[petrolhead_neel]

Is this a good time to get an XPulse (FI/carb)? With the engine already being kind of underpowered, will we see an even worse performance when Hero moves it to BS6? I don't think there's a chance of a new engine/major revision to internals in 2020, other than the rally kit.

Neel

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by petrolhead_neel

Is this a good time to get an XPulse (FI/carb)? With the engine already being kind of underpowered, will we see an even worse performance when Hero moves it to BS6? I don't think there's a chance of a new engine/major revision to internals in 2020, other than the rally kit.

Neel

Hero is the most reluctant when it comes to providing mechanical upgrades concerning the powerplant.

But then when I hear underpowered the next question that comes to mind is;

"By whose standards?"

I don't believe there are other alternatives in its category, especially at that price point. So basically if you want what the Xpulse has to offer then you're practically stuck with it.

But if you're looking from a financial point you could get year end discounts and stock clearance discounts considering that BS6 is around the corner.

Regards,
A.P.

[petrolhead_neel]

Originally Posted by ashwinprakas

Hero is the most reluctant when it comes to providing mechanical upgrades concerning the powerplant.

But then when I hear underpowered the next question that comes to mind is;

"By whose standards?"

I don't believe there are other alternatives in its category, especially at that price point. So basically if you want what the Xpulse has to offer then you're practically stuck with it.

Regards,
A.P.

Thanks! While I still think that Hero has had a long time to come up with the XPulse and the overbored 150 is a bit underwhelming, I agree! It is brilliant that we have a dual sport for the price that the XPulse is being sold at. It's incredible value. I will be upgrading from a slightly modded CB Twister that I use for trail rides, but this will be my do-it-all bike for the foreseeable future. I have been riding for a bit now and have experience riding bigger bikes like the Himalayan as well. Was discussing the XPulse with my father, he really likes the XPulse as well. Just a little bit skeptical because I have huge plans for touring.

But if you're looking from a financial point you could get year end discounts and stock clearance discounts considering that BS6 is around the corner.

Yes, that's my point exactly. After BS6, the bike won't be as VFM. Paying more for a lesser performing bike (a low powered 200cc nonetheless) seems really unappealing.

What's with the issues in the engine? I am hoping they were just QC issues and no serious recurring problems. Would really help if someone could throw some light on this matter.

Neel

[Skidrow]

I believe Powertronics ECU is available and it would be great to get feedback from someone who has used this on the xpulse (or is it too early?)

[shady]

Originally Posted by petrolhead_neel

Just a little bit skeptical because I have huge plans for touring.

For touring its not the machine that matters its the mind of the rider. If you believe you can do a tour, you can do it on any machine. Just a thought.

If the xpulse fits your bill and if you like it go for it. If your heart has other options have a detailed test ride of all options by renting a bike and decide. Good luck with it.

I picked the Xpulse carb in sports red last week. My main requirements was a bike for city/suburb use & a comfortable ride. Its pretty good to ride within Bangalore & suburbs since you wouldn't need to slow down much for bad/broken roads (Read Bangalore roads). The performance is more in the range of a 160cc bike and not like the other 200cc bikes available. Completed 260 kms on the bike till date. Happy with the bike so far.

Likes
- Long travel suspension. Bad roads are a breeze.
- Low end torque is good for city drive-ability
- The dual purpose tyres
- Pretty good value for money

Dislikes
- The hard seat - which might last longer than your behind sitting on it
- Very short first gear
- Handlebar and foot peg position is not the best to stand and ride when offroading (for my height of 5'10)
- The front brake lever gets hard on sandy/gravel roads. Panic braking can get scary.

Looking forward to adding more kilometers and kilometers.

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by petrolhead_neel

Just a little bit skeptical because I have huge plans for touring.

If it involves hundreds of kilometers and over multiple days, i would say impulse may not be the right tool. It is not designed for long touring and maintaining higher speeds. Look at a Himalayan that would be more suited for the purpose, look at preowned if you want to keep the budget tight.

[girishv]

Xpulse voted as Indian Motorcycle of the Year!!!

