January 2013 – Mileage Reviews

Hero Splendor NXG

We have been reviewing the mileages of the Hero Splendor motorbikes over the past two days. The Splendor NXG was launched by Hero Honda back in 2007 and since then has gone through more than a couple of upgrades. The Splendor NXG is regarded a ‘deluxe’ bike among the Splendor range of motorbikes.

Like the rest of the Splendor motorbikes, the Splendor NXG also has a 97.2cc 4 stroke single cylinder engine that delivers a maximum power of 7.8 PS and a max torque of 8.04 Nm at 4500 rpm. The bike measures 1.965m in length, 0.720m in width and 1.095m in height with a total ground clearance of 160mm. The fuel tank capacity appears to be slightly lower than the other Splendor bikes with just a 9.5 liters fuel tank with 1.8L reserve. The basic kick spoke variant of Splendor NXG will cost you Rs.42,250 ex-showroom in New Delhi.

Official Mileage Claim

The fuel economy as claimed by the company for all the Splendor range of motorcycles is in the 80+ range. The Splendor NXG is no different either. According to Hero Motocorp, the Splendor NXG will give you 87.7 kilometers for every liter of petrol when rode on standard test conditions which is under extremely favourable highway-type road conditions. You will definitely see a lower mileage on a typical city road.

Reviews From Customers & Reviewers

MaxAbout praises the bike for its refinement and fuel efficiency and in fact says you can feel the refinement even as you start the ignition. In their road test, the website says they were able to see 65kmpl on city roads that goes as high as 70 kmpl on the highways.

BikeAdvice says the Splendor NXG which is designed for the ‘next generation’ could give the Platina and TVS Star City a run for their money and is pretty reliable with low cost of maintenance. Their test ride delivers a much higher fuel efficiency extracting 75kmpl combined on city and highways.

ProDease has a very short review and I am not sure if the mileage they claim on the review is something they were able to personally test or has been quoted from secondary sources. In any case, according to them, the Splendor NXG will give you an economy of up to 60kmpl with the average around 50kmpl. I would not vouch for this claim yet since it seems to be much lower than what other sources claim.

To validate this, let us dive right into MouthShut to see what real-world customers see. There are 21 reviews for the bike here and the customers have rated it 4 on 5 for fuel consumption. There are a few complaints that customers have posted that includes things like poor acceleration and that the bike is not really built for long rides. These are things that you should check out when you test ride yourself. However, on the fuel economy front, the bike is consistently rated between 60-70 kmpl which is pretty good for city rides. But I must note that there were at least a couple of unhappy customers who reported a lower mileage of between 48-52 kmpl.

On Olx, there are several Splendor NXG bikes put up on sale and if you look at the numbers reported by the sellers, it invariably falls between 55-70 kmpl. So I think the realistic expectation from the bike is around 60kmpl. Consider anything over this to be a bonus.

To conclude, I think the bike has a few issues to sort out as I see from the MouthShut reviews. But that apart, the bike appears to deliver great mileage on most counts. If you do not see it on your own bike, it could be because of some sort of wear and tear that you should get fixed at a service shop. Here is a summary of what the various websites have reported

Source	City (kmpl)	Highways (kmpl)
Official	–	87.7
MaxAbout	65	70
BikeAdvice	75	—
ProDease	50	60
MouthShut	60-70	—
Olx	55-70	—

Hero Splendor Plus

The Hero Splendor is one of the long serving brands in the Indian motorbiking segment having been introduced more than a decade back. The Hero Honda Splendor Plus was first introduced in 2004 and later, in 2007, relaunched it with modified fairings, alloy wheels and a few other improvements. After the split between Hero Motocorp and Honda, the bike has been marketed as the Hero Splendor Plus and continues to be one of the most popular products from the Hero Motocorp.

The Hero Splendor Plus engine has a displacement of 97.2cc and is air cooled with a 4 stroke single cylinder. It delivers a max power of 7.5 PS and a torque of 7.95 Nm at 5000 rpm. The bike measures 1.97m in length and 0.720m in width. With a ground clearance of 159mm, the bike is definitely on par with the other bikes custom built for the Indian road conditions. However, with a kerb weight of 109kg, the Splendor Plus is made to feel lighter and thereby contribute to a better fuel efficiency. The Splendor Plus is available in Delhi at an ex-showroom price of Rs. 42,950 for the Spoke model.

