[rajpandey10]

Hi,

Four years back a bug caught for a Leh trip on the bike, so I bought a pre-owned CBR250R which was just 11 months old. But due to the back injury that plan never got materialised and trip never happened. After that I normally used my bike for some occasional office and morning trips. It was the bike which I was really in love with. But someday I would have to take the tough decision to part away from my beloved bike because:-

1. I have driven hardly 3000 kms in last four years
2. In winters I hardly take my bike for any ride, as in Gurgaon it is very chilly
3. It is really painful to see the bike standing idle for so many days
4. Not able to use it for quick market runs, because it demands proper shoes and getup, you cannot ride it with sandals etc.
5. And if you want to go to the market for some quick buy, you cannot do it with CBR because it is impossible to hang any polythene bags on the handlebars because of fairing
6. In Feb I exchanged my old car with a new Baleno, so was pretty much devoting time to it
7. And the last and most important thing, I was not doing JUSTICE with my bike by keeping her idle most of the time and rarely using it




So after lots of thought process, I planned to sell it with a heavy heart.

Thereafter I placed an ad in OLX, then incidentally after 3-4 days one of my colleagues consulted me about purchasing a CBR for his upcoming Leh trip, then I told him that I am selling my CBR and already posted an ad in Olx, so he immediately agreed on inspecting the bike. And after some days the bike was sold.

Finally, I had a peace of mind that if not me, at least my bike will do the Leh trip.

Now, it was time to buy a new two wheeler, and it should be Sccoter/Scooty, as it will be used by me and my wife for small city runs and market runs and to fulfil this, scooter will be best suited. Then I started exploring about the scooter models which are available in market:-

Activa 3g: - Didn’t consider, as every second vehicle is an Activa.

Aviator :- Not considered, as this model is very old and Honda hasn't done any changes for a long time.

Activa 125 : Specs seem promising. I did two Test Drives of Activa 125 in different showrooms. Why two, because, when I did TD first time I felt some vibrations from the handle at very low speed, so I thought that this may be the problem with this TD vehicle. Then I went to another Honda showroom and done another TD, I noticed the same vibration issue. But it didn't seem to be a deal breaker.
Except for the above problem, it is a very good vehicle, engine seems good and pulling power is also decent. But the suspension seems to be little hard. But if I ignore these little things, it was a strong contender in my list.

Jupiter : I liked this vehicle a lot in TD, some positives are soft seat, refined engine, handling and looks. But the colour which I liked was blue and it comes with Beige interiors and I was totally against beige as it is prone to get dirty and hard to maintain. And the cost difference with all new Access was around Rs. 2500.

Yamaha : Went to showroom for TD but on that day no TD was available because TD vehicle went for some Yamaha rally or something like that. So I didn’t consider it after that.

Maestro Edge: After reading the specs I was completely decided on the fact that I will surely buy this vehicle because it ticks all the boxes in terms of features and looks, so I went to showroom for TD, but when I drove, the engine was a total let down, it feels under powered, and vibrations from handle is too noticeable at the slow speed. It was so disappointing, that I dropped the idea for purchasing it, but I must say that it is the most feature rich Scooty in the market.

All new Accesss 125: Went to Suzuki showroom for TD, they were having one vehicle for TD in white color and no display vehicle. Looks wise it looked different from other scooters, When I started the scooter and took off, it really gave me nice feeling, engine was super smooth and pulling power with seating two was awesome, and handling also good. It has wide seats and more than sufficient legroom. And claims more FE than Activa 125, it comes with SEP technology. With new access, Suzuki has done modification in engine which makes it more refined. So I thought this can be a contender.

So the finals was in between Activa 125 and new Access 125, then I opened up the internet and saw all the reviews across different sites and after every review I was getting more inclined towards Access 125.

But if I keep the reviews apart, the strong point of Activa 125 was its combi brakes which were not present in Acsess 125, but then braking in Access is also pretty good. If front and rear brakes are used properly, then I am not going to miss the combi brakes of Honda and there were other things were in favour of Access 125.
Likes :-

1. New refreshed look and retro design, it really looks awesome with chrome
2. Better engine with SEP technology
3. Company say it will even start in those cold days with ease
4. Wide seats and leg space
5. Decent Boot space (Takes my full face big helmet)
6. Lighter that Activa (as this is also used by my wife)
7. More FE (64kmpl claimed by company, Activa is 59)
8. Front pocket, I swear this is really very handy
9. Boot open from front key and one push shutter lock etc.

