Hello all bikers, I Balaji wanted to share my experience about my all time favourite bike, TVS Fiero which I purchased in the year 2002, October. It’s a silver colour and the colour still shines as new. I bought this bike just for college sake and didn’t have much idea about the bike or about biking. I have rode almost all 150 cc bikes and I cannot compare the power of Fiero and the handling capability with any other bike as the Fiero is the best in its class.
With October 2011 my cruise machine will be completing 9 years and I have to say that I haven’t got any major repairs and the reason being the quality of the bike and due to regular maintenance. I get my bike serviced for every 1000 kms and always make sure that my bike is not deprived of anything. I consider my bike as a living thing which as life and so in turn it has given me the same affection and love. All bike lovers will really understand when I say that when you love your bike, in turn it even loves you by performing at the peak and spending less on repairs and maintenance.
My Fiero has a 4-stroke, air cooled, single cylinder OHC 147.5 engine which can belt 12 Bhp of raw power enough to drive the speedometer needle to 130km/hr. The handling capability and the initial pick up of this bike in its class will remain one of the best of all time. The mileage with in city limits is 45 to 50 and on highway it’s a clear figure of 60. A clear straight stretch and the bike can easily notch up a speed of 120 km/hr and if the rider follows some basic principles of aerodynamics the bike can touch 130 km/hr after which the speedometer needle will freeze and even a slight change in the wind will only reduce the speed. At these speeds the bike provides to be sturdy and cuts through the air just like a knife through the butter. One cutest and sweetest thing about my bike is the beats of the silencer which can be compared to the sound of firing.
With great pain I have to speak about the flaws of my bike. When it comes to road grip my bike doesn’t handle well on wet roads and tend to skid. Also once I cross 60 km/hr my bike starts to vibrate and the vibration can be felt on the whole body. However these trivial flaws disappear once I sit on my machine and start the engine.
During college days I have taken my bike to places like Nandi hills, pearl valley and Mekedat. Ride to these places didn’t really help me in finding out that I love my bike so much. It all started in the year 2006 where I purchased a mobile phone for my sister who stays In Kumbakonam (Thanjur District and its 550 Km from Bangalore) and wanted her to have the phone for her birthday. Since it was not a safe option to send it through courier, I thought to ride the phone on my bike all the way from Bangalore to Kumbakonam. Myself and a close friend of mine named Vinil, planned to ride to Kumbakonam so that I can drop the phone to my sister. Since it was my first long journey I didn’t have much knowledge about biking tips, but somehow I got myself and my bike prepared for the journey. A day before the journey my friend lost hope on me when I told him that we are going to cover 1100 Km and this really hurt me a lot.
But more than anyone I believed in myself and my bike and the next day I started my journey at 5 in the morning. Starting from Ulsoor I reached Hosur in just 25 min, by the time I crossed Salem the time was 8.50AM. I finished my breakfast in Salem and proceeded towards Tiruchy and that’s when I got a shock of my life. Riding at 100km/hr my bike started not to respond to my throttle and stopped all of a sudden giving the feel of an exhausted fuel tank. Didn’t know what to do and the feel of standing on a highway with no help for another 50kms on both the sides sent a huge electric pulse down to my spine. That’s when I started to notice the silencer outlet which comes out of the engine, it was red hot and I clearly got the answer for my bikes break down. The engine was piping hot and wanted some time to cool. It’s a clear notion as a first time biker I only enjoyed the 130km/hr mark speed and forgot to give breaks which resulted in this shock.
I patiently waited for 1 hour and gave adequate time for my bike to cool. And then was the time of testing, praying to god I sat on my bike, inserted the key and kick started my engine. And next what happened was all history, I was able to hear the beats coming from the silencer and I was on cloud nine. It was a feel of happiness and as biker you all know how it feels when our bike breakdowns for a sec and starts with ease the next moment. After this incident I started to drive at 60 speed and reached Tiruchy by 12.30 pm. I finished my lunch at Tiruchy and crossing Thanjavur I reached the landmark, that is kumbakonam by 1.30pm. My effort in giving the cell phone to my sister was completed and I shared my journey experience to her which left her flabbergasted in fear, shock and happiness that her brother drove all the way from Bangalore to kumbakonam just to give her the birthday gift.
Now its time for me to pay attention to my bike. So by 4 in the evening I got my bike to the nearest TVS service station and asked them to check for everything from engine oil to tyre pressure. Confirmed that everything is fit and fine, I started the return journey next day at about 5 in the morning. And this time I was a true biker and with lot of sweet memories I reached bangalore by 2 in the afternoon. The moment I reached home I felt as if I have achieved something great and the love for my bike grew manifolds. After this start up there was no looking back for me, once I shared this experience with my friends even they were desperate to have an experience like this. So my next ride was to Chennai with my friends following with, pondicherry, Krishnagiri, Mangalore, Ooty, Udupi, Vellore, Karaikal and the recent one being Chickmaglur. This is just a beginning and I have planned to ride to north India and I hope for the best from my bike which is always a thumbs up. With lots and lots of love for my bike I say that only a Fiero can catch a Fiero.
Regards,
Balaji
