[abhi_tjet]

Originally Posted by loki

Picked up the Katana earlier this month

Congratulations loki! A sweet looking bike definitely. Getting a much desired bike like Katana with added discount is a deal which cant get more sweeter.

What is the safe range(means you got further 30-40kms DTE) you are getting on a typical ride which contains mix of highways, curves and some city riding? Is it 200km plus at least?

The only flaw as per me is the smaller fuel tank for such a powerful and comfortable bike which otherwise can be used for touring. We definitely can't expect this to be fuel efficient.

[loki]

Originally Posted by abhi_tjet

Congratulations loki! A sweet looking bike definitely. Getting a much desired bike like Katana with added discount is a deal which cant get more sweeter.

What is the safe range(means you got further 30-40kms DTE) you are getting on a typical ride which contains mix of highways, curves and some city riding? Is it 200km plus at least?

Thanks man! I got about 185 to 190km range on my first highway ride which also included multiple stretches where I opened the throttle a bit 200ish km should be possible on the highway, maybe a tad more if you are cruising steadily. There are youtube videos where ppl have stretched it to 220km. But I'm not sure about mixed riding (city + highway).

Fuel efficiency is in the ballpark for a 1000cc Inline4 with 150+ horses (16km/litre?). Recommended fuel is 95 RON, but I've been filling only regular unleaded so far and not sure whats the impact of this.

Originally Posted by abhi_tjet

The only flaw as per me is the smaller fuel tank for such a powerful and comfortable bike which otherwise can be used for touring. We definitely can't expect this to be fuel efficient.

The designer was apparently adamant that having a larger fuel tank would ruin the lines of the bike. Hence they ended up with 12 litres. There is an aftermarket solution in Japan for this - a replacement fuel tank which can hold 17.5 litres. Might consider that in the future.

[Sebring]

Congratulations Silver does look good. Did you hand carry all those accessories from Europe, or is there some site? Do keep us posted on service aspects at that dealership

Originally Posted by loki

Picked up the Katana earlier this month

[loki]

Originally Posted by Sebring

Congratulations Silver does look good. Did you hand carry all those accessories from Europe, or is there some site? Do keep us posted on service aspects at that dealership

Had my friends carry them when they were travelling to India (ordered them on ebay / other sites). My 1000km first service visit is due soon. Will post updates.

[Nilesh5417]

Originally Posted by loki

Fuel efficiency is in the ballpark for a 1000cc Inline4 with 150+ horses (16km/litre?). Recommended fuel is 95 RON, but I've been filling only regular unleaded so far and not sure whats the impact of this.

Congratulations! Iitre class inline-4 at that price is awesome! wish you lots of happy miles!

I get about 220kms on my Monster that has 12ltr tank too. So 16kmpl seems quite good! Suggest you stick to 95RON - recommended for my bike is 95RON and it feels strained and gruffy on regular unleaded. Plus with the level of ethanol blend going on, i wonder how the bikes will behave in the long run. My bike is the happiest with Speed97, XP95 works well too.

That 17.5ltr tank - do you really need it? I agree with the designer on that one.

[Asish_VK]

Originally Posted by loki

Picked up the Katana earlier this month

Congrats on the sweet looking bike. Wishing you many many years of joy with it.
However your pictures did not do any justice to how beautiful the bike is. Expecting some good photographs soon

[Rachit.K.Dogra]

Originally Posted by loki

Had my friends carry them when they were travelling to India (ordered them on ebay / other sites). My 1000km first service visit is due soon. Will post updates.

Wow!! Congratulations brother!!

Do post your review on how katana feels different to ride than the CBR of course keeping the higher engine output aside.

Wishing you many years of Happy Ownership!!

CHEERS!!

Rachit

[loki]

Originally Posted by Asish_VK

However your pictures did not do any justice to how beautiful the bike is. Expecting some good photographs soon

Point Noted man. I'll click and share a few pics when the next out of town ride happens. Meanwhile, heres a night pic. The Katana does look good in the night too

Originally Posted by Nilesh5417

Suggest you stick to 95RON - recommended for my bike is 95RON and it feels strained and gruffy on regular unleaded.
That 17.5ltr tank - do you really need it? I agree with the designer on that one.

Let me try XP95 from IndianOil. Agree with you - don't exactly need a larger fuel tank.

