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-   -   Ridden: Bajaj Dominar 400 (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorbikes/183778-ridden-bajaj-dominar-400-a-30.html)

Dominar has sold only 925 units, 2nd lowest since its launch a year earlier, in the month of December 2017. Also, the total number of vehicles sold in the entire year of 2017 is 17,168 at an average of 1,908 units per month.

The sales are on a downward trend in the recent months, mostly after the launch of FZ25 and now with the launch of Apache RR310, it faces some more stiff competition. Let's see whether the 2018 color schemes will work win the favour of Dominar.

A Canyon Red Dominar 400 with the original diamond cut finished alloys would look great in my opinion.

Hi,

Is anyone aware whether any of the Motorcycle rental shops in Chennai has Dominar with them? I tried searching in Rentals thread but could not get any pointer. If anyone is aware, please let me know

https://youtu.be/PFzDPvCqlro

https://youtu.be/rH8ntch0DZo

https://youtu.be/SI7ij_q76bY


Another few ads targeting RE?

It is sad to hear about the Dominar not selling well. But, on the flip side, I am happy to own a bike that isn't owned by eberyone and his brother ;)

Here are some pictures of a recent ride with another BHPian Dominar owner, and another friend of ours on his KTM 390. All of our machines performed flawlessly.

Why worry about Huge Sales numbers? It would only make the bike too common. A decent rate per month is good enough.

Meanwhile: 4 Girls on 4 Dominar 400's, to Vietnam from India

Source: 'Bikerni' Piya Bahadur and Co. have a memo for female riders

Hello All,

My first post on this thread. Dominar'ing since November 2017.
Got my ECU update done at Khivraj Bajaj, Kasturba Road which took about an hour & did notice a couple of changes.
1. The vibrations between 4000 to 5000rpm have reduced drastically.
2. Pick up is better & more linear. Reduced jerks in First gear with part throttle.
3. The cooling fan kicks in late & runs longer.
4. Temperature of hot air is a bit higher too. (could be due to higher ambient temperatures, seasons change i guess).
5. Haven't bothered about the Fuel efficiency bit. Don't want to know.

All in all, its a improvement towards the better. clap:

I have observed the first two changes as well. It is a better experience to ride it now than earlier.

Following are some thoughts I had while and after riding my Dominar on a recent short solo trip. It is very long and may not appeal to everyone so feel free to skip if it gets boring. Also apologies for the few pictures. Since I ride solo I don’t take too many of them.

I keep reading about the motivation which powers people to achieve something that they at some point of time doubted they would ever be able to come close to. They eventually build up the momentum and reach what they set out to grasp.

It’s a very unique cycle. In essence it is our lack of being able to achieve something at the current moment which fuels the preparation to achieve it in the next.

I think this is what as a rider (or is it biker?) is common between you and I. I would hear people crossing cities on their bikes and be impressed and frankly intimidated at their perseverance as well as their courage. It took me a couple of bikes and some grey hair to build up that momentum. I still haven’t got the knack of riding in groups but when it comes to going solo, I am hooked.


So this past weekend, I simply decided to ride to not just the neighbouring city, but the one neighbouring that as well! A 400 km round trip all within a span of about 7 hours with proper down time between stretches. The Dominar is more than capable than its rider to keep going but in the interest of not getting fatigued and losing focus I took breaks every 50 mins of riding. These were about 5 – 10 mins long. I really enjoyed this solitary and longish ride. Its not some fake lone wolf bullshit I am going for. Just riding at my own pace with the engine ticking somewhere around the 5000 rpm sweet spot are more than enough to keep the negativity at bay. But not fast enough to catch up with anything untoward.


For the curious souls I rode to Surat and back from Vadodara. I must admit the Mumbai highway is a treat to ride on with mostly smooth tarmac and lots of rest areas on either side. I got up sharp at 5 am and was out the door by 5:45. I was fully Geared up and tanked up the previous night. It was still a little dark till 6:30 but thankfully the headlight is bright enough to light up the highway. If there is one thing I wish I could fix on the bike though, it would be the weak single horn. Its virtually mute on the highway. I am not a trail blazer but there are times when I am easily moving faster than whatever it ahead of me and a weak horn just makes me that much more anxious to complete the overtaking move quickly.

