tvs – Mileage Reviews

TVS Metro 100cc

The TVS Metro is an entry-level motorcycle that is available for the international market. The bike was launched around 2009 and comes with a 99.7cc 4-stroke engine that is capable of delivering a max power of around 7.5 PS at 7500RPM and a max torque of 7.5 Nm at 5000 RPM. The bike is available in a number of countries outside the home country including Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh. Speaking of specifications, the Metro comes with a standard wheelbase of 1250mm and a kerb weight of 108 kg which is light enough to optimize the consumption of fuel. The fuel tank itself is capable of holding 16 liters including a 2.5 liter reserve. The TVS Metro is available at an on-road price of approximately Rs. 45,000.

TVS Metro Manufacturere Claim On Mileage

As an entry level bike with a 100cc engine, the TVS Metro is made for the fuel-conscious customer. However I have not been able to get an official claim from the manufacturer. But from what I have researched, the mileage that is claimed on the bike is around 75 kmpl under standard testing conditions. As I say always, this fuel efficiency is derived from superior driving conditions which is different from your city roads. So what you actually get on road may be different.

TVS Metro Customer Feedback & Test Ride Reports

There are a few Bangladeshi customers who have reviewed the mileage of the metro on MotorcycleValley. According to them, the Metro is expected to deliver anywhere between 50-70 kmpl although there are some who report noticing over 75kmpl – I am assuming this is on the highways.

On Bikroy, another bikers blog in Bangladesh, the reported number is slightly lower. The reviewer says the fuel consumption on his Metro is somewhere around 65 kmpl which is still pretty good. This report is also supported by a classified ad on the site ClickBD where the customer selling his Metro reports 60-65 kmpl on his bike. But do note that sellers are often known to claim an FE better than what they get; so take this report with a pinch of salt.

Here is a short summary of what I have discussed above. I have not been able to get too many other reviews about TVS Metro. If you own a Metro and would like to share information about its mileage, do tell us in the comments below.

Source	City Mileage (kmpl)	Highways (kmpl)
Official	–	75
MotorcycleValley	50-70	75-80
Bikroy	65	—
ClickBD	60-65	—

TVS Apache RTR 180 ABS

TVS Motors launched the Apache RTR 180 with Anti-brake locking system exactly two years ago in March 2011. The bike has mostly the same specifications as we noted with the Apache RTR 180 yesterday with this facelift. The ABS technology has sensors that continuously monitors an impending wheel lock and when it does so, enables a smooth deceleration that allows the biker to stay in control of their vehicle even under sudden braking.

Although this is very similar to the Apache RTR 180, we will still take you through the specs one more time. This bike again comes equips with a 4 stroke single cylinder engine with a 177.4cc displacement. The larger displacement ensures a better power that maxes out at 17.3 PS @ 8500RPM. The torque can go up to 15.5 Nm at 6500RPM. The RTR 180 ABS can reach a maximum speed of 124kmph and comes with telescopic fork suspension on the front tyres along with monotube inverted gas filled shox with spring aid on the rear tyres. The bike has a wheelbase of 1326mm and ground clearance of 165mm. The RTR 180 ABS comes with a kerb weight of 139kg at a price of Rs. 84,180 ex-Delhi.

Test Ride and Customer Reviews
The engine and ignition systems on the RTR 180 ABS is not very different from what is available on the regular RTR 180 and so the manufacturer’s claim on fuel consumption has not been different. According to TVS, the RTR 180 ABS can deliver around 56kmpl under standard test road conditions.

However, this is expected to come down on regular city roads, as pointed out by MaxAbout. In their test ride, the website reports a city road economy of 39kmpl that goes as high as 47kmpl on the highways. The reviewer commends the bike on its aggressive styling although points out that the price is on the higher side given that even the Pulsar 220cc comes cheaper than this.

On ProDease, the reviewer calls the RTR 180 ABS a “commuter bike” which I don’t agree with. Their test ride though yields a mileage that cannot be called commuter friendly and understandably so for a 180cc bike. They report 38kmpl overall on their test.

ZigWheels doesn’t seem to have done a test ride of the bike (or maybe I missed it), and so I am not sure if the fuel economy they report was tested by their own staff or through third party reports. They note 44-45 kmpl on the RTR ABS.

