Rider Ramble #2-The Harley-Davidson Street 500 & 750

Spy shots on just about every automotive portal for months & rumours about Harley-Davidson targeting India as a major market eventually got confirmed when it culminated into the official reveal of the Street 750 & Street 500. Bikers everywhere rejoiced at the prospect of getting a low-cost American legend and talks of the Indian market boom were up again. Lower displacement editions from premium brands are a trend that has caught on with multiple motorcycle makers, because at the end of the day they seem to act like Viagra  a catalyst for sales charts. In joining this particular bandwagon however, has Harley-Davidson tried to sell their legendary legacy as opposed to getting buyers because of it?

Let’s have a look at what these siblings have to offer. Both have a 60 degree twin cylinder engine labelled the “Revolution X”. They are still belt-driven and mated to a 6-speed transmission. Instead of dual exhausts they have dual bend-pipes that join into a single exhaust and the brakes are single caliper disks, which means ABS won’t be an option.  The 500 is expected to be priced at around Rs. 4.5 lakh while the 750 will empty your pockets by just over Rs. 5 lakh. Pricing wise Harley met with expectations. If you wanted to be any cheaper then obviously you aren't supposed to buy one and I’ll tell you why at the end of this piece.


Like most cult brands, Harley Davidson has its fair share of hard-core loyalists who have a pre-set list of what a Harley is and isn't. A person riding an Iron 883 or a V-Rod would know that there are many who label them as “sell out” models of the family and often face flak. The same goes for Royal Enfield. The UCE engine is better, more efficient, lighter and more reliable than the cast-iron, but lacks the one thing that RE was known for, the thump. Similarly with the Street 500 & 750, Harley Davidson is sure to see a remarkable rise in numbers, but has made the people who made the brand what it is feel less special. Cult brands have the same appeal as classic cars. If everyone has one, it’s hardly as valuable.



You might argue that they will still be great performers since they are Harleys. Though the official figures aren’t out yet, sources say that the Street 750 will have a maximum power output of 54 BHP and max torque at 44nm. The Street 500 will have understandably lower credentials. Keep in mind that the Continental GT puts out 29.1 BHP and 44nm of torque. Royal Enfield is far from popular for its engineering prowess and for a Harley-Davidson to not outperform it while being over twice as expensive is an embarrassment. In the process you may get a showroom that’s overbooked, but it’s the same deal as the management quota in Indian educational institutions. You got your money, but the quality of students degrades.

Now coming to the part about ownership. This is a part that several high end brand buyers fail to recognize and a problem that their service centres understand best. People have no problem in taking out a loan and coughing up over Rs. 30 lakh on one of the German big three. It is a big deal to say you drive a Mercedes or an Audi and that’s something that only money can buy. However, they have their pride sputter like tadka when their regular service cost comes up in five-figures. The labour costs involved make you wonder if you should take up the job of the guy fixing your car part-time. One thing every car/high end bike buyer needs to understand is that manufacturers make their big bucks after you’ve bought the car. Spare parts and consumable always have a heavy mark-up, because the manufacturer doesn’t make a huge margin on the car sold after the cost of production, dealer’s cut, tax etc.

Take the example of the Toyota Echo. This was a car that found incredible sales in the middle-east. The car turned into a best seller and you couldn’t go a day without seeing at least 10 of them either parked, being driven or both, but the car was soon put out of production. Why? Because it was too maintenance free! Toyota service centres rarely got an opportunity to fix any parts and hence made a bare minimum margin on their highest selling car and this is what everyone who plans to buy a Street 500 or 750 needs to know before that test-ride.

These motorcycles are cannot be treated like a Hero Honda or Bajaj. These motorcycles are not meant to be taken to your local roadside mechanic. They don’t have cables and bolts that can be victimized to jugaad and be temporarily replaced by the same parts as a Kinetic. They are not motorcycles that can be parked in the vegetable market without the rider being worried that some miscreant will see the fuel tank as a canvas for his house keys nor can you get away from a traffic cop easy because you ride a bike that carries a brand name that he can’t even pronounce right. Their service costs will make you realize why Harley-Davidsons and other high end motorcycle brands are status symbols and also get you back down to earth.


So to sum up, the Street 500 and 750 will find a lot of buyers. They will be adequate performers and be the pride of many owners and will get a lot of heads to turn, but in the process of boosting sales Harley-Davidson runs the risk of making its own loyalists feel ridiculed.  The biggest thing that any prospective buyer needs to know is that the 4-5 lakh price may be attractive, but the reason why Harley Davidsons are expensive is because the person who buys one can afford to look after it as well. I would personally love to own either one of these machines, but I know that the cost to buy them is one thing and the price to own one is another.

