Long Term Loyal Ride

Long Term Loyal Ride

One of the instant hits of Honda two wheeler India, Honda Unicorn had been the best friend of mine for years. My cousin was the first one to acquire the beauty while it was launched in India for the first time. Then it was handed over to his younger brother and then to me. Till date, the Unicorn never failed us on road. It had its own issues due to ageing and sometimes due to careless driving. Yet it still rides strong and can be called a Warhorse. The acceleration is good and it can still clock 100 plus with ease.
The pros of the bike include the ride comfort it gives. The old model had no wider tyres on offer, neither did it has alloy wheels still, it gives a lot of confidence while riding. The upright riding position is comfortable and despite being a commuter segment ride, I was able to ride 160 KM plus on a single day on it, 60% of it on bad roads, that too without any additional enhancements. Usually, long rides on bad roads are tiresome still my vehicle was able to provide better results. The vehicle is stable at speeds like 80 KMpH. Also manoeuvring the bike through the traffic is not a big deal.
The cons include the irritating vibration it produces while doing the three-figure speeds on highways. Since that speed is banned for bikes in Indian roads, one doesn't have to worry about the issue. Since the bike's tyres are narrower than the ones are on offer nowadays, it can be a bit slippery on gravel paved tracks. The absence of advanced features like ABS makes the ride bit difficult on wet and slippery roads. There are issues with cold start too.
One of the attractive parts of the bike is the service it gets. There are some very experienced service personnel who are well-versed with the maintenance of the bike. It suffered from two accidents while it was still on its heydays, but then too, it didn't cost us much. The major maintenance activity that I had to do was changing the chain sprocket unit, which also cost comparatively lesser. On par with the demand for the earlier models on market, one can easily spend the amount it takes to repair the bike, which is significantly less.
Above all these, unlike its rivals of the time, the bike stood long enough and is still a quality ride and remains one of the most sought after products that Honda ever made.