Car & Bike Bajaj Avenger 220 Street or Royal Enfield Thunderbird 350?

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Abhishek Dubey

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Hi Guys,
I am planning to buy a bike and this will be the first bike that I'll own and I will use my own hard earned money to buy.
I am stuck between Avenger 220 Street and RE Thunderbird 350.
People say that RE bikes have greater maintenance costs than other bikes, I don't understand what costs they talk about as I have never owned any bike before.

I want to buy something powerful 200+ CC, my budget is 160000. The bike also should have good market and resale value and durability so it could get sold easily if needed and doesn't die in 3-4 years, I mean it must be something lasting.
What are pros and cons of these two bikes? What mileage they give in the city and on the highway ?

Please advise and if there's any other bike in my budget that is durable with a good market and resale value then please let me know.

PS. This will be my first and last bike. (In future I'll go for 4 wheelers)
 
Both bikes you mentioned are totally different bikes both in terms of price or class. How many kms daily are you planning to use the bike? Do you tour or use it in cities only?

Normal maintenance of bikes include oil change, engine tuning, cleaning of bike, battery charging, blubs etc.

Avenger offers good mileage but usually have lower resale value compared to RE. RE has good resale value but lower mileage.
 
I have driven the Avenger 220 (pre-facelift) and Thunderbird 350 recently. I would like to point out some of the pros and cons i found out while driving.

Avenger 220:
Pros:
  1. Cheaper to maintain
  2. Powerful enough for city and occasional highway rides
  3. Good handling
  4. Decent Mileage
Cons:
  1. Low Seating. I am 6' tall and the seating felt like sitting on a beanbag and driving.
  2. Brakes don't have the bite that was needed. I ride an FZ every day, so maybe I am expecting more.
  3. Tall guys like me, get back aches after a 50km ride.

TB 350:
Pros:
  1. Powerful and stable at 90 Kmph.
  2. Great handling at high speeds
  3. Good Mileage for a 350cc engine
  4. Commanding Driving posture, gives a lot of confidence on highways
Cons:
  1. Heavy to lug around in the city. You will feel the weight and heat in Bumper to Bumper traffic.
  2. Vibrates like hell above 90. Pillion will feel it even more!
  3. Befriend a good mechanic, as you would need to frequently visit him.
  4. Keep a spare Clutch and Accelerator cable at all times. My friend faced a lot of trouble when the clutch wire broke on the middle of highway
  5. Servicing is costly
These are just my thoughts. I suggest you wait for UM Renegade Commando if possible. Between the two, I suggest the Avenger 220.
 
Um renegade still doesn't have showrooms. Even if it had, I would wait till the initial batches are shipped and teething problems are ironed out.

Aren't new thunderbirds reliable? Friend is extremely happy with it. It didn't develop any problems even after completing a southern circuit of India covering 900kms
 
Another problem with Avenger is when your drive through water logged streets during rains your shoes and trousers would definitely get drenched due to the low seating.
 
TB350 is plagued with problems. No owner will tell them to you because of the pride of owning one. But deep down most of them regret it. My friend runs into trouble every month. Keeps sucking money.
 
If you're flexible with your choice I would say Classic 350.Great resale value.Reliable UCE engine.Good for city rides.Maintenance is not high(definitely higher than avenger 220) if you drive it sanely and treat the way you treat your girlfriend.Just quoting a friend of mine,"Avenger is poor man's Royal Enfield">And if you have the budget then why not go for it.Its class apart.I own it from last two years.
 
benryu said:
TB350 is plagued with problems. No owner will tell them to you because of the pride of owning one. But deep down most of them regret it. My friend runs into trouble every month. Keeps sucking money.
Click to expand...
mind sharing problems with TB? May be ur friend can share. I am eyeing used TB too for some time. Its a risk but i dont find 2L worth spending on RE bikes. I would rather spend 1L approx and take benefit of depreciated value. Also i think RE bikes would take abuse (worst case scenario) better compared other bikes.

OP, forget about bajaj if resale value matters to you. Also I doubt they would last more than 4 yrs. They wear down much more than honda's etc. Thats why hero honda was so popular in india. Because their bikes last for decades.
 
Go for RE only the classic 350 , the thunderbird is a outdated product in every sense. if you enjoy torque and vibrations to make your body tingle after rides, befriending mechanics and expecting unexpected things conking off go for Thunderfield. with bajaj you get cheap parts and service and also lower resale. better test ride both for an hour or so and decide. its your first bike and you are thinking of resale value like a middle aged old man, why does 10-25k matter that much in 4-5 years. since you just wanna ride a bike till you can buy a car try buying a bike with ABS , it can save your life one day and in indian roads its better to be safe than sorry.
 
[QUOTE=" try buying a bike with ABS , it can save your life one day and in indian roads its better to be safe than sorry.[/QUOTE]

Does RE bikes comes fitted with ABS?:
 
technofast said:
[QUOTE=" try buying a bike with ABS , it can save your life one day and in indian roads its better to be safe than sorry.
Click to expand...

Does RE bikes comes fitted with ABS?:[/QUOTE]
no only KTM , RTR 180 and 200 , pulsar RS 200 , cbr 250 abs . what abs does is it does not let your tire skid which leads to crashes and falls. ex. you are riding in rain , gravel , or even normal roads and a holy cow , dog , car with no indicatoor , alien etc comes suddenly in front . you will do panic braking or brake hard and chances are front or rear tire will lock up and you will skid and fall. on a bike with abs no matter how hard you brake in a straight line it wont let your tire lock up and skid. so very useful in india. btw also look at cbr 250 abs , it is also a very good bike. looks good , good torque , smooth and vibration free and has way more power than Royal enfield.
 
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