After the solid impression the Discover made on us at Bajaj’s Chakan plant, we couldn’t wait to put a lot more kilometres on it and check out the depth and width of its abilities. To put the suspense at rest right here, let me just say that it delivers on every promise. But the good part, and that’s the journo in me speaking, is that we did discover (er… pardon the pun) a couple of weak points we can crib about.
All set? Rolling off on the Discover is an interesting experience. Especially if you’ve just hopped off another bike. To tell the truth, I nearly fell in the very first corner aboard the new Bajaj. I’d just parked our long term Graptor, jumped on the Discover and went out to lap a route I know very well.
The 124.52cc engine is a happy, torquey and revvy number that likes nothing more than ever increasing amounts of throttle. So I approached this corner too fast on a machine I’d only been on for ten minutes. My mistake? Yes. However, part of the extra speed was the Discover. Bajaj benchmarked the invitingly low seat height of the Splendor and that makes the Discover feel familiar as soon as you hop on. If you aren’t careful to remind yourself, you sometimes feel like you’ve been riding it all the time.
Then there is the chassis. I used the excellent 240 mm disc to scrub off all the extra speed despite blowing past my braking marker. But when I leaned the bike in, it acquired way more lean than I’d planned on. That would be the Discover again – the 17-inch wheels reduce the inertial masses you have to overcome to initiate a turn. It is then you realise that the key to smooth (and quick) progress on the Discover is lightness. The push on the handlebar, twisting the throttle, clutch pull and indeed, the two fingers on the brake lever all need only the minutest of muscular twitches.
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