The ride also helped me to understand the bike a lot better than I have in the past year riding with groups. You see when you ride with a pack of friends its easy to be distracted in the company and the merriment and security of riding with your posse almost nullify the characteristics of your ride and your riding style. In this ride I was able to feel the technology working between the wheels. This was perhaps most pronounced when it comes to the slipper clutch. To be frank, I have never really noticed its working in the city or in my previous rides, but this time around I was easily able to appreciate when it kicked in. I could almost feel the tech hard at work to avoid wheel lock ups in more than one occasion when I downshifted faster than I should have (on purpose) and was glad it had my back. I have often in the past said that the slipper clutch seems to be a pretty redundant tool till you are on the track. I was wrong ahead and this seems just like the tip of the iceberg.


One thing about riding solo which was a revelation was just how much car drivers tend to bully a rider even if he is riding cautiously. Despite riding in the slowest lane I was constantly tail gated at scary close distances by hatchbacks to SUVs and honked at continuously. I never ride across the shoulder line or go off road to give way as it is simply risking a skid at highway speeds and it took me quite a bit of patience as well as maturity to not chase down the drivers and give them a piece of my mind. Anyway, thankfully the positives easily outweighed such instances.

The recent highway instances of bikers ending up in trouble is something that I kept in mind and it didn’t weigh my spirits down one bit while at the same time, the learnings they gave made me ride with more caution. I always tell myself, “Just because I have a fast bike does not mean I am obligated to ride hard and fast all the time.” I think this needs to be followed religiously. Anyhow coming back to the Dominar, the bike impressed me again due to its high kerb weight. Crosswinds be damned! This bike is pretty much unshakeable – it also helps that this particular rider is above his BMI and adds to the stability of the bike!


I also got a decent opportunity to appreciate the use of blind spot mirrors which I installed on the bike’s regular mirrors. There was quite a bit of traffic flow and I often caught traffic coming right alongside me just before shifting lanes. I used to think bind spot mirrors are a hype, but after this ride, I am pretty sure I will be installing them in my car as well. They are truly a blessing and more so when you are sporting a hefty bike jacket which restricts visibility in the mirrors.

A lot has been mentioned about the umpteen number of mods available for the bike. Honestly the only thing I may invest in would be a reliable centre stand (if someone comes up with it) and perhaps a back rest. I bought a naked cruiser so I could feel the wind and honestly I do not feel that the wind blast tires me down one bit. Maybe on 500 kms plus ride in a day it may play a factor but again to be honest I don’t see myself doing those without getting fitter and that itself should compensate for things.

Now I continuously get asked this question by other prospective buyers about the reliability of a Bajaj and the vibrations. Lets address the simpler vibration question first. In all the kms I have toured on the bike, I have never felt its vibes to be a bother or them tiring me. Perhaps this also comes down to the amount of padding I wear on the highway rides. Gloves, jacket, thick boots, knee guards and a snug helmet are the protocol. Honestly I think this has just been hyped a lot. The bike is just fine. Secondly about the reliability issues, I will lay it down once again for whoever has been reading this post till now, the bike will run if you just stick to regular servicing and oil change. Treat it with respect and it will last long without losing power.

Am puzzled why the Dominar is selling (or not selling rather) in such low numbers. On paper it seems to have everything- power, slipper clutch, ABS. And from the reports, the legendary Bajaj vibes and harshness also seem to be sorted out or at least reduced to manageable levels. So what gives?

Doesn't really stand out in a crowd unless one really pays attention.

On the other hand a Royal Enfield with a modifed exhaust is hard to miss out.


Quality/Smoothness/Handling??? Who Cares??

Haha, I know what you mean. Have seen a couple in my office parking lot and they're easy to overlook. But on closer inspection there are some really cool design elements that have gone into this bike. (even if they are a rip-off from the Diavel :))

A bike that's inconspicuous but performs well is actually a plus point in my book.

Absolutely true. It looks like any other generic bike. And the name also does not help.
And the brain dead advertising. The main buzz created is how bad RE is and not how good Dominar is.

Put a guy wearing full armor and a Bell MX-9, and get a TON of looks. When I rode through Kerala to Mangalore I got the question - "what bike is this" when I said Bajaj...no one could respond.

A new ECU update has been launched by Bajaj. It has number 117 and is for ABS variant. No idea about non ABS variant. Recieved a message on Pune Dominar group from a person who recently updated his bike's ECU to this version.