Yamaha FZ16 Ownership Review by Rakesh : BikeAdvice |  |
| Yamaha FZ16 Ownership Review by Rakesh Posted: 13 Oct 2011 11:29 AM PDT
Original Source: Yamaha FZ16 Ownership Review by Rakesh from BikeAdvice.in Hey Guys! I really don't know how to write on this. I am actually not a good writer. So I would do it in a bit management style (point wise). To introduce my self. I am Rakesh Bhatia. I work with pantaloons at Mumbai and I live at Ghansoli Navi Mumbai. I own FZ16 Red. I ride to office and back home daily and its 20km one way.
How did I Choose My Bike?In good old college days I used to ride a scooter and then my Dad bought me Hero Honda Passion Plus (year 2003). I rode this bike for 3 and half year. After MBA, I got selected for my first job and that is when I decided that I will buy my new bike myself. I was posted in Mumbai.
Mumbai roads are of mixed condition. Some roads give you joy like heaven to ride on and some give you pain in your ass. I used to travel by bus from my home to office and the crowd and traffic is horrible. I always used to be late no matter how early I start. Also, I had to stand for like an hour which was very exhaustive. So I chose to buy a bike and not to depend on public transport. Here begins my research. First thing I decided was that I would go with not less than 150CC. The other factor was cost. The third factor was safety and comfort for long ride. The forth and now the most important was mileage. I came across range of bikes from 149CC to 220CC to 350CC (Enfield). Trust me I tested almost all. At first many suggested Honda Unicorn as it was trusted on mileage by many. But I ruled it out. Reason – One day I took my friend's Unicorn to drop my girl friend home. On my way back, I slipped in the muddy road and broke my shoulder. Unicorn was not safe in my experience because of its thin tyres. Then I tested Honda Unicorn Dazzler. Same engine as CB Unicorn with great looks, good mileage review and broader tyres. I somehow did not feel that rear Disc brakes were safe enough. The disc plate was small and I had no experience with Disc brakes. Also, the rider's seat was found thin, so I was not comfortable with riding it. So ruled out. Bajaj Pulsar 150CC and Pulsar 180CC were both great options. But ruled out. Reason – Bajaj Pulsar 180CC made me fall in love so I ruled out 150CC. But then during test ride (I rode my friend's bike for 40km) I did not find it comfortable. Few of my friends mentioned that Bajaj Pulsar needs too much of maintenance and engine failure is often. So ruled out both.
Now I moved to Yamaha bikes. I first tested Yamaha SZ as it was a good looking 153CC bike at very affordable price. I found it comfortable, powerful and mileage review was pretty decent. So I decided to finally pick my bike as soon as I get back to Mumbai from a short trip to my native place. To my surprise, my brother had bought FZ16 (Black) by buttering and convincing my Dad. I shared my reviews with him saying that FZ16 has the same engine as SZ and price is too high. All he did was, gave the keys of his bike to me to take a quick ride. Wow! It was so comfortable and handling was so perfect that I quickly shifted my gears to FZ16 from Yamaha SZ. Also, I like the Manly look of the bike. I guess it kind of suited me. So when I returned back to Mumbai, I made my choice that I will not sacrifice the experience for money and I placed my order. Red was my choice of colour as I did not want to offend my brother who had Black already. Note: Fazer, R15, Karizma, Bajaj Pulsar 220, Bajaj Avenger (my favourite) and Enfield (my dream) were ruled out as here the cost of experience was putting a hole in my pockets. My Experience so FarThe day I brought FZ16 at my home, my girl friend was more excited than me. I was happy that I got 1 finally from my own pocket. Like a good Indian guy, I praised God and tied a good luck thread to by bike. I gave it a name Liza. Yes I call my FZ16 Liza. For 1st 1000Km I rode the bike at not more than 40Km. For next 1000Km I took it to not more than 60Km and finally after that, FZ16 was ready for the toughest test of its time. I rode at top speed of 110Kmph and often applied brakes too hard (not at 110kmph but below 80Kmph) to test if wires and brake plate support or not. Trust me, bike does shake for a meter or two and then you gain the control soon. (Risky, do not try until the road are empty). After the accident I had lost the confidence to ride a bike in a cosy manner but FZ16's tyres and braking mechanism got my confidence back and now I can comfortably ride at 90Kmph with full control over my bike. PerformanceThe Engine: The engine of FZ16 which I must say is a world class engineering. After so many rough riding journeys and 4 months of rains at Mumbai, my Liza starts at just one push of a button. Ignition is never a problem and engine never stops no matter in which gear or speed you