ProBiking
It all started about 3 weeks ago, when I passed by the ProBiking showroom (Vasant Vihar, Delhi). I decided to pop in and show my gf the Pulsar 220 and Avenger.
We walked into their dyno room and my gf (used to ride Bullets) went ahead and pushed the starter on the Avenger. Needless to say the attendant was taken aback, but punched the exhaust button after recomposing himself. GF definitely liked the bike. I was in any case in favour of the Avenger myelf (220 is great, but the Avy is still more exclusive).
So the next week, I went to the Connaught Place ProBiking. The guys were much more helpful there and pretty much devoted all the time to explaining the features, caveats, finance options. Kudos to them cos once I understood the finance options, my decision was pretty much concrete. Tried the Avy on the dyno there. Was a totally useless experience.
The ProBiking Dyno Room
K. This is basically a sound proofed room with the 220 and the Avy on a dyno machine. The display is read out on a LCD monitor.
That's because you dont get any feel of how the bike reads on the real road. The readouts are something you would already know. And seeing 60kmph on the screen while gunning the bike and remaining absolutely stationary is just plain stupid. Maybe a moving scenery on an LCD in front would have been a good idea.
That said, it allowed me to test the gear box, and as expected, it was awful. Which is fine by me. I have a Pulsar 150 and have discovered the art of gear shifting over the past 3 years. Besides, these flaws are characteristics rather than defects. Ask any Bullet fan.
So I upped and decided to just go for it. Had to get it financed of course.
Finance
The CP showroom chaps told me to find out if banks were lending at lower ROI. Hah! HDFC chaps were offering a 9.99% loan, but the the moment they heard Avenger, it came up to 14%. Premium Bikes.
SBI was 14% (Personal Loan). Fixed.
PNB was 13.5%. Fixed.
Indian Bank was 13.5%. Fixed.
Dena Bank was 11.75% reducing. But only for exiting customers. When they found out that I wasn't they (rudely I might add) told me to open an account and then talk about loans.
The advantage with the nationalised banks were they didnt have any pre-payment penalties.
Bajaj Finance was 11.99% for 1 yr. Decided to go for it. I filled in the papers at the VV showroom cos it's closer to my office. Took them 10 days to verify that I existed, worked where I claimed, lived where I claimed and had little intention of eloping with the bike.
Finally (after many verification calls) they called my up and told me to get the downpayment and the docs.
VV ProBiking Showroom
This time around, the guys were pretty interested. Got all the paperwork done fast and sent me off to the Bagga Link (Karol Bagh, Delhi) to get the bike. This was a Friday evening. I just got stuck in the traffic and couldn't make it. One more day (AAARGHHH!). But to their credit, the VV guys really rushed thru the paperwork and made quite a few calls to get things rolling so that I could get the bike the same day. Another great thing was I insisted on selecting the piece from the warehouse myself. They were hesitant at first but then got the things done so I could go ahead and select it.
Bagga Link (Karol Bagh, Delhi)
Saturday 1.00PM
Met Ms Shilpa. Gave her the documents. She got them verified. Then took me to the warehouse (open space actually) where there were around 10 Avys lined up, neglected in the dust and grime. Four were blue. I took a good hour cataloging the minor defects (rust, side panel fitting, scratches, paint job, welding, lights, switchgear etc.) and finally selected my piece. Prayed over it. Asked God to bless it as He had done my previous bike (my Pulsar 150 never broke down once in the past 43000Km, and had only one punture till date, saved me from numerous accidents. It is a truly blessed bike).
One of the mechanics came and wheeled it away to the delivery area. Cleaned it. Polished it (Teflon coat - Rs500). Tightened a few loose nuts I pointed out. And had it ready in about an hour while the RTO and paperwork got done. The only blunder (and I hope it wont prove to be a costly one) is that I agreed to have a lube additive (Nano something - Rs225) put. It only occurred to me yesterday that the damn thing will probably ruin the running-in of the bike. Plan to get my oil changed as soon as possible. I took out a hundred bucks when he sent the bike for polishing and asked him if he'll be here still or was that the last thing he needed to do. Needless to say, the next half hour, my bike got "extra" special treatment. I did give him the 100 bucks at the end. He did a good job and listened to all my directions.
Long Beach Blue Avenger 200 DTSi
The first time I rode my bike, it took a bit of time to get used to the raked forks and handlebar. Almost rammed into a guy when taking it out of the center. So I revved up and went along the link road to get a basic feel of the bike. 15 minutes was all I needed to get settled. Decided to head back home and got stuck in traffic again. I HATE rush hour traffic. I was crawling at 20kmph for the next 40 mins. Once I had some space, I was able to take it up to 55kmph. am not supposed to go beyond that for the first 750km. But considering I've done the stupidity of adding the lube additive (curse those service center blokes), I intend to ride it hard for sometime.
Problems
1. Gearbox - It's a pain. Finding neutral is an art.
2. Ignition Lock - Stupid place to put it. Forward, under the tank. And I've already bruised my fingers taking the key out. EDIT: Also, now I have managed to slightly burn my hands while trying to fish around under the tank for the key after riding back home.
3. Handle lock - Separate from the ignition lock. I wish Bajaj had not followed the cruiser bike feel this far. It's just cumbersome. Or I'm too lazy. EDIT: Its also not very intuitive to lock. There seems to ab another artform involved in locking the handlebar.
4. Mirrors - Wont raise up enough for me to see the road completely behind me. I've had to tilt it diagonally to get a moderately better view. But I really need to lean back to see something worth while.
5. Parking - Its big. And it's long.
6. Tank Chrome - Minor gripe really. But every time you pass under a street light, it gets reflected into your face.
Perks
1. Heads WILL turn. In fact, there is a certain perverted pleasure in seeing a dude on a bike ride by, while his GF behind him checks my bike out. Hah!
2. Bright headlights. The high beam could petrify a deer. It's bright! As bright as a car with both headlights on.
3. Comfort. The initial 15km gave me a pain in the hips. But it's been great once I got used to the position. No pain. And when you get off the bike after a long ride, it doesn't feel as if you've been riding a thick pole (Pulsar seat are a bit too thin).
4. Heads WILL turn. Expect bikes, cars, tourists in buses, foreigners, autos, to slow down while passing you by. And dont drive fast. This babe is meant to be ridden slow, say 50kmph.
5. Power. The 200cc powerhouse is pretty eager to get ahead. I've not pushed it, but can't wait to once I'm thru 1500km. Picks up on 3rd gear effortlessly.
6. Cool dude look. Lean back and pull on the handle. You will feel awesome. Not like God, cos thats blasphemy. But you will feel like you own the road. And this is the only bike with which you can do that.
Been 2 days/130km now. I feel good. On an average, there are 60 Avys sold per month in Delhi. That may sound like a lot, but if you hear the Pulsar figures, you'll have to crank your mouth shut. Avenger is an exclusive bike. Joining the club is something I wont forget for a long time.
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