There is not a great deal of reviews available on MouthShut for the RTR 180 ABS. The couple of reviews on the site rate the bike 4/5 on fuel consumption. Of the two reviews, one reviewer has not mentioned the mileage while the other reports 40-43 kmpl under city roads.

I have tabulated all mileages as reported by the various sources below. I’ve also put in the numbers for Apache RTR 180 side-by-side for your comparison. Is it worth spending an additional 11,000 for the ABS? You make the decision.

Source	RTR 180	RTR 180 ABS
Official	56	56
BikeAdvice	39-44	—
BikeDekho	35-40	—
MaxAbout	38-40	39
ProDease	–	38
TeamBHP	40	—
ZigWheels	–	44-45
MouthShut	40-45	40-43

TVS Apache RTR 180

The Apache is one of the most successful motorcycle brands created by TVS Motors. One reason why this is significant is because this helped TVS push its own market positioning from one that targeted just the budget conscious customer to a brand that also has got style. The first Apache rolled out of the factory back in 2007 and today there are three variants of TVS Apache. We have already discussed the RTR 160. Today, we will check out the Apache RTR 180.

The 180cc variant of Apache was launched in 2009. The bike comes equipped with a 177.4cc 4 stroke single cylinder engine that can crank out a maximum power of close to 17PS at 8500RPM and torque maxing out at 15.5Nm at 6500RPM. The RTR 180 has a kerb weight of 139kg with a framework that allows a wheelbase of 1300mm and ground clearance of 165mm. You can hit a maximum speed of 124kmph with the RTR 180. You can buy an Apache RTR 180 at just a couple of thousands over the RTR 160. The ex-showroom price in Delhi is around Rs. 73365.

Manufacturer Mileage Claim
As I’ve often said in my earlier blog posts, if you are someone who is planning to buy a high power bike like RTR 180, you shouldn’t be concerned about the mileage at all. The selling point of most bikes in the category are the power that they offer and this is often at a compromise of the fuel economy. According to TVS Motors, the Apache RTR 180 would return close to 56 kmpl economy under standard testing conditions. As the general disclaimer often goes, these conditions are extremely different from what you are used to on city roads and so that actual mileage you could see on your bike could be pretty lower than this. Let us check out consumer and test ride reviews to see what one could expect from the RTR 180.

Customer Reviews

Let us start with our favourite review place – MaxAbout. The website calls the RTR 180 a “carbon copy” of the RTR 160 with very slight visible changes. However, one aspect where it stands out very visibly is in the ability to go from 0-60 km/hr in just 4.15 seconds. The reviewer pits the mileage of the bike at 38-40 kmpl on city roads and 42-46 kmpl on highways.

BikeAdvice in their comparison of the RTR 180 against Pulsar 180 note that there is little to choose between the two. However, their tests reveal the fuel consumption under city conditions to be in the range of 39-44 kmpl which can increase to 43-48 kmpl on highway roads.

BikeDekho calls the bike ‘unmatchable’ in its segment when it comes to performance. However the review reports a lower mileage as a direct result of this high performance. The average fuel consumption reported by the website is around 35-40 kmpl.

On Team-BHP, one of the largest Indianmotorcycle enthusiasts forum, a user reports that the RTR 180 could deliver around 2kmpl lower than the RTR 160 on city conditions. The user reports 40 kmpl on city roads that goes up to 46-47kmpl on highways.

There are close to 34 reviews of the RTR 180 on the user reviews site, MouthShut.com. These users have together rated the bike 4 out of 5 in terms of fuel consumption. The reviews have been pretty consistent on the mileage front. Most customers report a fuel efficiency of around 40-45 kmpl under city road conditions that reaches 48-53 kmpl on the highways.

Overall, this is how the bike fares on fuel according to the reviews from various sources.

Source	City Roads (kmpl)	Highways (kmpl)
Official	–	56
MaxAbout	38-40	42-46
BikeAdvice	39-44	43-48
BikeDekho	35-40	—
Team BHP	40	46-47
MouthShut	40-45	48-53

The reported numbers are pretty reasonable for a 180cc bike. As I said earlier, you shouldn’t be looking at this page if you are contemplating a high power machine like the RTR 180 which is expected to have a lower fuel efficiency. In any case, the RTR 180 is a win on the fuel front and definitely gets a thumbs-up from our side.

