Yamaha R15 one year ownership report

Unbelievable, its already a year since I got the most priced, hyped and wonderful piece of machine in our country and what a year it has been. Let me give you a very abstract view.

Total Kms Done:18000+ kms
Total Services: Free- 6 Paid-0

Amount Spent on Service:
1st Service - Rs. 500/- [service]
2nd Service- Rs 500/- [service]
3rd Service- Rs 2000/- [Brake Pads + service]
4th Service- Rs 800/- [Oil Filter + service]
5th Service- Rs 500/- [service]
6th Service - Rs 500 - [service]

PS: service - Oil/coolant change, Chain lubrication.

Spent on Spares: Rs. 900 [Side fairing, some bugger had dropped the bike when it was parked]
Rs. 670 [Front Brake Pads]
Rs. 1000 [Rear Break Pads]
Rs. 450 *2 [Oil Filter]
Rs. 300 [Air Filter]
Rs.2000[Lubes, others]

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Approximate Running cost
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Total spent on Petrol: 25k
Total spent on Services and Spares: 10k
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Engine: [Rating: ****]
To recall, one year back all of us had expected lot from this mill and many of us were disappointed after knowing the specs, 17PS@8,500 RPM (I still remember how shattered I was when I got the message at 10 PM on 11th June from Akhil aka rossiter.) But to be honest 17PS from 150 CC mill is pretty good considering the weight and everything. After riding it for 1 year extensively every where (except track, very embarrassed to say this because this bike is built for track but cant help, I am not so rich to drive down to Chennai and ride on track each time I wish) this engine never disappointed me. Have done the maximum mileage in city and its not that bad. Forgot the 6th gear in city and you will enjoy every part of this bike in city. Never does the engine dies even if you ride in high gear at low speed even though it struggles a bit.Now lets talk about its highway characteristics, the 150 cc mill pump enough power to keep the bike in triple digits with no stress and not to mention the 6th gear which is a boon. More later.

Build: [Rating: ***]
The first impression i got was superb but this has changed now. The fiber parts are pretty good but rust, paint chipping are common problems faced by many owners this is not acceptable for a 1L + bike. Rating i am begin generous I guess.

Gearbox: [ Rating: ****]
Flawless, no false neutral post 1st service, at times it gets hard but I guess it something to do with the clutch adjustment.

Performance: [ Rating: ****1/2]
A lot has been debated on this I am not going to write more about this but I wish to tell, this is the best 150 CC bike in our current market, technology vise and the power and torque it generates for its CC. If you disagree, show me one bike which which generates more power in this category and please do consider the power to weight ratio.

Ride & Handling:[Rating:*****]
This part deserves a 5 star, best handler anything close which comes is a RTR everything else is blown in front of it. Doesn't matter who is riding the bike it handles the same, with a pillion of 80 KG I never feel taking a corner at 90+, the confidence you get is priceless. Many complain about the suspension but for some reason I am happy with it may be its because of my weight[:D]. And a lot have been debated about the sporty posture, with no second thought in my mind I can say if the roads are descent one can ride it for 450+ kms in a day without taking a toll on their body.

Breaking: [Rating:*****]
No doubt its a king in breaKING, this bike has such a beautiful brakes which stop where you want to stop not even a inch more than that. Trust me I am not exaggerating. Only pain you will get is when you are paying for the break pads :D


Tyres: [Rating: ****]
I still remember when "Yamaha officials had said, don't get disappointed looking at the skinny tyres, they stick like glue", this is so true but there is something missing there, slush. Apart from slush this tyre can take anything. Had three punctures till now but I am very happy considering the places I have taken it. And the MRF S can last more than 18k easily.

Electrical: [Rating: ****]
3.5 A battery which runs ECU, 1 60/55 w, 1 35/35 w and 1 5 w bulb. Helmets off to all the guys who have worked on it. No electrical failures till now, (yes no fuse problem :D). Lights suck for touring, a good upgrade would be to get HID's from here if you have enough resources else we always can install 60/55w on one side, which I have done. I will be soon upgrading to HID though.

Mileage:
In City - 38+ kmpl
Highway- 43+ kmpl
I have taken the average till date.

Service:
:D :D Ok, to be frank, Bangalore Wheels did pretty good job, big thanks to Akhil here without which my bike wouldn't have got those special treatments. Yamaha have give us a beautiful machine, it has not given a single problem till now, so far good but when I think about Akhil's R1 I feel pity about my self. But I have found a [secret]solution to it. :D But at times they have annoyed me a lot, its same with all the manufactures I guess.

A small tribute for my R15

The date was 28/06/08. Meeting the big brother

Click on image to read more

Trip to Hogenkal.

Trip to Kanyakumari.

Kanva Reservoir.

Madikeri.

For more click here.

Many more trips to come :)

PS: I want to thank all the XBHPians who had me decide on this bike, special thanks to Akhil [After sales service support :D and for the initial ride report] and killer [Gave lot of feedback's which he got from his friend, which made my decision easy]

Anniversary Ride Pics and logs on the way :)