[rajshenoy]

I think Honda Hness suits most of your asks except for triple digit speeds. I own one and it is one amazing machine both for city as well as highways but it is happy in speeds around 80-90kmph. You can enjoy 100-110 for short bursts and overtaking, but I doubt any of the options in 250-350cc will be comfortable over 110+ speeds.

[AmitRavi07]

Out of the options I would say Honda H'ness is the best.

Duke390 is a very good option, but you might feel the ride to be stiff. Do a test ride to check it out. The only weak point I would say is that it would have slight niggles, which you could ignore or could make you irritated, it ticks all other boxes.

[kamleshp]

I am 46yrs old, I ride a Duke 390 since last 7.5 years. Suspension is stiff, but it is a good city and highway bike. The thing is, if you like Duke390, then all other bikes will not matter much, and if you do not like D390 then choices are many. The slightly forward leaning stance of Duke390 is not a problem.

[mpp1]

If you're considering CB350 and Classic 350 then overlooking the Yamaha FZ25 is a mistake IMHO.

Same power as these two.

I'm about the same height as you and mine fits me like a glove, for reference I'm 110kg.

The torque low down the power band is addictive, so makes an excellent city bike.

Just about perfect power for all of your list.

Bike is great for touring, a lot of people are doing this already, FE is decent too I get about 35kmpl but I'm heavy and the torque on this bike makes me ride rash occasionally.

Very very reasonably priced and cheap to maintain with zero known major niggles.

For some reason it just doesn't get the respect it deserves on most forums, I think this is a bike that has been criminally ignored in the market.

Some cons:

- The digital instrument cluster is a joke.
- Could have used a 6th gear and a few extra HPs but I guess the perennial kitna deti hai demands of our market won out here.
- The aforementioned lack of respect in the market.

[commonman]

Meteor 650 checks all the boxes.
All RE vehicles age well if used with care.

[Passatman]

Suzuki VStrom would, in my opinion, be the best choice! Reliable Jap engine, ABS dual channel, manageable weight in both city and highway and of course good ground clearance if you are not offroading. Good mile muncher, easy on the wallet to Own & Run.
Try it once and you will be pleasantly surprised and may want to ride it home!

[Nimz]

Lot of interesting points and am sure the OP is quite confused by now.

Would like to offer a slightly different perspective.

I am in my early 40s and just recently got back into biking after a hiatus of more than a decade (no scooter
either and cars were the only vehicle in my garage), and so it was a major surprise for me when i went 2W shipping and saw the relatively low levels of customer service meted out to customers. Another surprise was the huge crowds for service in almost all bike service centers.

One thing that moved me to Honda was the "premium" service one could expect in Big Wing. The sales experience was relatively better than most and while Honda Big wing service is not exactly premium either, they do have a comfortable customer lounge and relatively less crowds (atleast till now).

In case you are like me and would prefer a more sedate service experience you may want to consider this factor as well. Ofcourse the bike and it's mechanicals should be your primary consideration.

Happy hunting

Nimz

[swami.n]

@livnletcarsliv, my two cents to add to your confusion.

Most of the bikes you have shortlisted are all capable of meeting your requirements. As you have a bigger budget, I would recommend to look for a pre-owned CB500X. It is probably the best big bike which gels with the crowd without being an attention grabber which can manage the traffic city commutes and the highway miles with ease.

The biggest drawback was the insane pricing by Honda for a 500 twin. But as a product it is brilliant. So at the right price it is a fantastic buy.

If your budget was say around half of what you have mentioned, then I would recommended Vstrom 250, Classic350, H'ness, Himalayan, KTM ADV250 or 390 in no specific order.

[PrasannaDhana]

Originally Posted by Livnletcarsliv

What do you recommend?

Hi, Can you share what other bikes you have owned/ extensively ridden in the past?

I am in mid thirties, same dimensions as you. I find the interceptor 650 to be the jack of all trades.

I would buy the CGT 650 though

[Mafia]

I can add a bit of my recent 2-wheeler sales experience. For 2-wheelers with high sale volumes, the sales representatives are generally dis-interested. The attitude changes for the better, by a little if you put in an advance without too much fuss.

I am 45 and have been eyeing the Adventure 390 for some time. I will be happy with the RE classic in the 650 version if launched.

[rajeevsulu]

I am 51,6 4 and weigh 90 kgs. I bought a Highness 350 about 3 months ago and am very happy with the same. It does most of what you require and is very comfortable and refined. I suggest you do a test ride of the Highness and any other bikes you like and make a decision. Cheers

[NEMatters]

I think it would be good if you can put up a poll too.. I am seeing many people recommending CB 350, it is indeed a good bike.

