I’m yet to make a clear-cut opinion on the Himalayan 450, but initial impressions are positive.
BHPian espraveen recently shared this with other enthusiasts.
My observations so far:
- Model: Kamet White
- Date of purchase: 17.02.2024
- Current Odometer: 1416KMs(~80% highway, remaining city traffic)
- My height: 181CMs
- Rider type: I like to have fun while riding within safe parameters (it’s my stress buster)
- Previous bike: Dominar400UG 40BHP variant, used for 36K KMs
Here are my two cents:
- Ergonomics: I am still trying to find my comfortable position on the seat. I wanted a taller bike and the Himalayan is tall. But the seat gets narrower towards the tank and also dips a bit. In addition, the fuel tank sort of bulges out to a large extent towards the handlebar. You’ll have to sit close to the tank to be able to grip it with your thighs for a proper riding position. Gripping the tank gets slightly challenging if one wants to sit a little further back. Also, one slides forward inadvertently towards the tank during the ride. I guess I need to spend a few thousand KMs more to finally get into that comfortable position (unlearning and re-learning w.r.t my Dominar400 is under process as well!)
- Handling: Surprisingly comfortable and quite precise. Both in the city and on the highway. I did not feel any difficulty even in bumper-to-bumper traffic. I am not yet doing the speeds on the Himalayan that I used to do on my Dominar400. But the Himalayan does inspire confidence handling-wise.
- Torque: I am using the first gear more than what I used to do on the Dominar400. But that has not been uncomfortable at all. The clutch and gearbox on the Himalayan are quite effortless, so no issues here. I have never stalled the Himalayan so far.
- Engine performance: I’ll be able to assess it better after crossing the 2K KMs running-in mark. I guess I may not miss the Dominar400 much here.
- Most impressive aspect is the suspension. One word for it – Brilliant! The Himalayan has transformed Indian roads into Autobahn for me, with all the undulations vanished!
- Minor issue: Noise(as if two parts are rubbing against each other during rotational movement) from the rear brake pads/disc area when coasting/during gear shifts etc i.e. when not under acceleration/throttle. It first started at around 450 km on the odometer. The technician cleaned the brake pads and said the noise is because the brake pads/discs need to be run-in as well and it will vanish after a couple of thousand KMs.The sound vanished after the 500KMs service only to return after around 1300KMs.The service technicians continued to give me the same reasoning and just asked me to wait for another thousand odd KMs. I’ll wait. Please let me know if any other member is facing this issue.
Bottomline: I am taking my time in forming a clear-cut opinion, more so because I am coming from Dominar400 with similar power output but a very different ergonomic set-up (I am a happy Dominar400 rider). But the initial impressions are positive and the rides are leaving happy memories
Accessories installed so far: RE taller windscreen (compared with stock windscreen in the pics below) and RE rally sump guard (silver) with integrated engine guard (black).
Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.
