The Bajaj CT 100 is the bike which brought to the fore the fact that the entry level bike market is still alive and kicking, and with rejuvenated enthusiasm at that. For those who like to keep track of numbers, the CT 100 has been selling in excess of 65,000 units monthly. The segment meanwhile has grown by almost 40 per cent in the recent past, while it also accounts for 45 per cent of total motorcycles sold in the country. However, the interesting bit is, it is the urban section of bike buyers who have contributed significantly to this growth.
The CT 100 meanwhile has been in the market for some time now, and is rightly following in the footsteps of her older siblings, with frequent revisions being made to her styling and mechanicals. The CT 100 has already undergone one surgery, that of course being a cosmetic one, with a new front fairing (borrowed from the Caliber 115) being added in addition to introduction of revised graphics and a few paint schemes.
This time though it is a mechanical one. CT 100 now sports 17-inch wheels instead of the standard 18-inch ones, to make her more nimble in city riding. Suspensions too have been tweaked, with the front and rear suspension travel being increased. Up front the travel has increased by 15mm while at the rear it has gone up by 13mm, in order to handle broken tarmac with better aplomb. The spring-in-spring set-up also makes its way on to Bajaj?s entry level offering, in line with the rest of her siblings. The wheelbase too has increased by 10mm.
Tweaks to the engine meanwhile include needle rollers at the rocker arm pivots, roller cam followers and the piston ring (oil ring) being made thinner, all done to reduce friction. Bajaj’s infamous Exhaust TEC now features on the CT 100 as well. According to the company the outstanding success of CT 100 is not surprising as the bike comes with stylish, inviting and premium looks along with mileage of more than 70 KMPL in actual driving conditions. Its superior knock-free engine performance with extremely smooth transmission has made it an instant hit among bike lovers.
CT 100 also comes with a 2-year and 30,000 Km warranty and offers superb ride comfort - thanks to its HD suspension. Its unique ‘ride control switch’ acts like a ‘ virtual instructor ‘ for the rider.
Design and Engineering
Commuter bikes in India have never been showstoppers but modern design is having its say even in this segment. Both the G5 and CT100 are well-built motorcycles, though the G5 benefits from a visible advantage. A larger physique helps this Yamaha look like a ten-year-old in nursery school and many will mistake it to be a larger-capacity bike.
The G5’s tidy bikini fairing, which replaces the more conservative Libero LX face, hides a fuel gauge, another improvisation on the new model. Paint quality, fit and finish, as on all Yamahas, are major highlights. Reshaped dummy scoops under the fuel tank, a fresh set of graphics and dual-tone shades help make this bike a trace better on the eyes than the Bajaj.
Switchgear, levers, grips and handle-mounted choke levers are fine equipment on both rivals, with luxurious push-cancel indicators and pass-light flashers standard on both packages. The G5 fuel tank is well sculpted, with a unique bowler hat-shaped filler lid in chrome retained from the older bike. Side panels, seat and tailpiece all flow smoothly to end in a recessed, bright tail-light. Both bikes in this shootout have high quality aluminum-alloy grab handles. Taking them out on dark nights is a dazzling affair, thanks to sensibly spread headlamp beams and halogen bulbs.
The eagle-eyed reader may spot that the new CT100 now has a slightly larger gap between its front wheel and mudguard due to the one-inch drop in tyre size. The bike retains a well turned-out beaky front bikini fairing and the twin pod easy-on-the-eye gauge counters from its precursor. Its 10.5-litre fuel tank remains identical as do the seat, side and tail fairing bits. A gremlin on this new CT is its ancient kick-lever design, which worked poorly when operated and deserves a change. If there is one smart bit that adds to the CT100’s panache, it is the colorful Spring In Spring or SIS rear suspension units. While the CT100 looks similar to its forebear, a close look reveals an obvious difference.
The drop in rim size from 18 to 17 inches makes the bike appear like a scaled-down version of its sibling and, seen side-on with the G5, is certainly the smaller of the two. There’s a positive side to this downsizing - this bike could become the average short Indian’s bike of choice. Compared to the CT100, the G5 is bigger and benefits from better styling and quality feel. But the Bajaj does not lag far behind; in spite of belonging a perceptible notch lower in the segment ladder.
Chassis and build
The chassis in the new CT 100 is the same tubular-type, with single down tube and the traditional tubular swing arm that the older Caliber bikes used to feature. The wheelbase has been marginally cut to about 1,225mm compared to the Caliber’s wheelbase which is some 20mm longer.
The suspension set up is identical to the Boxer series bikes, telescopic in the front and the hydraulic, double acting, swing arm type in the rear. Overall, the chassis, slightly shorter wheelbase and the saddle position go on to enhance rider comfort and, while it does not allow you to challenge every turn and curbs the urge to speed up, it still gives the ride the right amount of stiffness for a bike in its class.