I too would recommend it based on my personal experience, coming back to biking after almost a decade, the refinement, comfortable seating position, ease of riding on highways, nice suspension is what I liked about the bike. The power is decent on highways up to 100-110 kmph is a cruising speed and I do it quite often. Fuel efficiency is also decent 33 kmpl in Bengalore traffic conditions & around 40 kmpl on highways is really good for a 350 cc engine.

What I don't like is tall gearing within city as many have already mentioned, other than that if you live in a Metro, you should be covered with service centers, or else one more reason not to consider it.

Happy Shopping

[satchit_bhp]

You should test ride the Hunter 350, its a good bike for city use.

[tc89]

Originally Posted by Livnletcarsliv

I am in my late 30's. I am almost 6 ft tall. My current ride is a Honda Activa 125 (most of the time it is used by my wife).
I always wanted to buy a bike for many years now. I thought there is no better time than NOW. The following are my requirements and interests.

1. No sports bike (or) scooter even if it is a BMW BMW C 400 GT because it doesn't suit me (especially riding position due to my height). It is not comfortable for long rides. It doesn't age well.
2. Comfort - Looking for a bike that is comfortable to sit and ride inside the city as well as occasional long rides for 500-600kms. (My my work city and my home town is 500kms). Smooth tarmac as well as bad road (not off-roading though).
3. Quality - Even if its not best build and best in quality (good if it is best), I neither don't want a bike with cheap plastics and switches just to save cost and weight.
4. Fun - Should be fun to ride (Not sporty though). Not interested in quick 0-100.
5. Occasional pillion rider.
6. Reliability - Should be highly reliable.
7. Maintenance and mileage - need not be the cheapest to maintain and highest in mileage. Decent to maintain and descent mileage is ok.
8. Should be able to do tripe digit speeds (around 100-110) with ease and sustenance. Occasional higher speed bursts (overtaking, etc.). While should also be doing city speeds and bumper to bumper to bumper traffic speeds.
9. Should really age well. Planning to keep this bike for as long as the government allows me to do.
10. Budget around 5lakhs (on-road) max.
11. Can wait a couple of months if there is anything upcoming.
12. Exclusivity is not what I looking at. I don't mind even if its a mass market one provided it meets all my other requirements.
13. Service network should be appropriate enough. Not something that is available only in the big-metros like Mumbai, Chennai, etc.

Considerations at the moment
1. RE350 Classic, RE Interceptor, 390 Adv, Duke 390, Jawa 42, RE Himalayan, RE Meteor 350, Honda Highness, Dominor 400, Honda CB350, CFMoto 650NK and upcoming RE Meteor 650 or anything upcoming.
Please add if there is anything I missed.

What do you recommend?

Seeing that your comfort is at the top of the list and so is reliability with ease of maintainence
Honda CB350 highness or The CB350 RS come straight away to mind, these seem to tick all the boxes.

The two things that I have come to realise after owning a Honda is the ultimate balance that they provide in terms of what one can call a well engineered machine
Sure they too have some issues but the engine is super reliability, the ride is neutral
The other point is that they are extremely forgiving machines and always behave as you want them to, they give back so much when you put in any amount of finesse into your riding be it the handling or milage.

KTM and RE cannot be considered reliable even though they are popular.

Please please test ride all machines and get a feel
Our opinions are worthy of a direction and not a decision!!

Good luck, do keep us posted Cheers

[pradeepdotb]

Hi Livnletcarsliv,

I had the same thoughts. Along with the age(i am turning 50 in the next 4 months), i had an issue with my height as well(5.5ft). My friend pushed me to ride his duke 390. I had ridden it once and had thought that i will never ever sit on this bike again. But my friend insisted and used it for some days. Trust me, once you control that beast, you will have a smile inside your helmet whenever it responds. Thats it - i test rode a lot of bikes, but back of the mind, it was always the duke 390. Theres something in the bike that gets connected to you.

And then in Sep 2022, i ended up buying one. Along with some 100km weekend trips, i have done 2 longer trips - Blr to Pondy and the bigger one - Blr To Dhanushkoti(630kms-one day) and back(another 630kms). It was just amazing...

Ofcourse thats my story with the duke 390, but while you test ride your bikes, theres one bike that will have a connect with you.

So, call it midlife crisis or whatever, age will not be deterrent for what you want.

Happy Riding,
Pradeep