[silverado]

1) Buy a second hand Tata Nano twist - all weather protection ( Put rest of the money in bank and use it for fuel ) He should be able to find one between 1-1.5 lakhs.

2) Bikes - Xpulse should a good option due to its long travel suspension and rough road handling capacity.

[PrasannaDhana]

I drive around rural TN the same 100 + km a day.

I can tell you for sure that people lack road sense for the most part.

Ask your friend to buy a pre owned alto K10 (nice ones available as low as 1.5 lakhs) and have the spare change from his budget for fuel.

I witness atleast a couple of incidents every week where a biker falls down due to either cattle or dogs or due to other rogue riders. Moreover 100 km a day on two wheels daily is not an easy thing to do. A car is infinitely safer and more comfortable.

And in Tamilnadu, marriage happens like a sudden surprise between the wrong side of 20s and the right side of 30s. So he might need a car when he gets his partner.

[DrCar]

Wrong side of 20s
Reliability
Decent fuel economy
Back seat comfort

Look no further then classic Unicorn. Now they have upgraded the same engine at 160cc with BS6 . It will serve nonstop for years to come.
I would have recommended Avenger as well but back seat comfort is extremely poor, which can be corrected to certain extent by using aftermarket seats. Other than that, the bike matches Unicorn in every aspects.

With Unicorn or Avenger, he might save some amount of money which he can use to buy decent condition Dolphin shaped Honda City, Alto, Kwid or Nano. Using cars for occasional long distance travel is more safer. And he will love the car more when he is on the wrong side of 30s

[KPR]

Obvious suggestion would be Unicorn 150 for a lakh and a big part of balance money he saved can be used for good quality helmet, safety gloves, other gears and a tank bag. Village commutes mean back breaking frequent speed breakers in TN state highways included. Such requirements have been satisfied already by this Honda gem in TN kind of towns. Many of my banker friends who roam around everyday opted one and only Unicorn 150. So it's the safest and cheapest bet. If he craves for modern and to suit wrong side of 20s Xpulse can be considered.

[aveemashfaq]

Dominar feels happy for long distance touring close to triple digit speeds but in villages, you are more of looking at 60-70 kmph. He needs a sports commuter for it. Apache 200 has more upright seating posture than Apache 160 and Apache 200 has slipper clutch which is a boon(very soft clutch and will not hurt arms).

It also has dual channel ABS which is very important. Many people ignore the rear ABS but imo rear ABS is more important because it prevents the rear from fish tailing under panic braking.

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by jasjotbains

A friend of mine, who is not on Team BHP, has asked for a suggestion for purchasing a new bike.
.. snip snip ..

Since he is a banker, his requirements are as follows:
1. Needs to have rock solid reliability
2. He will need to go on regular 40-50 kms tours (one side) daily, sometimes into the interior villages, so the ride for himself and the occasional pillion should be comfortable.
3. Easy availability of spares and service at reasonable (read - low) prices. He may not have the luxury of tier 1 towns often.
4. His budget is upto Rs 2 lacs. Can stretch slightly but not much.
5. Decent fuel economy. Not looking at 100 kmpl but not looking at ~20kmpl either.

50 km one way is not a mean feat. That is 100km a day on a regular basis which calls for a serious relook at your options. He needs to prioritize long term comfort over anything else with those numbers, and in my opinion it rules out many sportier options because those will take a toll on his body and leave him exhausted after every journey, after a few continuous weeks of usage. I would rule out the Apaches and Dukes for their sportier setups. The Xpulse will take ages to munch miles with its small engine and limited speeds.

I would blindly pick the Himalayan in this case for his needs. It has proper upright adventure tourer ergonomics to munch miles without a sweat, it can hold good speeds of upto 100 or so if need be, plus it can take him to remote areas easily too. The suspension absorbs bumps very nicely and the occasional pillion won't feel out of place. It is a RE, so service and maintenance won't be an issue even in the remote parts of the country. More so, TN is RE's stronghold and they are quite common there and the bike won't attract any undue attention.

If he doesn't like the Himalayan, maybe he can also wait for and give the Meteor (updated Thunderbird) a look. Both of these have superior long-duration riding ergonomics at this budget point.

I have suggested the Dominar Twins to him and we have mutually ruled out R15. He has seen the Suzuki Gixxer 250 though I am not very much optimistic about its ASS and availability of spares.

If I have to pick a jap here, both the FZ25 and the Gixxer 250 (not SF) are good contenders at this price point but for solid long term ergonomics and mile munching I would again revert to the REs I referred to. If daily distance was maybe 25-30 km one way (50-60 a day) I might have considered these, but at 100 km a day, these get a NO from me.

The dominar is a good option and maybe can hold higher average speeds than the former two, but I am not sure what is the scene with Bajaj's service network in interior TN.

P.S - Looks like the OP is asking suggestions on which pizza variation is better, and many members are suggesting not to have pizza (bike) and eat salad (car) instead Let him have his youthful fun guys

[ast.ggn]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

50 km one way is not a mean feat. That is 100km a day on a regular basis which calls for a serious relook at your options. He needs to prioritize long term comfort over anything else with those numbers, and in my opinion it rules out many sportier options because those will take a toll on his body and leave him exhausted after every journey, after a few continuous weeks of usage. I would rule out the Apaches and Dukes for their sportier setups. The Xpulse will take ages to munch miles with its small engine and limited speeds.

