Royal Enfield Machismo 350cc

ENFIELD BULLET - A dream for a clan of individuals who find travelling on two wheels is much more than just reaching from point A to point B. I belonged to this clan.

Owning and maintaining a bullet is fun. Yes pains are there... but with No pains No Gains

Like every other prospective bullet owner me too had the problem of chosing between Standard, electra, thunderbird and machismo.

My reasons for chosing Royal Enfield Machismo are

1. I’m used to left side gear shift. hence standard ruled out


2. Thunderbird has got good looks. But in my eyes only the view from front was great.. In all other views any other bullet will outclass this so called cruiser, but not a complete cruiser. The bulletish look was missing. If your height is less than 5ft 6in then this is an option coz the seating is too low and both legs could be firmly put on ground, which is a must for a heavy machine like bullet.


3. So the contest in my mind was between electra and machismo... for electra the pros were bulletish thump due to cast iron engine, cons were it looks like any other 100cc bikes maybbe due to its fancy colors.... for machismo pros were the looks (no other bullet can match its retro look), the aluminium engine eventhough it lacks thump is more reliable and efficient than cast iron... I wanted to have a reliable one, coz I am not the kind of technical expert of these machines and rely heavily on mechanics advise. The cons were lack of thump.

I fitted the RE windsheild after getting the vehicle. The ride quality on a bullet is unmatched. The stability which it offers is great. The feeling which the rider gets while riding this machine can be best understood by just riding this machine. I am not going to tell in detail about the rides and its quality becoz it is known to all.

But for all this great feeling and riding pleasure there is something to be given back.. It is not a fill it, shut it and ride it kind of a bike. This machine is bound to have problems. But by careful observation, some technical knowledge upgrades and ensuring regular service can solve all these.

Some tips are given below, based on my experience.

When it comes to technical stuff I am still a novice.

1. Running in the bull is extremely critical. The power and pick up offered by this mean machine tempts the owner to ride it faster and faster from day one.. If u do this then it is gone.. Keep your fingers crossed and be ready to have a rough time with ur machine. Running in means not only to ride below a certain speed, but each gear has a maximum speed and minimum speed clearly specified in owners manual. Adhere to that and most of the problems are prevented.


2. Regular servcing is MANDATORY. Especially oil change. Once in every 3500 - 4000 km oil needs to be changed. for machismo oil level should be checked only when the engine is hot. Try to adhere to a single mechanic who is an expert. Then history of ur bull problems will be known to him. If not u should keep track of all the problems. Coz solution of similar problems in different bulls can be different.


3. Oil leaks are bound to happen. Don’t panic. Take your bull for atleast 2 or 3 long rides during the warranty periods itself. Before each ride and immediately after each ride visit the mechanic. Immediately after, means, you have to drive straight to the mechanic after the drive. When the engine is hot, tighening some screws may solve this problem.


4. Oil leaks from the right sidebox during long journeys also happens.. But it is not a problem at all. It can happen if the oil level is more than what is required. Also what is coming out is only excess oil. While replacing oil, tell your mechanic to ensure that only right amount of oil is poured. Don’t finish of the entire bottle. By careful study after 2 to 3 oil changes u will also be able to judge how much is sufficient.


5. Don’t run ur machine with loose chains. If chains are loose, the sprockets will become worn out. If chain tightness is maintained, the chain sprocket will last for 17k to 20k kilometers.


6. Try to hear the sounds produced by ur machine when it is new or just after service when it is in normal condition. Once u r familiar with this sound, atleast once in a week just try to hear this without your helmets on, to identify whether any abnormal sound is coming. There can be a hiss hiss sound of air leaking out, the chains can produce a sound if it is loose.. Spend atelast 30mins of dedicated time with your bull per week for this..


7. Never overtight the clutch screw near the clutch lever for tightening the clutch. If overtighted the clutch cable will break. If the cable is breaking frequently, during replacing check whether the cable is bent or rubbing against some metal in the clutch box. If yes do something to ensure that this rubbing is not happening viz rubber sleeve, grinding the metal to avoid touching etc


8. If windscreen is fitted, ensure that all the nuts and bolts that comes with the packing are used. The standard nuts provided are lock nuts. If other local nuts are used, cracks will soon appear. After fitting and doing some riding check whether there is any sort of scratches near the nuts. Monitor for about 100 to 1000 kms. If scratches are appearing it is symptom of wrong fitting. If continued in this mode cracks will soon appear. Take action to change nuts or put some rubber washer. I did this with good effect. If lock nuts are available in the standard package write to RE people. They will immediately help. This happened to me.


