[true_sedan]

Originally Posted by heinrici

I got my poppy slate today. Tried to check if there is any pull on either side by riding without holding the handlebars at around 40/50 kmph, did notice pull to the right, however couldn't test this more for lack of road. A perfectly aligned motorcycle should continue in a straight line, I've tested this in all my previous bikes so I'm suspect this one is not perfectly aligned. Will test more in the coming days. The handle bar alignment looks ok on visual inspection so it may be something else. Let me know what you find. I too have the OE large engine guard installed.

I would suggest you to wait for the tyres to run in a bit. Fresh brand new tyres from factory sometimes pull towards one side. A proper run in will smooth things out.

[Sebring]

Wow the Himalayan 450 hype slid pretty fast. Yesterday i watched few YT videos and people are talking about vibrations and cone set issue. Im riding my bike cautiously now, thankfully no complaints yet. Glad to hear RE has a solution to the issues

[rookieraj]

I got the first service done today. To my surprise, none of the 'O' rings were changed. When I asked the mechanic about this, I was told that they have run out of the 'O' ring kit.

I did tell them about the bike pulling to the right but nothing was done. The mechanic took a test ride and reported that all is good. I don't agree with his assessment though.

To be fair to them, today was a half-day for the service centre and maybe they wanted to finish off their work for the day and rectifying the 'pulling to one side' issue can be a long drawn affair. There is no excuse though for accepting a bike for servicing while not having the necessary spares.

[PatienceWins]

Took a short test ride of Himalayan 450 today in city. My observations:

Likes:
1. Riding Comfort. The suspension dismisses potholes and speed breakers effortlessly.
2. Ergonomics. I am 6' 2" tall and everything was spot on for a relaxed cruise on highway. Saddling would be difficult for tall riders, see Dislikes.
3. Power: Excellent top end power. I could briefly take it to high speed. I found the low end tractability to be decent, tried stalling the engine at 3rd gear by taking it to low speeds and it was manageable. The low end is no where near the old tractor engine of Himalayan.
4. Size: The longer wheelbase, size takes it to Triumph category. Should be good for touring with excellent suspension.
5. Center Console: Looks good.

Dislikes:
1. Vibrations, Clatter: I found it pretty same as the old Himalayan which I have ridden extensively in Himalayas. Wonder what the hype was all about.
2. Top Heavy: The vehicle is top heavy, which is evident while changing directions in low speed. The weight makes it presence while moving the vehicle in parking lot.
3. Side stand: The high angle makes it difficult to get on the bike by standing on the foot peg. The top heavy weight also makes it difficult to manage.
4. Saddling: The high end foot pegs and tank much up front makes saddling ergonomics bad for tall riders. The knee position is much above the seat. I used to saddle the old himalayan easily with the tank. Handlebar position seems ok, and can be fixed with a riser.
5. Fit and Finish: Looks awful with all the wires hanging out in the front, though overall finish has improved a lot compared to the old versions of RE. The joystick switch for the center console will give away soon, no tactile feedback.

Overall, I think this motorcyle will make a good highway tourer and offroader. Seems good value for money for what they are offering, especially the Showa suspension.
But we do not get into highways without passing through city traffic, and that's where new Himalayan falls short. Anyone looking for a single all rounder bike with bangalore like city traffic should look elsewhere. My CBR 250 felt so light weight, easy to ride and refined in city after the test ride.

[n_aditya]

Originally Posted by RajeshKanna

Everyone who's taken delivery and also who's taken test ride, how comfortable is the stock seat? Has anyone already changed to touring seat?

I've completed 2300 kms in a week short of two months of ownership. The seat does take a while to break in.

I remember my butt used to hurt in the initial few days of riding.. specifically the tailbone area. After a few hundred kms, either my body adjusted to the seat or vice versa and I have no discomfort or pain now. I have done around 500 kms on a single day on good roads and on bad roads with pretty rough terrain. I don't feel the need for a touring seat at least now.

