The moment you sit on it, the first thing you notice is the seat. It is reworked and feels like a sofa. I ended up riding some 90kms and did not feel any hint of discomfort
BHPian Grimlock recently shared this with other enthusiasts:
Rented the 210 for a day, and here are some observations on the bike.
For reference, I have ridden the older 200 4v rally edition for about 5k kms and had tested the 210 twice before renting this one out.
The first time I rode the 210, I was not impressed – It was vibey at low speeds, became smooth as it picked up the pace, but there was a lag in the way it picked up speed – compared to the Xtreme 250 R that I rode immediately after it. The second one had done 1.8k, and it felt much better. The vibration was minimal, and it felt like it picked up speed normally.
This bike I rented had done 2.7k on the odo and had finished its first service. Someone before me had rented it out and had a lot of fun in the rain, by the looks of it. The lower half of the bike was completely covered in mud, and there was some spray that had dried out on the upper half.
How does it compare to the older 2004v?
The moment you sit on it, the first thing you notice is the seat. It is reworked and feels like a sofa. I ended up riding some 90kms and did not feel any hint of discomfort. Longer rides might cause discomfort as it is on the soft side. I remember the time I first sat on the older Xpulse – It felt like a wooden bench compared to the 210. Ergos are nice. Wide handlebars that can be adjusted – moved forwards / backwards as per reviews. The new tank allows you to kind of hold it tightly with no issues at all. Neat, modern-looking matte-finished color TFT that displays quite a lot of info. It looks legible and I particularly like the prompts it makes to shift gears, Hero’s version of eco indication.
While on the way to fuel up I noticed the footpeg rubber on the left was missing. Perhaps it had fallen off in the off-roading session the previous chap who rented it did. It turned out to be a good thing in the end – more later.
So how does it feel?
It is fun. First thing I noticed is that the refinement is good – this coming from a Honda fan. Extremely minimal vibes while puttering in the city and the engine is tractable. It seems like it does sit at a default 3k rpm on the move and there is no resonance vibration felt, unlike the old engine. It is smooth until 7k rpm. The gearbox is top–notch. Easy, satisfying shifts all the time. I did have a hard time finding neutral while stopping at signals, but I think that is because the bike was dirty, and the chain was caked with dirt.
I completely let go of the clutch while stuck in stop-go traffic, and the bike does a constant 7 to 8 kph without stalling. The clutch did feel a tad bit on the heavy side compared to the second test ride unit. I found myself regularly in a gear or 2 above normal and it picks up pace nicely. I really liked the in-gear rolling acceleration of this bike. The suspension setup + this engine in the city makes this a riot to ride in the city.
How is it on the highway?
Compared to the old 200 4v- much, much better – The older 4v started buzzing at 75, and initially, the 210 felt the same. It became a little unsettled while speeds were closing in on 78 to 80kph.
Then I noticed that the left peg, which had the missing rubber, felt much more refined than the right peg with the rubber. After stopping and removing the rubber, the bike felt way better. Easily butter–smooth until the 90kph to 100 kph range, where the tacho gets close to hitting 7k rpm.
At 90 to 100kph, the handlebar starts to become a bit buzzy. The pegs still feel okay. It is not vibey to an extent that it rattles you. I did not go above those speeds as it was a new unit and felt a bit guilty of whacking this motor to those RPM’s the short time I had on the bike. Can those speeds be sustained?? Definitely. A person with a higher tolerance for vibration can hold those speeds all day. I felt myself cruising at a 80 to 90 kph happily as the engine felt butter smooth, and the bike effortlessly accelerated to those speeds. Something that the older 200 engine could simply could not do.
The suspension also felt surprisingly a lot better (softer) than the rally edition. One of the first things I did was to head over to the nearby colony blessed with Kavery 2.0 work – Deep ridges, every 10 feet and the bike expectedly sailed over it all, no problem. For once I felt enthusiasm to hit the usual roads where I usually dread to go over after a long day at the office.
Being on the softer side, It does feel like the rear bottoms out while coming down those steep ridges, but I cant confirm it.
Handing – 10/10. Very engaging handling at speed. The older unit handled surprisingly really well, and this one does the same. Only con is that 21-inch wheels don’t want to in a straight line in bumper-to-bumper traffic, always want to go either direction all the time. Straightens out while speed increases though.
Lighting – the newer unit with the 2 tiny projectors(?) at the bottom, are not shabby at all. The older 2004v is a candle compared to this newer unit. Adjust and turn on the high beam and it has both intensity and reach.
Mileage – The console showed 34 to 35 kmpl, and it looks like the reserve is 2.6L, and the bike had just hit the low fuel warning while I was returning it. Some rough math gave me a number of 40 kmpl. Decent.
Overall, I feel the 210 is comprehensively better than the 2004v. The seat is better, the display is modern, the engine is also great. With the way it accelerates, doing and holding highway speeds is much easier than with the older engine. This has dual-channel ABS that helps it brake confidently as well. In the older bike, the rear just locked up on corners / muddy roads, leading to some dangerous situations. This is was a much-needed feature and is fixed now.
Cons –
Minor cons –
- This being a liquid-cooled unit does tend to let off hot air onto the underside of the left thigh, it is ok when the temperature is cool, it can get annoying in the summer.
- This rental bike cranked while in gear, when the clutch is not even pulled in. Haven’t experienced this kind of thing on other bikes.
- General anxiety with the tube tires, I do hope Hero can somehow pull off reasonably priced tubeless spokes.
- The bike i rode ended up losing a nut that holds the clutch lever somewhere and the bolt would have come loose if i hadn’t noticed it at a signal. Looks like there is a need to keep an eye on nuts and bolts now and then.
- No center stand? with these tires?
Major cons –
With a Hero you don’t know what you are getting. I mean, why do Hero bikes have different personalities? Why did the unit that had crossed 5k on the odo feel slightly more vibey compared to ones that has run lower? Why can’t Hero keep their quality consistent? I did test ride the Xtreme 250 also, it too showed the same trait. Both bikes had varying levels of vibration between them.
There are quite a few videos on YouTube where users are facing multiple punctures in a short amount of time. It seems like there are instances of bent rims, tappet noises, even rusting and instances where the clear coat on the plastic is peeling off after a wash. There was a user who pointed out some 20 issues on his new bike. Granted, most minor, but also some major ones, like the oil pump failing. On a new bike, this kind of thing shouldn’t be happening. Hero does offer a 5-year / 75000 km warranty on the bikes. I hope they are generous in fixing the complaints of people who buy the initial batches.
I am thoroughly impressed by the bike, but is it worth risking somehow running into the above bugs and living with the general anxiety that comes with tubed tyres?
Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.