TVS Sport Vs. Bajaj Discover 100T

We have been seeing a lot of visitors over the past few days looking for information about the new Bajaj Discover 100T. As you should already know, this is the latest addition to the 100cc segment and has won praises from a lot of people for its pretty stylish looks and features that are better than most bikes in this segment.

TVS Sport on the other hand is not as new. It’s one of the three TVS bikes that are built for the mileage conscious customer. Unlike the Discover 100T, the Sport 100cc comes with pretty basic offerings and honestly does not have many things that truly differentiate it from the rest of the pack. Anyway, let’s now dive right into the specs comparison.

Tech Specs Comparison

Specification	TVS Sport 100cc	Bajaj Discover 100T
Displacement	99.7cc	102cc
Max Power	7.4PS @7500	10.2PS @9000
Max Torque	7.5Nm @5000	9.2Nm @6500
Kerb weight	95kg	121kg
Wheelbase	1250mm	1305mm
Fuel tank	12 liters	10 liters
Reserve	2 liters	3.5 liters
Price (ex-Delhi)	Rs. 37555	Rs. 50500

Except maybe for the fuel tank, the Discover 100T is truly better than TVS Sport in every possible way. However, look at the price – the 100T is nearly 34% more expensive than the Sport and that should play a huge role in your purchasing decision.

Anyway, before you go there, it is imperative that you find out how much your recurring costs with respect to the fuel is going to be. Find the mileage delivered by these two bikes compared below.

Fuel Economy Comparison

Let us start with the official claims. According to TVS Motors, the Sport can deliver a mileage of close to 82.9 kmpl under standard testing conditions. This is almost on par with the rest of the TVS 100cc bikes (the highest claim is on Star City with 83.9 kmpl). Bajaj though makes a pretty steeper claim. They say the 100T can offer close to 87 kmpl under similar road conditions. Do note that these mileages were tested under the best of road conditions (not to forget favourable wind conditions). It’s not realistic to expect a similar efficiency on your ride to your office on the pot-holes laden high traffic city roads.

The performance of these bikes could differ vastly on city roads though. MaxAbout – one of our trusted third party reviewers of bikes, reports a mileage of just around 50 kmpl on TVS Sport in city conditions. Their test on highways yielded 65 kmpl. On the other hand, the reviewer’s test of the 100T yielded 65 kmpl on city roads. To be honest though, MaxAbout does not explicitly state if the reported number on Discover 100T was what they derived on the test ride or what was provided to them by the manufacturers.

The low figure reported on TVS Sport by MaxAbout should not deter you though. Every other reviewer has reported a much better figure. BikeDekho and IndiaAuto have both reported a city fuel consumption of 70 kmpl while IndianDrives goes a bit higher at 75 kmpl. Most of the other reviews have painted a much more realistic figure between 55-75 kmpl. BikeAdvice reports around 55 kmpl while IndiaGarage notes a figure of around 68 kmpl. On the user reviews site, MouthShut, the reported number has hovered between 65-75 kmpl which is pretty good.

The Bajaj Discover 100T has not had as many reviews. MotorBeam, in their review, claim to be seeing around 70 kmpl on city roads while a reviewer on xBHP reports 65 kmpl.

Source	TVS Sport (kmpl)	Discover 100T (kmpl)
Official	82.9	87
MaxAbout	50	65
BikeDekho	70	—
IndiaAuto	70	—
IndianDrives	75	—
BikeAdvice	55-75	—
IndiaGarage	68	—
MouthShut	65-75	—
MotorBeam	–	70
xBHP	–	65

So there you have it. The fuel economy under city roads seem to be more or less the same on both these bikes. So personally, I would now take the mileage out of the equation while deciding on what bike to buy – would you mind spending 13,000 rupees more for better power, torque and more stylish looks? Or would you be happy going for more basic looks that perform as promised? That’s a question that only you can answer.

Do you have anything more to add for the rest of us looking for an answer? Do put it down in the comments below.

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.

