|
Tarmac-scorching performance
Before we get down to the nuts and bolts of the go-faster bits,
let us go straight and hit the road and check out the performance
ourselves. We tested the new Pulsar 220 DTSi both on Bajaj Auto's
Chakan test track as well as in the real world on the roads in and
around Pune and there is only one word to describe its performance,
overall makeup and versatility - stupendous! Performance is a big
thing for us here at ZigWheels.com and we love to be corrupted by
this trait and in this sinful art we found the Pulsar 220 DTSi to
be the most well behaved devil on two-wheels!
Coming out of the sweeping up hill left hander on the Chakan track,
the power came out quicker, the cogs could be swapped faster and
more precisely (with nary a missed shift or a wishy washy engagement
- thanks to an all new clutch) and the enhanced power helped the
bike dart faster down the straight than before. Factor in the enhanced
thrust and it was only the length of the straight which saw us roll
back the throttle, the engine begging for more right hand treatment.
We put our tiny tornado and racer par excellence Varad More on the
saddle, strapped up our test data acquisition gear on the bike and
let him loose and what we have to state would make almost all rivals
go back to the tuning rooms if not the drawing boards.
Zero to 60km/h came up in 3.8 seconds while zero to 100km/h was
achieved in 11.1 seconds, easily besting any and every bike made
in the country to smithereens. Yes even the brilliant tech laden
Yamaha YZF R15 is unable to come within sniffing distance of the
Pulsar 220 DTSi's tail pipe. Hold on there is even more performance
rolling here and if being the quickest accelerating bike in the
land is one thing, the revised Pulsar flexes its muscles and deals
an absolute knock-out to all comers with its 138.5km/h top speed.
The one area where it is bested is not by any rival but by the 220
DTS-FI which is stronger in the roll-on acceleration times given
the fact that the torque curve there was placed more for low and
mid-range operation. Here with the enhanced power and the torque,
the 220 DTSi might be a shade slower in the roll-ons but go down
a cog, crack the throttle and she gets up to its top end with amazing
linearity and speed which confounds everyone.
| 
