Bajaj Dominar 400: Differences Between Old And New Model

The new Dominar 400 UG packs quite some changes and here’s how it’s different from its predecessor

Bajaj Auto is all set to launch the second iteration of its flagship motorcycle, now dubbed the Dominar 400 UG, real soon. For the uninitiated, UG stands for ‘Upgrade’.  The brand has made many changes to the motorcycle in a bid to make it even more competitive in the sub-400cc segment. We are riding the motorcycle today but before our review is out, here are the differences between the new model, and the outgoing one:

Looks almost similar to the older bike:

The Bajaj Dominar 400 UG’s power cruiser design language has remained largely unchanged. However, the Pune-based bikemaker has tinkered and fine-tuned the design bits here and there. For starters, the gold-finished wheels from the 2018 model are gone, replaced with dual-tone ones which look similar to the one in the first-gen model. In order to accommodate the new upside-down forks, Bajaj has slightly redesigned the front fender as well. Note that the front brake is on the left side instead of right. The rear view mirrors have been redesigned, and frankly, it looks a lot sportier and more premium than the older one. 

As usual, the Dominar 400 UG continues to use a split instrument cluster but the main pod shows a lot more information than the outgoing bike. It displays remaining range, instantaneous and average fuel consumption, and average speed apart from the regular trove of data. Earlier, only the tell-tale lights were housed in the tank cluster. However, for the 2019 model, even the tank-mounted unit is fully digital, and it shows the gear position, time and odometer readings. Other notable elements with nice attention to detail are the slightly larger, redesigned tank pad and ‘D’ logo on the pillion seat. Unfortunately, the 13-litre fuel tank has remained unchanged.

At the rear, the major makeover is in the exhaust’s design. It is now a twin-exit unit for a better aural note and goes pretty well with the overall design too. Other than the exhaust, the tail section appears to be unchanged.

Packs more power:

The Dominar 400 UG is powered by the same 373.3cc liquid-cooled engine as the current Dominar. However, Bajaj has made quite some changes to the powerplant for additional grunt and refinement. It gets a new DOHC (Dual OverHead Camshaft) layout for better combustion efficiency at high revs, and the peak power and torque come in at higher revs too. More importantly, the power output is up from 35PS to 40PS, arriving at 8650rpm, which is 650rpm higher. Though the peak torque output of 35Nm has unchanged, it actually arrives 500rpm later, now at 7000rpm.

These changes should make the Dominar 400 UG a lot more capable out on the highway while the performance in city limits is bound to be better too. But we’ll reserve our judgement for when we ride the motorcycle. The new bike uses the same 6-speed transmission with slipper clutch as the outgoing model.

Rides on more premium underpinnings:

In order to reduce the unsprung weight, Bajaj has opted for open cartridge inverted forks made by Endurance. In inverted forks, the weight is concentrated at the top rather than the bottom, as is the case in conventional ones. This helps in quicker steering movement as there is less mass near the wheel. Its diameter (43mm) is the same as the telescopic unit in the current model, though. At the rear, the gas-charged monoshock gets a different spring rate.

To match the extra power, Bajaj has chucked the Bybre axially-mounted front caliper and has replaced it with a radial unit from the same brand. This helps in maintaining a more even contact patch compared to the axial unit as the latter is held only at one point, near the fork arm. What’s not changed is the disc size (320mm front and 230mm rear) and the rear single-piston caliper. In terms of heft, the new Dominar tips the scale at 184kg, kerb, which is 2kg more than the previous-gen bike.

Pricing and rivals:

At present, the Dominar 400 is sold at Rs 1.63 lakh. While the brand will be announcing the pricing for the new one in the weeks ahead, a Rs 20,000 premium seems to be reasonable as per our estimates. Even with the price increase, it still commands great value for money in its segment. 

In our market, the Bajaj Dominar 400 UG will rival the Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500, price-wise. However, given that a typical Dominar buyer usually looks for a properly highway-worthy motorcycle with ample performance for touring, Royal Enfield’s only product which can keep up with the Dominar’s capabilities is the Interceptor 650. Its premium of around Rs 70,000 over the Dominar is actually not a bad deal as you get a much bigger engine and one extra cylinder! But if you were wondering which one’s more involving and fun to ride, check out this space for our comparison review. But before we bring you comparison, stay tuned for our ride review of the Dominar 400 UG.