[nkrishnap]

Originally Posted by roamer

What's the gear ratio you are riding ? As i feel 1st and 2nd gear it doesn't pull like pulsar 200 but post 3rd gear you can push it to 80-90 kmph very fast.

Also using a different oil brand won't hamper the warranty?

Gear Ratio? That will be same across all the bikes. May be you are not keeping the revs up to be in the power band.

Differrent brand of oil should not be of concern if it meets or exceeds the oil rating.

[Drive&Smile]

Originally Posted by Sportztourer

Congratulations on the RTR 200. I hope you are enjoying the comfort of KYB & plush seats on the 200 in comparison to that of your ex.

Oh yes, comfort on A200's seat is way way better then D390. I have done some long runs on D390 and needed frequent breaks to recover from numbness. I haven't done any long runs on A200 but its not really difficult to find comfort as soon as you sit on it.

Again, suspension takes care of medium small pot holes like a charm. This bike proved to be good VFM as of now for commuter like me who loves to tour sometimes.

[Sportztourer]

Time for the update:
Last week cancelled my tickets to Bangalore & updated my colleagues that I will directly meet them at Bangalore. The result of above decision was addition of 2000km on the 200's odometer.
The bike performed beyond my expectations as I had expected it to perform similar to my 180. The 180 had done Kolhapur & Belgaum multiple times but the refinement & the comfort of the 200 will keep the rider away from fatigue on such long rides. The bike is happy to cruise at 100kmph all day long & may be even more as it still has a lot of juice & throttle remaining at 100kmph. I really missed the 16L (actually 17L) tank of my 180 as I am a bit paranoid about the fuel level & the quality of fuel so I start searching for a good fuel pump as soon as the fuel level reaches half tank.

The return leg of ~930km was done in about 14hrs. Overall I am very happy with the bike as the endurance run didn't result in any vibrations/rattles or critical component issues. A good wash & the bike is ready for another weekend ride.

[Drive&Smile]

Originally Posted by Sportztourer

I really missed the 16L (actually 17L) tank of my 180 as I am a bit paranoid about the fuel level & the quality of fuel so I start searching for a good fuel pump as soon as the fuel level reaches half tank.

Good going, looks like you had some fun on that ride. Whats the range you are getting currently on tankful? I know this can change between riding in city, highway and ghat sections but approx range should be decent if not really good.

[Sportztourer]

Originally Posted by nkrishnap

What made you go for Shell Helix Ultra? Which one did you opt 10W-40 or 15W-50?

I have been using Motul 300V as far as I can recollect and done over 1 lakh kms by sticking to Motul 300V, have no regrets at all. Riding long hours at full throttle has almost no impact on how the engine behaves.

This is shell ultra fully synthetic 10w40. I love experimenting with different oil & have tried almost all the fully synthetic oil available in the market (yet to use petronas/Agip/Repsol).
Totally agree with you on the Motul aspect. Out of all the oils I have used I found Motul 7100, Mobil racing, shell ultra to perform really well on the RTR 180. The shell ultra 10w40 performed exceedingly well on the 2000km Bangalore ride. The engine was continuously running for 14hrs with very little stops. The oil level remains the same after the ride.

Originally Posted by roamer

using a different oil brand won't hamper the warranty?

TVS service station won't entertain any other oil except for TVS tru4 fully synthetic. Tru4 synthetic is good oil, performs efficiently in the city & highway. No issues, one of the best oils that manufacturer provides, earlier they had the same oil for scooty & 180. Rs 530 for a liter of fully synthetic oil is not bad. I have used Honda's fully synthetic oil 10w30 (used in CBR) it used to retail for Rs500 per liter but now they have increased the price to ~800.

Originally Posted by Drive&Smile

Good going, looks like you had some fun on that ride. Whats the range you are getting currently on tankful? I know this can change between riding in city, highway and ghat sections but approx range should be decent if not really good.

You can easily go 300-320km with still 2 bars of fuel remaining. One thing I noticed that the fuel efficiency didn't changed much with respect to riding conditions. I am very smooth with the throttle so the fuel economy hovers around 35kmpl.