9. If lack of thump is a problem, fit a free flow exhaust. Then ur machismo will sound like thump....


10. The machismo comes with a short handle. this short handle combined with low position riders seat may not be of best match to all. If you r feeling pain in your elbow (right hand) then it be most probable due to this handle. Replace this handle with the high rise and wider handles (electra handle/ LB 500 handle/ RD 350). When handle is replaced ensure that the vibration dampeners fitted at the end of the handle is fixed. To know the effect of vibration dampener, ride ur machine with and without this, watch ur rear view mirror. U will not be able to c anything in the rear view mirror due to the vibration of the handle, if there is no vibration dampener on a bigger handle.

I started to write a small review with some useful info for prospective buyers or owners who complain about bull problems.. But I think became a rather big review, just the same way as I do my rides. Starts with some 100kms in mind, but end up doing some 500kms... with urge for more and more rides... :)...

I do not claim that what ever I have said is correct. These are the conclusions which I arrived based on my experience. Plz correct me if I am wrong in any of the judgements.

So all in all it is a nice machine to own...

Give due care to the machine and it will take care of the rest :).....

Hope this review is useful for all those looking out for a bull :)

Hyundai Santro Xing

I am going back 5 years in my memory lane to jott down why I landed in Xing. I was comfortable with my first and dearest Maruti 800 which I called the golden chariot.To explain in simple terms why I chose Santro is - I felt prey to the aggressive marketing of the local dealer and the decision was taken in 1 day and a new car was in my home the second day. Normally hasty decisions can go wrong, but to my luck this one was not to be.

The Hyundai dealer offered me a very good price almost near to the purhcase price of my Maruthi 800. This made me think seriously about buying this. Based on my one ride in a Santro of one of my friends, I was impressed with the silent cabin and jerk free ride.

Quickly browsed the net and found out that Wagon R is the nearest competitior. I called up the dealer and asked for a quote and test drive. He told me to come in the evening. But before I could do that I talked to my better half, who immediately told that, if it is wagon R , she will

better live without a car. She was completely against the boxy look. I tried to explain that feature wise Wagon R is more better. She was so adamant. In her eyes Santro was looking good. Deep inside my mind I also shared the same feeling. That is it, deal fixed and my red Santro was at my home next day.

Initial Driving Experiences.

WOW, why didn’t I take this decision long back. It is a tall car, engine is powerful, AC is quite chilling, boot space is great. Typical thoughts of a guy who just matured from a maruti 800.

Long term experience

Soon I began travelling a lot and I could identify the following pros and cons

Pros

1. 
   
   Very less maintenance - service interval 6 months, Each service cost around 1.5k to 2k. No maintenance other than this. the first major service (cost wise) is the 30K service which costs 4k - 5k.


2. 
   
   Good sitting posture - I took a liking for this posture so much that I started to hate dreaming of buying a sedan.


3. 
   
   Peppy engine (itz more peppier than Wagon R even though both share the same specs)


4. 
   
   Very small turning radius. Big rear view mirror is a boon.


5. 
   
   Very good city driving manners


6. 
   
   Excellent braking (still remember two sudden brakes from around 70ks to 0ks).


7. 
   
   Good chilling AC.


8. 
   
   Quality of interiors.

Cons

1. 
   
   As the family grew, space constraints grew up


2. 
   
   Lack of utility spaces like bottle holders began to be felt during picnics lasting for more than one day.


3. 
   
   Big A piller causes a blind spot in the right front area, as a result of which driver can miss motorbikes coming from that direction


4. 
   
   Eventhough the engine is peppy, when we get into highways we feel like we are exerting the motor too much.


5. 
   
   Even though the specification says this as a 5 seater, for long distance travel this is comfortable if there are only 4 persons


6. 
   
   I am scratching my head to find more cons - that means there are not much

Fuel efficiency: 13 to 16 km/litre

Summary

This has now become a choice for families as their first car, because of the rise in per capita stuff as is rightly shown in the Hyundai Ad

If you are looking for- an entry level model- which will not give you any trouble and- which offers decent comfort and- decent spacethis is the one to go for.

Donno how useful this review will be coz now there are lot of other options available in the 3 to 4 lakh range and the people may not opt for Santro because its looks has not changed much for the past 4 to 5 years. Still thought of posting coz my xing deservs to have a positive review :)