Originally Posted by Rachit.K.Dogra

Wow!! Congratulations brother!!
Do post your review on how katana feels different to ride than the CBR of course keeping the higher engine output aside.

Thanks man! Hows your R1?

Still need to get used to the Katana - will try and post my experience after I've done some kms. But compared to the 650F, the Katana definitely feels easier to ride (maybe because of the riding position / triangle). The up-down quickshifter is neat. Heat management in traffic is also pretty decent. Windblast is higher but that was expected (Naked bike. duh). I'm still shuffling around with the riding modes on the Katana (only been on Mode B / C, haven't tried A yet. 'A' apparently has a sharper throttle response and maybe unlocks the full horses).

After selling the 650F, the only 2 wheels I had been riding for the past 4 years was my ungeared scooter which I used for getting groceries and general pottering about in the city. Getting back on a proper motorcycle after 4 years wasn't as easy as I expected. For starters, my braking distances are all messed up now, I'm way more nervous when entering corners and I feel I'm generally a poorer rider now compared to 4 years ago. The fact that my power-to-weight has gone down (must have added 10kgs since) doesn't help. Also, Bangalore traffic has definitely worsened. Cars on highways seem to averaging higher speeds and feel more aggressive now compared to sometime ago.

[Axe77]

Originally Posted by loki

After selling the 650F, the only 2 wheels I had been riding for the past 4 years was my ungeared scooter which I used for getting groceries and general pottering about in the city. Getting back on a proper motorcycle after 4 years wasn't as easy as I expected. For starters, my braking distances are all messed up now, I'm way more nervous when entering corners and I feel I'm generally a poorer rider now compared to 4 years ago. The fact that my power-to-weight has gone down (must have added 10kgs since) doesn't help. Also, Bangalore traffic has definitely worsened. Cars on highways seem to averaging higher speeds and feel more aggressive now compared to sometime ago.

I’d highly recommend doing a 2 - 3 day L1 / L2 track day session with CSS or T.W.O. They’re both coming up at MMRT Chennai in Feb and March respectively.

Do reach out to them. It’ll do wonders to feeling better on the bike, regardless of the four year gap.

Congrats again on the Katana and look forward to many more pics of this rare beauty.

[Rachit.K.Dogra]

Originally Posted by loki

Thanks man! Hows your R1?

Getting back on a proper motorcycle after 4 years wasn't as easy as I expected. For starters, my braking distances are all messed up now, I'm way more nervous when entering corners and I feel I'm generally a poorer rider now compared to 4 years ago.


Also, Bangalore traffic has definitely worsened. Cars on highways seem to averaging higher speeds and feel more aggressive now compared to sometime ago.

The R1 is doing great bro. Some updates being performed on the bike right now. Will update once those are done. But it continues to be an exceptionally thrilling bike to ride.

I can somewhat relate to you not being as confident a rider as you were because of a 4 year break. In my experience as well, regular riding keeps the confidence going. With a long break, you need to spend time to find yourself again. Typically, on such low confidence days, I tried to follow my riding friends whom I trust. That helped me focus on their tail and drive some of the sub conscious distractions and apprehensions away.

I think traffic in general everywhere has worsened. Many times me and my friends discuss the same after our rides. Both the volume and the aggression of traffic has gone up and exponentially respect for others on road has gone down.

Wishing you the very best of luck on your road back to riding!

CHEERS!!
Rachit

[drivethrough]

Congrats mate! I bought a blue katana on Republic Day. What an underrated bike! I noticed you got an MRA windscreen. Where can I buy one? Any supplier stocking some katana specific accessories? Would love to share notes some time. Thanks!

[loki]

Originally Posted by Axe77

I’d highly recommend doing a 2 - 3 day L1 / L2 track day session with CSS or T.W.O. They’re both coming up at MMRT Chennai in Feb and March respectively

Thanks Sir. MMRT is definitely on the list someday. Maybe if my performance rating at home goes well... Right now, I feel lucky if the home ministry allows me to ride about 50kms to eat overpriced Idly/ Vadas

Originally Posted by Rachit.K.Dogra

Typically, on such low confidence days, I tried to follow my riding friends whom I trust. That helped me focus on their tail and drive some of the sub conscious distractions and apprehensions away

True that. Keeping distractions (Eg: Work related) at bay is also a skill to focus on. While at work, all I can sometimes do is thinking about a long ride. And when I'm now actually riding, I subconsciously think about some random work topic or the other

Originally Posted by drivethrough

Congrats mate! I bought a blue katana on Republic Day. What an underrated bike! I noticed you got an MRA windscreen. Where can I buy one? Any supplier stocking some katana specific accessories? Would love to share notes some time. Thanks!

