[tejus.s]

A pretty honest write up Preetam.

I took the 200NS for a spin from one of the showrooms near my place and I agree with you on most counts, including it being a jack of all kind of a bike. It was one of the main reasons for me to choose a Karizma over a Bullet. I can ride to office everyday and still have a reliable bike on weekends and vice versa.

Back to the post, well I kind of disagree with you on the maintenance front. A few friends of mine own Pulsars and have seen them in shock and awe during service bills. Not sure why it's the case, but spares simply are not of good quality and the service is nothing to write home about is what I've heard.

I've never owned a Pulsar till date but we do have two Honda powered machines at home which are super refined, reliable and generally not-so-expensive to maintain. I think it's the wrong notion that people have about foreign manufacturers.

All said and done, do ride safe. Invest sufficiently in quality riding gear

[Top gear]

Awesome photography I appreciate it ! good review as well thank you

[preetam_KORG]

Originally Posted by tejus.s

A pretty honest write up Preetam.

I took the 200NS for a spin from one of the showrooms near my place and I agree with you on most counts, including it being a jack of all kind of a bike. It was one of the main reasons for me to choose a Karizma over a Bullet. I can ride to office everyday and still have a reliable bike on weekends and vice versa.

Thanks Tejus! Unlike the old Pulsars, this one does quite a few things rather well!

Back to the post, well I kind of disagree with you on the maintenance front. A few friends of mine own Pulsars and have seen them in shock and awe during service bills. Not sure why it's the case, but spares simply are not of good quality and the service is nothing to write home about is what I've heard.
I've never owned a Pulsar till date but we do have two Honda powered machines at home which are super refined, reliable and generally not-so-expensive to maintain. I think it's the wrong notion that people have about foreign manufacturers.

The parts are not of the best quality but sufficiently good quality to endure torture. I have owned a Pulsar 150 and it all depends on how well it is being maintained. When I'd bought that, it was 3rd hand to me, and was in tatters. When I sold it off though, I got the same price which I bought it for.

All said and done, do ride safe. Invest sufficiently in quality riding gear

Thanks!
Just a pic for reference, my gloves, as shot by me.

Originally Posted by Top gear

Awesome photography I appreciate it ! good review as well thank you

Thanks Top Gear!

[golden.pedal99]

Hey Preetam, Congratulations on a great purchase.

The review has been greatly written and spiced up with fantastic photos. Can i know which camera and lens are you using.

[arvi86]

Hi Preetam, what do I say about the quality of writing and photography in this thread? Man, I seriously don't know how to describe. It was a feast for the brain as well as the eyes. That was a superb and honest review.

As you rightly said, the Pulsar 200 NS is one of the best things to have happened to the Indian biking scene and that it is from an Indian manufacturer makes its case sweeter. Here is wishing you a very happy and long ownership of the Pulsar 200 NS!

Keep those stunning pictures coming. I just can't have enough of it.

[Magnaspectre]

Beautiful Review Preetam... Good to see that you upgraded to better tyres. Yes, the TVS eurogrip tyres are the biggest let down on the 200NS.

Bajaj now needs to improve in its after sales interactions with bike owners, especially the Pulsar range owners, like they are doing with KTM, listen to the customer, give optional factory ungrades/accessories, organise track days/ meets. This will great to take both the Pulsar brand as well as the customer forward.

[am1m]

Originally Posted by ebonho

I think from what I am hearing the Duke is the slowest amongst the four (the others being the CBR, the NS, and the R15).

That's an interesting question though - which is the fastest sub 3-lakh bike available in India? In terms of actual top speed, in a straight line, in totally stock condition, and never mind how long it takes to get to the top speed.

Would be great to know.

[Parthasarathig]

Its a well known fact that the NS has an optimistic speedo. This is because of the many cases Ive seen an NS doing top speeds and still being overtaken by a Duke.

