[Yieldway17]

Originally Posted by stealthcraft22

The fine print says J&K and Eastern states are not covered. I'm sure this will disappoint a few, but I think they are being realistic here.

Congratulations for the bike!!

It says ALL parts of Jammu & Kashmir and Easterns states are not covered. I assume that’s because of prevailing border/LoC disputes there and not ruling out the entire state. For example, per GoI, Gilgit is part of J&K but we both know we can’t get there neither Honda can provide RSA there.

Hence I believe they will cover practical parts of these states. My insurance RSA had similar wordings if I remember.

[Jo-G]

https://youtu.be/QnaO4-ewQ3o

Another vlog from abhinav, this time speed and fuel economy. I am really liking this bike.

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by srh

Battery draining out/ electrical problem is more common as compared to flat tyres.

I've been riding/driving for almost 2 decades and have run into a electrical, mechanical problem only once, on my Enfield, when the ignition coil got weak. Even with an almost dead coil, I managed to ride the bike back home which was almost 400km.

The reason you buy a Honda is so you don't ever have to think about, or worry about anything. Battery drain or any problem for that matter is kept in check by preventive maintenance.

I think the road side assistance is a no brainer, for what it costs. All I am trying to say is, with a Honda, reliability and longevity is a given.

[Sebring]

My Smurfy was born! Three bikes rode out of the showroom last night (Oct 28th) after a gala party, and it was pretty late at 10PM. There was superb food, some media, interview session and hero shots in slo-mo. Total fun. Honda knows how to do it right. The clock touched 11 but my RE Brigade insisted we do a long ride. So off we went to Nandi Hills, some 12 bikes in all, and rode till the wee hours of the morning. I spent a lot of time trying to understand this bike better and will pen a first impression review today. Even the 'Bulleteers' were thoroughly impressed with the ride dynamics of this baby boom boom! Two of them put up their bikes for sale late last night itself, and booked a Honda online. Such was the impact!

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by Sebring

My Smurfy was born! Three bikes rode out of the showroom last night (Oct 28th) after a gala party, and it was pretty late at 10PM. There was superb food, some media, interview session and hero shots in slo-mo. Total fun. Honda knows how to do it right. The clock touched 11 but my RE Brigade insisted we do a long ride. So off we went to Nandi Hills, some 12 bikes in all, and rode till the wee hours of the morning. I spent a lot of time trying to understand this bike better and will pen a first impression review today. Even the 'Bulleteers' were thoroughly impressed with the ride dynamics of this baby boom boom! Two of them put up their bikes for sale late last night itself, and booked a Honda online. Such was the impact!

Wow that's a strong impression which the Bulleteers got! Its amazing that two of them got swayed so soon to the CB350 - I thought they were hard core loyalists who would forgive any shortcomings of their enfields for the Thump! Anyway what was it that really convinced your Enfield friends ?
Honda seems to have built a great machine at the right price and if they can quickly get their manufacturing and sales/service network ramped up, they should get great success. I think Enfield sells 50000+ motorcycles every month and if Honda can sell 10-15k per month it will be really good! But with Honda's plan for even bigger bikes (500cc) they may up the game even further.
Looking forward to your ownership review.
Now reading all the Honda Cb350 feedback, I am also tempted to sell my Jawa 42 which is just 6 months old! (Any takers?)

[girishv]

Originally Posted by Sebring

My Smurfy was born!

Thanks to you Mohith, I got a feel for the bike yesterday.

I could clearly keep both my feet firmly on ground. For reference, I'm 5'6. Photo courtesy Mohith again (team-bhp Sebring).

[Sebring]

The bike is smooth as butter. Being new there was not a single awkward shift. Besides the roar is designed to be more throaty at the exhaust. The bike is a magnet. Wherever we went bikers had so much to ask and I was happy to answer. My pleasure Girish! Had saved that seat for a fellow BHPian

[vensum]

I am posting after a long sabbatical. I did not want to start with a negative post but was compelled to do so.

I have used both Honda cars and bikes in different countries including India, Oman, USA, New Zealand, Thailand and Vietnam.

I was there at the so called launch function at Bangalore yesterday and was appalled by the way Honda handled it. I really do not know how many of you will agree with my views.

It was a Shame on Honda to say the least. Here i am not talking about the bike at all as I am yet to take delivery and ride it. What i am talking about is the way the customers were treated yesterday.

First of all, the function was fixed at 11 in the morning and accordingly the customers were informed. I am sure each of us would have scheduled our appointments keeping this in mind. Late on Tuesday evening, precisely at 7.15 p.m., they called me and informed me that the same has been changed to 4.00 in the evening. ( so good of their planning)

Ok. No issues. I rescheduled some of my work and reached there sharp at 3.55 (as i am a punctuality freak and i call it as a disease). There were few people checking out the bikes and the staff in general were ok.

