I think that I have extracted all that I could from the Himalayan 411 on road atleast (Off road is a whole different ball game).
BHPian WhiskeyTangoFox recently shared this with other enthusiasts:
This is going to be a fairly long write up, so feel free to skip through
1. What’s changed?
The Himmy crossed 20,000 Kms on the ODO recently, after a little over 2 years of ownership, and it’s been an absolute blast for the most part. Since my last update, there have been a few changes to the motorcycle of course XD. The bike now is running on an NGK iridium spark plug with a low resistance cable and a Fuel X Pro Plus. The fifth service was done at a FNG and the bike is now running on Motorex’s fully synthetic 10w50 Oil. The erstwhile HJG Aux Lamps stopped working, hence I’ve gotten the Maddog Deltas on the bike now. The windshield + extender combo was replaced with the inscape dreamz T2 windshield. The stock crash guards were replaced with the autoengina guards. And the pièce de résistance, the stock ceat tyres were replaced with Maxxis Maxxplore tyres. I’ll of course give a detailed account of each of these additions below:
2. Inscape Dreamz T2 Windshield
The New Windshield + Crash Guard and New lights
View from the cockpit!
I had the Prospec Windshield Extender attached to the stock windshield until recently, which worked perfectly fine, however was just not aesthetically pleasing to me. Further, there was always the thought of it getting stolen, that lingered in the back of my head. Whether one likes the design of the new windshield is subjective for sure, but I quite prefer it. The windshield is just as tall as the older setup (stock windshield+extender) and is just about right for my height (176 cm). The windshield however only came in a clear version, and I had to get a light smoke wrap applied on my own. The windshield was INR 3500 and came with two mounting clamps and all the little bits and bobs required to mount it, barring the screws required to bolt it onto the bike frame (You’re supposed to use the stock screws I guess). The vibrations on the windshield have reduced drastically (read next to none) and there is no noise from the setup at all.
3. Auto Engina Crash Guard
This is a fairly popular crash guard, and needs no introduction I believe, This is also a fun time to post about this owing to the crash guard shenanigans with the Himalayan 450. Nevertheless, this shouldn’t in my opinion be an issue with the 411, as it mounts on the stock crash guard mounting points, with the third support point going through a hollow bit in the chassis, and connecting to the opposite side. The weld quality is impeccable (RE should take note). The only downside to this though, is that the guard is noticeably heavy, about 4.5kgs in total.**
4. NGK Spark Plug Kit
In the quest to further the goal of improving to the engine’s performance from a refinement and riding experience perspective, the second accessory, in the three part modification series that I’d planned (where the first was the Ngage Free Flow Air Filter) was the NGK Iridium Spark Plug Kit.* I’m summarising my observations after riding for about 3000 kms in both city and highway conditions.
What’s in the Kit?
The kit contains three items namely, the Iridium Spark Plug (CR8E1X), A Spark Plug Cap and a Low resistance wire. The lower resistance theoretically means that more spark energy from the coil would reach the spark plug to ignite the air-fuel mixture in the cylinder. The kit comes at a price of INR 3,000. I ordered it from Riders Junction, who has a store in Indore. They, amongst many other’s stock these parts, of which the official importers and distributors are Ngage Powerparts. I’d advise you to reach out to Ngage via the mobile number on their website, who’ll be able to guide you to the authorised distributor in your city.
Why Iridium?
There are many theoretical benefits to switching to an iridium spark plug. I say theoretical because whether or not you experience these benefits in day to day usage, may vary. Either way, the benefits claimed are as follows:
– Increased RPM stability at Idle
– Reduction in chances of misfires
– Improved acceleration
-* Stable and improved fuel efficiency
– Better crank in wet and cold weather
– Better Combustion
Additionally, I wasn’t sure about whether these kits would be readily available in the future due to the discontinuation of the 411, further prompting me to pick it up now.
Reading the Current Plug
For context, the bike had done 17,000 Kms on the same factory bosch spark plug and this is what the plug looked like.
The carbon deposits towards the end generally are a result of the engine running richer or that the bike is used constantly at lower speeds as well (I’m leaning towards the latter owing to regular use in Namma Bengaluru). The Air filter which plays within the stock ECU’s capabilities, would have resulted in the fueling to be slightly richer than usual, but not by a lot. This can also be caused by there being a weaker ignition or an improper temperature range, all eventually leading to the likelihood of a misfire.*
Installation and Observations
I had the kit installed at my FNG. For the Himalayan, to install the wire and the cap, the fuel tank must be removed. It isn’t a particularly tedious installation, however, since the risk is high in terms of debris falling into the engine, or damage to the tread, it is advised to get this done by someone with experience, or to exercise utmost caution. The installation took 15 minutes, at a cost of INR 150.
Observation 1: The bike idles at 2,000 RPM initially before dropping down to 1500 RPM.
A gripe I had with the BS6 Himalayan is that it lacks the idle RPM adjustment screw. Due to this, the likelihood of stalling is that much more at lower speeds, which happened quite often when the engine heated up in city traffic. However, this hasn’t completely eliminated the stalling issue, which I suspect is more to do with the fueling of the motorcycle.
Observation 2: The Engine is Relatively more Rev-Happy
The engine which earlier used to want to shift between 3-4k RPM now pulls smoothly to 5,000 RPM and you can shift between the 4-5k RPM Mark without the engine feeling like its giving out all it’s got.
