MS members,
This is my second review of this bike. Do read my first review.
My first review was written when the bike was 6-7 months old and had clocked some 7000-8000 KM. Now in a sequel to the first one :D, I wanted to give a review on prolonged usage of this bike.
Before going forward with the review, I want to clarify the following things :-
1.) I am not a bajaj fan
2.) Discover 150 is not my brain child
3.) I dont get any royality for praising bajaj :P
4.) There wont be any tech specs in this review. You can find those in the bajaj website and several other web sites. I will mention just my experiences and give some performance and maintenance tips that will help the readers to extract maximum juice from this machine.
So, it is more that 1 year I bought this bike ( In June 2010), Before this I used to ride Hero Honda BLUNDER ooops Sorry Splendor for 3 years which clocked 35000 KM and gave average fuel economy of 45-50 KM/l. Yeah you read it right, a moped type of bike which was powerless and gave pathetic fuel economy and used to make GRINDER type of sound when driving.
Literally I was fed up with BLUNDER and the 100cc Name. Enough is enough I thought and sold it second hand for 25, 000 INR to a friend of mine. And I thought I will upgrade from 100cc to 150 cc or 135 CC for more power and decent fuel economy.
So my requirements were as below :-
1.) Enough power in the engine to Pull me( I am 6 feet and 85 KG)
2.) Acceptable riding comfort and driving posture.
3.) Decent Fuel economy (50-60 KM/L with 150 cc engine is a dream)
4.) Engine Durability and low maintenance
So the plan was there, I was fully energized , ofcourse chap, you are buying a new bike and this time around I had more and better options. I did a full market research and brainstormed a lot of brands.I did some 30 Test drives( yes you got it right, 30 test drives and there is a reason which I will reveal shortly) for the shortilisted bikes. Arrey , I didn't tell you the shortlisted bikes yaar and their rejection reasons also, below are they
1.) Suzuki GS 150 R :- Decent and a different bike, has a 6th gear, suzuki is a world class name. BUT, spare part availability is a heart attack with suzuki and no Good mechanics outside for suzuki bikes.
2.) Honda Unicorn :- A GEM in 150 cc segment. But waiting period is variable you can get it in 3-4 months or you have to wait for almost an year to get it. NONSENSE, who will wait that long for a bike.
3.) Yamaha FZ :- Suitable only for single riding and has TOILET seating. Has a VERY Flat rear tyre and gives an amazing mileage of 30-35 KM/L :P . So rejected without even a test drive
4.) Bajaj Pulsar :- There are more Pulsars than people living in Hyderabad and my Girlfriend was against pulsar so no consideration
5.) Hero Honda Hunk and CBZ :- Sorry no hero honda after pathetic experience with HH BLUNDER
6.) TVS Apache :- Again My girlfriend was against it, so didnt condsider it :(
6.) Bajaj Discover 150 :- HEY HEY , I got a laugh at first look, I thought bajaj was selling 100 cc discover by just adding "150" sticker at the end. I jokingly asked the salesman, IS this a new trading trick by bajaj?? He answered Sir take a test drive and then give your opinion. I said okay and took it for a test drive of 4-5 KM's. Mann, I couldn't believe my senses. It was so nimble and engine was so responsive, handling was never so easy with bajaj.I asked the salesman about the specs. When he said that it gives a mileage of 60-65 in PROPER DRIVING CONDITIONS I thoguht he was joking. I took the quotation for discover 150 and left.But the ride feel was still present in my hands. I thought I will take a test drive at a different Show room's to negate my first opinion.
Now , I said I took 30 test drives right, the reason is test drive bikes are well tuned and Showroom guys tempt buyers with them , so I took almost 10 test drives of Discover 150, 10 of unicorn and 10 of suzuki from different showrooms. As Honda and suzuki had their share of problems, I decided to zero in on discover and bought it from Sri vinayaka Bajaj, Kachiguda , Hyderabad.
Now that I have it since more than one year, below are the negatives and positives about it on prolonged usage
PROS :-
1.) Sexy engine and pick up. Has even amazed Karizma owners at signals
2.) Best engine bajaj ever produced as it is fitted with catalytic converters.Better than a pulsar and silent like a tiger waiting for its prey
3.) Homely Girls(Like my girlfriend :P) tend to have a liking for discover
4.) icing on cake, mileage of around 55-60 KM/l in city driving for a 150 CC . WOWW http://www.........
CONS :-
1.) No looks and No digital meters
2.) Very Light weight
3.) Allergic to CASTROL engine oil and any 20W40 Grade engine oil.
But after 15 months of usage and clocking 15000 KM, this machine is worth every pie spent on it.Top speed I went was 90 KMPH (my GF was on board and she was screaming to reduce the speed so didn't cross 100 :) :) :) ) and it took around 10 seconds to go from 0-90 KMPH speed.No mileage issues and no spare part issues.On the whole, a satisfying product
Some maintenance and must do tips :-
1.) For the run in period use Mineral engine oil MAK 4T 20W50 Grade oil for necessary wear and tear.(This is must for decent performance in later stages).Never cross 40 KMPH speed in run in period
2.) During run in period, Strictly use mineral engine oil and drain after 1000 KM
3.) After 6000 KM of driving switch to Semi Synthetic like Valvoline 4T premium 20W50
4.) Increase the drain interval of engine oil from 1000 KM to 2000 KM for Semi synthetic
5.) After 10000 KM of driving Switch to fully Synthetic Motul 300V 15W50 Engine oil. This stage u can drain the engine oil after 5000 KM interval.
6.) Servicing interval should be every 4000 KM
ALWAYS Use 20W50 Grade Engine oil Meant for Bikes and not cars only. Never Put Castrol GTX and Castrol Activ.This bike is allergic to Castrol as I have mentioned.
I followed the above techniques and I reaped maximum benefits from Discover 150.
Do comment in case of any queries and I would be happy to help you out.
