[zingthing]

Originally Posted by adnaps

No delivery commitments. Deliveries are expected to commence by Nov but no firm commitments from RE.

Could you please let me know the booking amount for the new TBTS 500 and TBTS 350 in Bangalore.

7-8 months wait or a new TBTS 350 in Bangalore?? Thats quite a waiting period.

[rki2007]

Originally Posted by zingthing

Could you please let me know the booking amount for the new TBTS 500 and TBTS 350 in Bangalore.

7-8 months wait or a new TBTS 350 in Bangalore?? Thats quite a waiting period.

Recently when I had called a dealer at bannerghatta road in Bangalore , I was told that the booking amount is Rs 5000 and the waiting period for tbts 500 is 4 months and tbts 350 is 5-6 months .

[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Originally Posted by akshay4587

Sir,If i were in your place,i would have got the new one. If you are not the one who craves for the slow revving CI engine running on CB points and a Heavy crank,go for the new TB500.
I would recommend you a CL500 chrome,would suit you.

Dear Akshay - I have no actual need for a bullet but I want to buy one in shining black color with lots of chrome to fulfil my latent desire for leisure use on a lazy Sunday morning, that's the only day I still get free, that too sometimes! I agree with your suggestion to buy new and I don't mind the price tag too, but what about the horror stories surrounding the reliability factor? The thing must start first time and every single time when I press that red button (which will be once in 7 days if I am lucky or even once in a month), it must work on the road out there, all gears must shift and shift "properly", not "shove to engage", they must shift with the same clinical precision and finesse, shift after shift after shift after shift. I will just not accept statistical variability, let alone getting stuck in thrid gear etc. If it does not work, my whole reason for buying goes for a toss. I don't have time to fight with a guy who is at best a messenger / intermediary agency like a dealer, as I have 100 other things to do, so I cannot run around behind this guy and get a nonsecical reply as rightly posted by adnaps 11 posts below. Also, here is a live feedback, because one of my engineers has been brave enough to buy one. His starter motor is not working and the center thingy holding the key is broken so the key hangs and makes wierd noises. Some moron told him to change "everything" including the nacelles because "the part is not available separately". I have shown him how to get the whole thing fabricated and fitted once and for all, the problem will be solved permanently, that too at 1/10th of the cost! .

So, I explored some "possbilities". On 23 September, I had taken my classic Fiat 1100D to the Pune event where 6 "Aprilia" bikes were displayed. My very dear friend and rallyist Shreekant Apte is the dealer here in Pune, so I will have no dealer issue ever. I liked only one black bike out of the six displayed. I found out the cost, it is the costliest one with the Xenon headlamp, priced at 16 lakh rupees. Unfortunately, I don't have that kind of money to spend on a bike. The bike is utterly fabulous, it is a work of art, I am all gaga over it! Alas!

So, I explored "other possibilities". Most of the local stuff has huge fairings fitted to a piddly engine (some not even fitted properly with ugly brackets showing all over the place). I don't want to use "pretenders". One of the reasons I wanted to go for a bullet besides the thump beat is that it still does not have any dirty looking fairings. Some of the stuff on display was downright ugly, especially the nacelle area below the back seat. I could actually see that in some models, the rear mud guard was added on as an afterthought of testing feedback and not integrated within the design. The part must have been made on a computer and guys would have passed some ridiculously high budgets to get it into production. The thingy shakes like a jelly. The yawning gap between such a part and the rear seat makes me wonder whether design sanity still exists? These products seem to have been somehow made by project managers rather than by passionate designers. From the front, some of them look like a very poor personification of "Starship Enterprise", they are even uglier than "Mr.Spock". On top of that, there is the eyesore "RTO Pass" number plate. Oh my God!

Which brings me back to buying an old bullet and restoring! At least I can reason with the mechanic! At least I will pay only half of the showroom cost. And if it still does not work, I will feel only half as bad! But I do not want a slow revving engine with CB points, so I guess I have to change the engine too!