Mileage Claim From Hero

Although the Splendor Plus is built with an engine similar to what is available on the newer model, Splendor Pro, the mileage delivered is lower. According to Hero Motocorp, the Splendor Plus can give you 80.6 kilometers for every liter of petrol. Compare this with the 90.1kmpl claim on the Pro. But again, as we saw in the other article, the real world numbers may vary vastly considering these are numbers fetched from standard testing conditions.

We will do a side by side comparison of all the Splendor bikes later. Keep checking.

Customer Reviews

BikeDekho calls this bike a “commuter cum executive bike” which is both sleek and attractive. The website reports an economy of between 65-70 kmpl on city roads. With a 11 liter fuel tank, this means, you could go 770 kilometers at a stretch before going completely dry.

MaxAbout has a very similar review of the bike. They note that the engine used in this bike is comparatively slower than those used in the other variants of the Splendor. The fuel efficiency as reported stands at around 65-70 kmpl on city roads that can go as high as 72-75 kmpl on highways. On IndiaGarage though, a user claiming to be a Splendor Plus customer reports a mileage of just around 55 kmpl.

Let’s next look at MouthShut. There are over 70 reviews for the bike and the customers have given the bike an overall rating of 4/5 for fuel consumption efficiency. Reading through the reviews, we find that the average mileage that customers see on city roads is pretty impressive and is consistently between 58-65 kmpl. On highways, it seems to increase to as much as 69-70 kmpl. One customer however warns that you may not see a great economy in the first 2-3 months after purchase.

On Olx, most of the Splendor Plus bikes put up for sale have their fuel economy specified in the 60-70 kmpl range although there are more than a couple of bikes that are reported to be seeing 47-55 kmpl economy.

So there you have it. Here is a summary of fuel efficiency as reported by various sources.

Source	City (kmpl)	Highways (kmpl)
Official	–	80.6
BikeDekho	65-70	—
MaxAbout	65-70	72-75
IndiaGarage	55	—
MouthShut	58-65	69-70
Olx	60-70	—

As a bottomline, it is pretty clear that Splendor Plus delivers what it matters. So if you are considering this bike, my suggestion is you should go for it.

Hero Splendor Pro

Hero Honda launched the Splendor range of motorcycles close to a decade back. Since the time, there has been more than a few upgrades and variants of the brand launched. After the joint venture between Hero Motocorp and Honda ended, Hero has been independently marketing the Splendor range. The Hero Splendor Pro is one of the latest variants launched in the market having been announced only in 2011.

The Splendor Pro comes with a 97.2cc single cylinder 4 stroke engine that can crank up a max power of 5.74 kw (7.80 PS) and a max torque of 8.04 Nm at 4500 RPM. The bike has a decent 159mm ground clearance and weighs 109 kg at the minimum (the self-start variety weighs 3 kgs more). The bike has a 11 liter fuel tank The Hero Splendor Pro is priced at a minimum of Rs. 45,037 ex-showrrom Delhi with price varying according to the feature you are going for (kick spoke, kick cast, self spoke or self cast).

Company Claims

Mileage is one of the most important features for a bike in the sub-100cc range. And the Hero Splendor Pro does not disappoint; at least as far as the official claims go. According to officials from Hero Motocorp, the Splendor Pro can fetch you 90.1 kmpl under standard test conditions. The keyword here is ‘standard’. So this should of course reduce when you test ride it on a city road. So check out the rest of this article to see what various people who have tested the bike have got to say as far as city riding goes.

Customer reviews

MaxAbout notes that the Splendor Pro does not look any different from any of the older variants. However, the new engine makes the bike much more responsive and quick. In the fuel economy department, the website says they were able to extract 65 kmpl on city roads and 79 kmpl on highways.

BikeDekho praises the bike for its “ultimate” comfort and flat seating positions. In their test, the bike review website has noted to have reported 60 kmpl of mileage on the Splendor Pro. BraveheartBikers, another blog from bikers commends the Splendor Pro for its very low maintenance charge and reports an economy of 65kmpl on cities which goes up to 75kmpl on highways.