Congrats man. While I bought my bike in Jan, I had decided much earlier (June-ish) that I was going for the Katana. I was also fortunate to have friends travel to India during this period from Europe. All I had to do was buy the accessories and get them shipped to their local residences in Europe. I think i bought the MRA screen off their German website. Don't think its available in India. Puig & Powerbronze are other brands who make screens for the Katana. There are a few other Japanese brands as well.

[loki]

Update: 8 months / ~6000kms done

Been good fun so far:

• Tank Range: Haven't done too much distance at a stretch. Max are a few 350 odd km overnights to Coorg / Kabini / Mahabalipuram. I'm used to the tank range - get about 200 to 210km on a single tank. Which is about the time I need a break as well so no issues on that front.

• Seat: The stock seat is great for my derriere with room to move around my derriere. The cushion is thick but firm. Which helps in long rides. The Vstroms come with better seats. Suzuki makes some of the best stock seats around

• Tyres & Handling: Haven't tested the limits of the stock Dunlops. The rear 190/50 is squarer and is lazy while leaning into corners. I'm not an aggressive guy in the corners but still... I'm thinking of getting a 190/55 when its time for the tyre upgrade (maybe one of the Vredesteins which seem well priced). However, the 217 kerb weight is very manageable and the bike is pretty nimble when slicing through in city traffic.

• Stock Exhaust: Stock exhaust sounds good. But I've been contemplating getting a Yoshimura Slipon. Maybe I dont need it. Hmm.

• Accessories: Heres what I've fit so far: Tail Tidy (S2 Concept), Brake Light (Denali B6), Tank Grips (Stompgrip), Tank Pad (OEM), Rear Luggage Rack (Kijima), Luggage Mounting Plate (Givi), Frame sliders (Trex), Engine case covers (Trex), Offset Handlebar risers (Voigt), Radiator guard (R&G), Front Axle Sliders (R&G), Rear Axle Sliders (Trex), Rear Spools (R&G). Racing windshield (MRA). Am considering getting a taller windshield.

Here are a few pics.

I'm 5'9 and can flat foot.


A GIVI Tank mount Bag does the duty for 1 or 2 day overnight trips.


The Tail Rack keeps away a lot of muck from splashing onto my back. I don't think I'll get a top box. Will just use a Duffel bag for longer trips.

[Sebring]

Ah the much-awaited review. How's the service with Aryan? Heard terrible stories, and frankly, that aspect is keeping me from this purchase. Also where did you purchase all these accessories? BTW That rear box mount is stealing the fantastic rear look of the bike, but yes it's a must-have accessory

Originally Posted by loki

8 months / ~6000kms done.

[loki]

Originally Posted by Sebring

How's the service with Aryan? Heard terrible stories, and frankly, that aspect is keeping me from this purchase.

Hmm. I've got a decent rapport with the Staff (both Sales and Service) at Aryan and my interactions with them over the course of the purchase and the 2 services so far has been pleasant.

With the bike bike scene in India, I think routine service etc should be pretty standard. Availability of spares which are not a part of the routine maintenance is a different issue altogether and it affects all brands IMHO. We need to keep our expectations low

The pre-sales experience (walk-ins, enquiries etc) can be random and its tough to standardize I guess. Not sure if any brand does this better than others.

Did you face any issues when directly interacting with Aryan Suzuki?

Originally Posted by Sebring

Also where did you purchase all these accessories? BTW That rear box mount is stealing the fantastic rear look of the bike, but yes it's a must-have accessory

Some of them available locally (BikenBiker, Motocentral). The rest I sourced from international ecom sites and got my friends carry it for me from US / Europe I had to buy them beer of course...

Agree on the Rear Rack / mounting plate. Ruins the looks but keeps my back clean. Else I have to only wait for dry weather. Besides, If my wife joins me on a ride, it functions as a grab rail...