Dilemma continues! HELP!

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[bond_bhai]

I checked with the RE Brand store, Jayanagar, Bangalore. They said the deliveries "might" begin sometime 3rd week of November. No Delivery commitments made till now!

[anandpadhye]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

From the front, some of them look like a very poor personification of "Starship Enterprise", they are even uglier than "Mr.Spock". On top of that, there is the eyesore "RTO Pass" number plate. Oh my God!

Very well said.

I also don't like the faired bikes and don't like the looks of the Ninja.
Why can't they put such a fantastic engine in a decent looking motorcycle on which two people can sit comfortably and ride for hours??? If I buy such an expensive bike, I would surely like to be able to ride with a pillion!

So we have nothing except Royal Enfield - and Royal Enfield do not have the cutting edge technology - just the looks!

I think we should just wait and watch for a couple of years

Anand

P.S. The Ducati Monster 795 looks smashing, classic, but it's very expensive and the dealership and service network seems atrocious from what I have read...

[adnaps]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

[b][u]
Which brings me back to buying an old bullet and restoring! At least I can reason with the mechanic! At least I will pay only half of the showroom cost. And if it still does not work, I will feel only half as bad! But I do not want a slow revving engine with CB points, so I guess I have to change the engine too!

Dilemma continues! HELP!

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

The golden question is do you have access to a good mechanic. If yes the answer is yes restoration of an old bullet is an ideal solution, However be aware that you will be for ever be dependent on the competency and availability of the mechanic. The old timers are retiring and the new ones are just fly by night operators.

[ebonho]

Behram, one bawa to another, please do not buy a new UCE Bullet. You will not be pleased, nor get much of anything that drew you to a Bullet in the first place.

Yes every Indian man must own and ride a Bullet at least once in his life.

No, the UCE is not a Bullet.

My suggestion would be to buy a decent old Bullet and do it up.

Please buy a 350. At least you have a better chance finding parts.

I am in Pune, and am a Bulleteer, having owned 3 500s (the standard, the lean burn, and the classic UCE) over the past 10 years.

You can even have a ride on my 500.

[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Behram, one bawa to another, please do not buy a new UCE Bullet. You will not be pleased, nor get much of anything that drew you to a Bullet in the first place. No, the UCE is not a Bullet. My suggestion would be to buy a decent old Bullet and do it up. Please buy a 350. At least you have a better chance finding parts. I am in Pune, and am a Bulleteer, having owned 3 500s (the standard, the lean burn, and the classic UCE) over the past 10 years. You can even have a ride on my 500.

Dear ebonho - "Sahebji Bawaji" and thank you for your correct comments. My requirements are very exacting. Being a product engineer, I know what the product must give to the customer. My requirements are same as that of any customer who pays to buy a product. Decision taken, I am not buying a new Bullet. The poor reliability knocks the deal down. You just can't have a starter motor "not working" and the key "hanging".

Please send me your mobile number by PM. I work at Pimpri, it will be my pleasure to catch up.

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[am1m]

I thought RE was doing a better job on the new bikes than the old ones. I was always under the impression that it was the older generation of Bullets that had the reliability issues and thought that the newer ones are more reliable.

Please correct me if I'm wrong.

PS: I'm not planning to buy a new one, I have a '07 TB that's not let me down so far (touch-wood). I'm not a big fan of RE either, to me it's just another bike brand that's got great marketing. Just curious, because I've taken rides on a couple of the new Classics (350 and 500) owned by friends, and thought they were pretty decent quality-wise.

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by ebonho

No, the UCE is not a Bullet.

My thoughts exactly, when I went to TR a TB 350. No, I have never owned a Bullet before, and have just ridden a Bullet or two of my friends occasionally in the past. But it somehow did not feel "right" during the TR, even to me.

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

My requirements are very exacting. My requirements are same as that of any customer who pays to buy a product. Decision taken, I am not buying a new Bullet. The poor reliability knocks the deal down. You just can't have a starter motor "not working" and the key "hanging".