Till 4.30 nothing happened. I asked one of the staff members as to what is happening as it is already 4.30. He told me that the function is supposed to be at 5.00. I asked him then why was i informed the timing as 4.00. There was no answer.

The worst thing is to follow. Around 4.45/ 4.50 all of us were literally herded out ( literally i mean) out of the showroom and made to wait on the road for full thirty minutes. All for the Director HMSi to land. An absolute insult to the so called valued customers ( I hope HMSI is listening and reading this). This gentleman lands at 5.20 and there was no apology or any such thing from anyone. Will HONDA ever do such a thing in any other country? I doubt that. This is due to the fact that everthing is OK with Indian Customers and they will not complain about it. We are responsible for creating such an opinion.

I just left the place as soon as the so called key handing over was over with frustration rather than happiness.

Two saving graces. One was in general few of the staff members were good. The second one was, as i was leaving the place immediately, the wife of the Silicon Honda Owner/Director walked across to me and politely asked me as to why i am leaving and that i should stay back and have some snacks / tea. She was really genuine in saying that and my anger / frustration came down a bit but i politely refused saying I was already late for another appointment and I need to leave.

On a personal note, i have taken a decision that i will never enter the Honda showroom again (except for taking delivery of the bike for which i have already made the payment) in India.

Yes, i am fully aware that Honda is too big to fail and they will ignore me and my opinion. It does not matter to me as for me my self respect is more valuable than owning a Honda bike ( i already had enough of them). They will continue to sell bikes and Indian customers will flock their showrooms in good number. But for me as in individual, i also have the choices and have multiple options to choose.

The main purpose of writing this post is not to complain about Honda but to highlight how the customers are treated in India.

I hope our learned members do understand and appreciate this.

[girishv]

Originally Posted by vensum

I am posting after a long sabbatical. I did not want to start with a negative post but was compelled to do so.

Two saving graces. One was in general few of the staff members were good. The second one was, as i was leaving the place immediately, the wife of the Silicon Honda Owner/Director walked across to me and politely asked me as to why i am leaving and that i should stay back and have some snacks / tea. She was really genuine in saying that and my anger / frustration came down a bit but i politely refused saying I was already late for another appointment and I need to leave.

I hope our learned members do understand and appreciate this.

Agree with your observations. I felt like Honda is doing us as a favor. I was literally laughing myself seeing all the pampering of the chief guest while nobody talked about the delay, specially as Mohith wanted me to be there on dot as how these people respect time etc. Seems like the respect is reserved only for their time, not others'.

They could not even find me my booking details. They simply showed me how all the files are dumped in their store room. One person even had the audacity to tell me I can look for the file myself.

As you correctly mentioned, the graceful lady who tried her best to interact with everybody was the only good thing there yesterday.

At the end of the day, I feel that this bigwing concept will turn out to be similar to any Honda showroom in the long run. Premiumness will only be in the large glass Windows and uniformed SAs, but the attitude and treatment of customers will be the same.

As I promised that I will not write any negative comments, I kept quiet. Since this is not about the bike itself, I'm penning my thoughts here.

[vensum]

Originally Posted by girishv

Agree with your observations. I felt like Honda is doing us as a favor. I was literally laughing myself seeing all the pampering of the chief guest while nobody talked about the delay, specially as Mohith wanted me to be there on dot as how these people respect time etc. Seems like the respect is reserved only for their time, not others'.

They could not even find me my booking details. They simply showed me how all the files are dumped in their store room. One person even had the audacity to tell me I can look for the file myself.

As you correctly mentioned, the graceful lady who tried her best to interact with everybody was the only good thing there yesterday.

At the end of the day, I feel that this bigwing concept will turn out to be similar to any Honda showroom in the long run. Premiumness will only be in the large glass Windows and uniformed SAs, but the attitude and treatment of customers will be the same.

As I promised Mohith that I will not write any negative comments, I kept quiet. Since this is not about the bike itself, I'm penning my thoughts here.

I honestly felt that i was an unwanted guest there. My feelings were that I am paying for the bike and their services (in fact a premium pricing) but was made to feel as if i am waiting there to get something for free. That feeling was just terrible. That is the reason, i felt i should pen down my post.

Having lived in different countries and being treated to a respectable behaviour probably my expectations were much higher from these guys. Could be my fault. I cant change anyone but i can change my behaviour. That is what i intend doing it.

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by vensum

The main purpose of writing this post is not to complain about Honda but to highlight how the customers are treated in India.