Originally Posted by RajeshKanna

Also I was feeling a buzz kind of thing on my palms after an extensive ( 50km) test ride. But today riding the 400X and 450 back to back I could feel a significant difference in smoothness, in terms of seat quality.

This is one gripe I am struggling with. While the buzz has slightly reduced with Grip Puppies, it is still intrusive. I am also having shoulder pain (right side) while riding and it quickly disappears once I am off the bike. I am thinking of pulling the handlebar back a little bit to see if this solves the issue.

I know of a couple of owners who have installed one inch risers with pull back design and I sat on one such bike but did not ride it. It felt comfortable to reach but not sure how it fares on rides. Also since the risers increase the height of the handlebar, I did notice the cables are taut and not free. Would this lead to any issues over time is only a guess.

[rookieraj]

Originally Posted by n_aditya

While the buzz has slightly reduced with Grip Puppies, it is still intrusive.

What size grip puppies would fit the Himalayan 450 - regular or large?

[n_aditya]

Originally Posted by rookieraj

What size grip puppies would fit the Himalayan 450 - regular or large?

Regular size works fine. The feel is a bit chunkier than the stock grips but I got accustomed to it on my ride home so no issues there. I like these a lot more than the stock grips.

[nsbhagavath]

Originally Posted by rookieraj

I picked up my Hanle Black some three weeks ago. I've noticed that it pulls to the right slightly. I'm planning to get the first service done in a couple of days and I'll report this matter then. I have only got the OE large engine guard and a Moto Torque top plate installed on it so far.

Has anyone else faced this issue with their Himalayan 450?

My Hanle Black is 2 weeks old and have the same issue from day 1. When i tried leaving both the hands in moderate speeds, it pulls to the right. Have raised two complaints to RE till now and was informed to visit the showroom. Service manager started a WhatsApp group including the mechanics.

1. Engine noise with some tappet sound. This becomes more when bike is hot or used 30+ minutes in city.
2. Pulling to the right.

Yet to visit the service centre still, have to check these during the first service. Driven around 400kms till now, planning for the service next week.

Bike is still on run-in period, not crossed 4.5K rpm & so unable to comment on the vibrations. But got very comfortable with the bike and its effortless even in city runs. Love the feel and positive this will improve once the engine opens up. If RE can provide Fully synthetic oil will opt for it, may help to reduce the vibrations a bit.

[BulZire]

I had completed my first service 3 weeks back. Bike was sitting idle since then as I was busy in work and personal commitments. So blocked this Saturday and did a quick ride to Yelagiri from Bangalore, which is like 300 kms up and down.

Here is a quick feedback from the ride after a mix of highways and hill roads. I am not comparing the details with Triumph's or Honda's or yamaha's or any other bike here as i did not ride any of these bike's before deciding on the H452 .I can only compare to RE STD 350[CI] and Electra 350[CI] that I was using for a long time

Feedback in no particular order,

1. I am 6Ft tall and the bike perfectly suits my usual riding posture. Less painful and less fatigue even after riding for 100kms at a stretch.
2. Engine is a literally a boiler in Peak traffic. Radiator runs more frequently, at least in every signal I stop. But its a breeze in highways, don't see radiator running often.
3.Certainly a mountain difference in Engine refinement and riding comfort compared to my other RE bikes mentioned above.
4. Rev happy engine. can do triple digit speeds easily without any stress, It is a pure highway Goat. I did try good speeds in an open chennai-Bangalore highway stretch where there was absolutely no vehicle or Human traffic .
5. Bike is heavy, But maneuvering has become very easy after getting comfortable with it for few days. can feel the maneuvering capabilities during the downhill ride.
6.Can feel vibrations under seat, Handle bars and Foot pegs at some particular speed/RPMs. I could say between 5.5k to 6k RPM or, 95 kms to 110 Kms speed. this reading may not be accurate, its just an observation. Anyway, not complaining about it as I know these RE things.
7.Excellent Brakes and Suspension. Enough is said about it already by few other riders in this same thread.
8. I did have shoulder pain for the first 500 kms, but i feel it is settling down now. have to wait and see if i have to go for a raiser.
9. Maps connectivity worked flawlessly, But it did drain out my phone's battery in 1.5 hours. Thinking what's the alternate for this.

About the Accessories :

MT Crash Guard
MT Engine Sump Guard
MT Radiator Grill
Knuckle Guard.

All does their job and really improved the Bike's aesthetics. Planning to add a good tail bag soon.

About the Riding Gears:

MT Thunder 3 Pro Helmet - *3.5/5.
Rynox Tornado 4 Riding Jacket - *4/5
Solace Riding Pants - *5/5 I love it . The Best I got.
RE Riding Boots - *3.5/5
RE STALWART Riding Gloves - *2/5 . This is not comfortable and painful even after riding for 900 kms. I will change to a good full gauntlet riding gloves soon.

That's it for now, will come back with a short feedback after the next ride.

Now Meet "My Boy" Rambo

[heinrici]

After running in 1st gear on main stand as part of chain checkup, the engine check lamp doesn't go away. Have ridden the bike for 20 km after that but it still won't go away. Anyone knows how to reset it?

[VijayAnand1]

Originally Posted by heinrici

After running in 1st gear on main stand as part of chain checkup, the engine check lamp doesn't go away. Have ridden the bike for 20 km after that but it still won't go away. Anyone knows how to reset it?

Try removing the negative terminal of the battery, wait for 5 mins, re-install the battery terminal and check if it helps! Usually, the ABS light is what lights up if one wheel rotates while the other is stationary. If it's the CEL then we have to delve a little deeper. If it's the ABS light that should turn off almost immediately speeds above 8 KMPH.

Cheers!
VJ

[heinrici]

Originally Posted by VijayAnand1

Try removing the negative terminal of the battery, wait for 5 mins, re-install the battery terminal and check if it helps! Usually, the ABS light is what lights up if one wheel rotates while the other is stationary. If it's the CEL then we have to delve a little deeper. If it's the ABS light that should turn off almost immediately speeds above 8 KMPH.

Cheers!
VJ

No, not the ABS, its this marked one, per the manual its the "Engine MIL"

[sukiwa]

Originally Posted by heinrici

No, not the ABS, its this marked one, per the manual its the "Engine MIL"

Please visit service center to have vehicle scanned for error codes.

Originally Posted by heinrici

After running in 1st gear on main stand as part of chain checkup

Just curious to know how chain checkup was carried out in 1st gear. For all I know, rear wheel gets rotated by hand to check/inspect chain links.
If you meant chain lubing, even then running in 1st gear isn't advisable.

[heinrici]

Originally Posted by sukiwa

Just curious to know how chain checkup was carried out in 1st gear.

I should have explained better. This wasn't any lubing or wash - i was just checking out things. I had seen some videos where the rear wheel moves even in neutral or in gear with the clutch fully pressed. This happens due to residual oil friction. Wanted to see it live, so put the bike on main stand, made sure rear wheel isn't touching the ground and ran it for a few seconds in neutral and then 1st gear with clutch both pressed and then open. I did suspect this will result in engine light staying on - i've seen this behavior in other bikes. And manufacturers do provide certain button press combinations to reset it. But its not mentioned in manual - likely the service center will know how to reset.

[VijayAnand1]

Originally Posted by heinrici

No, not the ABS, its this marked one, per the manual its the "Engine MIL"

MIL and CEL are both the same, technically oxymorons. MIL - Malfunction Indication Lamp CEL- Check Engine Light, the jargons share the same synonym.

Now, if this MIL comes up, technically there is something wrong with the engine management system. If I am not wrong, the bike does let the user know what the issue is on the dash (I might be wrong) but that light staying on constantly is a sign that it needs to be checked immediately. But do try this battery method above and check if it solves the issue. Either way, as long as the bike is firing and able to move, nothing to worry. You can get it inspected and the error code erased via the tool at your nearest SVC.

Cheers!
VJ