Customers who have already owned higher priced bikes with better power may not find the Splendor Pro the best in looks, but MyIndiaGuide calls the Splendor Pro “very stylish and mind blowing”. In their review of the bike’s fuel consumption, the website reports having seen 65-70 kmpl which is indeed impressive.

There are a number of second hand Splendor Pro bikes available for purchase on Olx with prices ranging from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 40,000. Most of these bikes report a mileage of between 50-65 kmpl. This is of course a wide range that does not serve useful to you, if you are a consumer but if it’s of any consolation to you, let me tell you that a majority of the reviewers have put the number at 60-65 kmpl with only a handful reporting mileage lower than that. Your mileage may literally vary.

So there you have it. The fuel efficiency of the Splendor Pro does paint a pretty positive picture of the bike. We do not find any reviews for the Splendor Pro on MouthShut. However, from what we see from the rest of the reviews both from real world customers as well as test riders, this bike is built to give you the most efficient ride and it will definitely not burn a hole in your pocket at the petrol pump.

Do you like the other features this bike comes with? Then you should definitely go for it because this is not a bike that should bother you in the fuel department. Check out a summary of reports from various reviewers.

Source	City (kmpl)	Highways (kmpl)
Official	–	90.1
MaxAbout	65	79
BikeDekho	60	—
BraveheartBikers	65	75
MyIndiaGuide	65-70	—
Olx	50-65	—

Bajaj Pulsar 180

The Bajaj Pulsar is available in 5 different engine variants. We have already seen the lower end 135cc and 150cc bikes. Today, we will see how good the mileage delivered by the 180cc DTS-i variant of Bajaj Pulsar is. Pulsar 180 is one of the original models being first introduced way back in 2001 along with the 150cc variant.

Let’s talk specifications. The Bajaj Pulsar 180 comes equipped with a 178.6cc 4-stroke single cylinder engine that can crank up 17.02 PS power and 14.22 Nm of torque (at 6500 rpm). The bike has a 15 liter capacity fuel tank that also has a 3.2 liters reserve capacity of which 2 liters is usable. Other important specs of the bike include a 150mm ground clearance, 147 kg kerb weight and a 260mm frontal disc/130mm rear drum brake. The Bajaj Pulsar 180 is available at a price of Rs. 70,321 ex-showroom in Delhi.

Official Fuel Efficiency Claim

As oft-quoted on this blog, with great power comes lower mileage. In our previous reviews, we have noted that the official mileage as quoted by the company for the 135cc and 150cc variants of the bike are 68.1kmpl and 64kmpl respectively. Now, the fuel consumption for the 180cc variant is expected to be lower than this, and it is. According to Bajaj, the Pulsar 180 delivers 58.1kmpl under standard conditions.

Customer Feedback

AutomobileUpdates has reviewed the revamped version of the Pulsar that includes equipment more modern than the ones they originally came with a decade back. They report a city consumption of 43 kmpl and on highways this appears to notch up as much as 51 kmpl.

MaxAbout calls the redesigned 2009 variant a ‘well-built vehicle with a lot of bulk’. In their test ride, the websites reports having seen between 45-50 kmpl on highways that falls down to 38kmpl on city roads. As they rightfully note, under these running cost conditions, the bike no longer remains an option to consider for those on a budget.

The reported numbers seem to hover around the 40+ mark across reviews. On BikeDekho, the reviewers call the new bike a ‘perfect blend of the vibrant contours of the older 180 and the muscular build of the 2009 model’. The fuel economy tests derive 43.4 kmpl under city traffic conditions that goes up to 46 kmpl on highways.

BikeAdvice in their comparison of the Pulsar against Apache RTR 180 note the better performance of the Pulsar in the fuel department reporting 41-46 kmpl on city roads and 46-51 kmpl on highways.

Let us next check out what the reviewers on MouthShut.com have got to say. There are over 150 reviews for the 180cc Pulsar and as rated by these users, the bike gets a 4/5 as far as fuel consumption is concerned. Most reviewers seem to get a mileage of around 45 kmpl which is definitely a good return from a 180cc bike. If you are looking for a range, then be rest assured, you should expect something between 43-50 kmpl. Only one user claims to be seeing around 40 kmpl on Mumbai roads.

Things are not very different on Olx, the classifieds website. A whole chunk of customers who have put their Pulsar 180 up for sale claim to see a fuel economy of between 40-45 kmpl on their bike.

