[man_of_steel]

Originally Posted by turboNath

Can anyone please confirm if it is configurable through that display?

Usually the TC light flashing when the system kicks in is not configurable.

[Sebring]

That's a nifty feature to have. See the hole!

Originally Posted by shyamg28

The team did mention that the entire headlight assembly and that front portion can be shifted down. And is homologated as well since certain other countries do not require a front number plate

[GKU]

Coming back from test ride marathon . I took test ride of Interceptor 650, Himalayan 450, Yezdi Adventure, Yezdi scrambler and KTM 390 adventure. all in span on 3 hours. Luckily all these showrooms were within 5KM radius from my home. I will exclude interceptor and yezdi scrambler from this discussion.

I was the 2nd person to take test ride from this showroom today. it was Kaza brown Himalayan 450. test ride was short -15 minutes , ~ 3KMs, within city. I am no expert rider, just a motorcycle enthusiast . These are just my personal observation and nowhere close to being verdict. I may change my views based on further experience.

1) Sat on the bike, felt I am sitting on something substantial (super bike kind of )
2) Slightly opened the throttle while on 3rd gear , I felt no adrenaline rush ! (I had experienced adrenaline rush in Interceptor 650 few minutes back) but bike was quick and likable during this moment.
3) Next thing I noticed was engine heat, Not sure how previous rider had ridden it , but within 50 meters of me riding , I noticed substantial heat on both my legs (was wearing jeans).
4) Went over slightly bad patch of road, suspension was pure delight , very plush riding experience.
5) Vibrations were present at fuel tank, handle bars and foot pegs , these vibration were very much noticeable through out rev range till ~ 4000 RPM( max I could go ).
6) Faced slight traffic congestion, I felt this bike lacks agility and nimbleness (I was not confident enough to maneuver in narrow passage , may be it will take some time , I took little time in my Duke 200 also ).
7) Throttle response and power delivery is linear and predictable.
8) Foot pegs were indeed an issue while tiptoeing.


Now subjective rating of Himalayan compared to other ADVs I test rode today .

1) Ergonomics 9/10 - 390 ADV 10/10 , Yezdi ADV 9/10
2) Suspension 10/10 - 390 ADV 9/10 , Yezdi ADV 5/10
3) Throttle response and Power delivery under 4K RPM (linear is likable) 10/10 - 390 ADV 8.5/10, Yezdi ADV 9/10
4) Agility and nimbleness 7/10- 390 ADV 10/10, Yezdi ADV 8/10
5) Vibrations 7/10 - 390 ADV 8.5/10 / Yezdi ADV 10/10
5) Fun to ride 7/10 - 390 ADV 10/10, Yezdi ADV 8/10
6) Overall look and feel /Build Quality 9/10 - 390 ADV 10/10, Yezdi ADV 7/10

If I understood the bike language correctly , this is what each bike said to me while riding ( Admins, kindly delete if it is not appropriate )

Himalayan : Please don't rev, I don't like it. I am giving you sofa like comfort, why you want to rev. just go over that bad patch, see how comfortable I am. I don't like lot of people around me, kind of introvert , take me to highways I guarantee 100% fun.

Yezdi ADV : Do whatever you want , I am like this, I am not going to change , I am cheaper than all other folks you are seeing. I may not be the best but I am certainly good . I am doing most of the things right. do you agree ? please say you agree , say it..

390 ADV: Dude.. do you see a thing on your right hand , do you even see it ? twist that , no not enough, twist harder , wont let you down, see see.. you see that corner .. go faster .. lean .. uff ..do you even know how to ride a bike ?

Cheers !

