Jul 09, 2018 04:34 PM
4227 Views
I purchased a Thunder Bird 500 back in January 2018 and so far it is perfectly fine, apart from regular services, no visit to the service center at all, hopefully, it continues. And I've to tell you, my experience at Royal Enfield showroom here in Yelehanka, Bangalore was really wonderful, they delivered the bike in just about 20 days. Maybe the attitude changes from place to place, people to people and showroom to showroom, again I must be just lucky here too.
My Decision to purchase a Royal Enfield:
Frankly, I never had a dream or plan to buy a Royal Enfield but it was my wife who loved Bullets(she rode with her father/brother since her childhood) and she took me to a Royal Enfield showroom here for a test ride! When I did a test ride of TB, I felt like it is a perfect suit for me.
RE Maintenance:
I've many maintenance tips those I found from my own researches and I'm following those. You could find many of those by googling. But that is probably because I'm a vehicle enthusiast, not everyone will like it or want to follow it. I own 4 vehicles including TB 500 and I maintain my all vehicles very well, my 8 yrs. old Honda Dazzler is still in intact even though Honda stopped production of this model! Maintain your vehicles like your kid irrespective of the Brand/Age or any other consideration. My father used to say if you care about your vehicle, it will care for you, an unwritten law for all vehicle lovers.
My Experience so far:
My experience with TB so far is pretty excellent, I can safely say that my TB 500 is a real beast on Highways and it is really meant for Highway touring, it is a different level, but definitely not like a sporting/superbike. I ride my vehicles calmly, not at all with a racing mind. That doesn't mean that I don't speed up my vehicles, I do speed up but only when I feel the road is safe to do so. I don't really much care about the mileage, but I do care about safety/comfort and some features. TB 500 so far serves almost all my purposes if not everything.
Safety:
One of the things worth a mention is about my safety feeling. With my TB, I feel much safe on roads especially on bad roads, I can ride through an average pothole without the fear that it may skid or fall. I'm not sure if this is just a feeling of my mind or it is really true because I never saw someone says this but it is my feel and inner instinct when I sit on it and ride through. Apart from that, when I commented about safety, your eyebrows must have raised, because it doesn't have ABS. Yes, it doesn't have ABS but it does have double disc brakes, which is enough if you ride decently and know how to apply the disc brakes properly. Moreover, many people don't know that breaking efficiency is more in non-ABS disc breaks, eyebrows raised again?:):):) Yes, I meant it, check anywhere, you will find average stopping distance for ABS is always a little more. But ABS prevents wheel lock, which is the critical and important fact and it has a lot of importance especially in case of light weighted vehicles. In the real world of Bullets, it has more weight and since it can't ride at super high speed, chances for wheel lock is comparatively lower(I won't say it won't lock, but chances are pretty low) compared to other light weighted bikes. So I would say, if you ride responsibly and if you properly apply your double disc brakes, it will be enough here. And I do remember someone commenting on one of the videos that the REs have fewer accidents compared to other bikes according to various statistics, I believe it is true.
Advise to Prospective RE buyers:
DON'T buy an RE if you fall into ANY ONE or MORE of the categories below:
Have no patience
Fan of quick Acceleration and need for speed.
The primary intention is to use it for daily commuting especially in cities.
Need Most Innovative styling and features, no passion for retro styling.
Don't have time to care for the vehicle, REs Made of metal - and the metal rusts if you don't care, seriously!
Care about Mileage returned.
Need lightly weighted bikes.
Buying a bike with all your savings so far.
You are not a meticulous one.
A Penny-pincher.
You are a short person.
In my opinion, we shouldn't try to compare/ride/maintain Royal Enfields like any other sports/commuting motorbikes. It doesn't accelerate or speeds like a sports bike and yes, it is heavier. You will need a lot of patience and care for Royal Enfields, if you are not ready for it, then just forget about it, there are many other very good bikes around us with a lower price tag, good mileage, value for money etc. just go for it.
Go for an RE only if your height is 5.5 or above and YOU ARE OPPOSED/OPPOSITE TO first 10 POINTS ALTOGETHER ABOVE. Your answer is most likely be a BIG NO, but if it is still YES, then GET READY TO TASTE A DIFFERENT WORLD OF POWERFUL MACHINES AND ITS FEEL!
Last thing:
I spent almost 2.5Lakhs(Onroad+ 3yrs insurance+ some accessories) to get this TB 500.
I mentioned this to tell you that REs are cheap!
WOW! EYEBROWS RAISED AGAIN!
Yes, I meant it, why I'm telling you this is if you try to purchase a 250 CC bike from Honda, that itself is costing much more than an RE. Not even need to mention about Harleys here as you should already be knowing. I'm not saying REs are value for your money or something, it may or may not and don't expect top notch quality like international brands and even those have problems too. These are all man-made and prone to errors/defects. RE may have more odds compared to this brands, if you are lucky, you will probably get away with it, if not, you will become a victim. I still don't know which category I belong after a year or so:):):)
Message:
Be a responsible rider, never cause danger to other road users, safeties first, always use proper riding gears.
Happy and Safe Riding Guys!