So there you have it. The 180cc variant of the Pulsar is a pretty good bargain on the fuel front considering that except for a couple of sources, most of them report a 45kmpl economy which is a pretty decent expectation from this high power bike. Here is a snapshot of numbers as reported by various sources. From our side, we give this bike a thumbs-up!

Source	City kmpl	Highways kmpl
Official	–	58.1
AutomobileUpdates	43	51
MaxAbout	38	45-50
BikeDekho	43.4	46
BikeAdvice	41-46	46-51
MouthShut	43-50	—
Olx	45	—

Bajaj Pulsar 135 LS

There are currently five different variants of the Pulsar in the market. Although the Pulsar brand itself has existed for more than a decade, the Pulsar 135cc model has only been around for around 3 years. Bajaj introduced this light weight sports bike in 2009 and is the first bike in India to contain a 4-valve DTS-i technology instead of the 2-valve technology that has been the norm.

So in terms of specifications, this bike does not disappoint. The Pulsar 135LS has a 134.66cc single cylinder 4 stroke engine delivering 13.5PS maximum power and 11.4Nm maximum torque. The bike weighs 122 kg when dry and can hold up to 8 liters of fuel (1.6 liters usable reserve). The bike is being targeted at the adventure lovers and so has an above average ground clearance of 165mm. The Pulsar 135 is priced at Rs. 58,963 ex-showroom Delhi.

Official Mileage

As a category, the Pulsar 135 lies somewhere between the bunch of bikes available in the 125cc and 150cc segments. Consequently, we do not have a benchmark of what the ideal mileage for this bike is. Regardless of this, Bajaj claims the bike can offer a good mileage of around 68.1 kmpl under standard conditions. Considering this is a sports bike that would hardly be rode on standard test condition roads, it would be interesting to see how this bike performs on city roads.

Customer Reviews

MaxAbout has a raving review of the Pulsar 135 calling it a bike that “oozes style”. However it is unclear whether the city mileage that they report is from their own internal tests or something claimed by the company. In any case, according to them, the Pulsar 135 should offer 52 kmpl on city roads.

BikeDekho tells us about the signficance of the 4-valve technology on the Pulsar 135. They note that thanks to the 4-valves, the Pulsar 135 can deliver the same power as is offered by the regular 2-valve 150cc bikes. The mileage doesn’t seem to be affected by that though. Their tests report an average fuel consumption of between 58-65 kmpl.

The review on the blog AutomobileUpdates is less glorifying at least from the fuel economy perspective. Although the blog commends the bike for its “aggressive styling”, they report a city mileage of just around 50 kmpl with the highway performance going up to 65 kmpl.

On IndiaGarage, the reports are all over the place. While one user claims to see a mileage of between 40-45 kmpl with the Pulsar 135, another customer claims to see a much better 54 kmpl.

Sriraj, a small blog reviewing bikes and gadgets does a great job test-riding the Pulsar 135. For their review, the writer rode the bike for close to 150 kilometers in peak Delhi traffic between 5PM and 9PM. They report having seen a mileage of close to 61 kmpl under these conditions.

BikeAdvice has a similar verdict on their owner-review post. While the writer has not posted the mileage of this bike on highway roads, according to him, it would deliver a good 60 kmpl on city roads which is absolutely impressive stuff.

Finally, let’s check out what reviewers on the user-review site, MouthShut have got to say. There are close to 85 reviews of the bike with the customers rating the bike 4/5 on fuel economy. A striking feature of the reviews is the consistency at which a majority of the people have rated the fuel consumption of the bike. Barring a couple of outliers who report a mileage of either 45kmpl or 65kmpl, almost every other reviewer has reported seeing a mileage of around 55 kmpl on city roads.

So here’s the bottomline – the Pulsar 135 is as good as a 150cc in terms of power. In terms of mileage, it can consistently deliver a mileage as good as the bikes in the 125cc range. As I see it, this bike seems to deliver the best of both the worlds and is a definite buy. Here’s a snapshot of the mileage as reported by various sources.

