Which 150cc-160cc Bike Offers The Best Bang For Your Buck?

We take a slightly unorthodox approach to value for money

The 150cc - 160cc segment is one of the most densely populated and popular pockets of motorcycling in the country. These bikes are sensible and frugal enough to be daily commuters and yet they pack in just enough performance to keep you entertained. And if you throw in a perfect price too, then you get a great balance of practicality, value and power. 

So what is the perfect price? Well, the bikes in this segment range from being air-cooled to oil-cooled and also vary between 2-valve and 4-valve engine layouts. As a result of this, there is a range of different engine outputs, and the prices differ a fair bit as well. So we’re going to use our little metric of ‘price per PS’ to tell you which bike offers the best value for money among the Suzuki Gixxer, Yamaha FZS-Fi, TVS Apache RTR 160 4V and Bajaj Pulsar NS160.

Also Read: Which 250cc Bike Gives You The Most Bang For Your Buck?

It’s probably not surprising to learn that the two Indian manufacturers offer better value than the pair of Japanese, but the magnitude of the difference is quite surprising. The Suzuki Gixxer had a pretty sweet price-to-performance ratio up until a few months ago, but a price hike of almost Rs 12,000 at the time of its BS6 update means that it now charges the most for each PS, a considerable Rs 8,227.

The Yamaha FZS-Fi is a lot cheaper, but also a lot less powerful. At 12.4PS, it has the lowest output on this list, which means that each of those ponies will set you back by a hefty Rs 8,201. We must point out at this point that outright power isn’t everything, and the motors on the Japanese bikes do tend to be more refined than their Indian counterparts.

Coming back to power, though, output takes a big leap when we come to the Apache RTR 160 4V, with the little TVS putting out a rather healthy 16.02PS. Couple that with the fact that it’s the most affordable bike here, and you arrive at a very attractive figure of just Rs 6,301 per PS.

But just like last time, when it comes to value for money, Bajaj is the king of the mountain. The Pulsar NS160 employs the most technologically advanced motor here, featuring liquid-cooling and a 4-valve head, and it uses this to pump out the highest power figure here: a very plump 17.2PS. And the price for all of this? Just Rs 1,05,901, making it the winner of this contest with a price of Rs 6,157 per PS.