From fastest to slowest in terms of top speed IMO- CBR 250r, R15, Duke/ Pulsar. Please correct me if Im wrong.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Parthasarathig

Its a well known fact that the NS has an optimistic speedo. This is because of the many cases Ive seen an NS doing top speeds and still being overtaken by a Duke.

From fastest to slowest in terms of top speed IMO- CBR 250r, R15, Duke/ Pulsar. Please correct me if Im wrong.

The R15 is the slowest, I am pretty sure of that.

I would say CBR250r > Pulsar NS > Duke (new ones) > R15

[Parthasarathig]

Originally Posted by ebonho

The R15 is the slowest, I am pretty sure of that.

I would say CBR250r > Pulsar NS > Duke (new ones) > R15

But I doubt if the Pulsar NS is faster than the new Dukes, sir. Im not those racing types, but my buddy who has good control over bikes, and got the Duke along with me, demonstrated the phenomenon.
The road was straight. We got the 200NS upto top speeds iirc 143 and the duke still overtook it and had cut off at 137kmph. Both my friends are good riders, unlike me who has seldom touched triple digits. So I still have doubts about the NS speedometer.

But for me top speeds hardly matter. I want to get to a place while enjoying the scenery around, not fly by all the wonderful landscapes.

[twinblades]

Originally Posted by Parthasarathig

But I doubt if the Pulsar NS is faster than the new Dukes, sir. Im not those racing types, but my buddy who has good control over bikes, and got the Duke along with me, demonstrated the phenomenon.
The road was straight. We got the 200NS upto top speeds iirc 143 and the duke still overtook it and had cut off at 137kmph. Both my friends are good riders, unlike me who has seldom touched triple digits. So I still have doubts about the NS speedometer.

But for me top speeds hardly matter. I want to get to a place while enjoying the scenery around, not fly by all the wonderful landscapes.

i think he meant slow because of the new ECU mapping that comes as default on the duke. which fixed some stalling issues on low RPMs but dropped the Top Speed by some few kms/h.

[ebonho]

Partha I doubt the new Dukes cut off at 137 kmph.

The old Dukes cut off at 135-136. Given enough distance/slope, they have been taken 138-139 as well.

The new ones are around 4 kmph slower. They would cut off at 132-133 kmph.

[Parthasarathig]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Partha I doubt the new Dukes cut off at 137 kmph.

The old Dukes cut off at 135-136. Given enough distance/slope, they have been taken 138-139 as well.

The new ones are around 4 kmph slower. They would cut off at 132-133 kmph.

Doc, i confirmed it with my friend again. He said he felt power less at 137kmph on a straight. On a slope, it was 142 when it cut off.

He Said it felt like someone switched off the engine. When he came back to 135, it switched back on.

Is 135 the speed limit then in this bike or 137 where ecu cuts off?

[niranjanrvce]

Originally Posted by Parthasarathig

From fastest to slowest in terms of top speed IMO- CBR 250r, R15, Duke/ Pulsar. Please correct me if Im wrong.

Originally Posted by ebonho

The R15 is the slowest, I am pretty sure of that.

I would say CBR250r > Pulsar NS > Duke (new ones) > R15

The NS indeed has an optimistic speedo - 148 on the speedo translating to 133 true speed on gps. The CBR suffers from this a bit too. I had 145 on my speedo on the CBR with my bro on the Duke keeping me behind at two bikes' length consistently. Only a downward slope and upwards of 145 saw the CBR go past.The R15 is not in the picture here honestly. Top speed is as much a matter of how fast you get there as just numbers - the CBR and Duke at least have nothing to separate them in the real world.

Doc, which batch of Dukes are you talking about? The one I have does 138/139 before ECU cut off fairly easily and I saw the same on a 2 month old Duke.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by niranjanrvce

Doc, which batch of Dukes are you talking about? The one I have does 138/139 before ECU cut off fairly easily and I saw the same on a 2 month old Duke.

Partha and you seem to be saying the same thing - i.e. the recent Dukes being able to go around 137-138.

The company claims 136 for the old Duke and 132 for the new ones.

They might have compensated by changing the gearing slightly.