The improved engine mounts substantially reduce the vibration in the CT 100. Bajaj’s previous attempts at manufacturing bikes in the entry-level have been prone to considerable levels of vibration and harshness in the long run. But the company’s RandD department has obviously worked on the CT 100’s engine mounts and chassis to considerably lower the vibration levels. It is only past the 70 km per hour mark that our test bike showed signs of some vibration setting in.
Engine and performance
The new CT 100 sports the same four-stroke, 99.27cc engine as on the Boxer. Only the configuration of the block is a bit squarer than the older burner. The new construction enables the same engine to better burn the fuel in the combustion chamber, enabling the engine to generate more power and better torque.
This has been achieved by tinkering with the engine block and without employing more expensive technology such as the Bajaj’s digital twin-spark ignition (DTSi) or the four-stage digital ignition maps that TVS employs on its Centra and the new Victor GLX 125 engines.
The CT 100’s engine develops a class leading 8.2bhp of peak power at 7,500 rpm and a maximum torque of 8.05Nm at 5,500 rpm. Though the bike’s peak power kicks in at a high rpm-level, the loads of low-end torque that it comes with enables it come up with the right kind of performance for the rider whose usage is largely restricted to commutes within the city. Compared to the CT 100, the TVS Centra and the Hero Honda CD-Dawn offer peak power of only about 7.5bhp.
The CT 100’s low-end torque enables the rider to get a near knock-free performance at speeds that would have been impossible with the earlier Boxer engine. This engine’s torque spread gives the bike quite a high level of low-speed tolerance. As a result, frequent shifting into a lower gear is not required. The feel of this performance is clear when the rider can let the bike slow to just 25-30 km per hour even while continuing to be on fourth gear on a flat stretch.
Focus on fuel efficiency
The low-end torque is only one of the features that add to the CT 100’s ability to come up with a high mileage number. Of course, the most important bit of equipment in the CT 100 that aids in improving the bike’s mileage is the “Ride Control” switch. The CT100’s unique ride control switch enables the rider to select between the economy and power mode. It effectively gives the rider two options to choose - the economy mode for outstanding mileage or the power mode for pick-up and performance.
According to Bajaj, it is observed that inadvertently motorcycle riders speed up in a lower gear or cruise at lower speeds in higher gear. This causes a lowering of the bike’s performance in terms of drivability and mileage. To achieve the best fuel efficiency, motorcycles need to be driven in a specific range of rpm or speed in each gear. This is what manufacturers do while testing the bike’s fuel efficiency under standard test conditions.
In the CT 100, unlike other bikes where the rider has to take his eyes off the road to look at the speedometer console for deciding the range of best fuel efficiency or where the bike’s internal selection system kicks in to choose the mode of operation (economy or power, as in the TVS Victor and Centra), the ride control switch acts as a “virtual instructor”.
Bajaj’s RandD, which came up with the blue manual selection switch, has achieved a lowering of fuel consumption by simply reducing the play of the throttle. When the ride control switch is flicked on, the rider feels a small resistance at the throttle whenever a gear change is required. The mild resistance, somewhat like the tightening of a spring-loaded mechanism, reduces the amount of fuel wastage during quick spurts of acceleration and when the bike is slowed down.
The advanced throttle responsive ignition control system (TRICS) technology, which helps in controlling ignition map selection based on load or operating conditions, has also been introduced on the Bajaj CT 100. Thanks to its digital ignition with twin maps that helps in ensuring optimum delivery of fuel economy, the ride control switch, the TRIC system and the low-end torque, the CT 100 manages to come up with a decent mileage performance.
Technical Specification
| Engine | |
|---|---|
| Type | 4 stroke |
| Cooling Type | Air Cooled |
| Displacement | 99.27 cc |
| Max Power | 8.2 bhp( 6.03 kW) @ 7500 rpm |
| Max Torque | 8.05 Nm @ 4500 rpm |
| Ignition Type | C.D.I |
| Carburettor | Keihin-Fie |
| Transmission Type | 4 speed gear box |
| Electrical System | |
| System | 12 V, AC+DC |
| Head Light | 35/35 W |
| Horn | 12 V, DC |
| Chassis | |
| Chassis Type | Tubular construction |
| Suspension | |
| Front Suspension | Telescopic |
| Rear Suspension | Swing arm type with dual co-axial springs (spring-in-spring) and hydraulic shock absorbers |
| Tyres | |
| Front Tyre Size | 2.75 x 17, 4/6 PR |
| RearTyre Size | 3.00 x 17, 6 PR |
| Brakes | |
| FrontBrakes | Mechanical expanding shoe, Friction type |
| Rear Brakes | Mechanical expanding shoe, Friction type |
| Fuel Tank | |
| Fuel Tank Capacity | 10.5 litres |
| Reserve Capacity | 2.2 litres |
| Dimensions | |
| Overalllength | 1945 mm |
| Overall width | 770 mm |
| Overall height | 1065 mm |
| Wheel Base | 1235 mm |
| Kerb Weight | 109 kg |
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