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Separate the Wheat from the Chaff

The year has gone by under the dreadful shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic as I write this first editorial of the year 2022.

In the olden days, you had to have some basic knowledge of automobiles to get a job with an automotive magazine to test bikes and write reviews. Today all you need is a smartphone to put up a video with a “first ride review”. The other day, I was told that the days of printed magazines are over; now you have to do videos. I am not averse to that, but what about credibility and accuracy of content? A number of videos and a lot of information are available online, but, unfortunately, most of that is rubbish.

One of my juniors attended a first ride. A journalist with more than a hundred thousand online followers was there as well. His feedback made no sense at all. That was when the junior said to me, ‘Sir, you have only 2,000 followers, whereas he has more than 1,00,000.’ This seems to demonstrate that it does not matter how much knowledge one has; what matters is how one sells themself.

In the past, we had about 10 to 12 motorcycle manufacturers and, on average, they would launch two or three new products every year. Now I get an email every day seeking to apprise me of the launch of a new e-scooter or an e-motorcycle. I do not think anyone has a count of how many EV manufacturers we have in the country. Even today, the manufacturers who have been in the business for more than three or four decades sometimes struggle to get the bike right. How are manufacturers without any experience of producing bikes going to make bikes that are faultlessly sorted?

We at Bike India wish all our readers a happy New Year. Ride safely and stay safe.


Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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Rider Safety is the Main Issue

The authorities have banned the sale of imported helmets in the country. The reason being cited is that the Chinese are dumping helmets of a poor quality in our country. That is a valid reason to ban non-ISI helmets. However, we cannot ignore the fact that some of the Indian ISI-certified helmets are pathetic — they are more likely to cause harm than offer protection to the rider. The Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) does not allow ISI-certified helmets for racing. The helmets that are allowed for racing in India are ECE Snell and Jis.

Under the new rule, it is illegal to sell imported helmets. Anyone caught selling imported helmets can be arrested. In such a scenario what does one do if one wants to buy a helmet for motorcycle racing? This new rule seems to be taking us back to the time when perforce we had to import everything. One solution is to ban the import of helmets that cost less than Rs 5,000. This will filter out the Chinese helmets of a cheap quality and also protect the Indian helmet manufacturers from cheap imports. The import of expensive helmets will not affect the Indian manufacturers, for a majority of Indian helmets are priced below Rs 5,000. This will also allow people to better protect themselves.

The fuel prices have been showing a northward trend for the past couple of months and, finally, there was a reduction of Rs 5 which is miniscule compared to what we pay for petrol.

With everybody wanting to jump on the electric vehicle (EV) bandwagon, we get an e-mail every day saying a new start-up is making an e-bike or e-scooter. It is understandable if an existing two-wheeler manufacturer forays into the manufacture of an electric bike or an e-scooter; however, an entity that has no prior experience of bike or scooter manufacture spells trouble. What this will result into is we will be left with a huge pile of junk.

 

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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The Elusive ‘Normal’

The sales of new two-wheelers are nowhere near the pre-COVID figures. The festive season does help, but not much compared to the pre-COVID festival times. With a lot of people losing their jobs and others struggling to make ends meet, buying a new scooter or motorcycle is being put on the backburner. Most people would rather put by their money for the rainy day given the fact that there is so much financial uncertainty.

The country and the economy are still struggling to recover following the periods of lockdown but the government does not seem to care much. They keep increasing the price of petrol and diesel, which, in turn, pushes up the prices of all the essential commodities and this hurts the ordinary citizen the most. Even the cost of an LPG cylinder has gone up to Rs 1,000. The salaried citizen seems to be bearing the brunt of all the extra taxation.

Last month we rode the all-new KTM RC200 at the Bajaj test-track at Chakan, near Pune. The new bike has come a long way with a noteworthy improvement on the chassis front, a bolt-on subframe, and a lot of weight reduction in its unsprung weight with disc rotors being mounted directly on the wheel as in Moto3 motorcycles. The light wheel enhances the bike’s agility, facilitates a quicker change of direction, and also betters handling.

The first round of the Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup was held last month. The feedback from all the riders and automotive journalists was positive. The motorcycles worked like clockwork. There was no drop in their performance; it remained the same on lap 10 as on lap one. The most telling testimony to Royal Enfield’s manufacturing finesse was that there was not a single mechanical failure throughout the entire two weeks of rider selection involving 105 riders and more than 25 journalists, practice sessions, qualifying rounds, and two 10-lap races.

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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The EV Conundrum

Two-wheeler sales have been suffering for the past two years and the road ahead does not look too promising either. High fuel prices, pay cuts, and unemployment have had an adverse impact on the sale of new two-wheelers and the government does not seem to be doing anything about it.

Electric vehicles (EV), on the other hand, seem to be witnessing a lot of traction due to the high petrol prices, but how good and how economical are they? Even with all the subsidies most of them are as expensive as a regular scooter; in some cases, even more expensive. The second problem is charging these EVs. If one cannot pull out the battery pack and take it home, how does one charge it if one happens to live in an apartment? A story emanating from Bengaluru speaks of an EV owner who has to put his scooter into the lift and take it to his apartment to charge the battery. If this is going to be the norm, then this will be a big damper. Furthermore, IC-engine scooters command a good resale value; say, about 50 to 60 per cent of a new one. What will be the resale value of electric bikes after three years when the batteries lose their capacity to hold charge? In such a scenario, will it be economical to use an electric scooter?

Last month I did a ride with Gurpratap Boparai, MD of Škoda VW India, who happens to be an avid biker. They had lined up two V4 Multistradas, two 950 Multistradas, and two Scramblers after a Škoda event. The V4 Multistrada is a rocket-ship and, at the same time, it is easier to ride as compared to the 950 Multistrada, a gem of a bike and worth every extra rupee over the 950 Multistrada. The Škoda VW boss is no slouch on a motorcycle; he is a good rider and it was a pleasure to ride with him.

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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A Superlative Iteration

The Bike India issue this month features quite a few rides, including the Royal Enfield Classic 350, Harley-Davidson Pan America, and Benelli 502C cruiser as well as a Triumph Trident road test.

The Royal Enfield Classic 350 has come a long way from the Bullet that it is derived from. The Bullet was originally designed and built in England and also manufactured in India under licence. Over the last 50 years, the Bullet has seen a lot of changes but nothing compared to the changes and improvements that the new bike has received. Indeed, the new bike is so good that it is different from its older iterations like chalk and cheese. It has improved in every department, starting with engine refinement and performance, both of which are far better than those of the outgoing model. Moreover, the handling and ride quality are in a different league as compared to the old Bullet. This bike shares the same engine and chassis as the Meteor and it is even more refined compared to the Meteor. The Royal Enfield management deserve kudos for taking feedback in a positive way to improve their bike. Following the Meteor ride, one of the points I had raised in the feedback session was about engine refinement. They have addressed it and now the Classic’s refinement is at another level. The new Classic is as near perfect as a motorcycle can get. The only issue we had was the rear-view mirrors and that can be solved by replacing the mirrors. The team at Royal Enfield have done a fantastic job with the new Classic.

Nearly every day, I receive an email announcing the launch of an electric two-wheeler. It looks like everybody wants to jump on the EV bandwagon. But are we ready for this explosion of electric bikes? First, we do not have the infrastructure for charging; second, we have power cuts; third, our power is generated by burning coal, and, to top it all, we do not have a policy for battery scrappage. If we decide to go ahead in this manner, we are going to land with a lot of old batteries without knowing what to do with them.

Aspi Bhathena
Editor