Rs 6 lakh-motorcycle for 40-yr-old: Should be reliable & easy to ride

I’m keen on the KTM 390 Adventure X, Honda CB350 series, Suzuki V-Strom SX and the upcoming Yamaha MT-03.

BHPian ramki.grandhi recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello fellow bikers, I’ve started looking for a motorcycle but I’m not as young as most of the members here. Could you please suggest me a motorcycle based on the below requirements?

A little bit about me

• Have a decent budget, up to 5-6 lacs
• I'm 40 years old, a full-time dad, uncle etc.
• Not well-built, but recently joined a gym and making slow progress.
• Targeting to be fit by year-end and reward myself with a bike.
• I generally drive extremely carefully and I've never broken a road law/rule. I have an official certification about this from my wife
• I already have Activa and XUV700

My requirements

• Want to keep the bike for a very long and pass it to my children in a decent condition
• I had experience with 150cc bikes during my college days and till 30years of age
• Bike has to be free from rusting issues and must have good service support.
• Not interested in crazy electronics and features.
• There is no definitive use case for the bike, but it should be suitable for poor Bangalore roads and occasional short highway drives.
• Should be easy to drive and not keen on aggressive driving posture.
• Not interested in bikes that aren’t successful and may get discontinued. As I’m looking for long term.
• "You don't need a new bike, blah... blah... blah..." This is not an acceptable suggestion. Because I already have family, friends and colleagues for this.

So far I’m keen on the upcoming MT03, 390 Adventure X, Honda CB350 series, 250 V-Strom. Thank you very much, everyone. Based on the suggestions I will start test drives soon.

Here's what BHPian Proxima had to say about the matter:

If your primary purpose is highway rides, you can't go wrong with a pre-owned Versys 650. You should be able to get a good example at the higher end of your budget. It's comfy, has more than enough power and is very reliable. Service isn't too expensive at good independent garages.

If your purpose is mixed between city and highway, I'd recommend the Classic 350 (or wait for the upcoming Bullet 350). They will be well within your budget.

The Himalayan 450 looks promising as well and should be able to do well both in the city and on highways.

The KTM Adventure 390 is good but the engine feels very vibey/rough.

Here's what BHPian ajay0612 had to say about the matter:

Among existing bikes, it has to be the Honda CB350 (decent volumes, timeless design, Hondas last for decades, have low maintenance).

However, I would suggest you wait upto 3rd July (for the launch of Bajaj-Triumph motorcycle launch on 27th June and Hero-Harley motorcycle launch on 3rd July) before committing, just to avoid buyer's remorse.

Here's what BHPian aston_martyr had to say about the matter:

I am exactly in the same boat as you. -5 on the age.

All your conditions apply to me as well and I am looking at the following options:

• CB350s - have heard good things and the ride does seem comfortable for Bangalore roads based on the short test ride I have taken.
• CB300R - waiting for the BS6 phase 2 launch, the reason I am looking at this is because of its super lightweight and predominantly my usage will be within the city and the bike can manage occasional highway runs without any issue. Japanese bikes are built to last and I have no worries about passing either one of these on to one of my family members down the line. Maintenance is also light on the pocket, however, spare availability is a question mark for CB300R is what I hear.
• Suzuki Vstrom 250 - Have not test driven this but have been a pillion on a highway drive, it was okay but runs out of breath with 2 of us is what I felt.
• Hunter 350 - Very good driver ergonomics, perfect for city drives as per my older sibling who has booked one recently. Yet to take a test drive on this one myself.
• MT-03 - Waiting for it like everyone else.

As an afterthought, I might consider a used CB500X/Versys 650 if the above-mentioned options do not work out for me.

Here's what BHPian //R had to say about the matter:

First of all, kudos to your decision of getting back on a motorcycle after years. Not many would understand the feeling of freedom and escapism that a simple bike ride is capable of rendering. Good thing is the market is flooded with different types of motorcycles nowadays and we, as customers, are getting spoilt for choices. For your use case, I'd highly recommend either an Adventure bike for a lot of favourable reasons. Comfortable ergonomics, good suspensions to tackle the worst of Indian roads, very good rider's triangle for an upright seating position, the versatility of riding in the city or on highways and they tend to age well too.

Since you mentioned you're planning to get it by the end of this year as a reward for your fitness journey, I'd advise you to keep an eye out for a handful of ADV bikes coming out this year:

KTM is already pushing out a diverse set of variants for its Adventure series (both 250 and 390) and we might see an 890 as well.

The Bajaj-Triumph bike is almost ready. We'll have a good bunch of reviews and feedback within months of its launch.

The Himalayan 450 is just around the corner too. I own a 2020 BS6 and an upgraded engine & suspension setup is sure to fix most of its shortcomings.

However, if you aren't too convinced about the ADVs as yet, may I suggest you go take a look at the RE 650s as well especially the new Meteor 650. It's a very comfortable and punchy tourer IMO. A few people from my riding group have bought it and it seems to tackle rough patches on the road pretty well.

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