are riding. (If you know how to use the clutch and accelator). So far engine has not asked for any major maintenance. I just follow the user manual and recommendations by Yamaha Service Manager strictly. The Power: It goes from 0 to 50km in not more than 6 seconds and it can touch 110kmph easily. Bike does shake at 88kmph to 90kmph but once you cross 90kmph, it goes smoothly and I repeat in control. Engine makes no vague sounds even at 105kmph. But I felt some chiming sounds after 106kmph. Also, I feel that at 4th gear the pick up is less. Sudden raise of speed is not possible. But due to the mid level management of bike's engine (that is what I will call it) you can ride even at 20kmph in 4th gear. This is true. The Mileage: What do you expect from a power bike? Liza (FZ16) gives a consistent mileage of 40kmpl in city. I travel for 40km daily (From home to office and back). There is a stretch of road where for just 1km I have to ride at not more than 10kmph due to heavy traffic. Inspite of this, I get 38-40kmpl of mileage. This mean if I travel on highways Liza would run for almost 55kmpl. This is good but not great. I guess I can expect a mileage of 65kmpl on highways and 50kmpl in city. The Control: I have already spoken about this but I would like to highlight it. Tyres are really trust worthy and front disc brake is really good one to rely on. Wet roads are not at all safe for any tyre. Need to know the bike's behaviour thoroughly before riding in rains. Once you know it, you can take FZ16 at a speed of 70kmph even if its raining heavily. I love MRF tyres. The Comfort: Broad tyres bring good comfort for rider and you can go good distance without stopping. However, Only If You Are Alone. Why? The seat is pathetic for pilon rider. I wrote above that my girlfried was more excited when I brought this bike but now she hates it like anything. Rider does not realize how bad it can be for pilon rider. One of my friend whom I gave lift to his home couldn't bear the pain in his back and he got down half the way. So if you are planning to buy this bike to have a good time with your wife or girlfriend then I recommend to check if your loved one is thin enough to fit the thin pilon seat. The Lights: The head looks great and it gives a strong street bike look to FZ16. But whats the use if it is not powerful enough to lit the road. Passion Plus has better head lights. Guys, this is seriously recommended to change your head light to higher intensity before you take it on highways in night time. The tail light has good intensity and though I dont like the look of the tiny tail light, I guess it is designed in a manner to focus on huge rear tyres. So ok. Complete digital meter marking speed, fuel indicator and acceleration is awesome. No other bike in this segment has total digital meter. The Looks: Looks a big thing. Male oriented. I like it. Please see below comments as well.
The Value: The cost I believe is still high for FZ16. But I also think that the engine is worth it. Now here is a catch. FZ16 costs you 73K and FZ-S costs 75K with no good changes. Only a Visor and better color and graphic treatment. Fazer with same engine costs you 83K. Fazer has got fairing with twin head lights. Yamaha has here played with Indian market. It has segregated the consumers in three segments – Performance, Performance with good looks and Performance with great looks. I mean it could still have FZ-S at 73K and knock of FZ16 and have only two segments FZ-S and Fazer. I believe Indian audience would have appriciated that. I trust Yamaha engines and their performance but I will stand amongst the critics in this situation. This is totally personal and I mean no offense. But people here reading this would definetly be on my side. Summary
Recommendations: Buy for your own riding luxury as it is the best in 150CC segment but not if you are couple or a family. Regards, Related posts: |
| Yamaha R15 Ownership Review by Sumanth Posted: 13 Oct 2011 11:02 AM PDT
Original Source: Yamaha R15 Ownership Review by Sumanth from BikeAdvice.in I bought my R15 just more than 2 years ago. Both my bike and I have been through a lot since. Lot experience gained and lessons learnt. I hope this review will help many to make the right choices. In order to make it easier for you find what's relevant for you in this post, I have divided my write up into sections with appropriate headings so that you can just skip ahead to things of your interest.
About meWhen this bike was launched, I was in the final year of my engineering and it had been only 2 years since I learned to ride a bike! Before then, I was under the impression that my Kinetic Honda Y2K edition (2-stroke) could beat anything on the world . I learnt on a splendor and did most of my riding after that on a Pulsar 150 DTSI and Yamaha Gladiator 125. I still have good memories of all the bikes I rode in my college.
