Our Pulsar 180 UG3 aka The Red One!

In the month of August, 2005 Nitin bought/ gifted/ overspent on (ignore whichever you think is not right) himself a Pulsar 180 UG3. We all went along and watched her being coated with teflon before she was taken home. Fond memories those are.

Almost 2 years and more importantly, 30, 000 kays on the odo have gone by. The front rubber has been upsized to a 90/90 - 17" and the rear to a 120/80 - 17". The rear Dunlop is a great tyre and is softer than the MRFs and offers great grip on the tarmac. However, due to the increased contact patch, acceleration has gone down a tad. The bike still runs well and crisp but there are things that have been disturbing. The piston and the cyclinder assembly had to be replaced and this time, we ran it in as well as we could. The exhaust went bust and got the axe for a new unit (thanks for the warranty dudes) and small bits here and there have been issues on and off!

Nitin was actually planning a bike build off on The Red One some time back. It was a wishlist comprising of suspensions from the Xtreme, the smoothness of the Motor from the Unicorn and things like that. Good that we don't rack up any major money at Monoshock else thats where it would have gone.

The point that we want to make is, Bajaj has a great bike in the P180, but durability is an issue that cannot be swept under the rug. Service her and she runs like a dream the first day. From then on its a downhill journey as far as feel and refinement are concerned. She is ageing and its showing. For something thats 2 years old, we think its not a good thing. Upgrades are a great idea. So are cosmetic changes, but is there a substitute to great build and engineering quality? We guess not!

Services every month are expensive and if you add up everything Nitin has spent on her over the last 2 years to keep her in great shape, it will be close to a small fortune! Bajaj, please put a smile back on our faces. You may be distinctly ahead, but don't leave us old customers behind.

For all those who are gaping at this in denial, try a Unicorn after 20, 000 kays and a Pulsar that has done the same. It will be self explanatory!