Though I never owned a Bullet, in our company we have purchased dozens of Bullets for our marketing personnel over the years. These will be replaced every six years or so. Some times when a new lot of bikes were delivered to our office, I will go and have a look. Invariably a few will be leaking oil!

Things have not changed much over the years, UCE or not. Fit and finish are still iffy, and quality seems to be a hit or miss.

[ebonho]

Bullets leak oil. Period.

Bullets snap cables.

Bullets have noisy valvetrains.

Bullets overheat and burn clutch plates.

Bullets overheat.

Bullets seize.

Bullets chew rear sprockets.

Bullets kick and spit.

Bullets vibrate.

Bullets are loud.

Bullets are underpowered and slow.

Bullets are thirsty.

But we still love them.

Because they give you a feel that is unmatched by any other bike.

The LBs (with the right tweaks) still had that DNA.

The UCEs sadly do not.

[am1m]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Bullets leak oil. Period.

Bullets snap cables
...
The UCEs sadly do not.

Ha ha! Can certainly appreciate the sentiment, though can't say I understand it! (I need a bike that's reliable over a long ride, more than anything else).

Since you've owned all the different types, are you saying that the UCEs are basically more reliable and less of a hassle to own/ride than the older Bullets? I certainly found the quality of the new Classics far better than the old Bullets that I've ridden, but that may be just superficial; I'm not a Bullet expert in any way.

[throttleking]

Originally Posted by ebonho

The LBs (with the right tweaks) still had that DNA.

The UCEs sadly do not.

Yes UCEs dont have that feel or DNA, but they continue to have all problems you mentioned

[naveenroy]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Bullets leak oil. Period.
----------------------
But we still love them.

Because they give you a feel that is unmatched by any other bike.

The LBs (with the right tweaks) still had that DNA.

The UCEs sadly do not.

Hahaha, something that I could understand until some months back. After attaining nirvana, I have become more clear-headed and think that the RE is actually a "small" joke that RE keeps playing on its customers and loyal fans. No offense meant to you.

Yes, granted that the LB was probably the only thing close to a "Bullet" from yesteryears. But give me a more (relatively) hassle-free bike (UCE) than a bucket of oil anyday. I say this cause I know how much of a pain it can be to use an RE as a regular commute everyday.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by am1m

Since you've owned all the different types, are you saying that the UCEs are basically more reliable and less of a hassle to own/ride than the older Bullets?

I did not own an UCE long enough to comment either way. Just 3 odd months, 3000 odd kms (one ride to Goa and back).

But from what I hear in the community, and amongst friends owning them still, I am not convinced.

Originally Posted by throttleking

Yes UCEs dont have that feel or DNA, but they continue to have all problems you mentioned

Spot on. And a few extra unique ones all of their own!

Originally Posted by naveenroy

Hahaha, something that I could understand until some months back. After attaining nirvana, I have become more clear-headed and think that the RE is actually a "small" joke that RE keeps playing on its customers and loyal fans. No offense meant to you.

Yes, granted that the LB was probably the only thing close to a "Bullet" from yesteryears. But give me a more (relatively) hassle-free bike (UCE) than a bucket of oil anyday. I say this cause I know how much of a pain it can be to use an RE as a regular commute everyday.

Naveen, the number of UCEs I have seen with engines split open before 10,000 kms is surely not funny.

If there is one thing RE has done, its move away from the KISS principle.

The standards were easiest to rebuild.

The LBs never came back to what they were factory fresh.

The UCEs from what I hear are more "use and throw" with modular replacements rather than rebuilds being the norm/design envelope.

Not to mention that in 10 years of Bullet ownership for me, RE has gone through THREE engine platforms, for the SAME cubic capacity, with ON PAPER power increase by a whopping 5 BHP (22 to 27), and ON PAPER top end improved by a whopping 10 KMPH (120 to 130), and MILEAGE increased by around 5 KMPL, and COST increased by over 100%.