All the bikes mentioned here were used in and out by the people in my hostel. Initial ImpressionBeing a tech savvy, by nature I am attracted to high tech stuff. Almost 3 years ago, the R15 came in boasting about a lot of the technology in it. Just after its launch I got to ride an acquaintance's bike. I was still not a matured enough biker then to gauge the potential of this bike. I changed gears at low revs when riding hence the bike seemed under powered. The brakes felt exceptional. It felt lighter than it looked. I was too scared to push the bike and see how it handled etc. It would be around a year later that I actually bought the bike. Until then I just drooled over the amazing AD. Which bike?June 2009- I have secure job. I want to buy a bike! Back then I did very little internet research and did things at my whims! The bikes I considered back then:
I had a test ride of all the above bikes and decided to go with the R15. The throttle response had a marked difference over the carbureted competitors. The bike felt serious, handled well and wanted to be revved! The final on road cost came up to be around Rs.1,14,000. The run-in period of the bike was hard. The bike wanted to be revved but I had the Rpm in check for the stipulated miles. Just when was done with the run in, there was a Yamaha R15 championship taking place! Yamaha R15 ChampionshipYamaha organizes an event for R15 owners to take their bikes to the track (where the R15 belongs). For Rs.500/- You GetBike transportation to and from the racetrack to your showroom +. Your commute in a Volvo A/C bus to and from the racetrack +. Lodge accommodation for few hours to freshen up on the morning of the event +. Track fee. This is an awesome VFM package! The showroom person told me that the Rs500 they charged was only for the customer to take it seriously. Apparently lot of people enrolled and only a few turned up when it free, causing error in company’s estimate for resources. Track DayThe morning starts with the unloading of bikes from the trucks. Then you stand in a long queue to enroll. Some lucky ones get the number of their choice. All stickers have the state and a number written on it. A Lot of people keep their stickers even after they are back. There are 3 categories for race: Novice, intermediate and experts. In each you will get a practice lap and 3 race laps. Bikes are divided in heats. They provide knee guards. Then there is the state championship. This is state wise. All the bikes from a state will compete together at once. No knee guard and elbow guard were provided as too many were on track at once. This made it little dangerous. I had made friends with people who were taking part from my showroom. They were experienced people and advised me to ride safely as this was my first time and I did so. I entered the novice class and let the crowd go ahead in the start and pushing after some time. But my bike would not rev beyond 10k rpm! It just gets stuck! I thought something was seriously wrong with my bike. May be I didn't do the run-in properly! That apart, my shoe was scraping the road when I was turning! It felt a little scary. After the race I told my friends about the rev issue and that's when I got to know about the rev limiter. The stock ECU cuts off power after 9800Rpm. Then it was time for the state championship. Too many people participating at once, no knee guard provided. Since a lot of people take part in this event, there are people in all levels of competency. I.e. You will surely find someone who is at your level to compete. There was one person, closely following me. At one of the turns, he was catching up and suddenly I heard a thud sound and when I looked back, he had crashed! By now I had realized that I need to keep my toe on the foot pegs when cornering and slight body displacement and knee out would keep me from scraping the road. Now, there was another competitor on my tail. We were neck to neck but at one corner he managed to get ahead of me but only to go out of track. So I regained my position WRT him. After the race I met up with him to hear his side of the story and had a good laugh. All in all, it was a good track day. The prizes of the events could be called decent. They gave out coolants, engine oils, brake pads, Yamaha T-shirts, etc. I really recommend this event for anyone who has an R15. People have a lot of things to take back from this experience. I learnt some lessons on handling. One of my friend said riding on the tracks make him calm when riding on city roads. Looking back, it was too early for me take the bike on track. I didn't know the potential and limits of the bike back then. I went without expectations and came back with lot of experience. I must say that the bike has gotten me out some situations which seemed impossible escape! With time I started to l understand the bike better. This bike teaches the aspects of cornering. In time, I got to know the limits of this bike and started craving for more. Daytona Engine Kit ReviewI am sure there are a lot of people out there who start looking for something more from the bike after some time no matter what bike and how good it is. When the Daytona kits arrived, I was already craving for more power! I was one of the first few to experiment with this kit as soon as it was launched. I flushed all my savings to buy thing. I only purchased the engine kit. 37k INR for Dagrex exhaust, racing camshaft, racing ECU and fitting charges! It cleaned up my savings x-). I took an off that day and got it fixed at BangaloreWheels. I stayed there morning to evening, even though I was the first to come in the morning they made me wait while servicing the bikes that came after mine. The bike was ready! I hopped into it and went for a spin and came back disappointed. I thought they didn't fix it properly, but the mechanic said he was sure everything was done properly. They had even perforated the air-filter box cover for more flow of air. The bike had no power until 6-7k rpm. It wouldn't move until you rev that high! I made a lot of noise (irritating, fart like). It was a petrol glutton! Vibrated like hell after 10k rpm. Reached 136kmph (speedo) upright with pillion, didn’t push more as the pillion was scared. A few days later went back to the service center and told them my issues and asked them to remove everything but the ECU. They removed only the exhaust and returned the bike to me. The bike was much better now. The vibes were reduced, initial pickup improved making city ride tolerable again. I rode the bike in this configuration for a few months. I started to understand how the individual parts of the engine kit impacts the performance.