[trailsndirt]

I test-rode a demo bike over the weekend.
Tbh, it was pretty well sorted but there are improvements that need to be made in some areas as with any new bike.
I rode the bike in eco mode and did not feel that it was held back apart from reaching 6 to 7K on the rev range. There, you can get a feeling of maybe the airbox being a bit restrictive but then, might feel better when its in sports mode. I did not toggle the riding mode as it was a short ride on the main road to the service track.
The bite on the front and rear were decent and when used in combination, can bleed off speed quite nicely. There was no sudden bite as such but I did not push the envelope.
Tires might be the weak point. While the front was fine, I did not get a good feel from the rear - it felt wooden and not confident. That could be a case of fresh rubber since the bike had less than 300 on the odo. But its something I may revisit on another test ride in a week or so, once the 1st service is done, and brakes and tires are well used.
The dash is nice but I do not see myself using the on-screen navigation much. It needs the RE app to "mirror" the phone's screen which requires the device screen to remain on. IF that were the case, best to have a good vibration-dampening mount and use the phone instead. Maybe a newer Zana mount to sit on top of the display like a Dakar bike nav tower. A taller windscreen I felt would be needed for the long rides on the highway.
Having a type-C port near the throttle side is nice and what is even better is that it can be relocated with little effort. I'd prefer to have that plug placed under the seat and have a good quality cable to the handlebars and then, charge the phone. Not too confident of water resistance in the monsoon rides there.
The mirrors were another matter. While the demo bike's mirrors could be adjusted sideways, no forward or backward movement. Any adjustment there needs the controls to be shifted. Hopefully better adjustable mirrors will be available in the coming year when the bikes are dispatched.
As for the accessories, hand guards with metal bracing will be needed for any ADV bike. I hope RE does not get an all plastic variety. The tank protection needs addressing with some gaps (maybe to be plugged with some fillers), bash plate with crash protection is a all in one unit it seems. So better budget for that vs. trying to fit something later.
I made the advanced booking and will wait to see how the PDI goes when the unit is dispatched. As per the showroom, those who have done the pre-booking ought to see the bikes sometime after Jan, early Feb. Others who book one now, maybe another 3 months, but with many cancelling the bookings, things may change.

Regarding the tubeless spoked wheels, the dealer said it may take more than 6 months given the certification to import and sell those rims in India. Maybe fit in some heavy duty tubes over the stock OEM ones. Any thoughts round this will be nice to read thru.

[b16h22]

Originally Posted by Sebring

That's a nifty feature to have. See the hole!

A better photo of the same setup.



Casually checked out the bike at the local dealership. It looks promising. Has a lot of presence like a toned down big ADV and the fit & finish was pretty good. Couldn't take a detailed look. Riding position felt good and the bike was narrow in the middle. Couldn't check the seat height as it was on the center stand. TD bikes were not yet available.

[sprocket]

shyamg28, others - can you please confirm that the rear shocks are also Showa; visited the showroom today and couldnt find any Showa markings on the rear ones.

[Carfool_Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Neo18

c) The showroom staff also went on to add that there might be a steep increase in the RTO tax on two wheelers above 250 cc in Karnataka and we can expect another 10k to be added to the on road tax. All this will cumulate to the on road price of the top spec Himalayan to be well over 4 lakhs on road in bangalore.

My God! The existing road tax is already outrageous given the Bangalore road conditions - to hike it even further without providing any sort of improved infrastructure is just mind boggling

Any idea when this expected to happen ? It's bound to affect only a small portion of the population thus probably will go through with little to no opposition.

[aviator1101]

Originally Posted by sprocket

shyamg28, others - can you please confirm that the rear shocks are also Showa; visited the showroom today and couldnt find any Showa markings on the rear ones.

Most of the YouTube reviewers have brought out that the rear monoshock is also a Showa unit with pre-load adjustability. Sharing one of the reviews.

Watch Sagar Sheldekar's review video below from 2:00

https://youtu.be/X3anglskbiY?si=aNhtLGtaV9Wnqmm9

[itsMridul]

Originally Posted by GKU

Coming back from test ride marathon . I took test ride of Interceptor 650, Himalayan 450, Yezdi Adventure, Yezdi scrambler and KTM 390 adventure. all in span on 3 hours.

Now subjective rating of Himalayan compared to other ADVs I test rode today .

Thank you again for your opinion.

What I am seeing everyone is comparing the new Himalayan with the old one regarding power, vibration, brake etc. I don’t think the old Himalayan can be considered as a benchmark for the aforesaid issues. We should pit it against its direct rivals from other companies.

