The issue still continues to this day. We have given up hope on Bajaj rectifying it. Searching for some reputed mechanic who is good even with wiring and ECU.
BHPian shreyashuilgol recently shared this with other enthusiasts.
This is regarding the buying experience and ownership of the new Bajaj Pulsar N250. This bike is not owned by me it belongs to one of my closest friend (For all practical purposes it is like we share motorcycles between each other).
Let me give you the backdrop before we get into the details.
I was using a FZ25 for a period of four years now and was very happy with the performance, reliability and practicality of it. Have taken it on long rides covering above 500kms a day and it was never an issue. I also use it as a daily driver in the city and it is very easy to handle. It was also returning an approximate mileage of 40-45 kmpl. In short, it was a jack of all trades but a master of none.
One fine day, my friend decided that he wanted to go for a new bike which was similar to mine since it might be the only bike in his garage for a period of time. We started the search and soon discovered that Bajaj was releasing the Pulsar N250 & F250. He decided to go with the N250.
Buying Experience:
The buying experience was absolutely pathetic.
The nearest place where we could see the bike was in Deccan Bajaj, Ranigunj, Hyderabad. We visited the showroom on a Saturday about 15-20 days after the launch and nobody seemed to know the bike that we were talking about. They did not even have a clue that a new Bajaj bike had been released.
Finally, one of them understood what we were looking for and told us that he would call us back once the display bikes had arrived.
The call back was almost a month later and we visited the showroom to see the bike. It was almost what we were expecting and we decided to go ahead and book the bike. We asked for a test drive but, were told that the test drive bikes would be more than two months away. Despite that, we made the booking with a token amount.
Searched for the test drive vehicles all over Hyderabad and found one in the Gachibowli showroom. Took a test drive there and decided to stick to our decision of buying it since it ticked all the boxes for us.
We had asked for the black color but were constantly pestered by the Deccan Bajaj guys to take the delivery of a red colored one. After my friend strictly said he would not do it, they arranged for a black colored one. My friend had also requested that we would get the insurance done from United India Insurance since it was cheaper than the one offered by the showroom. Initially they had agreed to it.
But, just a day before delivery we were told that if we were not taking insurance given from their end we would not be sold the bike. Although we plead our case they were very adamant and aggressive with this issue. We did not want to create any more drama, so we decided to go with it.
We took the delivery of the bike very unhappy with the arrogance of the dealership.
Ownership experience:
The ownership experience is not much different. Although, the bike has never broken down completely, the performance leaves much to be desired.
Since the day the bike completed its run in period and first service it has been plagued with a issue of the bike turning off/cutting off right in the middle of us riding it. It also did not start properly and it was a 3-4 minute exercise starting it.
We raised this issue with the Bajaj service center and they asked us to leave the bike there. The next few days it was there and then they gave us a call that it was rectified. We were in a hurry since it was a working day and we picked up the bike. End of the day when we were hanging out, we saw that there were scratches all over the place on the bike and the left leg guard, mirror and handle bar was damaged. The seat had marks of cat nails. Again we contacted the service center and were told that there was no proof that they crashed it and as a "goodwill gesture" they would change the leg guard for free. All the others were issues not related to them.
The main issue of the engine cut off was never set right. Nobody seems to understand the main problem. We started recording the engine cut offs and shared them with the service center. The starting problem has been solved. But, the engine cut off issue still persisted. The only answer we got was that they had updated the "codes". We filed a complaint with Bajaj helpline not hoping that anything would happen.
But, we were instantly contacted by Bajaj and a pick up was arranged. We were being ignored till this point. Suddenly there was an urgency in closing the complaint. Since that point, the bike has been to service centers seven times (sometimes weeks together) without a permanent solution.
The issue still continues to this day. We have given up hope on Bajaj rectifying it. Searching for some reputed mechanic who is good even with wiring and ECU.
Absolutely useless sales and service.
PS: If anyone else also has faced the same issue with N250 and has somehow sorted it out please help us out with the solution.
Here's what BHPian shancz had to say on the matter:
Quite a strange experience during purchase, a Bajaj showroom not knowing about a launch is a new for me. A reflection and a red flag about the service in my books. And the service experience is staying in line with their sales, pathetic.
Sorry can't be of much help but would suggest the following :
- keep in touch with Bajaj's customer care until your issue is resolved
- try a different service center
The issue in itself seems either electrical or sensor related.
Assuming everything else is working fine on the bike, some weird suggestions :
- Extend/retract the side stand when the issue happens to rule out any side stand sensor issues.
- Toggle the engine kill switch to rule out a malfunctioning switch.
Sharing the video could provide more insights.
Hope you have better luck and resolve the issue.
Here's what BHPian Chandrahas had to say on the matter:
Bajaj/KTM (KTM and Bajaj customer care is same) are the worst when it comes to after sales service. I had a hard time dealing with KTM SVCs in Gurgaon/Faridabad. In my case the 250 Duke used to continuously wobble (tank slappers) above 120 and even the ASM(Area service manager) denied to help claiming the legal top speed being 120
BTW, these ASMs have total control over the service centers of their area, and if they deny your complaint, no one can help you as there is no higher point of contact for us customers.
KTM/Bajaj customer care is of no help because they redirect the complaint to the same ASM and in the end you are on the same SVC/ASM's mercy.
In a last ditch attempt I complained at their grievance redressal mail (on the KTM Global site), and this did had a noticeable effect on the ASM's attitude ( he himself claimed - 'Uppar se complaint solve karne ke orders hai), but I ended up selling the bike because even after this the problem was never solved and I was fed up.
In your case - I think you should contact the ASM and keep him in the loop.
Here's what BHPian marcusssantigao had to say on the matter:
This sounds like the same issue that I faced with my Duke 390. A third-party mechanic figured out there was some kind of sensor problem, but it was a brand new bike and I wanted KTM to sort it out under warranty. They too made infinite excuses and refused to admit there was a problem, even when I demonstrated it to them and had helmet-cam footage documenting it. I tried escalating it to senior people at KTM and couldn't even get in touch with anyone.
Team-BHP even featured this on their front page, and even that didn't get their attention. I gave up and sold the bike, which I'm still making payments for today.
If KTM's after-sales service has fallen so far, I can't imagine Bajaj being much better.
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