Source	City Mileage (kmpl)	Highways (kmpl)
Official	–	68.1
MaxAbout	52	68
BikeDekho	58-65	—
AutomobileUpdates	50	65
IndiaGarage	40-54	—
Sriraj	61	—
BikeAdvice	60	—
MouthShut	55+	—

Suzuki Slingshot Plus vs. Hero Passion X Pro

Today we will compare two bikes that are in the entry level or mid entry level segment – the Slingshot Plus from Suzuki and the Passion X Pro from Hero Motocorp. While the Slingshot Plus has been around for a while, the Passion X Pro is one of the later additions to the Hero stable having been launched only in the early part of 2012.

First up, let us compare the specifications of the two bikes.

Spec	Hero Passion X Pro	Suzuki Slingshot Plus
Engine displacement	109.1cc	124cc
Max Power	8.7 PS	8.6 PS
Max Torque	9.36 Nm	10 Nm
Fuel Tank Capacity	9.5 L	12 L
Kerb mass	116 kg	129 kg
Usable Reserve	2.1 L	2.1 L
Delhi ex-showroom	46800	52271

The Slingshot Plus is supposed to be a higher power motorbike compared to the Passion X Pro. However, if you compare them side by side, you see that they are not really very different. Both bikes offer similar power and torque. In fact, since the X Pro has a smaller weight to carry – both in terms of the dry mass as well as the max fuel capacity, the mileage is likely to be better with the Passion X Pro than the SlingShot Plus; at least theoretically. Let’s see if that truly is the case moving ahead in this article.

Fuel Efficiency Comparison

Under standard testing conditions, the reported fuel consumption is often very good. This is because these tests are under very favourable road and wind conditions and so you get the maximum returns on your fuel. According to Hero Motocorp, the Passion X Pro can deliver close to 70 kmpl under these conditions. In comparison, Suzuki claims that the Slingshot Plus can deliver close to 73.5 kmpl.

Now this sounds contrary to whatever we discussed earlier. Let’s look at what the tests on real-world conditions. We looked at reviews from 5 different sources for the Passion X Pro in our original article. Two of these websites – PricesofIndia and IndiaGarage reported seeing close to 60 kmpl on the X Pro. While PricesDekho and Tech2Auto reported a better deal at 65 kmpl, ProDease reported seeing just around 55 kmpl. Overall, the average fuel efficiency under city road conditions seems to be 61 kmpl on the Passion X Pro

In comparison, we had looked at reviews from 6 different sources for the SlingShot Plus. The reported mileages were more varied here. Users on MouthShut were the happiest and reported between 65-70 kmpl. While WheelMela reported 60 and ZigWheels 66, the reported numbers from xBHP and IndianDrives were lower at 45-50kmpl and 58 kmpl respectively. Even Olx had a reported number lower at between 55-60 kmpl. The average number in this case was 59.4 kmpl.

Source	Hero Passion X Pro	Suzuki Slingshot Plus
Official	70	73.5
Average on city roads	61	59.4

So what do you think is a better deal of the two? When I look at it, although the Hero Passion X Pro is a lower spec bike of the two, it delivers better power, offers a better mileage and is available for a cheaper price. Both bikes rank similar on the looks quotient. So the deal seems pretty clear – the Passion X Pro is the winner here.

Best 150cc Bike In India 2012/2013

We have already reviewed most of the popular 150cc bikes in India. It’s now time for us to consolidate them all and put them up in one piece where you can know which of the bikes stands where in terms of performance, mileage and price. If you want to read the reviews of each of these bikes separately, you can view them by clicking here.

Specifications

Let us compare the most important specifications to get a feel of where things are going. The bikes are ranked in order of power.

Rank	Bike	Power	Torque	Official Mileage
1.	Honda CBR 150R	17.8 PS	12.66 Nm	—
2.	Yamaha YZF-R15	17 PS	15 Nm	46.93 kmpl
3.	TVS Apache RTR 160	15.2 PS	13.1 Nm	54 kmpl
4.	Bajaj Pulsar	15.06 PS	12.5 Nm	64 kmpl
5.	Hero Xtreme	14.4 PS	12.80 Nm	65.1 kmpl
6.	Hero Hunk	14.4 PS	12.80 Nm	65.1 kmpl
7.	Honda CB Unicorn Dazzler	14 PS	12.8 Nm	60 kmpl
8.	Yamaha FZ 16	14 PS	13.6 Nm	50.81 kmpl
9.	Suzuki GS150R	13.8 PS	13.4 Nm	55.7 kmpl
10.	Hero Achiever	13.5 PS	12.8 Nm	68 kmpl
11.	Bajaj Discover	13 PS	12.75 Nm	72.3 kmpl
12.	Yamaha SZ-X	12.1 PS	12.8 Nm	62.4 kmpl

So from the list of bikes that we have compared, the Honda CBR150R has the highest power. However, if you are also looking at a bike in the budget range, you should pick one that offers great mileage and comes available at a decent price. In that case, Bajaj Discover has the highest official claim for mileage among all the bikes that we have compared.

