Did u say, fly?. Review on Honda Unicorn 150 cc

What should any biker expect from a Honda stable considering their capability, popularity, leadership and the likes, is anybody's guess. Lets see what they have - in my own words.

First look - A bold and massive looking piece drawing a restless biker. Go closer and u find it gets interesting. First temptation to look underneath the seat and see how a ''Monoshock'' looks.

Hmm...except that there is just one (and not two) and placed differently, a lay man would not bring more excitement to himself. The technical differences would probably make a difference and more so to the Sales Executive who can use this as an USP.

All shades of Unicorn have a presence of their own. However, my first go is for the Grey. Start looking from the front.....hmm, I should say Honda has ''inspired'' some of this from its own creations!!!

The head-lamp looks like that of Karizma or even Dio, the console is nothing very distinctive and carries some usual stuff (Speedometer, RPM, Fuel gauge, Indicators), the switches are just good as any other bike (Pulsar's finish is the best I should say), the petrol tank is far from being mentioned, the side fairings are just ordinary again, and finally the tail-lamp....yet again inspired from Karizma. The exhaust looks a little too BIG. And last but not least, a ''No self-start'' just adds up to the list of disappointments.

Go for the ride - Simple, smooth kick....oops...u just dont realize that the engine has come alive. Its very very silent(in idle condition). It reminded me of the HH CD 100 in those far gone days. Press the gear lever down and turn the accelerator, u realise that the transition from inertia into motion has been so smooth. Get going with the gears and the ride becomes that much more softer. Ride quality, balancing, braking, torque, etc., are all in the right place. With the quoted mileage of 55-60kmpl, u just got the right bike.

Am I sounding like those FAMILY types, so far? If yes, then thats where this bike places itself.

Honda Two Wheelers India, created more waves (in our hearts) than the just struck Tsunami by announcing their launch of Unicorn - the 150cc motorbike for the Indian market. My personal feeling is that we (bike enthusiasts) should have got a better treatment. We dont need a ''Honda'' to give us the same what is already available and the worst being ''inspirations'' of its own.

Just look at this.....HONDA(parent co.) is manufacturing engines(for various needs and capacities) from decades. And now, all they do is dust out an old design drawing from their Japanese office, dress it up with the same wardrobe given to their other business partner viz., Hero Motors...and lo....call it the UNICORN. This is cheap tactics and like we all say ''taken for a ride''. This also means a lot of cost saving on their R&D....which should duly be passed on to customers. I would'nt personally go for this, just for the above reasons, though am al gso one among those millions of bikers whose dream would be to own a HONDA bike some day.

Look out for my review on LML Beamer too...:-)