What is the best bike to consider under Rs 4 lakh?

The next few months will be exciting, with the Harley-Davidson X 440, Bajaj-Triumph 400s, Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 and the next-gen KTM 390 Duke all incoming. But is an existing option better?

Published On Jun 05, 2023 07:00:00 AM

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I completely agree with your observations on the new Royal Enfield Classic 350, after having ridden a friend's RE Meteor 350 myself recently. These bikes are a huge improvement in comparison to the previous generation.

It would be great if you could recommend some other bikes that I could possibly test ride and then choose one. I recently went to test ride a suzuki V-Strom SX (based on the good reviews in Autocar) and since the bike was not available at the time I rode the Gixxer SF 250 and found it to be really enjoyable to ride even though I was in one of the most congested areas of New Delhi. 

I always thought a sports bike might have really bad ergonomics and be a pain to ride but the Gixxer was a lot of fun and that got me thinking about other ones that might be in my range. For example, what about the Ninja 300 and should I wait for upcoming bikes like the Bajaj-Triumph, Hero-Harley, Yamaha R3/MT-03 etc. before pulling the trigger. 

Please note, while my budget is 3 lakhs, I am ok to increase it by another lakh or so if a fantastic option is available. Also, just to finally add, I am 5 feet 9 inches tall, weigh 72 kgs and am athletic.

Rohit Dewan, via email

Autocar India says: Since you enjoyed the Gixxer SF 250, you will probably love the Kawasaki Ninja 300 if you can stretch your budget. The Kawasaki has a super smooth, high-revving twin-cylinder engine that belts out a great sound and it's an experience that no single cylinder rival can match. 

Bear in mind, though, that the Kawasaki is relatively low on features compared to the KTM RC 390 and TVS/BMW 310s, but it has the essential safety feature of dual channel ABS. It's also worth mentioning that the Kawasaki's spares and service costs are on the high side. Still, take a test ride because this may be just the sort of experience you are looking for. 

The Yamaha R3 and MT-03 have been anticipated for a long time and the R3 will probably have a similar riding experience to the Ninja but with lower ownership costs. Unfortunately, the bikes are already overdue and there’s no clear indication on when Yamaha plans to launch them.

From the existing bikes on sale that fit your budget, we suggest trying the V-Strom SX (if possible at another dealership), the Royal Enfield 650s, the KTM RC 390, the Honda CB300R and the TVS/BMW 310s.

However this year has some highly exciting bikes going on sale in the next few months and it would be absolutely worth your while to wait for them. These include the new Harley-Davidson X 440, the Bajaj-Triumph 400s, the Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 and the new-gen KTM 390 Duke. The next few months will be exciting.

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