These 5 Two-wheelers Revolutionized The Market With Their Prices!

From retro roadsters to hooligan streetfighters, these bikes were immaculately priced

The pricing of a two-wheeler is extremely important, especially in a price-sensitive country like ours. In fact, we’ve often seen that a competitive price makes up for a product that’s otherwise substandard. So in this edition of Throwback Thursday, let’s have a look at five good two-wheelers that absolutely nailed the pricing game, offering fantastic bang for the buck: 

Bajaj Pulsar Twins

Pulsar, arguably one of the most iconic monikers in the Indian motorcycling scene, was first given to us in 2001 when the very first Pulsar motorcycles were introduced to the world: the Pulsar 150 and the Pulsar 180. These bikes were nothing short of impressive, offering an exceptional mix of performance and practicality that was unmatched at the time.

The Pulsar 150 generated a power of approximately 12PS, while the Pulsar 180 boasted nearly 15PS and both motorcycles quickly became the epitome of thrilling rides, setting a new standard for other bikes in terms of chassis design, looks and performance. Despite bikes like the TVS Fiero and the Hero CBZ still in the market, the Pulsars still stood out as true game-changers. And with all of this, Bajaj somehow managed to undercut the CBZ even with the larger Pulsar 180!  

KTM 390 Duke - Rs 1.80 lakh (Ex-showroom) 

Rs 1.80 lakh, ex-showroom! That’s how much the KTM 390 Duke cost back in 2013, making it a HELL lot of bike for that money. For an on-road price of well under Rs 2.5 lakh, you got a bike that was an absolute hooligan. Its then 373cc engine made a whopping 45PS and 35Nm, while it tipped the scales at a featherweight 145kg (dry)! To give you context, that’s 2.5 times the power of the venerable Yamaha R15 V4 M, while weighing just 4kg more than it. That’s an insane power-to-weight ratio. And thankfully, backing all of that firepower were the Metzeler Sportec M5 W-rated tyres that offered exceptional traction both in the wet and dry. 

And with no electronic nannies holding it back, it gave enthusiasts all the jollies of an unadulterated, raw and very, very fast biking experience without emptying their bank balance. 

Royal Enfield 650 Twins - Rs 2.50 lakh onwards (Ex-showroom)

The Royal Enfield 650 twins were nothing short of revolutionary when they were launched in India in 2019. After the backlash that the Himalayan initially got (because of its build quality issues), Royal Enfield took its own sweet time to come up with these twins. Gorgeous looks, a sweet exhaust note and most importantly, a smooth, relaxed but very capable twin-cylinder mill, the twins gave Indians something we had never experienced before at a price tag that was mouth-watering, to say the least. 

The Interceptor 650 was priced at Rs 2.50 lakh, while the Continental GT 650 demanded a modest Rs 15,000 premium over it. The pricing has been so good that despite significant price hikes, the Interceptor 650 still remains the most affordable twin-cylinder bike in India. 

Ola S1 - Rs 99,999 onwards (Ex-showroom) 

Back when the world was extremely unsure about electric mobility, Ola gave us the S1 twins. The base variant was priced at Rs 99,999, while the Ola S1 Pro cost Rs 1,29,999 (both ex-showroom Bengaluru, inclusive of FAME-II subsidy).

And at that price, Ola gave them more features and performance than the Ather 450X! The sheer value-for-money quotient caused quite a stir in the market. Yes, the scooter has been riddled by its fair share of issues over the years, but no one can deny its immaculate pricing.  

Triumph Speed 400 - Rs 2.33 lakh (Ex-showroom) 

With the Speed 400, Triumph has seemingly bridged the gap between the KTM 390 Duke (which can be overwhelming for some) and the BMW G 310 R (which can be a bit unexciting for some) in the sub-500cc performance-oriented segment. The new 398cc powerplant sounds exciting and it’s backed by gorgeous looks and very premium levels of fit and finish.

But nothing about it surprised us (in the best way possible) more than its price. A price tag north of Rs 2.80 lakh (ex-showroom) for the bike would’ve been justified given just how good the Speed 400 is, but then Triumph dropped an absolute bomb on us, by pricing it at a mind-boggling Rs 2.33 lakh (Rs 2.23 lakh for the first 10,000 customers). It undercuts a lot of smaller capacity bikes as well and the price is so compelling that even quite a lot of us at BikeDekho are considering purchasing it!