Observation 3: Refinement is up significantly
The vibrations and engine clatter have come down significantly.* The bike feels the same way at 5k RPM as it did at 4k RPM .
Observation 4: The Acceleration and Throttle Response is Noticeably Better
Whilst this could also be complemented by the Air Filter, there is a noticeable increase in acceleration in a smooth and linear format. The bike is also a little more eager to get going now. Its no duke, but it is better than stock. I unfortunately have no accurate means of quantifying this at the moment.
Observation 5: Surefire Crank
The bike starts on the first crank almost every time now, as opposed to the stock plug. This has remained consistent over the various Bengaluru temperature conditions over the last couple of months.
5. Fuel X Pro Plus
I got the fuel x installed at Racedynamics in Bangalore. The advertised difference between the Pro and the Pro Plus, is the supposed 25% (upto) increase in power and torque, in addition to the benefits offered on the Pro. I run the bike on Map 6/7 in the city and Map 8 on the highways. My observations in this regard are as follows, after about 2000 Kms:
Observation 1: Engine Heating
This is one aspect where I found a noticeable difference where the engine did not heat up as much. In peak traffic, the air temperature gauge on the bike (affected easily by engine temperature) used to climb up to 43 degrees celsius but now it barely crosses 30.
Observation 2: Improved Low End
There is a noticeable improvement in the low end as well (Not that the bike needed much of an improvement here anyway), but you can pretty much sit in 3rd gear for the most part now.
Observation 3: Elimination of the Stalling Issue
The infamous stalling issue is completely gone now. The RPM is stable both at crank and when the engine heats up.
Observation 4: Improved Top End
There is a marginal improvement in the top end, where the engine does feel slightly more peppy and relaxed and 100kmph. But its nothing to harp about honestly.
Observation 5: Mileage
There is a noticeable drop in mileage, I get somewhere between 21 kmpl in the city now in peak traffic (As opposed to 24kmpl), and about 25-30 kmpl on the highway (As opposed to the earlier 32-35 kmpl).
Do note that the above observations could also be due to the combined effect of the Air filter, spark plug and the fuel X. Also note that I do not have an aftermarket exhaust on the motorcycle.
6. Maxxis Maxxplore
Getting these tyres have been one of my favorite upgrades to the motorcycle. I got them installed at Madhu’s in Wilson Garden. The tyres are extremely grippy both in wet and dry conditions, however, they take some time to bed in, roughly about 100 to 200 kilometers. I replaced them roughly around the 7000 kilometer mark and they still have more than sufficient tread on them (The ODO is currently at 21,500 kilometers). I have tried out these tyres on tarmac, in slush, on sand as well as on dry ground and they are performed beautifully in all these conditions. I really have no complaints with respect to these tyres and would wholeheartedly recommend them. One thing to note is that these tires do not come with new tubes. I’m still using the existing tubes that were there in the motorcycle, but I will probably replace the tubes during the next tyre change. From what I remember, the tyres cost roughly arounr INR 7000 all inclusive (Front and Rear).
7. Maddog Deltas
The erstwhile HJG auxiliary lamps that I had were cheap but were probably not of the best quality, which I realized much later when one of the lights conked out all of a sudden. There is no warranty on those lights as well. I decided to once and for all invest in good auxiliary lights. Since my usage does not justify going for extremely high end lights, I thought that the Maddog Deltas were a good option rather for my usage.They cost about INR 7000 and since I already had a maddog switch and a maddog wire harness, everything was plug and play. You don’t need the wire harness pro for these lights as they use only about 60 Watts of power cumulatively. I also picked up the aux light filters from maddog and keep the blackout filters on in the city. I have used them on a couple of highway runs and they are extremely effective, especially given the price. Of course you can’t compare these to something that costs significantly more, like the motorfans or the bajas, but they still hold their own. They are bright enough that you can cruise at roughly 80 -100kmph on a dark highway, and can see clearly for about 100-200 metres ahead of you (This will again vary based on where you place the lights) .
8. Fifth Service
I had the fifth service done at a local FNG, where I gave him the oil (Motorex 10w50 Fully Synthetic). It was just a basic service with the oil change. I thought that I’ll save the fork oil replacement for the next service. I’m not entirely happy with the motorex in terms of its performance as I think the motul 7100, which was what the bike was running on earlier, kept the engine cooler and smoother for longer. I’ll probably try out the Fuchs Silkolene in the next service. This service cost INR 1700 (Oil Filter, Consumables and Labour) + INR 2700 (For the Oil).
9. Future Plans
I think that I have extracted all that I could from the himalayan 411 on road atleast (Off road is a whole different ball game) and I’m super happy with how things have turned out with the motorcycle. It brings me joy like no other, and has a character about it that I think no other motorcycle in its class has. I do plan on playing around with a couple of parts over the next service, like brake pads, a different chain & sprocket and possibly getting the touring seat. However in the longer run, I do wish to upgrade to a mid capacity ADV / Sports Tourer over the course of mid next year. That however is for a later date and until then, here’s to many more happy kilometres with this motorcycle I’ll leave you with some pictures XD
Tried my hand at some photo editing
From a recent ride to BR Hills
From a recent ride to Bolumalai Fort
Adventure much?
BR Hills again!
On the way to Shivanasamudra
Yours truly
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