KTM Duke 390 vs Royal Enfield Continental GT

Royal Enfield finally launched the Continental GT after its reveal at the Delhi Auto Expo back in 2010. Unlike the rest of the RE range, the CGT is not a tourer or a cruiser. It is a café racer, which means that this is more about the speedometer than odometer. Prior to the arrival of the Continental GT the big bike release was the KTM Duke 390. The reason why this is a big deal is not only the fact that you could now get a high displacement sports bike for just around Rs. 2 lakh, but also because the Duke 390 will be Royal Enfield’s biggest threat.

First off let’s have a look at the basic specs:-

KTM Duke 390:

Displacement: 373.2cc
Max Power: 44 BHP
Max Torque: 35 NM

Royal Enfield Continental GT:

Displacement: 535cc
Max Power: 29.1 BHP
Max Torque: 44 NM

Many people ask if it’s fair to compare them since not only are they in different categories, but they also have a TVS Apache between them. The fact is that their pricing does bind them as bedfellows. The performance figures are not far off so this is actually as close as a head to head needs to be. Now coming to the big question, which one should you buy?

The KTM Duke 390 is an unapologetic street bike. The strokes are short, the rev range is high and the bike is like a young greyhound on 10 cartons of Red-Bull. While most street bikes in India will manage 100kmph, the 390 does yoga at that speed. It pretty much skips speed ranges and goes from 30-60-80kmph and with ABS dual disk brakes it will stop just as fast. So the Duke will zip through traffic and is great if you’re looking to make a quick 200km breakfast run on a Sunday morning & hit 170kmph or more. The Duke 390 seems like it’s too good to be true, but despite being a complete package it does have its drawbacks.

1. The engine heats up a lot. This bike is meant for high speeds and constant start-stop movement will see your ankles getting a sauna treatment.

2. A short stroke engine gets you great 0-60 figures, but also means constant shifting. Low end torque delivery won’t be as good as the Continental GT, so gear shifts will be very frequent in city riding.

3. The 390 is a stand out motorcycle, but doesn’t stand out from its younger sibling the 200. The bikes look almost the exact same and in fact the 390 has 90% of its parts sourced from the 200. It would take a keen eye to immediately pin point which one is the bigger Duke.

4. The seats still feel like sitting on a wooden plank. Riders of the 200 will tell you that after prolonged riding, this is not a very butt-friendly bike.

5. It is too powerful. This statement may sound like a travesty, but hear me out. The problem is handling that kind of power needs experience. Not only is it a fast bike, but also a very light one giving it a great power to weight ratio. The rider of this machine needs to be very aware of its mannerisms. Enter a corner too fast and the rider may just lose all grip, give it too much gas in the city and your need to brake will get you frustrated and burn a lot of fuel.

Above Image Via: Maxabout.com

Now over to the new veteran on the block. The Royal Enfield Continental GT is all about the torque. It will be fast off the mark and manage 35kmph in 4th gear if it has to. Café racers are street speedsters, but back in the 60’s the streets were a lot different. Racing was about short sprints from café to café, hence the namesake “café racer”. Contrary to the beliefs of many Royal Enfield loyalists, this is a true Royal Enfield. It is a genuine British classic as it was meant to be, but that actually creates a fair amount of speculation.

Royal Enfield depends on its loyalists and brand heritage to rake in sales. The majority of their loyalists are long distance riders who need their saddle bags, tank bags and ladakh carriers to feel complete. The Continental GT however is not the ideal choice for this, which is where the problem arises. The café racer has an identity of its own, but faces problems while trying to identify with buyers. It isn’t entirely a street bike and isn’t a long distance cruiser either. The riding position isn’t as wrist heavy as the CBR 250r, but isn’t as relaxed as the rest of the Royal Enfield range. With 44nm of torque, this ride doesn’t need a flexible rev range and you will find yourself mainly between 2000-4500 rpm.

The CGT is however, a motorcycle that will stand out. Bright red/yellow colour options, a look that has been restricted to modifications until now and the fact that India has never seen Royal Enfield in such a unique manner means every buyer will get attention and a lot of it. This is a bike that can perform really well and will handle curvy ghats the best. City riding will be great as its riding position isn’t too hunched, low rev torque delivery equates to minimal shifting and the seats are fairly comfortable. Here are some things to look out for.

1. With a 13.5-litre fuel tank, this isn’t ideal Royal Enfield for long distance riding . The 535cc engine will manage 30kmpl at best in real world conditions and less if you plan on gunning it on the open roads. The company claimed top speed is 150kmph, so it can manage a little above that.

2. It is meant to be a single seater. The Duke 390’s pillion seat is nothing to write home about, but the Continental GT doesn’t have one at all (it is an optional extra)

3. It is a Royal Enfield at the end of the day so it won’t be easy on the pocket. These bikes are still hand-made and with that comes human error, so don’t be surprised if your clutch cable needs changing after a few months, because it won’t be as easy to live with as the Duke 390.

