NOTE: I have almost no technical knowledge about bikes or even the bike industry. I know there are several different kinds of bikes and one should not compare one with the other. However, I'm just providing an account of how I took my decisions. I fully understand I must have made mistakes.
Dear Friends
Two years ago, I came to Pakwheels to look for advice regarding a bike different from the typical offerings of the time. This was one of the best decisions of my life, the advice I received from gurus such as @7thgear, @vickytulla, @MONOO and @d3vil and many others, opened my eyes about all different kinds of motorcycles.
While I wanted a cool motorcycle, most new or like new sports or curiser bikes that I found cost 7 lac at the very minimum. My budget on the other hand was about 2 lac, which was stretched to about 2.5 lacs. The few options that seemed to be in my budget were either really old ones or were restored from auctioned law enforcement bikes. These were not necessarily bad options, but maintaining an old vehicle takes a lot of time, patience and money, all three areas that I am not good at 
so I practically buried my dream for the time being.
However 2016 proved to be a game changer. We saw Wego 150, Derbi STX got its price reduced, Benelli introduced its TNT25, some pakwheelers started importing the Tekken 250 dual sport and of course Sigma in Lahore upped their game and imported some really nice bikes. All these launches were music to my ears so I checked all those out. Tekken was not my kind of a bike as I am not an off-roader, Wego didn't attract me too much and Derbi felt overpriced for what it was offering.
While weighing my options between Sigma and Benelli, the latter was a clear winner. Sigma 250 replica bikes cost about 5 lac while Benelli the established brand was 4.75 lac. So I started saving up for a Benelli TnT25, however it was proving very hard to save that much. I even applied for a Bank Alfalah credit card so I can buy it on interest free installments. But then I saw ZXMCO Curise 200 (= Lifan KPR 200).
After I read reviews and talked to owners and experts, something became clear. Benelli is a well respected brand and TNT25 is a decent offering, however it is not one of their most popular models. On the other hand, KPR is currently Lifan's flagship bike and is loaded with all kinds of features, even though its build quality seemed slightly lower than Benelli. Now in my head, the comparison made the following sense: KPR was like QMobile's latest model. Affordable, pretty, loaded with features however with not a lot of power and a lower build quality. While Benelli was like a mobile from Sony, i.e. good build quality, decent features but twice as expensive as the QMobile.
So basically, given that I only needed the bike for a small amount of fun, I had no intention to earn money by its resale and neither did I have plans to take it to long tours or trips, I thought I should save me 2.25 lac rupees and satisfy my "tharak" with a KPR. The next step was to find a place to buy it from.
ZXMCO does not have a dealer network like major brands, i.e. there are no 3s shops or anything. Their bikes are sold by random bike sellers as well as by people who sell TV and Fridges etc on installments. I talked to their Regional Manager (an extremely helpful guy) who guided me quite well on the booking and delivery procedure. He told me that I could book directly from the company or from a dealer, but the price and delivery time will be the same, i.e. 2.45 lac and 45 to 60 day delivery. I then went and talked to a few dealers in cantt. and most of them offered delivery before Eid if I booked now. The bikes are selling like hot cakes by the way. A dealer that had three bikes when I called, was left with only one bike one week later. The "own" on these bikes is about 20 thousand.
I chose to book with Afzal Traders in Guldasht Town Zarrar Shaheed road. I did so for two reasons, firstly because lots of Pakwheelers mentioned good experience with him regarding their Yamaha bikes (he has a 3s dealership) and secondly because he has a full service workshop and assured me that from maintenance to warranty, he will be the one serving me, which is a big plus because McLeod road is too far for me.
So today I handed Rs. 50 thousand to Mr. Mian Akmal of Afzal Traders and returned home with a receipt and a promise of delivery within a month. Hoping for the best and requesting your prayers. I'll keep adding to this thread as things proceed and will inshaAllah maintain my ownership diary here as well.
Wishing everyone a happy and blessed Ramzan
mohsin