[Sportztourer]

As mentioned earlier that the 2nd service was preponed for my Bangalore ride & due to this the 2nd service reminder (blinking spanner symbol on the speedometer console) didn't came due to lower odometer reading. TVS has programmed this reminder to alert the rider/owner every 3000km (after the initial 500km) for service.
In my case the service was done & then the reminder came later. I knew the trick to stop this reminder in my 180 but things work differently in the 200.
Here is the trick for RTR 200

https://youtu.be/wxD6lTQSbow

One small thing I observed is that you cannot use the buttons on the console or change any settings/modes on the speedometer console while the bike is in motion, This is good considering the safety of the rider.

My RTR 200 with the FZ 25.

[Sportztourer]

Time for some update after the 3rd service:
The 3rd service is a free service & I got it done around 5700km (Recommended between 5000-6000km).

No problems were mentioned on the job card apart from a little play in the coneset. Final bill came around Rs 780/- which includes 1.2L of fully synthetic oil. Totally satisfied with the service (the washing needs a special mention).
So far the bike is doing its city & highway rides effortlessly. The Coneset problem (A very slight play in the handle bar while braking) was never faced in my 180 at such an initial stage (directly got it changed at 35000km). Hope the problem never arises again anytime soon.

The regular Pune-Mumbai-Pune run keeps me happy but seems the bike will go in for hibernation for next few months till the monsoon fades (Time to accelerate the odo on the 4 wheels). I might sneek in for a ride or two to Lonavla/Lavassa to quench my thirst for riding.
It's the lack of ABS that brings down my confidence level in the rains & some credit goes to my past where the Srichakra tyres of my 180 used to loose traction on wet roads for no reason at all (never had a fall though). Thanks to TVS as they now have the better remora tyres on all the Apaches but my fear of riding in the monsoon still continues..

[Sail]

TVS Apache owners, please advice:-

One of my friend from Mumbai has shortlisted TVS Apache RTR 200. But he is confused between carbureted and Fuel Injected versions. Test drive taken with carbureted version. Fuel injected one not available with any dealers close by. Kindly advice if it is worth the extra money. Basic usage will city commute & weekend drives.

Also dealer is insisting to complete the purchase with-in this month, as due to GST roll-out they are expecting increase in price from 01 July. Any feedback ?
In my opinion, price should remain same for 200 cc bikes.

[abhinav.s]

Originally Posted by Sail

But he is confused between carbureted and Fuel Injected versions...

Are the FI variants available for sale. Down south it is like a Phoenix bird which is hard to spot at showrooms and even the sales people are not pushing for it. But if the stock of FI variant is available, it will be a better buy with the small premium paid up front as it will be easier in the longer term to take the bike to places where the carb bike might suffer from lean air etc, start the bike after a long period of storage (if any such eventuality may arise). FI is always a better bet. He can also check out the FZ25 which is a 250cc naked offering and comes with FI.

[Sail]

Originally Posted by abhinav.s

FI is always a better bet. He can also check out the FZ25 which is a 250cc naked offering and comes with FI.

Dear Abhinav S

Thank you for your advice. I do agree, a better technology always a welcome.
Waiting period for FI is close to a month in Mumbai suburbs.
He has taken test rides from various dealers & also from his friends, and short-listed this one.

Cheers.

[abhinav.s]

Originally Posted by Sail

Thank you for your advice. I do agree, a better technology always a welcome.
Waiting period for FI is close to a month in Mumbai suburbs..

If he needs the bike urgently, and cannot wait close to a month for the FI, the carburetor version is not a bad choice. In fact the RTR200 has a well tuned carburetor from the factory. If that is not meddled with, it can give a run for its money to some more powerful bikes as well. I have seen youtube videos where owners have reached unmentionable speeds on their carburetor bikes itself. I have owned a slew of RTR160/180 before i owned the Duke 200. RTR's are very capable machines and if my usage was not very less, i would have definitely bought the RTR200 carburetor version instead of the current Gixxer. Coming to FZ25 suggestion, i take my words back, based on first hand feedback by our fellow bhpian Vik in his ownership thread where he is not very happy with the quality issues in the FZ25.

