[vinjosep]

Wow, thats some nice video they have. 3 Shades of black is the color choice you have. Nice!

[Smokeymist]

Well well well. Atlast my childhood dream fulfilled & fulfilled with an amazing RE TBTS 500(Flicker).Guess what i booked one today.

God, i cant wait anymore to own it.to be delivered in January.

Have been roaming around the brand store from quite some time and today i had been there for three times just to check if its released or not. Atlast i not only got to see it but have tried both 500 & 350..

My First Impression:Incredible.
500 is a Mammoth, RE has gone leaps and bounds in putting this machine together, very well crafted styling and terrific to handle.
350 I drove after i did 500, so i felt its is under powered (obviously).
Styling wise they both are just unique & just the tag 350, 500 makes the difference.
The engine just pushed off with ease and very refined.
Brakes are superior, back disc is real handy..
Things i thought could have been better is the vibration, but its again much better compared to Classic 500/DS 500..
Gears shifting could have been much more crisper. missing the shifts over the neutral. else all well.
The clocks are not fixed properly when i check with the guys there they say its a problem with the test drive vehicles its not like that generally (I am not sure how many they have seen so far.) i doubt..the cluster should have been fixed more properly.

Will keep posted more as i get through these months..

[flyboy747]

Just got back from the RE showroom after seeing it in the flesh. The electricals/displays seemed quite nice (a mph calibration hiding under the kmph numbers) and a 9 step fuel gauge. The finish of the bike did not impress me though. The black anodized engine color already showed signs of chipping on many fins on both sides of the block (the bike had only 30 kms on the odo). Could not go for a test drive as the showroom bike was not yet registered. The bike IMHO is a evolution of the Thunderbird, definitely not a revolution.

[Warwithwheels]

Originally Posted by ganesc

Looks like TBTS 350 CC also got some updates? Was it @ 1.43 Lacs on road earlier too? One of my cousin had and it was only 1.20 Lacs during 2009.

TBTS 500 is something like I can only dream about at this point considering the on-road cost and petrol rate

Recently got my TBTS delivered. The on road price after addition of accessories et all came close to 1.40L. And this quote is for the same ol' version!

[bond_bhai]

Originally Posted by Warwithwheels

Recently got my TBTS delivered. The on road price after addition of accessories et all came close to 1.40L. And this quote is for the same ol' version!

It was 1.34L on Road in Bangalore, Plain vanilla - no accessories, in the last month.

[mempheS.D]

I've been closely wathcing this thread for some time now and finally the first drive report of the TBTS 500 is out.

Not impressive enough to woo current RE owners for a switch.

From the first drive report:
1. The new handles are a welcome change. But the vibrations beyond 90kmph continue to exist.
2. The seating position is supposed to hurt the tailbone during those sadle sore rides. This is something RE should have focussed on considering they are marketing it as an Indian cruiser.
3. The rear disc brakes. A welcome change again. I wish they bring this as an accessory I can fit to my TBTS. Badly need it.
4. The instrument cluster is a vast improvement.

Overall, enough to lure a few newcomers to RE but not enough to lure current RE owners to go extra-marital!

[diwa]

Originally Posted by bond_bhai

It was 1.34L on Road in Bangalore, Plain vanilla - no accessories, in the last month.

The costs have definitely increased a lot. I got my C500 @ 1.45L OTR Chennai, in Dec 2010.

[a4anurag]

Got a few pictures from OVERDRIVE website.

Looks nice and good updates given to the RE. The tail lamp should have been a little bigger than one provided. Like the instrumentation cluster and headlamps.

[ganesc]

Originally Posted by flyboy747

The black anodized engine color already showed signs of chipping on many fins on both sides of the block (the bike had only 30 kms on the odo)...

The bike IMHO is a evolution of the Thunderbird, definitely not a revolution.

:( Shouldn't have been at least after demanding a premium price.

Originally Posted by Warwithwheels

Recently got my TBTS delivered. The on road price after addition of accessories et all came close to 1.40L. And this quote is for the same ol' version!

Ah ok. So, this pricing sounds a reasonable increase and that too after knowing its almost identical to the 500.

Thanks for clarifying!

[RSimonS]

The tail lamp looks like straight from a 100cc bike.

Any idea what is the on road price in bangalore. My CL500 is due sometime now, confused.

[thumpingheart]

God!

1) LED!
2) 18" Rear wheel
3) Real wannabe styling
4) 1.8 lakhs!!!!!!!!!!!!

RE have miserably failed according to me. Very very bad effort. Neither here nor there.

[reswaran]

Originally Posted by thumpingheart

God!

1) LED!
2) 18" Rear wheel
3) Real wannabe styling
4) 1.8 lakhs!!!!!!!!!!!!

RE have miserably failed according to me. Very very bad effort. Neither here nor there.

And how about that CD100 'esque exhaust?

[thumpingheart]

Originally Posted by reswaran

And how about that CD100 'esque exhaust?

Oh yes! Thank you for pointing it out! I completely forgot about it when i posted!

I already think my TBTS is a bit of a disproportionate design.But the 500 takes that to a completely new level.

How can a company that can design something as beautiful as the Classic 350/500 can design this piece of poo-poo!!

The gap in the rear wheel arch (courtesy 18" wheels) too is ghastly! This bike will most probably be amazing to drive. The 42 torques and the TB comfort! But this sure is a really bad looking bike.

[Bazinga]

1.8 odd lakhs for TBTS 500?? I think they got the pricing really wrong.
Its asking for too much premium over the currently overpriced bikes in their stable. The upgrades are not out of the world, these are already present in bikes from other stables from ages (LED / rear disks / fancy tail lamp etc etc). These are essentials if you ask me in modern bikes.
I wish them luck selling this (although the new age bulleteers will lap it up)

[datvichrox2]

Though I feel that some parts of this bike looks weird, it gives hope that RE is trying something new. So they now have variants that are inspired by modern design alongside the classic models. This will definitely appeal to a different segment of people with different tastes than the usual RE fan. I'll say its not that bad. I might flick that 20 litre tank for my TBTS

Check out this RE video for more glimpses of the TBTS 500 (nice video IMO):

www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKuTFO4wXbw