I was little confused with the claims of the vibration free, cool 450 cc engine that also revs high and produces power comparable to KTM 390s. When the KTMs and BMWs with their years of experience on high revving engines cannot produce a vibe free powerful single cylinder engine, how on earth RE can produce it on their first attempt! I am not bashing RE or having doubt on their ability, but they required a 650cc twin cylinder engine to produce power comparable to modern day 400 cc. Certainly the claims of a 450cc 40 bhp vibration free rev happy motor that does not heat up need to be taken with a pinch of salt.

This engine may be a huge improvement over the 411cc, but we should compare it with the KTM 390s and also Triumph 400s regarding power delivery, actually usable torque, vibration at different RPMs and the heat generated.

My two cents!

[aviator1101]

Originally Posted by NotThePro

This bike does not have traction control right? I heard it being a complaint quite a few times. Can please clarify on this? Thanks a lot.

Yes Sir, the Himalayan comes only with ride by wire and dual channel ABS with switchable rear ABS.

No Cruise Control or Traction Control.

One of the main grudges of many reviewers is despite having all the hardware for cruise control, RE didn't provide it. And a basic traction control like Bosch could also have been provided like the 390s which had been omitted by RE.

RE's logic is anything that is essential has been provided, anything non-essential omitted. In actuals, maybe it is just another cost-cutting measure.

[CodeEvo]

So the tubeless rims are made from a brand called "Akront" was able to identify this in one of the youtube videos

Here is a screenshot

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXs4hzKDpNg

You can see this at 14:00

[iron.head]

In the UK the tubeless black color variant is 6300 Pounds vs 6050 Pounds for the tubed variant! Approximately 25000 INR. Still much better than the 1000 USD aftermarket tubeless spoke rims selling on ebay (for various motorcycles)!

These will likely be imported so will attract some custom duty as well!

[tanayr]

Akront wheels are also found in the Tiger 900s, maybe the 1200s too.
Therefore, not going to be cheap unless there's some volume discount etc...

[Neo18]

Originally Posted by Carfool_Wheeler

My God! The existing road tax is already outrageous given the Bangalore road conditions - to hike it even further without providing any sort of improved infrastructure is just mind boggling

Any idea when this expected to happen ? It's bound to affect only a small portion of the population thus probably will go through with little to no opposition.

As early as Feb/March 2024, before the Lok Sabha Elections. When one of the prospective customer enquired about the On Road Price, the RE staff pointed this out and asked the customer to take into consideration another 10k hike in RTO charges.

True, nobody is going to bat an eyelid. Both the "Introductory price" saga and the "RTO Price hikes" are a really kick in the wrong place for folks who are on a tight budget.

[nasirkaka]

Must admit, i have not seem the new Himalayan 450 in person so far. But being bombarded with its pics, videos, reviews, etc on social media and all biking related whats-app groups, i feel like i have seen enough and....

...Contrary to popular opinion, is it just me who thinks the old Himalayan was a better looking bike than the new one? I feel the new Himalayan 450 looks incomplete. It looks like "work in progress" and feels like there is something missing yet. Its like the iteration phase where concept needs final bit of refining before locking in. Its like its almost there, but not yet. The released color scheme, graphics (lack of it?) could also add to this thought.

No doubt, its technically and mechanically far far superior as per all the reviews, but that 'LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT' factor is been missing. For eg, the Interceptor/GT 650 had that appeal when launched.

I guess the starting brief would have been to make it like an evolution of the old Himalayan, which to and extent they have managed to achieve, but the end result does not add up in my eyes aesthetically. Could it be the front end view from the saddle, which looks much different and bare/empty from a traditional cockpit view, or elements like the missing tail lamp or shape of tank, proportion of tank in relation to the side panels, or the gap around front of the tank with recess carved out for the front forks to swivel around.

I am not saying the new Himalayan is bad looking. Maybe with time the aesthetics will grow on us. Even the old Himalayan when launched was a very functional, utilitarian, and simple design with a balanced silhouette. Very much unlike a typical ADV form factor of other make. But it did grown on us with time. Hope the same with the new Himalayan 450.

Will try and visit one of the showroom to have a look at it in person, and take a test ride too, once the dust settles a bit.