TVS Scooty Pep Plus

The Scooty has been one of the most recognizable and popular scooter brands in the country. In fact, this scooter has branded itself so successfully that Scooty has become synonymous with female two wheelers in India. The Scooty Pep Plus was launched as a new variant of the original Scooty back in 2005. This model is available in 99 different colors. In fact the Streak that we discussed sometime back is a newer variant of the Pep Plus.

Speaking of the tech specs, the Scooty Pep Plus features an 87.8cc 4 stroke single cylinder engine that cranks up a power of 3.68 kw (5 PS) and a torque of 5.8 Nm. If you look at it, the power on this scooter is lower than the power delivered by rivals in the segment like Yamaha Ray, Honda Activa and Hero Maestro while it is still marginally higher than that delivered by Scooty Streak. It should also be noted that the rivals discussed here have a higher base of male drivers and so come with not just more power but also higher dry mass which is not preferred by the female customers. The Scooty Pep Plus is available at a price of Rs. 40,490 ex-showroom Delhi.

Company Claim on Fuel Economy

If you remember our review of the Scooty Streak, you will remember that the official mileage claimed on the scooter was 68 kmpl. Given that the Pep Plus was launched earlier, the fuel efficiency could be expected to be marginally lower. According to Gaadi.com, the official claim on this scooter is 65.6 kmpl.

Customer Feedback

According to posters on IndiaGarage, one thing that you can be rest assured is that the mileage does not change much even after years of usage. The economy reported there is in the range of 43-45 kmpl on regular city roads. But according to Deepak from BikeAdvice, the reported figure is a little higher between 45-50 kmpl. He however advises people against the scooter noting that this mileage delivered is pretty low for a sub-100cc bike.

On Indiamart, although quite a few people have reported the economy they see with their bike, it is not helpful at all. The numbers are extremely inconsistent. While one user reports 20 kmpl, another notes 70 kmpl. I would go with the rest of the reviews instead where the reported fuel economy has hovered between 40-50 kmpl.

One of the latest reviews on the scooter is by a website called TurboSaga. According to them, you can see a fuel consumption of around 40 kmpl on city roads while this goes up to 45 kmpl on highways with the average consumption around 42 kmpl. Again, this is not very different from what is reported elsewhere.

As always let’s look into the reviews from MouthShut as well for a confirmation from the real world. Most bikes in this segment fetch a 4/5 rating for fuel efficiency on this website. I guess Scooty Pep Plus is one of the very few that has fetched a poorer 3/5. That is saying something about the reality vs. the expectations from people. According to one user, the mileage which is normally around 40-45 on purchase can go up to 55 kmpl after the first servicing. Another user however reports 50 kmpl on a better day. So on average, the reported number seems to hover between 45-55 kmpl.

On Olx, the reported fuel efficiency hovers between 35-50 kmpl. There are of course some people who claim as high as 60 kmpl but I don’t want to take them seriously. Here is a snapshot of the numbers reported by various sources.

Source	City Mileage (kmpl)	Highways Mileage (kmpl)
Official	–	65.6
IndiaGarage	43-45	—
BikeAdvice	45-50	—
IndiaMart	40-50	—
TurboSaga	40	45
MouthShut	45-55	—
Olx	35-50	—

Bottomline – I think one reason why Pep Plus is selling so well is that it was one of the early entrants to the female two wheeler segment in India. And in our country, people put a high standard for resale value. Considering that the Scooty Pep brand has a high resale value, people have been going for this scooter despite the fact that this scooter has some obvious flaws. While I have exclusively discussed the mileage here, over the course of my research, I found out that the Pep Plus does not do well on many other factors – like poor brakes, performance under rainy conditions, high servicing cost,etc. A sub-100 cc bike should not be performing so badly if you ask me. So if anything, I would not recommend you to purchase this scooter.

TVS Sport

TVS Sport is the Chennai company’s offering in the entry level 100cc segment. This, along with the TVS Jive and TVS Star City are the bikes that are available from TVS for the truly mileage conscious commuter audience. Speaking of features, the Sport comes with a 99.7cc single cylinder 4 stroke engine that can crank up a power of 5.5 kw (7.4 PS) and a torque of 7.5 Nm.

