Yezdi is back, three bikes launched; price range 1.98 - 2.09lakh
After Java, Classic Legends revives yet another defunct motorcycle brand - Yezdi - and spawned three bikes under the shiny-new resurrected moniker. The three new bikes that have launched are a Roadster, a Scrambler and an Adventure - and those aren't just the type or category of motorcycles, but those are the names of the Yezdi models as well. Each motorcycle is powered by the 334cc, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled engine from the Jawa Perak but like their respective lists of equipment, the tuning of the powertrain aims to complement the respective intent.
The first Yezdi model is the range-topping Adventure. At 1,465mm, the Adventure has the longest wheelbase of the three siblings, to give it better stability for touring use. It has the highest ground clearance too at 220mm, while the saddle height is 815mm. At 188kg, it's the heaviest of the three siblings. While the Roadster and the Scrambler share the lean fuel tank, the Adventure justifiably gets a 15.5l unit to go with its mile-munching intent. With two-up riding and touring luggage to be lugged around, its engine is also tuned to produce higher power and torque which is on par with its two primary rivals - the KTM 250 Adventure and the Royal Enfield Himalayan. With this bike the engine produces a peak power of 30.2PS and peak torque of 29Nm. The Adventure is priced at Rs 2,09,900 (ex-showroom) and the cost of the bike can go up to 2.19 lakh depending on what colour you choose.
The second of the three bikes that have been launched is the Yezdi Roadster. Think of the Roadster to be Yezdi's version of the Jawa 42, with a similar double-cradle frame. It has a higher ground clearance though of 175mm and has a front and rear wheel travel of 135mm and 100mm respectively. The base Roadster is priced around Rs 7,000 more than the range-topping Jawa 42 2.1 and the additional money gets you the larger 334cc engine derived from the Perak, albeit with lower power and torque figures of 29PS and 29Nm, LED headlamps, a larger seat, a smaller yet sleeker 12.5l tank, one size fatter tyres and a larger 320mm disc up front, unlike the Jawa's 280mm unit. The sum of all these differences makes the Roadster about 9kg heavier, tipping the scales at 184kgs. The Roadster is priced between Rs 1.98 lakh - 2.06lakh (ex-showroom) with the thing you're paying extra for being another paint scheme. What's that? Looks a bit like the Meteor 350, you say? Oh...
The models that truly set the Yezdi range apart from its Jawa siblings are the Scrambler and the Adventure, both of which come with wire-spoke rims for better endurance off the road. The Scrambler uses a 19-inch front wheel and a 17-inch rear shod with 100 and 140-section tyres repetitively. With changes to the chassis geometry, the Scrambler sits on a much shorter, 1,403mm wheelbase compared to its siblings and has a 200mm ground clearance that also pushes the height for its single-piece ribbed banana seat up to 800mm. It has longer wheel travel too - 150mm at the front and 130mm at the rear. Here, the motor produces 29PS and 28NM and is said to have a flatter torque curve in comparison to the Adventure. While it employs the same Bybre disc rotors and callipers as the Roadster, the Continental ABS unit comes with three modes - Road, Off-road and Rain. The Scrambler employs a twin-exhaust layout like the Roadster, but there are angled higher. The Scrambler is priced at Rs 2,04,900 lakh (ex-showroom) and once again the cost will increase with the colour option selected.
A lot is being said about the design of the Yezdi, which has an uncanny resemblance to the Himalayan, a motorcycle it manages to undercut on the price as well as the weight. The Adventure employs a 21-inch wheel up front and 17-inch rear. While a metal bash plate is standard across all three bikes, the Adventure also benefits from protection parts for the tank and handlebar and comes with a luggage rack that accommodates side and top panniers. The motorcycle features a single, upswept exhaust canister, which along with the panniers has necessitated a linked mono-shock rear suspension. The Adventure claims the longest wheel travel of the three bikes with a 200mm front and a 180mm rear travel.
All three motorcycles feature a reverse-LCD display with a trip meter, distance to empty, time, ABS mode and gear indicator. While the Roadster and Scrambler employ this in a circular instrument, the Adventure gets a tablet-style rectangular unit which can also be adjusted for tilt to suit a seated or standing-up riding posture. The unit also integrates a turn-by-turn navigation display, much like Royal Enfield's Tripper, which pairs with Yezdi's proprietary smartphone app for the data, while the navigation system itself uses MapMyIndia software. The Scrambler and the Adventure also feature USB type C charging ports on the handlebar.
The Yezdi range, then, draws a page out of the Triumph Bonnie textbook of having multiple body styles atop the same platform, whereas the pricing strategy seems much like Royal Enfield with all colour schemes priced differently from each other. How these motorcycles perform in the real world remains to be seen, but going by how impressive the Jawas are, we expect the Yezdis to deliver on their promise.