| It started about a year back with the Bajaj XCD125 | | | | upright seating position that commuters will surely |
| that aimed to change the face of entry level bike | | | | appreciate at the end of long haul days. |
| segment completely. Besides offering 100cc fuel | | | | The Platina is pretty nimble in city traffic but is not |
| efficiency, 125cc performance and 150cc features for | | | | really a fun tool beyond city limits. The front end |
| the price of an executive 100cc bike, it also forced | | | | doesn't feel planted at high speeds and there's not |
| every other manufacturer to rethink strategies for this | | | | enough communication through the steering to boost |
| under-exploited segment that had always been looked | | | | confidence in its cornering abilities. Nevertheless, it |
| at as a compromise between 100s and 150s. | | | | stays a humble commuter for the tribe that spends |
| The segment this year saw a lot of action with four | | | | hours rushing between their clients all over the city. |
| launches so far, considering the revised Yamaha | | | | What sets it apart is the new engine. The 124.58cc |
| Gladiator and Bajaj Discover 135 along with the new | | | | DTS-Si (Digital Twin Spark-Swirl induction) mill has been |
| TVS Flame and Honda CBF Stunner. The fifth comes | | | | lifted straight off the XCD and is in the same state of |
| in the form of Platina 125 from Bajaj. | | | | tune producing 9.6PS of power at 7000rpm and |
| Following the typical Bajaj approach of branching out | | | | 10.7Nm of torque at 5000rpm. Sporting the swirl |
| variants of its already existing brands, the Platina gets | | | | induction technology, the engine transforms the |
| a heart trans-plant from the XCD, making it the | | | | performance of the bike while keeping a check on the |
| cheapest 125 you can buy in the market today. This | | | | fuel efficiency. |
| also is a bit unexpected as the sporty silhouette of the | | | | The engine incorporates offset valves that impart a |
| XCD Sprint from the Auto Expo '08 is still fresh in the | | | | swirl motion to the air-fuel mixture entering the |
| hack of my mind. | | | | combustion chamber. This swirl generates turbulence |
| The bike's only distinguishing feature is the black theme | | | | while being compressed, leading to a more |
| that extends from the front forks and alloys to the | | | | homogeneous mixture that results in better combustion. |
| engine and exhaust, lending the bike upmarket appeal. | | | | The two spark plugs are placed closer to the valves |
| The slightly upswept, tapered exhaust immediately | | | | as opposed to the regular centre position to aid the |
| shows the XCD connection. The front fairing now | | | | cause and generate a more uniform flame front. |
| houses two pilot lamps on either side, absent on the | | | | This not only helps extract better performance but |
| 100cc bike. | | | | also squeeze out more kilometres out of every drop |
| The rest of the bike remains the same and the | | | | of fuel. As per test figures, the bike takes 6.8 seconds |
| graphics too are similar to its smaller engined sibling's. | | | | for a 0-60 kmph dash while 8 comes in at 13.3 |
| The Platina 125 also gets an electric starter as | | | | seconds, making it faster than 100cc bikes by a fair |
| standard. The cycle parts too remain identical, the front | | | | mar gin. The top speed I got was 91.6kmph. The |
| telescopic forks and the SI shockers endowing it with | | | | engine feels very smooth and revs willingly without any |
| a supple ride. The ergos are very commuter like, with | | | | vibrations. There is decent mid range to potter around |
| the flat seat and tall handlebars accounting for an | | | | the city but the top end is not very impressive. |