4. Spare parts are often a hassle with Royal Enfields and with the CGT using a few different components as compared to the rest of the RE range, spares may run a little bit on the expensive side.

5. Royal Enfields have been downsized since the Classic arrived. They ride lower and have a smaller profile, so if you are the stereotyped Bullet-man the Continental GT may not suit your personality as well as you would have liked.

To sum up, if you want a ruthless, bloodthirsty performer that will pop a wheelie if you sneeze, go for the KTM Duke 390. If you want a earth munching torque traveller that stands out, is composed and classy while going through the paces, the Royal Enfield Continental GT is for you.

Burn Another Day-Saving fuel isn't rocket science

Making your car’s juice run for as long as possible is the need of the hour. Efficiency is king and had literally changed fuel loyalties/preference for people. Even a person with a 1000kms monthly running would opt for a diesel had it not been for the more expensive engine, not only because the fuel is cheaper but also because that one litre of diesel goes a longer way. You’ve seen the “save fuel, yaani save money” advertisements on TV and heard it on the radio, but under real world conditions; getting close to that company claimed mileage is nothing short of a miracle.

Here is a list of the little things you don’t realize you do while driving that eat into your fuel economy.

1. Signal Racer:

You’re right up front at a signal that’s gone red. You’re a regular on the road so instead of waiting for the light to go green, you stare at the pedestrian signal. The moment you spot that little red man flashing the theme from The Fast & the Furious plays in your head and you gun it. After 4.5 seconds of adrenaline fueled happiness, lo and behold you’re at yet another signal where the 60 year old on a rickety old scooter has caught up to you. These short bursts waste fuel unnecessarily and don’t save you any time or cover more distance.

2. The crawler:

Yes, traffic crawling is something that is hard to escape. More often than not you spend 10 minutes to get across 10 metres, but the constant tango between the clutch and accelerator results in heavy fuel consumption. Don’t move your car forward unless it looks like traffic ahead is shifting a reasonable amount.

3. No lane loyalty:

Sticking to your lane is a simple rule that makes your life a lot easier and actually saves you fuel. Just think to yourself “How many times have a I shifted to a lane that was moving when mine wasn't, only to find that a car that was right behind me is now 3 cars ahead of me?” Constant lane shifting burns your fuel for the illusion of progress. You aren't getting to your destination and sooner, it slows traffic down even more and you just made your journey more expensive. There will be a point where your lane moves while the other doesn't, so stay where you are and avoid deviating unnecessarily.

4. Under-shifting/over revving:

These two opposites of too conservative VS too impatient are equally bad. Shifting up a gear too soon just means that you will have to downshift again sooner while putting excessive pressure on your engine. Constant gear shifts mean your rpm is fluctuating too much, thereby burning more fuel.
Over revving is just burning more fuel for no rhyme or reason. It’s a car’s equivalent of smoking i.e. spending money for absolutely no benefit. Don’t try and start off in 2nd gear by over revving the engine when your car clearly wants to be in a lower gear.

5. Heavy Pedal Highways:

High speeds are the biggest temptress on the open road. However, one thing that truck drivers will tell you is “A person driving at 100kmh will reach his destination a maximum of  3-5 minutes earlier than a person driving at 60kmh”. Granted, in middle-eastern countries your average speed on arterial roads will be 100kmh, but in India you will be blocked by struggling trucks or jam the brakes because some moron is driving at 40kmh in the overtaking lane or not sticking to one lane at all or because a bad patch of road showed up out of nowhere which means constant accelerating and braking for no improvement in time saved or distance made.

So, literally you are driving the exact same way you do in bumper to bumper traffic, only at higher speeds. Try coasting to save your fuel. Instead of tailgating someone till they move, let go of the gas pedal early on. Your torque will take you ahead fast enough that braking won’t be necessary. Use your flasher to warn the driver ahead to get out of the way, so you can accelerate from a higher speed. Minimum rpm fluctuation ensures minimum fuel consumption.

These are just a few things that we involuntarily do. After all this is not just observation it is also personal experience that made me notice these things. It’s fine to indulge sometimes, but remember that there’s more to fuel economy than just driving slowly.

Here's some proof. By simply following the activities/rules mentioned above, I managed to milk 16.4kmpl from my 2011 Honda Jazz (powered by a 1.2-litre, 90 bhp petrol engine). A car that in regular city driving conditions managed 12kmpl at best when driven with an impatient foot.

Hybrids In India. Any Hope?