As you would notice, these are extremely basic offerings but with low power comes great mileage and that should be something that the Sport should really be able to deliver. The mileage should also be helped by a pretty low dry mass weight of 95 kg although the fuel tank capacity is standard at 12 liters with 2 additional liters for reserve. The TVS Sport 100cc has a starting price of Rs. 37,555 ex-showroom Delhi.

Company Mileage Claims

As noted earlier, at a low power and dry mass weight, the mileage delivered should be exemplary and TVS does not fail at that. According to the company, you can expect a mileage of 82.9 kmpl under standard test conditions. I always say this, but again, do note that the mileage you can see on city roads will be much lower than this due to the non-optimal driving conditions. Nevertheless, if you were to compare this mileage with the official claim on the two other entry level bikes, this is how the Sport fares –

Bike	Official Mileage Claim (kmpl)
TVS Sport	82.9
TVS Jive	82
TVS Star City	83.9

That’s a little disappointing that the Sport is not even the best among the bikes from TVS, let alone the entire 100cc segment where you have bikes as the Yamaha Crux that can offer 91 kmpl.

Customer Reviews

This may not go too well. Let’s start with MaxAbout. According to them, the city mileage you can expect is just about 50 kmpl while on the highways, this can go up to 65 kmpl. And this is on a bike that claims to deliver 82.9 kmpl of economy! Next up is BikeDekho that has a better review. They report a petrol consumption of a liter for every 70 kilometers of ride. IndiaAuto has a similar report claiming to having seen a 70 kmpl fuel efficiency on the Sport 100cc.

I looked through some reviews posted by the members of BikeAdvice since the time the TVS Sport used to be called the TVS Star Sport. The numbers claimed are not consistent with people claiming anywhere between 55-75 kmpl of consumption. That may not be too helpful if you are trying to make a purchasing decision here, but then, this also means you can possibly see a better mileage than what other reviewers above have noted.

Looking up IndiaGarage, one user who claims to be a Sport user says that the mileage differs vastly depending on your driving conditions. Regardless, on an average, you should see anywhere between 68-75 kmpl which is totally good for a 100cc bike. The review from IndianDrives is similar too and the report notes an economy of close to 75 kmpl.

As a final word, let’s check out what the folks at MouthShut have got to say. There are 38 reviews for the bike with the customers pretty happy on the average with respect to the fuel consumption. They have rated the bike 4/5 on this aspect. The reviewers have complained of a few features like wobbling and bike combustion but fuel economy is not one of them. Most reviewers have rated the bike’s mileage to be between 65-75 kmpl which is not bad at all.

So what would you make of this bike? There have been a few not-so-great reviews of the bike claiming a mileage of just around 50 kmpl but if you ask me, they seem to be outliers or an one-off case. A majority of the reviews from real world customers seems to be pretty positive where they have noted a mileage of at least 65 kmpl. This is a pretty good economy to note on city roads and so if you are happy with the rest of the features of this bike, you should go for it. It’s one of the best buys you can make for under 40,000.

Source	City Mileage (kmpl)	Highways Mileage (kmpl)
Official	–	83.9
MaxAbout	50	65
BikeDekho	70	—
IndiaAuto	70	—
BikeAdvice	55-75	—
IndiaGarage	68-75	—
IndianDrives	75	—
MouthShut	65-75	—

TVS Phoenix 125

The Phoenix 125 is the latest launch from TVS Motors. Dubbed the ‘premium 125cc motorbike’, the Phoenix comes with features that offer ‘executive class’ riding without compromising on the fuel economy – apparently. So what are these premium features? One of the most important innovations is the ‘EcoThrust technology’ that offers dynamic tuning of the carburetor that can deliver superior pickup and power while extracting great mileage all at the same time. The 125cc 4 stroke engine of the Phoenix 125 can pump out 11 PS (10.8 BHP) of power at 8000 rpm. In comparison, the Suzuki Slingshot Plus churns out 8.5 BHP while the Yamaha SS125 and Hero Ignitor; all bikes in the 125cc segment, extract 10.65 BHP and 11 BHP respectively. So as you see, the power delivered is not exactly the most premium of all.

The basic drum brake version of TVS Phoenix 125 is priced at Rs 49,990 ex-showroom in Chennai.

