I got a call from a friend, who knew she is about to be our customer at AutoGenius, “I need to buy a scooter”, “Suggest me the best one”, “I usually don’t repeat my previous brands & always like to try something new, something that can make me feel special, something unique” she said.. What, when and which one should I buy…?
My answer, Lets meet and find out…
I as usual asked our new customer to visit our website www.autogenius.in & fill in her requirements and expectations from the bike in detail.
We scheduled her appointment for the next day and were eagerly waiting for her reply on the customer information form. Seemed like she was more eager to find which is the best scooty available for her, we received a reply within an hour’s time. Carried a detailed analysis of what her requirement and needs were from the bike, shortlisted a few and took her for test driving the bikes next day.
From about 12 scooters available today, we had shortlisted the top 4 according to her requirements.
Here’s the list:
Yamaha RayZR Honda Activa Piaggio Vespa Aprilia SR 150
Other choices which were dropped were in selection.
Honda Activa-i Hero Maestro TVS Jupiter Yamaha Fascino
Yamaha Alpha Honda Dio Honda Aviator Mahindra Gusto
Yamaha RayZR:
We first went out to test the Yamaha RayZR, w.r.t looks it’s a clear winner amongst the other options available, we loved the riding position too. No wonder it’s been advertised as RayZR Mera Swag Hai… It’s got that Swag every teenager is found of. With the 113 cc engine producing 7 bhp at its heart, the acceleration was not among the best however we liked how easy it is to cruise at 70 kph, the 170 mm disc at the front was a boon, braking was just so perfect that Nikita still remembers the bike for its braking power. With mileage figures ranging from 45kmpl in city to 55kmpl at highways we had serious thought of buying it right away. But then we also wanted to know how good other bikes are with respect to Nikita’s needs.
Honda Activa:
We went onto test the Honda Activa next, smoothly refined engine which is hold up to its reputation for decades now. Majority metal parts and increased toughness, one of the key factors why people keenly buy Activaaah till date. It also enjoys a better resale value amongst all the other 11 scooters. The 8bhp engine is sweet till the speeds of 70 kph and further starts vibrating on its belts when pushed harder. It has the potential to go speeds beyond 80+ kph but one just doesn’t feel like accelerating with all the weird noises being louder every sec. Known by its tagline The King of Scooters – Activah!
Our customer wasn’t looking for all these and that made our job a little easy. It wasn’t light in weight when compared to its rivals. Something that Nikita desired.
Piaggio Vespa:
So we moved onto the next scooter the Piaggio Vespa. They say Italians look the sexiest and they have a charm in their dressing, The Piaggio Vespa isn’t different. It is available in two variants mainly the 125 cc and the 150 cc engines producing power of 9.76 bhp and 11.6 bhp respectively. Although it is weird with its exhaust, it is peppy to drive and an instant eye catcher for someone who loves vibrant colors. Lower fuel efficiency and a superior cost kills the deal for majority including Nikita.
Aprilia 150 SR:
Another scooter on our suggestion list is the upcoming power packed sports scooter, the Aprilia 150 SR, with 10.4 bhp from a 150 cc engine with 3 Valve, Aluminium Cylinder Head, Overhead Cam, Roller Rocker Arm, MAP Sensing and Variable Spark Timing Management reminds you of a Race day, every day. Since it being new in the market Nikita didn’t really want to take risk and she asked us to let it go.
The Discussion and the Drag Race:
We sat and discussed all the features, advantages and disadvantages for a while and came up to a common conclusion of racing the Yamaha RayZR against the Honda Activa. So with our helmets on, I on the Yamaha and Nikita’s friend Kiran on the Activa revved the scooters at the start line for a quarter mile race at a closed area. It gets interesting further as the Race began and Activa had a lead, higher torque figures of 8.83 NM @ 5500 rpm v/s 8.1 NM @ 5000 rpm helped it for a quick launch but as we reached 40 kph the Yamaha RayZR started catching up speeds quickly and overtook Activa by 5 meters at the finish line @ 65 kph. Making me the winner of our first race.
Kiran then wanted to race on with the Yamaha RayZR and handed the keys of the Activa. He thought he would win this time but to our luck we just knew how to accelerate Activa to its max potential awarding us with a victory once again. So it’s “AutoGenius Akshay that wins every time” says kiran, he just knows to ride and race well.
The Conclusion:
We made Nikita understand what Dominic in Fate of the Furious 8 meant by saying “Do you know, it doesn’t matter what’s under the hood”. “The only thing that matters is who’s behind the wheel”. Though the dialogue was for the car, she understood the reference. I further concluded buying the Yamaha RayZR would suit all her requirements and also her personality and it will be the right choice this time.
#30 mins later we were at the Yamaha showroom, selecting colors for her New RayZR, The Showroom manager knows me by the name AutoGenius very well as a result I spoke with him about doing something special for Nikita to make her Happy, and he just did what we expected. Offered a Rs.5000 Cash Discount with which Nikita was already too happy with. On my further talk with the Showroom Head he offered Free Extended Warranty and gave all the Additional Accessories Free which included all round stainless steel safety guards, seat covers, handle grips and the buzzers too. Now the deal was richer to its next level and there was Nikita already smiling with joy of purchasing a new Yamaha Swagger.
