1. Road: Its no secret that our roads are in deplorable condition to say the least. Pot holes, speed breakers, uncovered sewer holes, rocks and the likes. Not a good new for a sport bike rider.
- We have Audi, BMW and Porsche dealerships, who drive on the same roads, why not bikes then ?
2. Traffic: Lets be honest here, no one cares about traffic rules here. Not to mention traffic congestion. Almost all our roads are way over capacity. You'll see people riding their bikes on footpaths, you'll see rickshaws taking 180 degree turns, you'll see donkey carts cruising the fast lane with pride... So, needless to say, you won't go beyond 60km/h most of the time. And a CD70 can do just that!
- Same answer as to point 1
3. Economy: We belongs to a 3rd World where most pople earn roughly 8,000 rupees/month. That's less than $80. For the most of us, anything but a CD70 is in the realm of luxuries. Besides, most people use their bikes to carry their whole families... They would prefer a worn out used car over a fast new bike any day...
- Same answer as to point 1
4. Stature: Well, Most of us are well under 5 feet 10 inch and weights roughly 50-60KG on average. Whereas most big bikes weights 150KG upto well over 200KG and have a seat height of around 31-33 inches and I'm not even getting to 300 KG Harley Davidsons! I'm 6'3 @ 100 KG and am considered HUGE here whereas a person my size would be considered slight above average in Western Countries. I don't think a 'HALF PASLI' 50KG kid could filter a big bike through our congested roads. Solid fact...
- Well why not in India ? ... They are generally shorter than us, ... Even if there was an issue, its not that hard to fix -1" difference in the ride height.
5. Fuel Consumption: Thats right, I don't think most of us could afford a bike that returns barely 25-30km/l. Besides, we use the WORST grade fuel in the world that decreases the mileage even further. Ever wonder why Indian Manufacturers claims their 150cc bikes return 80KM/L or more??? Hope you got my point.
- Then why not market same bikes they have in India. One who wants to own a sports bike should atleast be able to afford fuel mileage of mehran atleast.
6. Maintenance & ownership costs: Another fact. We curse our poor mechanics when they ask anything over 100 rupees for a full engine tune up. Are you willing to pay over Rs.1,000 for a tune up, oil/filter/fluids change? Guess not. Newer bikes comes with radiators, self start, fuel injection, DOHC, multi cylinders, twin spark plugs per cylinder, ABS, various gauges, slipper clutches, and sensors etc that hikes up the maintenance costs.
- If the bikes are mainstream, the dealerships could handle it, but that is only if it becomes mainstream.
7. Theft. Well, its Pakistan! You'll be VERY lucky if you ever recover your stolen vehicle! I mean EVER!!!
HOPE YOU'RE FEELING BETTER ABOUT PAKISTANI MOTORCYCLE SCENE NOW...
- If you lose a 300k bike is equivalent to 300k car, i don't see any difference.
Peace.
What I think is keeping us from having these bikes
1. Price
2. Monopoly of current market leaders
3. Un-educated consumer who wants what anyone else has