City Mileage Comparison

If there is one thing that I have learned since I started the blog, it is that the real world mileages are hardly anywhere close to those claimed by the company. Bikes that claim amazing mileages sometimes are pretty par if not worse than competition when it comes to real world mileages. So keeping that in mind, let us do a side-by-side comparison of the city mileages based on the average numbers reported by the various automobile blogs and customers.

Rank	Bike	Average City Mileage (kmpl)
1.	Bajaj Discover 150	54.0
2.	Hero Achiever	52.7
3.	Yamaha SZ-x	50.7
4.	Hero Hunk	50.7
5.	Honda CB Unicorn Dazzler	50.3
6.	Suzuki GS 150R	50
7.	Bajaj Pulsar 150	49.3
8.	TVS Apache RTR 160	48.4
9.	Hero Xtreme	47.8
10.	Honda CBR 150R	42.8
11.	Yamaha FZ16	39.6
12.	Yamaha YZF-R15	38.2

The above averages were calculated based on reports from some of the most popular online automobile destinations like BikeAdvice.in, MaxAbout, IndiaGarage, MotorBeam, Overdrive, BikeDekho and Gaadi.com. Besides, we also considered the customer reports from websites like MouthShut and Olx.

So if you look at this, the Bajaj Discover 150 is a clear winner with an average reported mileage of 54 kmpl – that’s an additional 2.3 kilometers for every liter of petrol as delivered by the second best that’s Hero Achiever. You will also notice that bikes that hog the bottom rung of the ladder in terms of power offered are also the ones that deliver the maximum mileage.

Here are some take-aways from the analysis of the two tables:

1. Bajaj Discover is THE bike for the budget conscious. It is not great from a power perspective, but is really the best in class for mileage.

2. Hero Hunk is a decent deal to go for. It ranks 6 out of 12 bikes on power (a couple of those ranking above are in the 1 lakh rupees price range!) while it ranks 4th in terms of mileage.

3. Bajaj Pulsar is in a similar position as the Hunk, except a bit lower. It ranks 4th in terms of power (again two bikes higher up are in the 1 lakh rupees price range) and 7th in terms of mileage.

So here’s the bottomline: If you are looking for power over mileage, it is Pulsar. If you are looking for power and mileage, it is Hunk. And if you are looking simply for mileage, it is Bajaj Discover 150.

Is there some other inference you could make from the tables above? Please do mention them in the comments. I would be glad to add them to the pointers above.

TVS Apache RTR 160 Vs. Hero Xtreme

This is our third article in the bike comparison series we started late last month. We are yet again pitting two popular 150cc bikes against one another – the TVS Apache against Hero Xtreme.

The Apache is TVS’ marquee bike in the power bikes segment. The 160cc bike was launched in 2007 and is as popular among bike enthusiasts as the the Hero Xtreme which you may also know as the Hero Honda CBZ Xtreme of the yore! Here is a tabled comparison of the core specifications of the two bikes.

Specification	Apache RTR 160	Hero Xtreme
Displacement	159.7cc	149.2cc
Max. Power	11.19 kW	10.6 kW
Max. Torque	13.1 Nm	12.80 Nm
Ground Clearance	180mm	145mm
Fuel Tank	16 liters	12.1 liters
Usable researve	1.7 liters	1.5 liters

The Apache RTR 160 is available at a price of Rs. 71,340 ex-showroom Delhi while the Hero Xtreme is available at a commensurate price of Rs. 65,975.