The Daytona cam reduced the initial torque and gave a maddening torque after 7k rpm pulling insanely towards redline. It requires getting used to shifting gears to remain in sweet spot. The Daytona ECU performed same as stock but extended the rev limit to 12.5k, but for some reason lost to the stock ECU in mid range power. The Daytona exhaust caused vibration with full engine kit combo, but was comfortable when I removed the Db killer. Db killer is used to keep the noise down on free flows, but it makes the noise more shrill and intolerable. Finally I had the set-up which gave me the most satisfaction. Daytona exhaust + Daytona cam + stock ECU. Here is a video link to my top speed run with the above setup: Amazing isn’t it? Touching the rev limiter in 6th gear @ ~ 9800 rpm doing a 148kmph (speedo). My camera could only record video for a minute, I did hold that speed for a long time, even on an uphill incline! Talking about top speed runs, this what I have realized from my runs: Bikes also have moods swings. Bangalore is not the best place to test the performance of bikes. Same bikes do better in Mangalore, Chennai etc. Bike runs the best in first run when the engine has just warmed up. Bike rolls better with more air in tires. Speedo error varies with your tire pressure. Never check tire pressure just after a top-speed run as the air inside will be very hot hence showing a very high value. Remember that all recommended tire pressures are cold air pressures. I also tried a k&n rc1060 sometime, It improved the initial pickup little bit, made no difference to my top end whack. Race Concepts TuningWith time, I got tired of this setup. I started to look on the internet for further options. That's when I found Joel, who tuned bikes for the ten10 racing which took part in FMSCI championships. Got the following modifications done to the bike. Big bore-piston 165cc, done 10k+ to date. A street camshaft. Exhaust with a wider pipe than the Daytona. I sold the Daytona exhaust to some lucky guy for 8k!
The bike was now a street scorcher! The cam I was running was not aggressive. I missed the short temper of the daytona cam. This cam gave me enormous initial and midrange pick up, requrired less frequent gear shifts. You could twist the throttle at any gear any rpm and the bike would move. Many a times I would be 6th gear when doing 30 odd kmph. The engine braking was almost gone! The best part was that I was getting an efficiency of 50 kmpl! no joke! This setup is the most satisfying setup till date. City rides were never this comfortable. My Bike’s Current ConfigurationFor want of more top end power I got the things changed again on the above setup. Aggressive cam, makes the bike more peaky. Simota air filter. Head work. A stiffer clutch spring that makes gear shifts more notchy (less slip) and reduces clutch wear. Stiffer valve springs to avoid valve floating at high revs. A Programmable ECU for appropriate fueling for the engine.
It is a performance you can only understand when you ride and hard to put into words. I am yet to take a good video on this setup. Here is a video of a casual run when I was testing my new action camera: The camera I used with suction cup mount.
