BHPian aviator1101 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.
Say what you may, but I fell for the looks right from the Manali media ride pics and pre booked mine on 7th November. The dealer launch was scheduled on 08 December. motorcycle fuel tank 1
When I reached the showroom, I came to know that I was one of the first people to book this bike in NE India. The showroom owner honoured me with the traditional Assamese Gamusa and gave me the opportunity to unveil the bike during the dealer launch.
Then started the wait for the test ride. While people all over the country were posting about the test rides and deliveries, I was still waiting to hear from the dealer about the arrival of test ride bikes.
The patient but long wait paid it's dividends. Finally got to lay my hands on the Himalayan today. I got to take her for a 50km long test ride over almost 1.5 hours. Hats off to the dealer's representative who brought the bike to my house and kept sitting patiently all this while.
A few observations from my tryst with the Himalayan :-
The bike is heavy. I couldn't feel the much discussed 3 kg weight reduction.
There are vibrations, though not of the league of the 411 or older UCE REs, they are there, but nothing that cannot be lived with. And a gear/rpm/speed combination can keep them at bay.
The low end torque is substantially lesser than the OG Himalayan, but sufficient torque is there to recover you in difficult situations. At least it seemed so in the plains.
The throttle input lag is present, but you will find it only if you look for it. Otherwise it will take a minute to get used to it.
The 825mm seat height is sufficient for my 5'9" height. The narrow seat allowed me to flat foot both sides.
The gear lever is on the longer side. But I could comfortably shift gears without making much effort in shifting the foot.
The brake lever in the test bike lacked any play. So, the moment your boot toe rests on the brake pedal, the tail light comes on and remains on. Maybe an adjustment issue.
The best part about the bike is the seating comfort. My primary use case is touring with pillion and luggage. If I compare the Himalayan with the 390 Adv and Scrambler 400x at all in this department, the Himalayan is definitely the better choice.
The pillion seat is the most comfortable amongst the competition and seating posture for the pillion is also a tad better. Refer the mark with red, the leg position of a 5'5" pillion.
Yes, the side stand is kind of weird. God knows why the bend had to be put. But, you can mount the bike whilst on the sidestand. It doesn't tip over. I tried it and could do it comfortably.
Though I will not try the same with luggage loaded. A side stand extender may resolve the issue.
The LCD display unit does have few quirks. I had to try a few times to connect my android phone to it. It kept getting disconnected again and again. However, it seems to have a mind of it's own. Just as I was about to give up, it connected and was also displaying the map flawlessly. But it really drains your phone battery. In about 30 minutes, it drained the battery from 76% to 35%
Also, the scanned code had something like RE_OKXO_12345. After scanning with the mobile, the O had to be replaced with 0 to connect the device. I don't know if it was by default or an error in this piece, but the drill of scan, amend and connect seemed quite funny to me.
Much has been talked about the joystick. Yes, the tactile or clicky feel is a little less especially with gloves on, but I don't think it will be much of a problem. The craze for these menu, features etc subside with time and there is hardly any use felt after maybe a few months. This will be no exception. IMO, the most useful displays are the navigation with map view and the analogue tachometer.
The tank shape is nice as it tapers towards the rider creating a recess to plant knees during riding. Also the shape is just what is required to grip the tank with knees. However, the matte finish tank lacked any grip with the riding jeans. Will have to look for some solution.
The handlebar height and reach while seated is perfect. However, once u stand up, the length seemed a little less and I had to reach out for the controls. Maybe a set of risers will resolve the issue.
Sharing a good news with fellow BHPians: today morning, the dealer called up to say my bike has arrived and would be ready for delivery day after tomorrow. Quite excited and waiting eagerly to get her home.
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