Mahindra Unveils New Rodeo RZ in India [125cc Scooters 2012]

Mahindra conducted a media release cum test ride of their facelifted offering of Rodeo which now comes with a suffix RZ last Thursday in Mumbai. Somehow, for some urgent reasons we could not make it to the event, however here is a brief of what the new Rodeo brings in.

The new Rodeo RZ is basically the same scooter which impressed us during our last stint with it in our official ride review. Mahindra has tried to enforce ‘newness’ to the scooter and it now comes with new decals and fresh bright color options, which basically are more female oriented.

Like what Mahindra did with the Duro DZ, by making it more user friendly by ironing out whatever niggles customers and ride reports suggested, Rodeo RZ is expected to do the same.  The peppy scooter now comes in 7 colors including two new color options (of what we know till now) – Flame Orange and Electric Green.

There have been tinkering done with the engine bits to make it more city friendly and the engine now comes with dual mapping ignition system for improved fuel efficiency. There was a little gripe among existing Rodeo owners that the scooter is a little inconsistent in its fuel efficiency.  According to ARAI approved figures, Rodeo is capable of returning 59kmpl. On the roads if this efficiency turns out to be around the 40-45kmpl mark, this would take it right at the top of the pyramid among similar powered scoots.

Some comparison charts shared by Mahindra claimed the following points:

1. Rodeo RZ returned a fuel efficiency figure of 53kmpl as tested on chassis Dynamometer in Indian Driving Cycle. This is 3kmpl more than the latest 125cc scooter Suzuki Swish.
2. Rodeo also has the quickest from naught timings till 60kmph. Rodeo RZ does the 0-60 dash in 9.35 seconds, Swish can do it in 9.4 seconds where the Activa takes 11.6 seconds.
3. Earlier Rodeo also had the problem of shorter ground clearance which made the stand touch the ground on smaller speed breakers. However, it seems Mahindra has ironed that issue out. The Rodeo RZ without rider is 154mm high where Swish and Activa are 140mm and 150mm respectively. At a rider weight of 75kg astride the scooter Rodeo RZ still is 142mm high as compared to 130kg for Swish and Activa. Even at a combined weight of 150kgs on the scooter, Rodeo RZ still leads the pack in ground clearance at 124mm compared to Swish and Activa’s 115mm.
4. Another chart shared by Mahindra had a featurewise comparison of the scooter. It is the only scooter in the segment which comes with a digital speedometer, front fuelling (Wego has rear fuelling), an illuminated underseat storage of 22 liters (compared with 20kg for Wego and Swish and 18 liters for Dio and Activa), mobile charger (In Wego it is optional) and a 4-in-1 anti theft key.

*Above mentioned are Mahindra claimed figures.

Rodeo RZ 2012 Scooter Price

Mahindra has not disclosed any pricing details for Rodeo RZ as of now. It is expected that Rodeo RZ would become available soon. As they did with Duro, we expect a marginal price hike of around 1-4%. When we tried to check the current Rodeo on Mahindra 2 wheelers official website, it was not present.

Mahindra is seriously considering customer feedback and working on to improve its products. Duro DZ is a classic example of that. The two biggest gripes which we have received from actual owners are the inconsistent and lowly mileage of Rodeo along with the lower ground clearance issue. As we have described above, Mahindra seems to have taken all the feedback in ironing out these issues and making the scoot more road and user friendly. A comprehensive and long term report would reveal a lot more about the scooter. Till then, let’s wait for the official word on pricing. Technical specifications of Rodeo RZ are mentioned below.

By,

Saad Khan

Team BikeAdvice

RODEO RZ TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS: