[abdriver2000]

I have a 2003 Kawasaki Bajaj Caliber 115 (Hoodibaba fame) which has done a little under 73k kms. The bike is absolutely stock and returns about 50kmpl in FE, and attains a speed of 70-75kmph in city easily.

I was keen on upgrading to Hunk but then my mechanic told me that I can get the Caliber refurbished with a full paint job for under 10% of the cost of Hunk. The engine and gearbox would be untouched. I feel this bike should easily reach 1L kms in next 2 years.

Just wanted to make sure that I don't run into any problems after the refurbishment. What is the average life expectancy of decently maintained bike serviced at 2500km intervals?

[Sankar]

If you are keen to buy a Hunk then go ahead and buy it. A refurbished Caliber will not have the presence or feel of a Hunk. As your bike get older and near the 1Lac mark you can expect mechanical problems.

The chances are that you will run into more problems after the refurbishment. If it ain't broken don't fix it.

[abdriver2000]

Originally Posted by Sankar

If it ain't broken don't fix it.

Thats exactly what my dad says! The only thing holding me back on Hunk is the moolah. Doesn't look like my annual raise will cover it.

Maybe I will hang around for a few more months. Any estimates on the engine life?

[Mpower]

All you need is new rings and maybe piston and you should be good for a couple more years. Just dont skip the oil changes.

[Sankar]

Originally Posted by abdriver2000

Thats exactly what my dad says! The only thing holding me back on Hunk is the moolah. Doesn't look like my annual raise will cover it.

Maybe I will hang around for a few more months. Any estimates on the engine life?

Like Mpower said a new set of rings and scheduled oil changes will keep the engine in good health. It will definitely last 1 lac KM or more if you take care of it.

If the current paint job is fair enough then leave it like that and buy a new bike at a later point in time.

[rranjith_kum]

Abdriver: From your data I think your Caliber is in very good shape but why the new experiment of refurbishment. Infact from the service intervals itself I can know how well you love your bike.
Do you see any performance drop or coarseness that has creeped in your ride ??

Well dont mistake me, I just have a doubt in what ways can we extend the life of the engine. The way we can achieve perfect setting during the initial run-in period.
As a new owner I am very curious to know the answers over the life of a bike engine.

[pulsarmaniac]

from the garage pic of your bike, i think the paint is quite good right now.i don't think its a nice idea to spend on a paint job.its better you take care of the engine and spend on the engine itself. and save some for the next bike you want to buy.good luck!!

[mmmjgm]

Originally Posted by abdriver2000

Just wanted to make sure that I don't run into any problems after the refurbishment. What is the average life expectancy of decently maintained bike serviced at 2500km intervals?

Hi Abdriver,

If the refurbishment job is done well, the bike will go on, our bike (RX100 1986 model) had done 2.6 lakh kms when sold in 2002, with two refurbishments done on it.

You need to be careful to use original parts, stick to the manufacturer's recommended part replacement & service schedule and have a very competent mechanic on the job. Obviously taking care of the bike , love & care dominate the list of to-dos

Cheers.

M M

[aaggoswami]

Originally Posted by Sankar

1) A refurbished Caliber will not have the presence or feel of a Hunk. As your bike get older and near the 1Lac mark you can expect mechanical problems.

2) The chances are that you will run into more problems after the refurbishment.

1) Agree with you on feel, but not on mechanical problems. Caliber was one of the better built bikes and if proper maintence is done, there wont be any problem will atleast 1.25 lakh kms. Recently met a person at fuel station. Daily he travels around 70 kms on Caliber ( Vadodara to Vasad ) and has done 1.25 lakh kms. Bike returned around 62-63 on highway at high speeds.
I had to sell off caliber because of non availability of parts and my rough use.

No problems to worry about. Already as the bike is not in production and reason that bike rarely get good resale value, keep your bike as long as it is serving your purpose and till it really springs up some major problem.


2) Agree with you. The quality of work anywhere remains a big question. Best avoided.

Originally Posted by Mpower

All you need is new rings and maybe piston and you should be good for a couple more years. Just dont skip the oil changes.

There is no point in opoening a 111.6 cc engine and extracting more life. Till around 1 lakh or somewhat more than that if the bike is not losing on power or torque, then no point in opening the engine. As soon as the problem starts, sell it off and buy a new one. And moreover even the availability of quality parts remains a question at least in my city.

[phamilyman]

Hold on man.

Unless your engine is screwed up (which u havent mentioned), why are you bothering?

And stock rings are stock stuff. Why open it up if it aint broke? I know of classic pulsars lasting 1.35 lac km on original bore with 4000km oil changes - yours is also the kawasaki bajaj caliber na? Chill man. You're just fine. Those service intervals are perfect.

Go by your dad's logic, even paint is not required.

[rranjith_kum]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

I know of classic pulsars lasting 1.35 lac km on original bore with 4000km oil changes -

Are you sure !! AFAIK a quite well maintained so classic pulsar's engine became coarse after the 60000 kms mark.

[BlackPearl]

IMO most of the time while refurbishing the actual cost shoots past the initial estimate given by the mechanic. This happens mostly because the rubber pasrt and several other things cannot be refitted after the bike has been dissembled for refurbishment and these parts are not mentioned during initial estimate. It is not a fault on the mechanics part also because they cannot guess what part can be reused until the bike is opened up. I am saying this from my personal experience while refurbishing my RX 135 two years back. The bike runs like new but the cost was way above my initial budget and also there were a few niggling issues during the first month which I had to iron out by multiple visits to the mechanic.

[black12rr]

You got a kawasaki engine , it will go upto 2 lakhs kms or even more , just get the plug changed every 10k kms , oil changed at prescribed time and air filter cleaned based on your environment , it will rock .

[deepclutch]

why is it so that kawasaki engine's easily last more than a lakh kms while our pulsar's feels power loss after hitting 40000kms on odo?

I would like to ask here if we change the cylinder+piston kit in pulsar's or rebore/sleeve after the power loss happens? How is the availability of cylinder+piston kit for pulsars?

[aaggoswami]

Originally Posted by deepclutch

I would like to ask here if we change the cylinder+piston kit in pulsar's or rebore/sleeve after the power loss happens? How is the availability of cylinder+piston kit for pulsars?

Changing the block-piston in any bike must not be an issue if the parts available are of good quality and the workmanship is good. Here the quality of parts along with the quality of job done by humans at the dealership/authorized service center are not good.
I have seen many cases where Pulsar's engine ( Generation 1 and Generation 2 ) loses on power at approximately 50-60K kms and afterwards whatever be the work done on them the original performance of engine never comes back.
If you are experiencing powerloss, IMHO, ( just my opinion ), sell the bike, and get new one. There is no point in spending so much money as it represents no value.