find the right fit in the models we had available in 2008. R15 came close initially, but the small height and puny tires were a turn off (Though I still prefer this bike to ride then my own Ceeber). FZ16 was something I liked purely for the size of the rear rubber, and Fazer was something I almost booked for its looks vis-à-vis performance. But still I was 100% content with the 150cc machine, so was now confused between Fazer and Pulsar 220. Just about then, the CBR was seen doing newsmagazine rounds in late 2010 and voila – I found my dream bike. Perfect performance vs looks vs price. Booking: I have always been a hasty buyer repenting later for my extra quick heart based decisions. So I decided to not book the CBR when bookings opened in Jan, and wanted to wait to see one bike in flesh. Never imagined the Japan quake as well as the long list of bookings for the ceeber, always thought I could get one off the shelf when launched in April. Finally saw the bike in flesh in March, and emotions overtook sensibility and I booked one for myself in Venetian Honda (Mumbai). As I have been more used to dealing with Car showrooms in the past 4 years, the attitude of the Two Wheeler dealer shops was kind of a big turn off to start with. I was promised a 45-60 day waiting period by a disinterested sales guy who took my booking payment as if he was doing a big favor on me.
Waiting Number: 167 , Color: Red Finding a ‘Bike’ off the grid: Come June, and I started seeing Team-BHP posts on CBR deliveries. I started craving for the CBR by now, but my dealer just kept extending the dates. The wait which initially was 45 days, increased to 3 months and then to 6 and finally close to about 11 months as per the last update. I couldn’t wait any longer, this called for the first drastic steps. I started calling all tier two cities near Mumbai (Sangli,Pimpri,Nashik,Satara,etc) asking the dealers if they have any ready bike, but they all had a 2 month waiting. Finally found a black CBR in Satara (Display bike) that he was ready to sell, so I drove there immediately (340 kms). But looking at the bike in flesh, I instantly knew black was a compromise, so gave it up.
By now I was started getting too desperate to own the bike, so decided on booking the Ninja. Went to the PBK outlet and did all necessary checks. Out of curiosity, I mailed a few Team-BHP members who either a Ninja/CBR after evaluating the CBR vs Ninja specs. Out of this conversation, I met my life saver (ISODOPE) who mentioned that he had booked a Ninja and was planning to let go of his CBR booking and I was all smiles. Delivery:
We happened to visit the Honda showroom the same day as my new friend got his Ninja delivery. I don’t know what ticked the dealer off, but he started seriously stating the rule that bookings are transferable and they “will not” sell the bike without registration (which other Honda showrooms I spoke to were ready to do). We waited for a few days to see if we can try some push from Honda, but days turned into a week and I finally asked my friend if I can book the bike on his name and then later transfer it to mine after a month or 2. He agreed, and the dream was suddenly very near.
I got the delivery on June 28, we did a quick PDI and sorted out the clutch play and the handle bar alignment. Everything else seemed in place except a very small scratch on the silencer. I was ok to live with that. RTO Passing:
Being out of Mumbai jurisdiction, this dealer gave away bikes without even passing them at the local RTO, albeit with a form signed by the customer that he takes full responsibility of the early delivery. So this meant I can’t take the bike home (inside Mumbai) as we had to wait for RTO formalities. So on 1st July, we visited the RTO (dealer only coordinates) and passed the bike and it was finally ready to be bought home.
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