Mileage Claimed

A bike in the 125cc segment can typically deliver a mileage in the 60-70 kmpl range. And TVS Phoenix is no different. According to the company, the Phonix can deliver 67 kilometers for every liter of petrol under standard testing conditions. This is of course testing on the best of highways in the most optimal speed with the most favourable wind conditions. Don’t expect anything similar on your daily commute to the office.

Customer Reviews

MaxAbout has done a beautiful review of the Phoenix and according to them, the realistic expectation on city roads is around 45 kmpl while the fuel economy on highways can reach the claimed 67 kmpl. The overall mileage is expected to be 55 kmpl.

TVS Phoenix is so new to the market and so a lot of people are yet to check the bike and report on its mileage. Even MouthShut has just one review with no mention of the fuel consumption.

So at this point, we only have the official numbers to go by – and a realistic expectation of around 45 kmpl on city roads. We will revisit this bike in a month to update on the mileage numbers from more sources. In the meantime, if you own a Phoenix 125 or have take it for a test ride, do let us know in the comments about your observations on mileage.

TVS Apache RTR 160

The TVS Apache RTR was launched in 2007 and ever since has become one of the companies’ flagship bikes. The TVS Apache RTR 160 technically comes in the 150cc segment since there aren’t too many bikes in the 160cc space. The bike is powered by a 159.9cc 4 stroke single cylinder engine delivering 11.19 kw power and 13.1 Nm torque. In case you were wondering what RTR stands for, it is ‘Racing Throttle Response’. Other features on the bike include roto petal disc brakes, a wind-resistant tank and a sculpted digital display. The TVS Apache RTR 160 is priced at Rs. 71,340 ex-showroom in Delhi.

TVS Apache RTR 160 Mileage

There doesn’t seem to be an official mileage claimed by TVS on its website at least. According to BikeDekho, the claimed mileage of the TVS Apache RTR 160 is around 54 kmpl. This is lower than the mileages claimed by other 150cc bikes like Yamaha SZ-x or Honda CB Unicorn Dazzler. The Yamaha FZ16 though only claims 50.81 kmpl of mileage.

Customer Mileage Reviews

Reviewing the RTR 160, MyIndiaGuide notes that the bike does not have too broad a wheelbase and that has helped it maintain a pretty decent mileage for a 160cc at 50 kmpl. Customers reviewing this bike on Yahoo Answers report a mileage of anywhere between 50-58.5 kmpl. It needs to be noted that except for one user, the rest have not reported above 55 kmpl on their Apache.

The reported mileage is the same on PriceArena. The website has reported the mileage of Apache RTR 160 at 50 kmpl. IndiaMart though has a more conservative figure. According to them, the fuel economy on the Apache RTR 160 is not expected to be more than 42 kmpl on city roads while this could increase to 54 kmpl on the highways.

The best mileage review comes from BikeAdvice. In a review of the bike phase-by-phase, writer Saran notes an extremely impressive mileage of 65 kmpl during the first 1750 kilometers. Post that, it fell down to 62 kmpl for up to 4500 kms. This mileage appears to have fallen down to 56 kmpl till 9000 kms. We could take 56 kmpl as the mileage reported by BikeAdvice for the long term.

BharathAutos provides a more realistic picture. In their review, the website has noted a city mileage of 45 kmpl which can increase to 50 kmpl on highways. The review is similar from IndianDrives that reports a mileage of 50 kmpl on the RTR 160.

Looking through MouthShut, there are over 200 reviews who together rate the Apache RTR 160 a 4/5 on mileage. Customers who have reported the mileage on the site claim the city mileage to be around 50 kmpl while the highways mileage has been reported to be 55 kmpl. The fuel economy reported on the city though goes down to as low as 40 kmpl on some reviews. So overall, one can say that the realistic mileage for city conditions is anywhere between 40-50 kmpl while that on highways is around 55 kmpl.

On Olx, the mileage reported by various customers selling their Apache ranges between 35-55 kmpl. That’s a huge variance and so if you are looking for more specific numbers be rest assured that the customer reporting 35 kmpl definitely looks like an outlier and so the average mileage you may expect is likely to be between 40-50 kmpl.

