And lights.
Simple, that's a word you most associate smaller capacity motorcycles in India with.
They walk the walk and they talk the talk, mostly known for incredible efficiencies of
riding and own it, ride it, forget it sort of mentality, they own the biggest pie in
the motorcycling universe.
This, this is the Raider 125 and it's an outrageous effort by TVS and I use that word because
this is anything but a 125, I mean, look at the styling, it's got a split seat, LED DRLs.
When Shumi rode the Raider at a racetrack he came back impressed, very, very impressed,
but this my friends is the real world and this is where you and I will ride a motorcycle
the most, but before I get riding.
Oh god!
What a swank colour.
Honestly, I couldn't make peace with it when I saw it on screen, but this in flesh looks
absolutely smashing.
The finish levels are decent, the quality of parts is nice and there is an overall sense
of premium to the Raider 125, we are already off to a good start.
TVS has always been known for making motorcycles for enthusiasts, I mean, not just motorcycles,
but scooters as well and after what seems to be like a break in the 125cc class,
the TVS Raider 125 finally takes that tradition forward.
Nope, this is not the same engine as the Ntorq, although it might share similar numbers on
the spec sheet, TVS insists and they insist hard, it is not the same engine, so be it.
But at least in terms of how the power's delivered, how the torque kicks in, it does feel a little similar.
Where you will actually feel the difference is through the gearbox because here through
a manual gearbox you have a little control on when you want to change gear, how long
you want to stay on the throttle for, so that's where you'll actually feel the difference.
I think the sweet spot for this motorcycle is between 50 to 60 kilometres per hour, but
it has no problem crossing 100 kilometres per hour, might feel a little stressed at
those numbers, but it absolutely can venture into that territory and I think it's fantastic.
Vibrations are also low, they do creep in when you're absolutely whack on the throttle,
but why will you be, on the Raider 125.
There are also two modes, you have got the eco and the power mode.
I feel some of you who buy the Raider 125 will mistake the mode switch for the engine
kill switch and you'll end up riding it in eco mode for the longest time till you realise
at about 94 kilometres per hour where the limiter kicks in, you'll realise okay, what's
happening to the motorcycle, why's there no power, what's happening fueling issues, something
like that, then you'll realise okay, it's the eco mode and then when you switch to power,
100, just like that.
So overall, I really love how TVS decided, hey, we're not going to make this underpowered,
not going to make this as silent as the rest of the 125cc motorcycles are, we're going
to make this lively, we're going to make this performance oriented
and I think they have done a fantastic job.
The urban jungle today feels more jungle than urban, no?
Considering how awesome our roads have been in the recent past, a good setup makes all
the difference in the world.
And while it all felt okay at the Hosur track, it doesn't feel the same in the city.
While the front is able to manage everything that is thrown at it, it is not really compliant
with the slightly stiff setup at the rear, so every time you go over a bumpy road, the
rear does not react the way the front does and maybe the answer to that is going slow.
I've got two questions for you, should you, could you?
I've never complained about handling on a TVS motorcycle, I mean, of course in some aspects
things can get better but as is everything that rolls out of Hosur feels
really good to ride.
Now the motorcycles that sit in this class, they're relatively calm and you want traffic
to pass by before you make that move, but in the Raider 125's case, no sir, no chance.
The bike feels so light, so incredibly agile that even when you think you have to take
a step back, the bike urges you to make that move, that's how confident the motorcycle
is and that's how much confidence it will inspire in you as a rider.
Now, can you attribute this to the weight of the motorcycle?
I would say no, because on paper, the SP 125 still weighs less and also when you look at
the wheelbase, it is longer than the Honda as well as the Hero Glamour, so in that sense,
two plus two doesn't really make four it doesn't count, but when you put this package on road,
oh my god, it absolutely feels wow.
I mean, I don't remember the last time I had so much fun on a 125cc motorcycle and by the
way, you know what we say about paper, right?
Stop rolling, I mean, stop wasting it.
We had to test the ergos, had to figure out if TVS left their racing DNA out of this
and in some ways, yes, they did.
I mean, they had to right?
In a country where more than half of us commute to work wearing formals, you don't want to
sit in a position where you reach your workplace tired.
The Raider is relaxed, comfortable and positively easier to ride.
The seat though too soft for my liking, should cater to what India seeks.
We also did a pillion test and our special pillion had nothing to complain about except
the fact that he had to sit pillion by force.
As we say goodbye to a pillion, there is one thing that has bothered me, it's so good,
it's new, but why no ABS?
I'll tell you why, TVS has used a 124.8cc engine, which means they could sneak under
the mandate, also adding ABS would have added cost to an already sensitive class, but I
know for a fact it would have made the whole experience a whole lot safer and clearly TVS
decided to choose a path.
Now as far as the brakes go, they do not have that initial bite, they're not sharp, they
almost like feel and feel old school but that's okay, you see this motorcycle is going to
be bought by a lot of youngsters, a lot of first timers, even someone elder in your family
who's looking at buying a 125cc sporty looking motorcycle, so in that sense, they are going
to be okay with the brake feel.
Most important thing is, the Raider 125 will stop when you want it to, where you want it to.
Now I know I said this does not get ABS but it does get CBS and it's actually actuated
by the rear brake.
So when you step on the rear brake, and if you happen to have your finger on the front
brake lever, you will feel the front brake getting engaged.
It's not a scary feeling, might feel a little weird, but I know you will get used to it with time.
Last but not the least, even with a small bump in price, a single-channel unit would
have made a huge difference and would have added brownie points to the Raider 125's back.
And finally, connectivity, ahem, wait, this does not get connectivity.
Actually it will in a future iteration which will sit at the top.
So Bluetooth connection, navigation, phone calls and all that jazz, not just that a brand
new 5-inch colour TFT display to up the fancy quotient of the motorcycle.
But for now the current display does the job it has to, the number readouts are clear and
necessary information is communicated to the rider.
Now let's talk about the two things that are absolutely crucial to this segment,
fuel efficiency and price.
Considering the fact that this is a 125cc motorcycle, we still got about 72 kilometres
per litre in the city and about 65 on the highway.
These are impressive numbers because you usually associate these numbers with 110cc motorcycles
in India, I feel the Raider sits in a spot where you're getting the performance of 150
with the efficiency of 110, so in that sense, it's a great spot for the Raider to be in.
So at Rs. 77,500 for the drum variant and about Rs. 85,500 for the one with the disc
right here, there is a significant gap between the two variants, but at this price, it also
sits right in between the SP 125 and the Glamour.
Barring those facts, what you should know is that this segment is largely ruled by the
Glamour and it's latest Xtec form, I think it looks really cool at some nice features
as well and of course on the other hand you have the SP 125 which is another heavyweight.
What I really feel if people understood motorcycles like we did, enjoyed motorcycles like we did,
I think the climb to the top is going to be that much easier for the Raider 125.
On that note, thank you so much for watching this video, the city review of the TVS Raider 125,
I hope you enjoyed it,
if you did, then please leave us a like, drop in a comment, a really nice comment, and I
will respond to as many as I can and remember to share it with your friends.
Of course if you haven't subscribed to our channel, do remember to hit the subscribe
button, hit the notification bell and until the next one, my name is Varun Painter and
I will see you later, not with the Raider but with something else,
don't be a hater.
Cut it no, I'm done.