He is in a similar boat as I am right now. My daily commute is 100 kms (50 kms each side) and I keep switching between 390 and Xpulse. Route consists of highway:city at 60:40. Usual timings that I get are as below:

Morning Journey on a 390 - 48-52 mins
Morning Journey on Xpulse - 55-58 mins

Evening Journey on a 390 - 60 mins
Evening Journey on Xpulse - 65-70 mins.

These are with sane riding and not intended to set times, I have been doing this for over an year now. There is actually not much difference between a Xpulse and 390 within 50 odd kms (not referring to long tours).

I would blindly pick the Himalayan in this case for his needs.

Yesterday, I wanted to say Himalayan:

Originally Posted by ast.ggn

I would better stick to Apaches or any other bike which comes with tubeless tyres.

Reason: He is traveling to interior places and all it takes is one puncture to spoil the experience.

but dreaded puncture came to my mind and today morning :

[kamilharis]

For daily official commute of 100kms, I would suggest the Honda unicorn if he doesn't mind the wrong side of any age's looks of it. A solid reliable machine preferred by plenty of such marketing/sales staffs.

If he is adamant of getting a cruiser type bike I would suggest the Avenger 160. Or if for sporty commuter options, the New Hero Extreme 160R looks like a good bike but I think there are service and spare related issues with Hero these days for their new bikes. So better to pick Honda Hornet or Apache 160.

[jasjotbains]

Originally Posted by YossarianLives

If he is convinced that he needs a bike, then I would suggest the Apache 200. But I would advise getting a second hand car. Daily long commutes on a bike, in our summers will drain you badly. Even an Alto would be a major upgrade.

I'm pretty sure he'll be lost behind the wheels of one

He's not much of a car enthusiast. Still likes to feel the wind blow while traveling

Originally Posted by KarthikK

P.S - Looks like the OP is asking suggestions on which pizza variation is better, and many members are suggesting not to have pizza (bike) and eat salad (car) instead Let him have his youthful fun guys

I crossed over to the 30's last month and trust me, I've suddenly found long lost love for my Activa I have my car here but the 5000 speed breakers I encounter on my 4km daily run to the bank have made me love the Activa even more.

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[ishan12]

Believe me, when you are in your 20s, there is no wrong side of that. Specially for a bachelor in 20s.
Given his requirements my suggestion would also be to look for a small pre owned car.
His commute and specially that it is for work makes the case for a Car. It will protect from the harsh TN heat, and unpredictable rains. Also, much safer.
But still if he is inclined for a motorcycle, then look for something below 200cc, since they are simple to fix and spares easily available even in tier 3 and tier 2 towns.
Go for something like the Apache, new FZ 150, Honda Unicorn or Xblade/ Avenger.
Stay far far away from Dominar/ Himalayan/ Anything from RE.
Typically go for something that sells in relatively good numbers, spares for low selling models are hard to get in small towns.

[turbodude]

I would recommend Hero Achiever. I have used the first version, Hero Honda Achiever which I had purchased in 2007 (with Disc Brakes, Alloy wheels, Electric Start) for approximately 60k. No idea of current price though.

Some advantages:
- Good fuel economy. I used to get 50 kmpl easily
- Safety. I have skidded on cement roads which had become glossy smooth. No scratch to me, bike is rock solid
- Very stable at speed of 70-80 kmph. I have done highway road trip on that bike many times (Pune old Highway, Nashik highway). Very highway friendly.
- Less chance of theft. Bike looks very simple and looks like 125cc so less chance of theft as it is not fancy. Villagers won't beat you .
- Ultra smooth engine. I loved its firing all time.

Sold it to an acquaintance of mine in 2015 and still missing it.

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by turbodude

I would recommend Hero Achiever. I have used the first version, Hero Honda Achiever which I had purchased in 2007 (with Disc Brakes, Alloy wheels, Electric Start) for approximately 60k. No idea of current price though.

I agree, Achiever was a very under-rated bike and would have been a good choice for the OP's friend. Unfortunately, it's no longer on sale. The only 160 cc offering by Hero these days is the Xtreme 160.

[AJITHAAA]

The Honda CB Unicorn off course. Butter smooth engine, low maintenance and decent mileage and power too...

[SidharthaN]

What also needs to be calculated is ROI. 100kms daily is 3000kms a month is 36000 Kms a year. If the person spends 2 Lacs on a bike on loan which actually shoots over this amount with interest calculated, in a year time the vehicle is reaching midage. So in possibly 2 years time it is at 72000kms and probably needs replacement before ROI benefitted.
Coming from me who runs 160kms daily roundtrip throughout the year. My 4 years old Thunderbird is at 1,15,000 Kms on the odo. Now I have a TVS Sport bought at 50,000INR for the same run with better ROI planning.

[neil.jericho]

It is nice to see so many recommendations for the venerable Honda Unicorn, the bike looks just the same as it did 15 years ago and it soldiers on into the BS6 world, continuing to build Honda's rock solid reputation. We bikers on the forum often tend to veer to the sportier bike offerings, whether it is at 100c or 150 or A2 level or above, sometimes the more sensible options in the market get overlooked.