Bajaj Platina – Bike for Rural India?

Many manufacturers are failed to understand the needs of rural customers. But if we take a look at the people living in rural India, it can be a great market. This market will be the one where the offering is less and the volume of the sales can be high. The only difficulty that it faces is the price of the product. Bajaj has understood that and is certainly offering what the rural crowd wants. Bajaj Platina specifically has a large number of sales from rural India. What is the reason for this? Read the article and find out the answer to this question.

Bajaj Platina Comfort

Most of us are aware of the Indian road conditions and especially in rural areas. The one thing a person will want the most to tackle the bad roads is the softer suspension. Bajaj Platina is equipped with hydraulic telescopic suspension for the front wheel while the rear gets dual SOS suspension with Nitrox gas canister. Due to the Nitrox gas canister, the life of the suspension gets better. Nevertheless, along with the softer suspension, the bike also gets a long comfortable seat which also has better cushioning. Due to the long seat length, the seats are pretty much comfortable for Indian ladies as a pillion who prefer sitting sideways. The seat height is also pretty much accessible at 804 mm. The ground clearance offered at 200 mm which is segment best.

These ergonomics of the bike make it very familiar to the simple rural audience and it gets their upvote. The bike also does not have any super sporty look which will attract unwanted attention. The parts are also kept minimum and it is easy to maintain because of this.

Bajaj Platina Powertrain

Bajaj Platina is offered with two engine options – 100 cc and 110 cc. The 100 cc variant of the BS6 model produces around 7.7 bhp max power and 8 Nm of peak torque. The 110 cc (110 H Gear) variant produces around 8.5 bhp max power and 9.81 Nm peak torque. The 110 H Gear variant comes with the fifth gear while 100 cc variant comes with four gears. The benefit of having fifth gear on the Platina 110 H Gear helps the motorcycle to cruise very comfortably at the highways. When compared the powertrains with the rivals, Bajaj Platina takes the lead by the slight margin.

Mileage

Along with the good powertrain, the Bajaj Platina also offers better mileage over the rivals. The claimed mileage of the Platina is over 80 km/l. that’s very impressive. For the rural areas, the petrol station is quite far and cannot be travelled daily. So considering that, Bajaj Platina offers good enough range on a full tank.

Price

Along with the good amount of comfort and powertrain, the motorcycle also comes at a very affordable price point. The Bajaj Platina 100 is priced at Rs 47-55,000 (ex-showroom). The Bajaj Platina 110 H Gear is priced at Rs 59,200. With all the best in class powertrain and price,  Platina has better value for money and also offers nice comfortable rides at long distances. Bajaj Platina 100 competes against Hero Splendor while the Platina 110 H Gear competes against Hero Passion Pro 110 and TVS Radeon.