[aabhimanyu04]

I will always buy and ride, for the below reasons:

1. I know what I am riding and how much it can be pushed without worrying about how well it was kept.
2. Each bike has a different purpose (touring, street, supersport ect) and buying takes more research than renting (not always but mostly) and hence you will most likely not end up with a wrong bike bike when you buy it. Renting sometimes can be just the matter of availability of bikes ( that day) to pick form, which can mean you end up with a bike that you were not comfortable with but just had no options. Nobody can assure (unless booked well in advance) of getting their preferred bike on a given day on rent.
3. The confidence on your own bike is always on a different level compared to the one you just picked on rent. For instance, I will never be confident to do those knee scraping corners on the Ghats on a rented superbike right away. So, the question is - are we using these rented bikes to their true potential or just to get a feel of it? Again, paying huge rentals for just a feel won’t suffice my requirements.
4. Lastly, I feel the love and connect you get by maintaining your bike, cleaning, waxing, polishing, giving your bike a name etc. add to the man-machine connect. Isn’t it all about what makes you happy? This to me works wonders!

[The Observer]

Originally Posted by lazy

Famous last words anyone ??

Lets revisit this thread 5 years down and then update based on where the rental market is vs. today.

Automobiles are already witnessing a declining following among the younger lot - despite all valid reasoning like pride or ownership, maintenance, emotional connect etc etc.

cheers
lazy

Would be interesting to see how this inference of "declining sales among younger lot" is arrived at.

Would the rental self drive market increase in coming years - of course yes, its a new concept, there is a convenience in it that is undeniable and then there is choice. Will this reduce individual ownership? cant really say, those who rent are NOT necessarily those "who can own a car but consciously dont and hence always rent", data from Zoomcars and Revv about client profiles can give some insight. Also the prevalence and abundance of public transport in India in the coming years will have a direct impact. Govt policies on parking, taxes on cars, taxes for city road use, higher tolls for private cars etc will also impact.

5 years down the line rental and self drive market will be higher but will that be the reason for a possible decline in car/bike sales ( if it happens) remains to be seen.

[VivOverland]

Is the purchase of a motorcycle really such a logical decision? I feel the heart typically overrules the head. As others have said, we need an emotional connect with the bike, and that doesn't happen with a rental. In the toss up between a tactical / utilitarian use of a machine and a long-term owners approach, I would never trust a rental for a long ride. It's just too many unknowns to factor in; would just not enjoy the ride.

Having said that, my 2004 Thunderbird (AVL) is gathering dust. Need to do something about that soon

[lancersfx]

I have been in this turmoil for quite a long time so let me share my experience. I'm more a cyclist than mobiker and have been happy with the Bajaj Boxer and brother's Honda Unicorn. One fine day my friend goes absconding from the cycling scene and a year later, he's gone through the bug bite from sport bikes. His journey Pulsar AS200 >> KTM RC390 >> Dominar 400 >> CBR 650F >> Africa Twin. I was planning on picking up a continental GT650 and after talking with this friend, early this year, I was invited for a short test ride and I was expecting the Dominar 400. However, to my surprise when he offered the CBR650F. Looking at the bike you think Bah.. its just another 'big bike'. The feel once you're on it and this one with full system Akrapovic, words are hard to find to describe the feeling. That was the start of the fun and we rode till Confident Amoon on Hoskote road and decided to turn back. The second major surprise was us switching bikes and this time I got to ride the Honda Africa twin on the return
As we returned, we headed straight to the RE showroom on ORR as he urged me to ride the GT650 and that's it. The RE was out of my consideration. I have to triple up on my savings to even think in the CBR650 territory. 8 months later, I'm now leaning more towards owning a bike (new/used) rather than picking up a rental. A few more reasons here:

