Are Adventure bikes the SUV’s of Biking???

Currently the largest growing segment is India in the four wheeler market is the SUV segment. Even more so the Mini or sub 4 metre SUVs. We can give some credit to our well managed roads and the accessibility to some of our favourite places to travel. From Getting you comfortable on our normal day to bad roads to the weekend at the farm house to maybe just maybe carrying 5+ people. But the point is getting From Point A to Point B with ease. 

Well that is what Most of the so called SUVs are in the current timeline. It is not about hard core offroad and boaty body rolls. It’s a plan to get you from place to place with ease in almost car-like comfort. 

Ok my apologies, I know we are a biking related platform. This was just to make a point that the Adv segment is also moving in that direction. Look at the Multistrada V4 S for example. This bike is comfy as your couch or more. Can do mild trails. Not suitable for heavy duty off-road and almost superbike like performance or maybe even putting some superbikes to shame. 

This is everything one needs for an average Joe. The only issue is the Price of the V4S that the average Joe cannot afford. The Himalayan and the New Yezdi Adventure would be among the cheapest Adventure bikes. And the V4S / GSA may be among the top classes in terms of spec and price. And the Rest are in the middle. 

Though when it came to comfortable commuters the Mighty Hero Impulse really stood out but the sales numbers had something else to say so were the reviews. Or maybe it was ahead of its time as today that bike is a hidden treasure in the Preowned market. 

The Royal Enfield Himalayan is probably what you could call a real segment starter for the beginner Adventure market back in 2016. 

If I am not mistaken. Triumph sold over a 1000 Tigers since their inception in India in 2013 to 2019. For a bike costing over 14 Lac Rupees that made a big statement in the premium adventure market. Heck I may be one of those 1000 guys. But that is the best part. Whether it is city commute or highway strides or the farm house or that bit of a difficult place to reach. You could have one bike that does it all, Even a Track day. 

OOOO the Jungle. I bet The Rock wanted to be here. 

That aside. What we have in ADVs is an all purpose vehicle. Realising the importance. KTM is known for its Adventure bikes, well the big advs are not in India yet but at least till then they jumped in this money minting segment too. The Adventure 390 and 250 were here to Stay. 

And how could the Brand that started it all stay behind. If KTM tied up with Bajaj, BMW shook hands with India’s brand that knows quite a lot about performance…….TVS. The GS 310 though slightly expensive still made a mark. Major price drop now. These European giants are still locking heads. 

In the mid segment Kawasaki with the Versys 650 and Suzuki enjoying the success of the V-strom 650 are in battle. Sadly the V-strom was value for money preposition but not with the price hike, is it still? The Versys on the other hand isn’t exactly an Adventure bike as though it has a really really really plush

Moving up the Ladder the Triumph Tiger has created a fan following of its own here in India and that pack only seems to be growing. With the new 900 being super friendly to handle not so much on price and the highly anticipated 1200 let’s see what Triumph has installed for us. For the Hypertouring guys the Multistrada is still the king followed by the Versys 1000 and one of my personal favourites the BMW S1000XR. Ooo the inline 4. Honda too with the Africa Twin and the only Adventure bike offering DCT(Dual Clutch Transmission).

Last but the mightiest of the ADVENTURE Segment and the one bike that symbolises What a True Adventure should be the big daddy. BMW GSA 

This is a bike that has set a benchmark and is what other ADV bikes aspire to be. When it comes to tech or balance or engineering or … Lamba list hai yaar. The GS sets it all.  Unfortunately KTM and Yamaha etc. have still to get the big guns to India. 

Whole point is taking a pillion if needed and half the house of luggage with ease and not worrying about not only bad roads but also the unorganized speed breakers and uneven road construction. 

The above line is more on point with today’s SUVs sorry ADVs. Also Adventure bikes are one of the if not the bikes which can have maximum accessories. For protection , for luggage, for pillion and rider comfort. Again the list goes on…

And this get always to get the above photograph.
So yes. ADV is a craze currently, butttttttt why don’t you tell us, will this craze drop or only get more intense ?