The Pulsar 200 Ownership Review

Posted by Pras on Aug 7, 2009 • (1)

A man is only as good as his motorbike

You would’ve already caught glimpses of my machine on my previous posts What A Year So Far and Another Dream Come True – A Road Trip. But I’ve been wanting to write a full blown review of the motorbike for quite a while now. What better occasion than the completion of 4600 kilometers of tarmac and gravel!

The legacy of the P200

Bajaj started rolling out the P200 in 2007 along with the P220. They introduced some really cool gadgetry like DTS-i (Bajaj’s patented technology that takes care of sparking and fuel control, thereby improving efficiency and mileage), an oil-cooled engine, advanced digital dash (with 4 indicators), tubeless tyres and the landmark tank cowls, the split grab rail and the super-awesome gas canister. It ran a glorious course before becoming an organ donor for the P220. Its assembly line was plagued with issues (the suspension forks broke when riders hit hard the discs) and finally they decided to stop production altogether

What sets the P200 apart from the rest of the crowd

Personally, I believe the P200 is the best-looking bike in the Pulsar family. Its lean rider stance and minimal faring are something to die for. While the P220 is obviously on the better side of the spec-sheet, its got too much faring (think of the headlight assembly that wouldn’t move!) that pretty much kills it for many bike enthusiasts. The P200 dares to bare it all without even a cover for the chain drive! The overall black finish (wheels, engine, swing arm, et al) seals the deal.

Okay, the review part

The machine isn’t new to the market, so many already have an idea of the bike. So here comes the review of my bike. I got it in January ’09 and been madly in love with it ever since. I’m even planning to name her (suggestions welcome). Its been a real pleasure to drive the thing around from day 1. I got it serviced for the first time in 2 weeks (desperate, I know!). Gear shifting is baby-butt smooth, the stance is great (not uncomfortable at all, if someone told you so), the two-tier seats are a pleasure for both me and pillion (except mom, who needs a ladder to get on it) and mileage’s been great at around 40-45 kmpl. The trick is to never race beyond 40 kmph for the first 1000 kilometers. I know, impossible, but anyways I did that; I went to college for almost 2 months driving at 35 kmph

Remember Jason Statham’s line in The Transporter?

“In this business, a man is only as good as his car. If he takes good care of it, it will take good care of him”

So true for all machines alike. Getting your dad to buy you a great bike is only the easy part. Taking good care of it is the harder part. I’d recommend taking a half-hour of every weekend to clean your bike. I personally don’t like the pressured water-washes every week, so I clean it myself. You’ll grow to love your machine even more that way.

An experience

I’ve had some wonderful experiences with the bike, most notably the first day I ever rode it. The Adyar Probiking centre delivered the bike on the 28th of January, ’09. On my way back home, near Nandanam, it stopped and wouldn’t start. I brought traffic to a stand-still trying to drag my bike to the side of the road and then I tried starting it again and again without any luck. Remember that the P200 doesn’t have a kick lever and only sports an electronic starter (trust me, I’ve never ever had problems with starting after that day). Frustrated, I called up the mechanic who rolled out the bike for me from the showroom (luckily I got his number). After struggling to explain my geographic location to him, he came a half-hour later. When he pushed the start button, the engine fired up. I will never forget the look he gave me that day. Also, I will probably never be able to find out why that happened

Photo session

After this week’s service, the bike was squeaky clean and I decided to take a couple of pictures. I got Nachu‘s shitty camera and help to take the pictures.Check them out!