Mileage Comparison

A quote I often put up on this blog is that with great power comes a lower mileage. Considering that the RTR 160 has a higher power and a larger engine cylinder displacement compared to the Xtreme 150, the mileage you can expect with the RTR could be lower than what the Hero Xtreme could offer. That is in fact true by a mile according to the company claims. TVS says the Apache RTR 160 can draw around 54.1 kmpl under standard test conditions while the Xtreme, according to Hero, can draw 65.1 kmpl. That’s a huge difference in the official claims from both the companies. Let’s see if the real world tests also derive similar results.

Let us start with BikeAdvice. In our earlier report on the Apache, this was one report that was hugely positive on the bike as far as mileage was concerned. In their article, the website claimed to have seen 56 kmpl fuel efficiency on the Apache RTR 160 in the long term. In comparison, the website had a slightly worse mileage report for the Xtreme. In an aggregated report of reviews from over 70 customers, we had noted last time that BikeAdvice readers saw a mileage of between 45-51 kmpl on the Hero Xtreme. That’s pretty low compared to Apache.

To have a more real world feel of customer feedback, let us next jump on to the MouthShut forums. There are over 200 reviews for the Apache 160 on this site as compared to 187 reviews for the Hero Xtreme. Both these bikes have received an overall rating of 4/5 from the reviewers as far as fuel consumption was concerned. When it comes to the real numbers though, the race is a dead heat. The average mileage reported on city roads for both the bikes range between 40-50 kmpl which does not give any great insights into which of the two bikes is better.

What’s amusing is that we do not seem to get a better clarity on the winner even when we check the classifieds postings on Olx from people who own the bike. The average mileage reported for both bikes again range between 40-50 kmpl.

Source	Apache RTR 160	Hero Xtreme
Official	54.1 kmpl	65.1 kmpl
BikeAdvice	56	45-51
MouthShut	40-50	40-50
Olx	40-50	40-50

So what’s the verdict? Although Hero Xtreme has an obviously better mileage officially claimed, things seem to be different as far as the reviews from blogs and real customers are concerned. The mileages as seen by customers on real world are more or less the same on both bikes. That being the case, I would prefer to go with the Apache RTR over the Hero Xtreme. Why? Because Apache gives you a better power, torque along with much better looks at only a slightly higher price. Getting the same mileage as the Apache on the Hero Xtreme only means the mileage offered by the lower powered bike is not ideal. Apache is the winner in this race.

Bajaj Pulsar 150 Vs. Honda CB Unicorn Dazzler

Here we are to compare the Honda Unicorn Dazzler with one another impressive bike in the 150cc segment. If you are looking for more comparisons, please check our earlier review of the Dazzler against Hero Hunk.

Right, so this is one comparison that is so often made by potential customers becausae both these bikes are priced at a pretty similar range. The Pulsar 150 is available at an ex-showroom price of Rs. 67,110 while the CB Unicorn Dazzler is available at Rs. 66,738. Here is a comparison of the important specifications in tabular format.

Specification	Bajaj Pulsar 150	Honda Unicorn Dazzler
Displacement	149.01cc	149.1cc
Max. Power	15.06PS	14.19PS
Max. Torque	12.5 Nm	12.74 Nm
Kerb weight	143 kg	138 kg
Fuel tank	15 liters	12 liters

The above table gives you loads of information on some inherent advantages of the Unicorn Dazzler over Pulsar 150 with respect to mileage. Not only does the Dazzler come lighter by around 5 kgs, it also has a smaller fuel tank which means the weight pulled by the engine is higher on the Pulsar compared to the Dazzler for any given rider and hence the mileage “may” possibly be lower on the Pulsar. We will however test the same. The Pulsar however has a marginally smaller displacement which means the fuel consumed at any particular time is lower than the Dazzler and so the mileage delivered could be theoretically higher than, not considering the other parameters of course.

Mileage Comparison

The official fuel economy as reported by the company officials is under standard test conditions. These are primarily highway-type roads with favourable wind conditions and minimum load. Consequently, the economy reported here are always on the higher side. According to Bajaj, the Pulsar 150 can draw 64 kilometers for every liter of petrol under standard conditions whereas Honda claims their Unicorn Dazzler can only reach up to 60 kmpl. Fret not however, since real-world conditions are much different and there is always a possibility of a different winner here.

We will first look at what MaxAbout has to say. In their review of the Pulsar 150, they note that the bike was not great during their city road test. Pulsar 150 could only offer 45 kmpl whereas in a similar test on the Unicorn Dazzler, they were able to see 50 kmpl. On highways though, the Pulsar returned 62 kmpl while the Dazzler was stuck around 60 kmpl.

