Triumph Tiger 900

autocar.india

•12w

To begin with, of all the middleweight road-biased ADVs available, the Triumph Tiger 900 GT (or even the better-equipped Alpine edition) is one of the most complete packages when it comes to being an all-rounder. Coming to your particular query, the Tiger 900 GT will blitz through bad roads while insulating the passengers from the jolts. The lower seat height and suspension travel of the 900 GT will be perfect for you, and since you are a tarmac-biased rider, you have no need for the 900 Rally Pro. Even if you someday decide to venture off-road, the Tiger 900 GT is a very capable machine, and you don't need the higher Rally variant to begin with.We'd recommend you opt for the Alpine edition over the standard 900 GT because it comes with all the accessories that most owners end up paying more for anyway.

autocar.india

•5d

Given your priorities of pillion comfort, relaxed ergonomics, reliability and 4-cylinder smoothness, the Kawasaki Versys 1100 seems like a shoo-in for your requirements. It is a superb long-distance touring machine with supremely comfortable ergonomics and a smooth inline-four engine that is well suited to effortless highway cruising. Kawasaki’s service network is quite widespread (in the context of big bikes in India), and the Versys is generally known for reasonable maintenance costs compared to its European rivals.Honestly, even the Ninja 1100SX deserves to be considered because it is a supremely refined and comfortable machine too, while being a good deal lighter than the Versys. Since it is a conventional sport tourer, the wind buffeting issue which plagues most adventure bikes / tall rounders is also not present here, aiding its mile-munching capabilities. The only small - but manageable - worry is the 135mm ground clearance number, but if you're cautious you can tackle most Indian roads without too much trouble.The Triumph Tiger 900 is a very capable adventure tourer with a strong triple-cylinder engine, but it does not offer the same level of refinement or comfort as the Versys, although in isolation its really quite impressive. The Tiger will be a good deal lighter than the Versys (and other options you've shortlisted) and will therefore be easier to manage.Both the BMW R 1200 GS Adventure and Honda Africa Twin are discontinued models, and you'll have to scour the used market for a clean example. Beware that the big bike used market is quite hit-or-miss, and it's easy to get misled, so be extra cautious when looking at used examples of both.

autocar.india

•33w

Between the two bikes you are choosing from, the Triumph Tiger 900 would be our recommendation. Between the GT and Rally Pro, we would recommend sticking with the former if you don't plan to go off-road very often. The Tiger has better seat and suspension comfort, and coming from your smaller Tiger Sport 660, you'll be familiar with the Triumph ownership experience too. However, if you don't want to spend as much money, then the smart way to do this would be to get a Honda XL750 Transalp and upgrade the wheels and suspension with the huge chunk you'll save. Even then, you'll come in well under what you'd spend on a brand-new Tiger 900. The Transalp is realistically just as quick and capable, while being a more manageable bike to ride and own too. We'd recommend visiting a Honda BigWing dealer as well as speaking to your nearest authorised Triumph dealership to find out more details before you pull the trigger.

autocar.india

•39w

The Honda NX500 is a great middleweight ADV with a refined engine, good ride and handling and being a Japanese bike, it will last you a long time while being relatively easy to maintain too. Its asking price is quite steep, but for some, its reliability and low ownership costs are worth that tradeoff.Coming to whether you should buy a more exciting big bike, that is a question only you can answer for yourself. Big bikes are exciting, capable and striking things to own, but also have high maintenance costs, lower fuel economy and any replacement parts you might need are usually pricey and not readily available.If that sounds like something you can live with, then you can save up and buy a bigger adventure bike like the Honda XL750 Transalp, Triumph Tiger 900, Suzuki V-Strom 800DE or Ducati Multistrada V2.