[Sail]

Originally Posted by abhinav.s

If he needs the bike urgently, and cannot wait close to a month for the FI, the carburetor version is not a bad choice. In fact the RTR200 has a well tuned carburetor from the factory. If that is not meddled with, it can give a run for its money to some more powerful bikes as well. I have seen Youtube videos where owners have reached unmentionable speeds on their carburetor bikes itself. I have owned a slew of RTR160/180 before i owned the Duke 200. RTR's are very capable machines and if my usage was not very less, i would have definitely bought the RTR200 carburetor version instead of the current Gixxer. Coming to FZ25 suggestion, i take my words back, based on first hand feedback by our fellow bhpian Vik in his ownership thread where he is not very happy with the quality issues in the FZ25.

Dear Abhinav,

Thank you for your inputs. Same conveyed to him. Looks like he got convinced enough for the FI. Likely he got a FI version with a dealer near Vasai with his chosen matt grey color. So I think he is looking to close the deal by this week-end. Wonder, dealers are offering some freebies too, inform of helmet, side stand indicator & a cover!

Cheers

[Sportztourer]

Originally Posted by Sail

TVS Apache owners, please advice:-

One of my friend from Mumbai has shortlisted TVS Apache RTR 200. But he is confused between carbureted and Fuel Injected versions. Test drive taken with carbureted version. Fuel injected one not available with any dealers close by. Kindly advice if it is worth the extra money. Basic usage will city commute & weekend drives.

Also dealer is insisting to complete the purchase with-in this month, as due to GST roll-out they are expecting increase in price from 01 July. Any feedback ?
In my opinion, price should remain same for 200 cc bikes.

Hi Sail,
Call me old school but I would still prefer the carburated variant here, specially in the case of RTR 200. Totally in agreement with @abhinav.s about the carburetor of Apache 200, which seems to be a perfect match in fuelling with the engine characteristics. For Apache 200 there is negligible difference in performance in between the carb & fi variant. More over I feel the service stations (of most of the manufacturers) in india are not trained enough to handle the Fi engines, hence most of the time the solution to any Fi related problem is just replacement & no repair.
On my long rides I would definitely pick up a carb Apache 200 on which I can work on or any roadside mechanic can be asked for assistance.
If this was a question on regular variant & ABS variant, I would have pushed you towards the ABS version as nothing comes above safety.

[nkrishnap]

FI variant is still not available and the status is the same for the ABS variant too. Even the Pirelli variants are hard to come by. Every month TVS representative keeps on mentioning next month whenever enquired. TVS is happy exporting these variants and certainly not keen on selling it here. Lets see if they manage to prove me wrong

[Sportztourer]

A mobile charging device is essential for those long rides & times when you are out the whole day. TVS provides mobile charging for the Fi model of RTR 200 but mine being the carburated version it misses out on that (Jupiter & scooty gets one!). My friend has a mobile holder with built in charging system but the charging rate/speed for that is really slow. So I thought for getting an independent charging unit (I already have a good waterproof/dustproof mobile holder). I saw this Robotouch mobile charging device on a Royal Enfield & the owner was very happy with it & said it was waterproof (later came to know that it is water resistant & can survive rains & bike wash), so thought of get one for me.
I have installed it under the rear seat as I don't want people to fiddle with it when I park the bike in public parking lots, however I do have the flexibility to re-route it on the handle bar.

My experience & observations:
1. Charging speed is good but do not expect the fast charging speeds of a fast charger like the turbo-charger (as Motorola calls) or Dash charger (from One plus).
2. The charger in my bike is always connected to battery & it turns ON only when any mobile/device is connected for charging (indicated by a red LED).
3. Charging speed depends upon the length & quality of the USB charging cable. At first I got a cheap & long USB cable & there was a noticeable drop in the charging rate. I wish the charger came with an USB cable.
4. Even with the charger permanently connected & the bike unused for 15-20 days the bike started with a single crank & the multimeter showed no drop in battery voltage.
5. It easily charges my powerbank & GoPro (with USB C cable).

Made a short video on the installation & long term in depth experience with the charger:

https://youtu.be/Owx5De8vW3w

P.S: No connection/relation with this company, I am just a customer.