BikeAdvice in their review though give a thumbs-up to the Pulsar 150. They report a fuel consumption of between 50-52 kmpl on the Pulsar whereas a similar road test on the Dazzler returned just 48 kmpl.

MouthShut is a website that I often refer to considering the plethora of real-customer reviews available there. We had close to 46 reviews for the Bajaj Pulsar 150 DTS-i and the customers have rated the product 4/5 in terms of fuel efficiency. The reported mileage from these customers though varied quite a bit between 40-53 kmpl. So you have happy as well as not-so-happy customers here. In comparison, there were close to 76 reviews for the Unicorn Dazzler on MouthShut. Although the ratings was still a 4/5, the reported mileage figures are more consistet between 48-52 kmpl.

So there you have it. Pulsar seems to be a good bike on the highways. But when it comes to a road test on inner city conditions, the Dazzler appears to win the race in a photo-finish. Although BikeAdvice gives the Pulsar a higher rating, in terms of the sheer number of reported figures, the Dazzler seems to have a more consistent mileage that seems to better the Pulsar 150.

Source	Bajaj Pulsar 150	Honda CB Unicorn Dazzler
Official	64	60
MaxAbout (city)	45	50
MaxAbout (Highways)	62	60
BikeAdvice	50-52	48
MouthShut	40-53	48-52

Hero Hunk Vs. Honda CB Dazzler – A Comparison

Hero Hunk and the Honda CB Unicorn Dazzler are two wonderful bikes in the 150cc segment. Although the Hunk has been around for a much longer time, it has not taken the Dazzler much time to catch up to the Hunk in terms of popularity.

To start with, let us start with the comparison of the two bikes on the specs

Spec	Hero Hunk	Honda Dazzler
Displacement	149.2cc	149.1cc
Max Power	10.6 kW	10.44 kW
Max Torque	12.80 Nm @ 6500 rpm	12.74 Nm @ 6500 rpm
Front Brake	240mm Disc Dia	240mm Disc Dia
Rear Brake	220mm Disc Dia	220mm Disc Dia
Ground Clearance	145mm	162mm
Kerb weight	146 kg	138 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity	12.4 liters	12 liters
Reserve	2.2 liters usable	N/A

The difference between the two specs is pretty marginal on most counts. It is only with ground clearance and kerb weight where you find any significant difference between the two.

Mileage Comparison

Both the Hunk and Dazzler have similar engines although the Hunk is expected to pull 8kgs more than the Dazzler at any point due to its inherently higher kerb weight. This could pull the mileage marginally down. Despite that, the official claim on the mileage of the Hunk is higher than Honda CB Unicorn Dazzler. Hero claims the Hunk can draw 65.1 kmpl while Honda says the Dazzler can offer only 60 kmpl of fuel economy. Do note that both these claims are under standard test conditions.

Let’s look at what the neutral reviewers have to say. According to MaxAbout that has reviewed both the bikes, the Hero Hunk is expected to deliver 52-58 kmpl on city roads whereas the Honda CB Unicorn Dazzler can extract a lower 50 kmpl under similar conditions. On Highways though, both the bikes are seen to deliver similar economies at 60 kmpl.

BikeAdvice has an alternate take on this comparison. In their reviews, they report the fuel economy on city roads to be somewhere between 45-50 kmpl on the Hunk while the same has been pegged at 48 kmpl from Dazzler. While the website does not have a number for the highways mileage from Hunk, they say customers can see close to 62 kmpl on highways from Unicorn Dazzler.

On MouthShut, the 210+ reviews for the Hunk rate the bike 4/5 on fuel consumption. A similar rating is offered by the 75+ Dazzler reviewers. However when it comes to putting down a number against the fuel consumption column, Hero Hunk customers have reported varying mileages between 45-55 kmpl on their bike while customers of Honda Dazzler have a more consistent report of the city mileage to be between 48-52 kmpl.

Here is a tabled report of the comparison:

Source	Hero Hunk	Honda Dazzler
Official	65.1	60
MaxAbout	52-58	50
BikeAdvice	45-50	48
MouthShut	45-55	48-52