Stock Bike Performance Review…ProsIt's the cheapest SBKish bike. Just take it for a spin and you will realize that all the Indian bikes lack something important that this bike has. The way it engages the rider is awesome. It has got Exceptional handing, brakes, road grip (dry conditions), high speed stability. No matter what speed, the bike is very stable and inspires confidence while taking corners. This is mainly due to the delta box frame and the stiff suspension setup. It has a rev friendly motor, is fun on open roads and curves like no other Indian bike. Good throttle response and No cold start issues thanks to EFI (Electronic Fuel Injection). The good handling and light weight helps you to assume control even when the tires slip. Good top end whack for the segment. I had managed a 145 kmph (speedo). Solid fairing and body, makes absolutely no noise even if a few nuts and bolts are missing. 2 years of abuse and the bike still doesn't make any noise when I jump potholes. Good head lamps (If properly setup. Each reflector has 3 screws to set up orientation). ConsTire grip performance is somewhat like slicks. i.e exceptional in dry conditions, but poor in wet and gravel. The rear tires don't have groves in the center. In wet conditions, you are more like to slip when upright than when leaning! low-mid range torque is lacking, so you need to rev hard to extract the 17bhp power. Its not the ideal bike for prolonged ride in city traffic. The design of the bike is such that you must lean forward to reach the handle bar. It is a very aggressive seating, good for proper roads but sure pain on bad roads. Pain in upper back, neck, and palm can be felt when riding for a long duration in non-ideal conditions. Power is not the best in segment, i.e. Pulsar 220 has more power. Suspension is not great when riding with a pillion, especially if the pillion is heavier than the rider. Spares are little expensive compared to other bikes in the segment. If you observe the cons, you will realize that they are not due to design negligence from the company. These cons are also responsible for the pros above and together make up the character of the bike. Fuel Efficiency35~40 kmpl, don't know if this is a pro or con. Tuning and Performance OptionsThis bike has inspired a lot of outfits to come up with aftermarket tuning option for the bike. Race Concepts
HelSteel braided brake lines: Better braking feedback. Website
DaytonaChain sprocket options if you want to trade between speed and power. Engine kit that I mentioned above. Bigger front disks with fancy reservoir. Quick throttle: (60 degree operation I think..) etc. Cosmetic changesI am very obsessed with performance upgrades. In fact, when I see a figure Rs.****, my mind immediately converts it into the performance options for my bike. Example: 5k ~ Daytona chain sprockets, 4k ~ steel braided brake lines, 600 ~ AGIP full synthetic engine oil, etc. Cosmetic changes don't normally captivate me, but still I have tried a few. Projectors + HIDLong back, through internet I had found someone who puts projector assembly inside the stock headlamp assembly. I had to send the stock assembly to Chennai and few days later he sent them back. He had put in Skoda laura projectors and his own unique "Angel Eyes" which I didn't care about. My only concern was the road visibility. The projectors have a shield inside that cause a clear cut-off in the light patter so that you don't harm the visibility of the oncoming traffic. So the orientation of the projects is crucial if you want the maximum benefits. When I received the headlamp, the cut-offs were at an angle and the visibility was poor. Even though the projectors were fit into the stock reflector, no amount of adjustment could compensate for the error in projector placement. You can see in the pictures the cut-off is not horizontal. In the picture the error is less exaggerated. On road, it was at a much steeper angle. I made my issues clear and he offered to change them for free. This time he put sonata projectors. They were huge and better too. The cut-off was horizontal alright, but they were pointing upwards this time and the road was not much visible. Then I put HIDs 4300k. I preferred 4k color temperature HID as they produce a good visible pattern on road. Higher color temperatures like white, blue etc, do not light up the road well and also trouble the oncoming traffic. Now, there was light everywhere! Literally everywhere. I assume it must have affected oncoming traffic a lot. So I removed them. If you ever plan to get projectors for your bike do make sure they have correct orientation.
LED Twin LightsThis is available in many places and many varieties. No risk here. LED Tail LampI had tried a DIY for this but I always ended up burning the LEDs. So, I tried a solution that I found on the internet. I found stock replacement LED tail lamp bulbs. They fit into the same socket and have two brightness levels, easy enough. I bought red ones so that I can remove the red plastic inside the tail lamp assembly. See the pictures. It is not great, but more unique. It had a side effect on my service lights though. Every time I hold the brakes the twin lights turns on. Now I call this a feature. I have put up a picture of the LED bulb with the stock bulb.
Tank PadA friend gifted me this.
What's a review without comparison?I have only compared against bikes than I have driven enough to compare. R15 vs R15 v2I test rode the V2 recently. During the test ride, I was ripping the bike and the showroom guy managed to hold on without laying a finger on me! But seriously, no grab rails? It's a problem unless your GF is the only one who sits behind. The seating is better for the rider in v2, somehow feels more settled and comfortable. Better stoppies in v2 because of broader front tires. The obvious good looks. But I don't need the extra weight and the fat rear tire thank you! I still prefer previous version. But I want the rear section with cool LED tail lamp and number plate holder! hmm… v2 is not bad after all. R15 vs P220
R15 vs CBR250RThe CBR has plenty of torque and power, not too much, not too less, just about right for Indian roads. While taking corners at high speeds, CBR's suspension felt a little spongy. The R15 is better here. But the CBR's suspension and tires make it way better in taking on bad Indian roads than the R15. The CBR comes closer to R15 than any other bike in terms of handling! More tech than the R15: DOHC, closed loop FI with O2 sensor, C-ABS too. It is significantly heavier than the R15. Over all, I feel the CBR is better suited for Indian conditions (excluding economic conditions). I hope you found some useful lines. Please comment. Discuss about this review in the BikeAdvice Forum - Exclusive Thread. Regards, Related posts: |
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