BAJAJ PULSAR Specification
Engine: 4 Stroke, Single Cylinder, Air Cooled
Cubic Capacity: 178.61cc
Max. Power: 16.01 BHP @ 8000rpm
Gear Box: 5 Speed
Ignition: CDI
Front Brakes: 240mm Disc
Rear Brakes: 130mm Drum
Front Tyre: 2.75 X 18
Rear Tyre: 100/90 X 18
Wheelbase: 1320mm
Ground Clearance: 155mm
Dry Weight: 139 Kg
Tank Capacity: 18 Litres
Colours: Black, Silver, Blue & Red
BAJAJ PULSAR unexpectedly, the high voltage ad of the Bajaj Pulsar rocked the nation and offered a fresh start to the people who were tired of riding their old rides. Actions generally speak louder than words, and we can see many people preferring the pulsar in India for its various reasons.
The pulsar was given a bigger dose of testosterone making the bike meaner and faster, hence living up to its reputation of being “DEFINITELY MALE”. At first glance, it may seem like its sibling, the pulsar 150, but one does not notice the difference till the throttle is twisted and all the wild horses are set free. But as the saying goes “Wild things are meant to be tamed” and people like me prefer to look at the wilder side of things, so this bike did not mean any harm to me. The bike can be ridden conservatively respecting all the traffic rules, but then where’s the fun in that. All words and no work make a man sound stupid and that’s what I’m doing right now so let’s get down to business with this bike. Here is what we found out about the new pulsar 180.
Bringing the engine to life takes a little bit more cranking, so one needs to hold onto the electric starter button for a while to spark it up. Once it is ‘DIGITALLY’ sparked up, the mean deep throated grunting at idle is music to your ears. To hear it all, you have just turn up the engine volume. Lining up the bike for its acceleration tests, I felt a chill run down my spine as this was not an easy bike to master. The one down four up gear shift is a rider’s delight helping in quick and sporty shifts. The gear shifts into first with a reassuring clunk.
The bike retains its muscular looks from its predecessors. The looks are primarily because of the 15 liter fuel tank. The fuel tank has been reduced in capacity by 3 ltrs when compared to the old pulsar, but not affecting the looks of the bike in any way. The key highlight of the new Pulsar’s looks is the front bikini fairing. The fairing incorporates an oval clear lens, multi-reflector headlamp and two pilot lamps one either side of the fairing adding to the aura of the bike. The number plate below the nose of the faring is a bit hard to spot which has been the case for the long time, and the BAJAJ ‘Research and Development’ department have never got a chance to look into this matter .
Bajaj RandD has apparently spent many man-hours working the old Pulsar 150 to come up with DTS-I. The new engine feels vastly different from its older sibling, and performance proves it a different animal altogether. The big change is the adoption of an extra spark plug within the combustion chamber. Both plugs have the same heat range and fire at the same moment. A throttle actuated ignition-control system works hand-in-glove with a chip-controlled digital capacitor discharge ignition (CDI) system for accurate ignition timing under all conditions. This dual spark design accelerates and evens out flame propagation, which results in more efficient combustion. The valve seats are still the same size, yet valves have been suitably modified.
The cylinder feeds off the same CV-type carburetor, though jetting has been changed; this engine shows off its superiority in delivering more from less - better economy yet an increased power output of 13bhp at 8500rpm. The clutch is a wee bit sharp in its release. The torque curve has shifted lower into the rpm band, aiding urban riding. Gear ratios remain unchanged on the DTS-I. The five-speed heel-and-toe operated gearshift, disappointingly, retains its all-down shift pattern, which would have done better as a one down/four up and one sometimes hits false neutrals. Performance is now crisper-the bike going from rest to 60kph in 5.66 seconds. Leave aside the bald numbers, however impressive they may be; the real hero is the character of the engine. Daily use of the bike revealed the DTS-i to have a delightful throttle response and hitch-less power delivery. The engine feels sportier in nature, and is yet more user-friendly than its predecessor. This is the area in which Bajaj’s engineers have really outdone themselves, and shown their ability to make a truly sweet-handling motorcycle.
The 150 DTS-I retains the same sporty riding position as the old Pulsar, but that’s where similarities end. Ride is far better now, helped largely by the adoption of a longer box-metal swingarm and reworked and repositioned rear shocks. This same key change has helped lengthen wheelbase and completely alter other facets of handling. Gone is the heavy feel associated with the crude steering damper on the old bike. This has wisely been done away with, and in its place come stockier, more rigid fork tubes. The tubes are placed further apart from each other, and engine mount points have been changed. All the changes add up to a machine that handles with insouciant ease, leaving behind the twitchy sharpness of the older Pulsar.
The bike now feels plusher, more comfortable, and is generally less trick and more treat. Even the less experienced rider will be able to push this bike farther into its handling envelope than he would the older edition. The DTS-i is very stable, corners brilliantly, is wonderful to flick around and steers absolutely plumb. Braking is sure footed and we managed to stop from 60kph to rest in a fraction above 16 meters. Seeing just how much more powerful the DTS-I is, you’d expect a slight drop in fuel efficiency, but not so. Our tests fetched 56kpl in city conditions and 62kpl out on the highway, which nearly mirror the old 150.
Dimensionally, the bike is a bit longer and a tad shorter than its older version primarily due to its wheelbase which is now 1330 mm the 17″ six spoke alloys as compared to the 18″ rims on the previous version. Also the travel on the fork is increased a bit so there is an extra gap of 13 mm between the faring tip and the front mudguard. Technically speaking, we have a bike having 135mm travel in the front fork and 100mm on the rear gas shocks. With the pulsar being the hit of the nation for quite sometime now, the new look and feel bike is just a step forward to continue its great legacy.
The pulsar incorporates a 180cc air cooled, single cylinder, single over head camshaft, 2 valves per cylinder, 4-stroke vertically mounted engine. The Dtsi technology has shown its merits on the previous version of the pulsar 180 greatly increasing its torque and power and thus continues to do the same in this new version of the pulsar 180 too. Also the “EXHAUSTEC” technology contributes in increasing the torque.
The torque figures depict a very “pulsating” 15.22nm@6000 rpm which is practically very good for a bike of this size. This torque comes in handy while maneuvering through city traffic, where usually one manages in the second gear unable to change it into third. On a pulsar though, 20 Bph is easily managed by the fourth gear, thereby guaranteeing good city mileage. Power produced is around 16.5ps@8000rpm, and for a bike weighing 140kg kerb-weight, a power-to-weight ratio of 117.8bhp per tonne is really creditable. Pulsar 180 can be termed as a mark of an aggressive rider due its good accelerating capacities. The ignition requirements changes depending on the style of the rider, meaning the bike responds well at all speed ranges.
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