BHPian Vijesh L recently shared this with other enthusiasts:HistoryMotorcycling craze started when I was in my teens, looking at my brother get into touring on his CBZ Xtreme. My first two wheeler was a first gen Activa passed down from my father to my brother to me during my college days. When I was in my third year, my brother’s Cbz Xtreme was passed on to me around 2015. In the year 2016, I bought my first own bike with my own money. Ryuk – aka KTM Duke 390 (BS3). It was my companion and never let me down all through till 2024, when I decided to go for a bike which had good pillion seat. I Got married and my Wife was interested in travelling with me, but KTM made it uncomfortable for her and in turn me, on long distances. Shorter distances like 50-100 kms were fine. Sold Ryuk in Feb 2024 and the wait for next good bike began. I was hoping for any news about Aprilla Tuareg or even Triumph Tiger 400. But I was only left waiting. Not able to live without a bike made me look for best available alternatives. KTM Adventure didnt satisfy me enough as it felt underpowered and low end torque missing. My friend had a Himalayan and we had trust issues with the bike. So I decided to stay away from Royall Enfield. So I decided to test ride Triumph Scrambler. My Wife found it very comfortable and it ticked most of our boxes. So decided to buy my Triumph Scrambler 400 X – Gojo on June 7th of 2024. Gojo has been serving me really well, but after 1 year and 3 months of riding, I still was disconnected with the bike. Even though the bike ticked most of the important factors for me, the missing connection left me searching for other bikes.PresentOne fine day, myself and my friend decided to test ride few bikes. We went to Royal Enfield, where the showroom person was never interested in selling us the bikes. He had a “if they want, they will buy. Why should I push for the sales” attitude. Still we decided to test ride Guerilla 450 and Himalayan 450. The bike never felt like it will do things much better than the Scrambler 400X. Disappointed, we went reluctantly to the KTM showroom thinking the new ADV 390 is also going to disappoint us. But oh boy, I found my childish smile back the moment I sat on the bike. It was all familiar feeling again. Those 8 years of unforgettable memories with my Ryuk started coming back to me again. Discussed the price details and the asked estimated price hike due to the GST Change. Went to olx and found used Scrambler 400X being quoted in my expected price range. After giving a little bit more thought about parting ways with my 1 year 3 month old Gojo, decided to list my bike in various Classifieds. Bike is Still up for Sale. You can find more about Gojo here..DramaMeanwhile my friend also decided to buy the KTM 390 Adventure S along with me. So we went to a couple of showrooms and negotiated final prices. Bookings were done on 10th September only after they said bikes were readily available in stock. Next day we got a call saying only 1 bike is available and they will try to source from other showrooms. We had only 2 weeks before GST Change and wanted to make sure bike is registered before that. The bike that was available was invoiced to my friend because he had to book his Preferred Registration Number. Next day on 12th Of September, they called me saying no other showrooms had stock of white colour so they had placed order from KTM and bike will arrive within 3 days. Come Monday, bike was still in transit and no other updates. I was promised bike will arrive by Wednesday. I firmly said that only if my bike gets registered before the GST change, I will ask the bank to disburse the Loan. Come Wednesday the Truck was in Pondicherry and they promised it would reach Coimbatore by night. Thursday came and truck still didnt arrive. I started getting anxious. I also wanted to take Fancy registration number, but time was running out. Finally on thursday after, bike arrived in the showroom, PDI done and Invoiced. Took the documents to the RTO but it was late. Process was to be resumed on friday. On friday, the Vahaan server had a mind of its own. So we could not complete the process of getting a number of my choice. Showroom person assured me that there wont be any price changes on monday as we have already completed the Invoicing process. He also adviced me to get the registration without the prefered number. So I finally had to give in. Bike was registered on Monday, 22nd. We planned for delivery of both the bikes on 24th September. All these drama became pointless when KTM announced that it is absorbing the GST changes. Little disappointed but what is life without drama.DeliveryThe delivery experience was smooth. Arrived in the showroom along with my wife. My wife had no knowledge of me booking the bike. It was a surprise for her. She thought it was my friend getting his New Bike. It was love at first sight for her. Since entering the showroom she was going on telling that we should plan to sell the Triumph and buy the KTM. Little did she know that a surprise was waiting for her. When it was time to unveil the bike, my friends called me and my wife to unveil the second bike standing next to their bike. Thats when reality hit my wife. She was emotional. We unveiled the bikes, thanked the showroom staff and proceeded to the Eachanari Ganesh Temple for the Pooja. Finished the pooja had lunch and parted ways with my friend and his wife. First RideDecided to stretch the bike’s legs on the highways and check out the features. Me and my wife started from home around 8.30 PM and waited in our usual spot near the highway for my friend and his wife to come. We then proceeded towards Chengapalli Cafe Coffee Day, our usual hangout spot. I tried out different riding modes, throttle modes, cruise control etc. Every thing worked flawlessly and my wife was as comfortable as she was in Triumph. Infact she found the cushioning on the Adventure to be more comfortable for longer rides than in the Scrambler. Reached back home around 12.30 PM. Headlight was very bright, but need to adjust it a little downwards as its little high when riding with Pillion. There is little bit of Nose Dive on the front during braking. Need to adjust Compression and see. Second RideThe next day, I rode the bike around the city for few kms after increasing the compression by 1 Click. Nose dive has reduced a lot. Need to tinker around with the settings and see. Next day, myself and my friend decided to visit the Badhrakali Amman Temple near Mettupalayam and then proceed till Kunjappanai checkpost on the Kotagiri route. Bike handles the twisties excellently. Apollo Tramplers are excellent compared to the MRF’s on the Scrambler. We made sure not to push the bike. Bike has completed 350 Kms in 3 days. Hoping for many more happy rides with the Bike. Likes1.Happy Revving Motor 2.Electronics Package 3.Adjustable Suspension 4.Relaxed ErgonomicsDislikes1. Slightly lesser low end torque compared to Scrambler 400X 2. Vibrations at low end.(Need to give time for the engine to settle in) 3. Main Stand not being a standard part of the kit 4. Position of cruise control and Horn button should be interchanged.Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.