1. I was lucky to book an almost brand new Interceptor (4k kms run) via Royal Brothers. Rode to mullayanagiri and back. Excellent bike for that budget.
2. Hired an RC390 from RB again and this time a night ride to CCD on Bellur cross on Hassan highway. The bike was not in a good shape. The bike wobbled quite bad. You could see dings and dents expected of a rental KTM (that are usually abused). My brother rode along on another rental RE 350 Redditch edition. This was fine till we joined the NICE road on the return where the bike would switch off every 3-5kms. Stop for a couple of mins and it starts ok.
3. Rented a Himalayan. The resource from RB was clear about the condition of this specific bike and suggested the newer Yamaha Fazer 250 instead. Very nice gesture however, my intent was to experience the himalayan so rented this anyway and rode to Maravanthe. There was oil leak. The rear wheel bearing gave way and luckily I was able to manage riding to a mechanic and he had the wheel bearing. Got a bill for this and the same was refunded by RB. Also ended up with a flat front tyre but this is possible with any bike and it is the responsibility of rider to be prepared of this basic occurence when touring anyway.
4. KTM 250 and dominar 400 from ONN bikes. Inconsistent throttle response on the dominar but the KTM 250 was quite good (the dash although had a warning/possibly service due indicator).

After all of the above, reading through many articles and watching tons of videos on youtube i've decided a liter class for me is an overkill (even if a seconds Yamaha R1 is within reach) . A 600 cc is plenty good and I've my eyes set on a target. Now it's just a game of wait and watch and save up enough to take the big bite.


Reasons why I would NOT choose rental:

1. Worst case scenario if you have a accident and bike is damaged the depending on the policies from each rental either you bear the cost full/partially or the company takes care of the same. Either way more legal issues on rental compared to your own bike.
2. You can decide if/when you want to repair based on availability of funds/insurance claims etc. Not the case with a rental, you are answerable to the rental company and you never know if they're out to drain your pockets.
3. The rentals are used by many and the regular/timely service is totally questionable.
4. The emotional bond with a bike. You treat the bike right the bikes has your back when you are in dire need.

Reasons why I chose a rental:

1. You aren't bound to a specific bike. Variety of bikes to try. Good for short trips. Extended version of a test ride. All within the rules/limits mentioned by the rentals.
2. No cost of ownership. No insurance hassles. No yearly maintenance costs. Sometimes a single ride doesn't give you the clear picture of how the bike feels/handles on long rides/tours. Try bikes over several days over different terrains and conditions to give you the real world feel of owning a specific bike.

[RiderZone]

Rented a Daytona via Driven in Hyderabad a few years ago, it was almost a brand new bike, had a lovely 2 days with it. Cost roughly 15000 bucks though.

Rented a Benelli 600i from Driven as well, don't know what was wrong with the bike but it always felt like the front tyre was punctured, got the same feedback from friends who rode it, uncomfortably heavy steering.

Morning of 2nd day ride the clutch cable broke in a relatively remote section, luckily there was a slope and I managed to start it, and then some tricky clutchless shifts brought it home.

Cost 9000 for the 2 day nightmare if I remember correctly.

I personally don't think renting is a good option, it's rather risky as well, you are pushing yourself to ride as much as possible, and not necessarily letting yourself get used to the insane power.

The Daytona scared me enough, I'm good for a decade without riding another big bike.

[nitinkbhaskar]

Originally Posted by RiderZone

The Daytona scared me enough, I'm good for a decade without riding another big bike.

Oh how wrong you are !!
Once you ride exotics like Daytona you will creep back to her soon.

On a serious note, I do agree on your point. Rental is bound to be hit or a miss. Best bet is to get the bike which you really want and ride along a group wherein you trade along temporarily to get a feel of other sort of rides.

[saurabh_v8]

Sorry Moderators,

May be I am posting something off the topic.
Also I was unable to find any relevant thread.

I have always been interested in earn with rental program or say partner program.

Idea here is that I have a special place for big bikes in my heart like many others in the forum.
But I end up making losses as I always buy new and every 3-4 years I end up relocating on account of work.
This has resulted in either the bike lying in dust or a give away kind of sale.

Well to my good fortune I have only had mediocre bikes:
1. Tvs victor
2. Honda unicorn
3. Classic 500 desert storm
4. Duke 390
5. Apache rr310

I have always been interested in a big Harley or triumph but always been discouraged with the thought of it being lying unused.

Here I feel something like wicked ride partner program helps.

Looking forward for members and experts to share their experience with wicked ride partner program or similar.