Dislikes or Good to have:-

1. There is no clock in the console
2. For Kick start you need to put in main stand
3. I expected seat to be little softer, like the Jupiter
4. Boot light is missing. A good to have feature which helps in night, was present in Maestro edge. To overcome this I bought a key chain with a small torch

So finally I booked the vehicle and there was a waiting period of 1-2 weeks. Booking amount was 500, paid the amount, collected the receipt and wait time started. I specifically asked for the July mode as recently there was a recall on all new Access for rear axle shaft, for all the all new Access 125 which was manufactured till 22 June.

Waiting ended after 2 weeks and finally I got the vehicle on 28th July, I went to take the vehicle and within 2 hours he has sold around 4-5 scooters, I think people were waiting for many days, person in showroom confirmed and told me that they got the lot after 3 weeks.

Discounts:- No discount, except 20% on accessories.

Extended warranty : It comes with Rs. 700 extra, it is comparatively higher than what other companies are offering.

Buying experience : It was just plain and simple, I got a call from showroom that my scooter has arrived. Next day when I went for taking delivery, there was only one person in the showroom who was coordinating everything including finance, customer care, delivery etc. When I enquired about other people, he told me "Sir, yesterday night there was a huge Jam in Gurgaon, therefore mostly members are on leave today except me". There were many scooties standing in front of showroom, he has given me the option to choose any other colour which I wanted, but I stuck to Blue and asked him to prepare with accessories and deliver. After couple of hours I came with Cash and took the bike, in the name of ceremony he just took our pictures .

Braking : As I didn't opt for Disk Brakes, and the normal version comes with only drum brakes, I would say it is just adequate.

Suspension & ride quality: It is neither too hard nor too soft. In one stretch I have driven 14 kms and didn't experience any back pain. But definitely you'll feel uncomfortable on bad roads on a single drive. On a scooty you always need to sit straight for better comfort and the seat height is a bonus for tall riders. The Access never scrapped any speed breaker with 2 people and a child on board.

Top Speed: Never gone beyond 70, so cant tell about it.

I added all the accessories like: seat covers, grill all over, mat, and handle covers:



Odometer light is always On:






Front pocket is very useful:


Generous boot space:




My Helmet, which goes into boot (With little push):


There is a pilot/parking lamp below the indicator, it looks cool at night:





FE/KMPL

Till now I have driven around 225kms. So can't tell you exactly about it as it is driven by me and my wife. But I am expecting it go give at least 50 kmpl.



Thank you

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the 2-wheeler Section. Thanks for sharing!

[rajpandey10]

Picture of how pilot lamps look at night.

[pratim87]

I too am planning to buy a 125cc scooter and am confused between Honda and Suzuki...
I'm 5'11" and liked the taller stance of ACCESS 125 but don't know how it will affect riding. However am concerned about mileage, reliability and peace of mind. Please help!!!

[doxinboy]

Dudes! What a great day! I too am on the lookout for a commuter to tread 20 km everyday. Tired of RE & Car in the stop go traffic. I was seriously considering TVS XL 100, but it doesn't have electric start. My bad. I am a certified noob when it comes to the scoots. I am looking for reliability and ease on the pocket, looks don't matter. Any upcoming launch to lookout for? Please gyan me dudes.

[farhadtarapore]

Originally Posted by doxinboy

Dudes! What a great day! I too am on the lookout for a commuter to tread 20 km everyday. Tired of RE & Car in the stop go traffic. I was seriously considering TVS XL 100, but it doesn't have electric start. My bad. I am a certified noob when it comes to the scoots. I am looking for reliability and ease on the pocket, looks don't matter. Any upcoming launch to lookout for? Please gyan me dudes.

I had read about Hero coming up with a 125cc Maestro, but no idea about launch date. I, though, was eagerly awaiting the hero Zir - beefy motoscooter - if they put a 250cc engine in that, it'll be superb.