Hero Xpulse 200 wins Indian Motorcycle of the Year 2020

Hero Xpulse 200 is the Indian Motorcycle of the Year or the IMOTY for 2020. IMOTY is often referred to as the ‘Oscar’ of Indian motorcycle awards, and rightly so, given it is the most sought-after accolade when it comes to two wheels. Moreover, to win the IMOTY, a motorcycle must do more than just deliver a value proposition. It must be well-suited for the Indian market in more ways than one, and that includes comfort, performance, fuel efficiency, and most of all, it must score high on fitness of purpose and setting new benchmarks.The jury for the IMOTY, which comprises of senior motorcycle journalists from various magazines and established online portals, considers these very aspects and then votes on the shortlist. This year’s shortlist included the Benelli Imperiale 400, the Hero Xtreme 200S and the Xpulse 200, the Honda CB300R, the Jawa, the KTM 125 Duke, the Suzuki Gixxer 250, and the Yamaha MT-15. One of the conditions for the jury to be able to vote for a particular motorcycle is its presence at the jury round. This year, the jury round took place at the Buddh International Circuit.

https://www.bikewale.com/news/44201-...year-2020.html

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by petrolhead_neel

Just a little bit skeptical because I have huge plans for touring.

A precursor to the following post, I hope the mature audience wouldn't take offence to the following as I'm just trying to share some facts with a potential motorcyclist that I wish someone had told me when I started riding.

Presuming that you're still in your teens, I'd suggest you not let the uncles imprint their opinions on you.

More Power, More Torque, Fuel Injection, Idle Assist, Palm/Ass Warmers etc etc... are to keep the older motorcyclists still interested in motorcycling and at the same time for manufactures to squeeze some pennies out of their supposedly fat wallets.

In my late teens the highest I've clocked in a day is 1300+ kms on my 230cc Karizma a motorcycle I'd got after listening to a lot of online/offline gyan, a year later I clocked about the same mileage in a day I.e 1300+kms on my 100cc Discover. The only difference being on the Discover it was more reasonable on my pocket being a student which meant I could do it more often whereas on the ZMA it was a one time thing.

Plus it was quite obvious, irrespective of whether I rode a 100cc or a 230cc motorcycle my overal daily range remained the same or rather say it made zilch difference to my average speed factoring in fatigue maintaining higher speeds on the speedo and time taken to recover from the same.

To put it in simple words, other than clock some never seen before figures on the speedo I didn't gain much with twice the displacement and instead ended up spending considerably more money to do so.

So basically what I'm saying is you can tour irrespective of what you ride at your level of physical fitness, only differences being in economical feasibility and reliability.

And speaking about reliability, what may seem reliable for the older folks might not work in your favour, this is so because the younger you are the more saddle time you're able to put in, and trust me on this, you do need familiar hardware in place if you intend to haul some serious ass.

P.S. I've been touring interstate on smaller displacement motorcycles for the better part of a decade now and I myself am an Uncle, though I still tour on small displacement motorcycles.

P.P.S. I'm not advocating you do what I did, I'm just saying at your age more than being worried about you keeping up with a motorcycle, you need to be looking out for a motorcycle that can keep up with your pace.

Regards and Ride Safe,
A.P.

[ethanhunt123]

Originally Posted by ashwinprakas

[b]
Presuming that you're still in your teens, I'd suggest you not let the uncles imprint their opinions on you.

More Power, More Torque, Fuel Injection, Idle Assist, Palm/Ass Warmers etc etc... are to keep the older motorcyclists still interested in motorcycling and at the same time for manufactures to squeeze some pennies out of their supposedly fat wallets.

Thats a highly age-ist comment totally inappropriate for a mature discussion. Having said that - please spend some time any Sunday on Hassan highway and you can find for yourself the age group of most riders on 10R's and other liter class bikes.

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by ethanhunt123

Thats a highly age-ist comment totally inappropriate for a mature discussion. Having said that - please spend some time any Sunday on Hassan highway and you can find for yourself the age group of most riders on 10R's and other liter class bikes.

My presumption was that a mature discussion meant we address the elephant in the room without apprehensions and I believe that is what I have communicated.

If age was a coin I myself am on the same side as with the group I've advised against listening to, but I find it's only fair that we play the devils advocate so that potential motorcyclists get a fair representation of facts.

As for teenagers on liter class motorcycles, well thrill seeking does have its up sides but our friend here is contemplating some serious mile munching hence I doubt something so complex would be ideal. Even if finance wasn't much of a concern, the practicality of touring on a supposedly big motorcycle comes to question.

Then again do share your experience with long distance touring on a bigger motorcycle in India as it would widen everyone's perspective, do share specifics like average speed clocked in a day, maximum kms clocked in a day, maximum saddle time at a stretch etc.