The concept of hybrid vehicles is not unheard of in India. The Toyota Prius and Honda Civic Hybrid being among the more popular ones, have not seen great numbers owing to their heavy pricing. When the Honda Civic Hybrid was available it was priced higher than the Honda Accord. Prices dropped down to around Rs. 16 lakh and the car saw a surge is enquiries and bookings, this price cut was however short lived.  The Toyota Prius starts upwards of Rs. 30 lakh. Expecting someone to spend Mercedes money for a Japanese commuter car giant is a tall order, but there are a few who do opt for it. The fact is that the Prius does stand out, offers several features and lacks only the luxury brand badge. Perhaps it would fare better if it was badged as a Lexus.

Hybrids have special advantages over regular cars. They consume less fuel, cause less pollution and have the same functionality as a regular car. They also have privileges in certain European nations such as specialized parking and lower taxes on the greener cars, thereby encouraging people to buy them. It will be decades before hybrids are given any breaks over here as our taxation system is silly enough to levy taxes considering engine displacement, but growth is a process not an event. The Mahindra Scorpio comes with a micro hybrid. Essentially it’s just the engine start stop mechanism that puts the engine into sleep mode when the car idles for a preset amount of time and is deactivated when the clutch pedal is depressed.

A fairly common technology in today’s cars but it’s not an actual hybrid. So, the term hybrid has caught on, but will the concept of them being sold in volumes ever become a reality in India? The contributing factors have to be looked into in order to understand what has to be changed.

1. Tax:

There is a need for special provisions to make hybrid cars more desirable. Cars are already heavily taxed in India, so if there were some exemptions made for hybrids, manufacturers would take the initiative automatically. An overall reduction in green house gas emission will result in a better carbon credit standpoint for the nation altogether. The fact that India's automotive industry is still growing, poses the best opportunity to sow the hybrid seed immediately.

2. SKD/CKD/Complete production: 

If hybrid cars were made in India the main issue of import duty would be eradicated. When a manufacturer doesn't see potential in a car, setting up a dedicated production/assembly line is not viable. They could save a lot of money by localizing operations and pass on the savings to potential buyers. This is however, most likely a secondary step after the want for hybrids is created, not so far fetched in a mileage hungry country. If India could be made and export hub for the same it would be a win-win-win situation.

3. Technological Awareness:

For hybrids to work, people need to get familiarized with them. People do not accept what they do not understand. The introduction of more hybrids or hybrid related technology into existing car segments will make people recognize its potential. When they know what hybrid tech has to offer, they will be more willing to buy a green vehicle. Start stop technology has even made its way onto mass two-wheelers like the Hero Splendor i-Smart. The rate at which both the industry and its technology grows equates to widespread implementation. What is on a high end premium car today will make it's way into a regular vehicle tomorrow. So hybrids may not be a fad here like it is in the USA just yet, but the future will be more than promising.

The Diesel Torque Equation

While most discussions regarding petrol VS diesels revolve around the actual price of each fuel and the mileage they deliver, this one’s a basic write up on why diesels have more torque. I won’t get into the technicalities of what torque is, but it’s basically the down-force of the piston movement. Just imagine a basketball being bounced. If you bounce it from your ankle level, you have to constantly bounce the ball to keep it in motion. The ball moves up and down faster, but if you were to stop applying effort the ball would stop bouncing almost instantly. Now bounce the ball from your waist level. You put in a little effort periodically.

The ball bounces up and down, but takes more time from floor to palm. The ball requires less effort to bounce, but if you stop applying any effort the ball will keep bouncing for a few more seconds. The latter is an example of high torque at low rpm. The bouncing ball is the piston’s stroke and with less energy required, it delivers the required power. A long stroke equates to more punch delivered per stroke, thereby delivering the required power at relatively lower rpms. Diesels are usually designed as long-stroke engines specifically to generate torque. This is why commercial vehicles like bulldozers and trucks run on diesel engines.

Some heavy-duty truck diesels operate at a maximum of only 2200 RPM! Lighter-duty truck diesels may redline at 3000 to 3500 RPM, and 4000 RPM is considered a "high-speed" diesel. Let's just summarize by saying that diesel engines are usually designed with as long a stroke as practical for the desired peak engine speed. Diesel fuel has about 11% more energy per litre than gasoline too, this is a contributing factor to why diesel is also more efficient a fuel than a gasoline.

Diesel fuel by itself has a higher flash point that gasoline, which is why diesel isn’t as easily flammable. Diesel engines use glow-plug as opposed to spark plugs. The glow plug heats up the air in the engine chamber when the diesel fuel is injected into the compressed air which is what causes the explosion that would be brought about by a spark plug in a petrol engine. The longer stroke delivers torque at lower rpms, but because of this each stroke takes longer to complete as well. So a diesel will manage 60 kph at a lower rpm level as compared to a petrol engine, but will take longer to reach that speed as well. This is why more and more diesels are offered with turbochargers as naturally aspirated diesels tend to be sluggish. Long stroke engines, a higher energy, less volatility fuel result in vehicles with more torque that are lower on emissions and manage a better fuel efficiency.