Aslamulikum,
Inspiration:
I finally bought a RP 125 and it was the hardest thing to buy. Here is what happened. A few months back, I went to Hunza Valley with my wife in a jeep I specifically bought for tours like this. We ran out of time so we could not go beyond Attabad Lake. My dream was to drive all the way to Kunjrab Pass (China Border) but in a jeep, it seemed too easy. When I reached Attabad Lake, I saw a bunch of guys on bikes coming back from the Pass and they were kind enough to share some of the details with me regarding their journey. Also, I read many threads on PW of members doing long tours on bikes especially Brother Suleiman, who left Karachi to visit Astor. I was hooked and all my brain could think of even while at work was the feeling of being on a bike while cursing through endless valleys of beautiful mountains and than you reach your destination. As you can tell, I am already hooked but I have never used a bike except when I was a kid and I got a 70 just to cruise around.
Choosing your companion:
After months of research, I narrowed it down to Suzuki GS 150 and Ravi Piaggio 125. The reason was stability, stability and more stability. I read too much about Honda's shacking for me to even want to try it however I should reserve my judgement until I try a honda (my first bike was a honda when I was a kid). After seeing a few brothers exclusively do journeys on RP 125 and witnessed its reliability and reading countless posts about GS 150's bad assembly had me singing RP 125. However, there were none available in Rawalpindi/Islamabad dealers Al Haq Autos. They said I would have to wait 2 months before I could get the latest 2014 version of RP 125.
Getting the bike:
Since, I am stubborn, I chose not to take that as a final answer. I started phoning around all the dealerships closest to Islamabad than moving out further and further until I reached Khamran Autos in Lahore. They had one black 2014 RP 125 (I love black) and they had 2 others that were in red and grey. I was happy to hear that someone had a bike available but I had no idea how I would manage to get the bike down to Islamabad, where I live. I waited a few weeks hoping the shipments would arrive in RWL but after complete disappointment, I left today for Lahore and took my car with me. I was sick so couldn't take public transport but obviously not sick enough to do a 8 hour journey, just to buy a bike. I went to Lahore, called up my cousin and asked him to arrange a pick up suzuki. The reason I didn't do it by rail is because I couldn't travel on the train with the bike so I had no idea what the process was and how it was handled. I hired the pick up, bought the bike, put it up in the pick and left Lahore via Motor way. Suzuki pick up came by G.T Road and met me in Islamabad, where it made me a very happy "amateur" biker.
The Plan:
My plan is to quickly get the bike through the break in period following rules posted by the company and also by members on PW. At the same time, get the bike ready as a long route cruiser with some additional mods. I will posting the updates on the forum as I get or find new mods that will help me make it a comfortable ride with luggage space. The plan is to go to Kunjrab Pass from Islamabad on a bike. Please make dua that all goes well in this planning stage and the upcoming journey as well. Thanks
Total Cost:
RP 125 (black): 114000
Delivery Charges: 7600
This is what you get for being stubborn.