Regards,
A.P.

[deepfreak15]

Originally Posted by petrolhead_neel

I will be upgrading from a slightly modded CB Twister that I use for trail rides, but this will be my do-it-all bike for the foreseeable future.

Just go with what your budget permits. "Do it all" bikes are almost mythical, though that should not be a deterrent to picking up any bike you fancy and using it the way you deem fit. There will always be one section saying smaller the bike better the fun and the other section will say bigger the engine more relaxing and fun to ride. End of the day both ends of the spectrum will be out on the road having fun with their respective choices and some of us looking for advice here will be more confused than when we started. So just decide what works best for you and have fun with it. You can have fun on a unicycle and a laid back cruiser! This is just my opinion.

[drt_rdr]

Hi, everyone, I'm new here, but not new to motorcycling. I've been living with a hero impulse for several years now, and have seen quite a bit of South India on it, on roads and otherwise.

@petr0lhead_neel: First thing is you need to be clear on what you want out of the motorcycle and why you want to tour on it. Do you want to travel by bike because people around you are also doing it and you want a piece of that? Do you want to travel because you want to enjoy riding your motorcycle for longer than a few kms? Is it that you want a tourist's experience of your region, quick and fairly easy? Or do you really want to see the land for what it is, in all its beauty and ugliness?

If it's a peer pressure thing, go with your fancy. If you want to simply enjoy riding, there's a lot better bikes than the xpulse. If it's a touristy thing, any bike that's basically comfortable for the highways will do.

But if you want a proper experience of the lay of India, a versatile, lightweight, reliable, easy to fix and easy on the pocket machine is the way to go. Xpulse fits the description nicely.

In all honesty, I think travelling on a motorcycle is just not worthwhile and comes with too many compromises and caveats, unless you capitalize on the freedom it affords you that only bikes can give. I'd rather take a train or bus otherwise. Dual sports allow you to maximize that capitalisation, especially with GPS tech these days. I'd prefer a dual sport to any other bike anyday.

Also, as a young person, you'd want a motorcycle that gives you room to grow your riding skills in different areas. I think the xpulse fits that description nicely too.

[VR/46_Chet]

Originally Posted by karthikr

1. From the stamping quality to the way the paint is chipped off along the seams of the tank to the paint chipped off in prominent areas. They were a let down. We inspected almost 10 bikes that were waiting for their prospective owners, all of them had these issues.
Soln : Replace by first service

3. The LHS engine cover had big scratch on it and so did all the other new bikes.
Soln : Replace by first service

4. All brand new plastic parts had swirl marks on them. PDI wash and wipe gone wrong.
Soln : Replace by first service

Can you please update whether the aforementioned solutions were actually carried out or not?

[madhavgpai]

After 4 attempts of contacting the Hero customer care, I still don’t see any eagerness from the so called “authorised dealer” near me to provide me with a test ride for the FI variant. Now, I have been choosing the same dealer when given a choice again and again. I feel that they don’t want to get an FI test ride vehicle because BS6 is around the corner. But they won’t admit it. Nor will the customer care. I’m giving up on the Xpulse also because I have been seeing a number of quality issues from owners online.

On this Christmas, I hope that Yamaha comes up with their own dual sport for India. Santa, make it happen please. :P

[CarManMotorcycl]

Originally Posted by madhavgpai

After 4 attempts of contacting the Hero customer care, I still don’t see any eagerness from the so called “authorised dealer” near me to provide me with a test ride for the FI variant. Now, I have been choosing the same dealer when given a choice again and again. I feel that they don’t want to get an FI test ride vehicle because BS6 is around the corner. But they won’t admit it. Nor will the customer care. I’m giving up on the Xpulse also because I have been seeing a number of quality issues from owners online.

On this Christmas, I hope that Yamaha comes up with their own dual sport for India. Santa, make it happen please. :P

Hi, I too was looking at the Xpulse200 and put it out of my consideration for the same thing, but in my situation I got a test ride when I went looking at some other showrooms, but to my dismay I was only allowed to 'test ride' the bike on a narrow road which was not even 500m! I was utterly angry and the pathetic attitude of the salesman really put me off. I settled for a bigger capacity motorcycle as I felt it wouldn't be able to ride according to it's capabilities. The Xpulse200 is a good bike but if you've ridden some other 200cc you'll will find it underpowered.