I hope our learned members do understand and appreciate this.

Very sad to hear that. I feel this happens in general in our country and also because people seem to be in celebratory mode after extended Covid isolation.

This being an important product for Honda, they had to send out the message loud. However we general public can take our precaution and postpone the delivery to next day or so to avoid gatherings.

[Sebring]

Very sad to hear that. My take on this is that it was an auspicious moment for the showroom since it is 'opening day'. I just want to wish them the very best, pass on positive vibes, and let business flourish. Mr Guleria 'San' the Chief Guest mentioned that the car was stuck in traffic near Canara Bank HQ (as soon as he came) and he was profusely apologetic. You know how mad the traffic chaos is. The Japs are known for their time. I was informed the previous day itself that the inauguration and key hand-over was at 5PM, and being punctual myself had informed Girish the same. No idea who said 11AM to you. They wanted the showroom to be without any people as the chief guest was cutting the ribbon, lighting the lamp etc. I was sitting in the lounge and just walked out casually to see what the fuss was all about. Didn't get the feeling of being 'herded out'. Self respect is indeed priceless, and I wouldn't let anyone tarnish it! Good that you didn't take it lying down

Originally Posted by vensum

First of all, the function was fixed at 11 in the morning and accordingly the customers were informed. I am sure each of us would have scheduled our appointments keeping this in mind. Late on Tuesday evening, precisely at 7.15 p.m., they called me and informed me that the same has been changed to 4.00 in the evening. (so good of their planning)

[Cyborg]

After reading the posts above, my summarisation of the situation and perhaps dealing with such situations for the future.

Blaming Honda (the company, or any company for that matter) for the lack of customer service on its own does not make sense. Yes, the company is responsible for its hires, but if you don’t point that out to the higher ups right there and then you are compounding the situation. Writing on social media after the fact only goes so far.

I have read on our forum of many people complaining about the treatment meted out to them at this or that place. If you accept the “treatment” and walk out saying “I will never enter such and such place” is playing into the hands of the wrong employees of the particular establishment. Ask for the owner/top person of the place (never go to any middle person) and let that person know exactly what’s happened and let him/her know this behaviour is not acceptable at all and you need corrective measures immediately. Normally (almost always), the owner or the top person at the place will be a reasonable person.

It’s the mentality of our people (the majority, not all) which needs to change. Since Mr. Guleria, (remember he is just the Director, not God and he works or his job is to service customers, not the other way around) was there, walk over to him, let him know exactly what happened. Always, keep your voice low/soft, maybe softer than normal and respectful, stick to the facts, never lie or exaggerate. Your manner of speaking, body language and confidence determines the treatment meted to you. I can assure you, you will never ever have any problem at that particular place again. In fact you will always get VIP treatment in the future.

How we respond to a situation is how we lay the foundation to how we will be treated in future.

Cheers

P.S. - While the above is not about the CB 350, it is surely with reference to the context of the last few posts.

[Sebring]

Ok getting into details, few things here n there are bugging me. For eg, this gap isn't uniform (its cross) and a mechanic tried to straighten it but it just doesn't budge as if glued. How much does it take to give it an extra twist! Weld lines (here n there) looked amateurish, but I need to check with someone who knows these things before posting. The app works fine, but only android, so that's on my wife's phone (Just checked and kept it away for now). Bike sprints well, suspension is darn impressive and can handle Spiti with aplomb is my reckoning. I'm expecting few bikes to do those trips

[Jo-G]

Originally Posted by vensum

I have used both Honda cars and bikes in different countries including India, Oman, USA, New Zealand, Thailand and Vietnam.
...
I really do not know how many of you will agree with my views.
...
It was a Shame on Honda to say the least. Here i am not talking about the bike at all as I am yet to take delivery and ride it. What i am talking about is the way the customers were treated yesterday.
...
Around 4.45/ 4.50 all of us were literally herded out ( literally i mean) out of the showroom and made to wait on the road for full thirty minutes. All for the Director HMSi to land.
...
Will HONDA ever do such a thing in any other country? I doubt that. This is due to the fact that everthing is OK with Indian Customers and they will not complain about it. We are responsible for creating such an opinion.

I totally agree that most of the great MNCs in India becomes a pakka local company. My first shock was in the organization I worked, when I joined in India from EMEA region. It was 2 worlds, even my European boss (stationed in India) changed to become more desi within a year which shows the power of desi influence. Be it the punctuality, customer service, quality of work and nepotistic thinking. Even my experience with Honda was from outside India. Waiting to experience the desi Honda (probably I too have matured to accept the desi-ness) D'ness of the H'ness.