So should you go for an Apache RTR 160? Well, the bike has other complaints like significant vibrations at high speed. The mileage doesn’t seem to be a great problem given the fact that bikes in this segment tend to do worse than this. So our recommendation would be to go through the product reviews of other bikes, take this one for a test drive as well before deciding on a bike. Here is a summary of all mileage reviews

Source	City Mileage (kmpl)	Highways Mileage (kmpl)
Official	–	54
MyIndiaGuide	50	—
Yahoo Answers	50-55	—
PriceArena	50	—
IndiaMart	42	54
BikeAdvice	56	—
BharathAutos	45	50
IndianDrives	50	—
MouthShut	40-50	55
Olx	40-50	—

TVS Jive

TVS Jive was launched in 2009 along with TVS Wego that we discussed not too long ago. Branded as the “no tension bike”, the Jive is India’s first auto clutch bike that comes with the ability to stop and start at any gear, an anti-stalling mechanism and rotary gears. The TVS Jive is powered by a 110cc 4 stroke engine delivering 8.4 PS max power and 8.3 Nm torque. Launched at the entry level, the bike is targeted at the first time drivers who could be the perfect audience for a bike that simplifies riding. The TVS Jive is available at an ex-showroom price of Rs. 45, 160 at New Delhi.

TVS Jive Expected Mileage

We have discussed quite a few entry level bikes in the 100cc-110cc range and one thing that is spectacular among all of them is the expected fuel economy. There are a lot of bikes that claim to offer over 80 kmpl of mileage and those like the Yamaha Crux in fact offer close to 91 kmpl under standard conditions. TVS Jive is in the good range too. According to TVS, the Jive can deliver 82 kmpl mileage under test conditions. As we saw with the earlier reviews, do note that the test conditions are very different from the real world driving conditions and so the mileage you see on road may not be the same.

TVS Jive Customer Reviews On Fuel Consumption

According to BikeAdvice, the TVS Jive can deliver close to 65 kmpl under real world city driving conditions. The website calls this performance lower than what the CB Twister offers, although our aggregated review showed a mileage of only about 55 kmpl on city roads for the CB Twister.

Looking at the user reviews on MaxAbout, it looks like the mileage fluctuates quite a bit on different speeds. Riders using the bike optimally can expect between 60-65 kmpl of mileage. But the mileage may be low in the first few days of purchase or under inoptimal bike speeds (not in the 40-60 kmph range) where the mileage may drop down to 40-45 kmpl.

This could explain the reason why some test drives have showcased lower mileage on the Jive. WheelMela report a mileage of 54 kmpl on the bike while a customer on ComplaintsBoard reports a mileage of 50 kmpl. But looking at the differences in the mileage observed, it is best to gauge a crowd opinion from a reviews site like MouthShut.

Looking in here, there are 28 reviews with an overall fuel consumption rating 4/5 for the Jive which is pretty decent. But the actual reviews gets one confused. There is a fair distribution of reports that claim mileage of anywhere between 38-45 kmpl and those that report over 60kmpl of mileage. It’s not that the latter are not reporting city mileages. In fact a few of those reviews actually commend the bike as a perfect commute in city traffic. I am as confused as you are.

As expected, Olx does not contain any of these reports of low mileages. The fuel economy as reported by people trying to sell their bike is consistently in the 50-60 kmpl range.

Here is a snapshot of what various websites say –

Source	City Mileage (kmpl)	Highways Mileage (kmpl)
Official	–	82
BikeAdvice	65	—
MaxAbout	60-65	—
WheelMela	54	—
ComplaintsBoard	50	—
MouthShut	38-45 & 60+	—
Olx	50-60	—

TVS Jive comes with a number of features that make commuting easy on a city road. However, going by the varying reports, I am really not sure if the bike can or does deliver the expected mileage of around 65 kmpl on city roads. If that’s not the case, it’s a pity considering this is an entry level bike where the focus is on mileage. I would say, take your chance.

Bike Model	Average City Mileage (kmpl)
TVS Jive	50
Yamaha Crux	55-60
Hero Passion X Pro	60-65
Honda CB Twister	55
Bajaj Platina	60
TVS Star City	60-65
Honda Dream Yuga	50