Bajaj Discover 125 vs Honda Shine SP Comparison Review

Honda Shine SP vs Bajaj Discover 125 Comparison Review:

Pros:
Bajaj Discover 125:  Fuel efficient, solid chassis, better sitting comfort, less cost to own, higher ground clearance, higher stability.
Honda Shine SP: Reliability, stunning new design, bigger front disc, tacho-meter, tubeless tires, bigger fuel tank, lower seat height.

Cons:

Bajaj Discover 125:  Small front disc brake, rear suspension deterioration in few years, tube type tires, small fuel tank.
Honda Shine SP:  Lower ground clearance, higher weight.

Performance and Driveability:
Talking about the drive-ability of the Bajaj Discover 125 it has a good low end torque, thanks to the Bajaj ExhuasTEC muffler design(ExhausTEC stands for torque expansion chamber as told by Bajaj). Even going at higher speeds on the Bajaj Discover 125, the bike does not feels out of breath. On the Bajaj Discover 125, 0-100kmph is achieved in about 9sec which is achieved with the help of the DTS-i technology as defined by from Bajaj.
Performance on the Honda Shine SP is quite linear, at lower speeds torque delivery is felt less, but as soon as the bike reaches the mid range Rpm's the bike becomes very much drive-able and torquer. Mid range is the best Rpm to drive the Honda Shine SP. Honda Shine SP will be a better motorcycle going on hilly areas though. 

Ride and Handling:
On this area the Bajaj Discover 125 has an upper hand as the vehicle is equipped with double cradle frame as compare to the single down tube of the Honda Shine SP. The double cradle frame help you to neglect the twist in the frame coming from the lateral loading from the cornering conditions.
But when talking about the suspension tuning part the Honda Shine SP has a far better rear suspension than the Bajaj Discover 125, Honda's always have been concentrate on the riding comfort of the rider and the pillion. On the Bajaj Discover 125 the rear suspension is oil filler with gas charged, but the basic problem with the suspension is that the it becomes weak with duration and in due course of time it needs a replacement which is not the case with the Honda's. For reference the rear shocks of the Bajaj Discover 125 are Endurance make and on the Honda Shine SP are Showa makes.

Comfort and ergonomics:
The riding posture on both the bike is quite upright, but the Discover 125 handle bar have been raised higher compared to the Honda Shine SP. On other hand the Bajaj Discover 125 rider seat has higher thickness cushion which is better for longer journeys and rough roads. Bajaj Discover 125 is about 4kgs less than the Honda Shine SP which can be useful while parking the vehicle in crowded parking slots.

Styling:
No the Bajaj Discover 125 does not offer any futuristic styling, it has the same old look of the 2004 Discover, But the Honda Shine SP has everything new in its design. The alloys of the Honda Shine SP are stunning as they have very thin spokes like structure, with 10 spokes in pairs of 2 each. Even the engine of the Honda Shine SP is black painted which give the bike a premium feel. The tank of the Honda Shine SP has 3d chrome emblems of the Honda logos which add the charm to the motorcycle premium look. On the Bajaj Discover 125 the front disc brake has a weird cover which actually does not go with the vehicle styling though it might solve the purpose.


Features:
Bajaj Discover 125 has some good features which are unnoticeable at first glance, few of them are like wider rear tire, longer wheelbase for better stability while cornering on highspeeds, higher fuel tank reserve capacity. On the other hand the Honda Shine SP has a combi-brakes as an option on the motorcycle which can be very useful for a new rider or even a pro. Bajaj Discover 125 also features rectangular box section rear swing arm which will have better rigidity while cornering.

Fuel Efficiency:
The Discover 125 has an ARAI Certified Mileage of 82 kmpl, which is 17 kmpl more than the Shine SP. In our back-to-back tests, the Discover 125 was almost 10 kmpl more efficient than the Shine SP.

Fuel Efficiency: Discover 125 - 70 kmpl, Shine SP - 60 kmpl

Fuel Cost (for usage of 75,000 km):
Bajaj Discover 125 - 54000 Rs
Honda Shine SP - 64000 Rs

Reliability & After Sales Service: 
By far the biggest difference when it comes to the comparison between the Shine SP & the Discover 125, is in terms of the inherent Product Reliability and Service Support provided by the two brands. Honda has undoubtedly proven to be much better than Bajaj at providing hassle free service support in our country. Honda’s products themselves are far more reliable than Bajaj’s and thus do not require as much maintenance as Bajaj products in the first place.

Resale & Cost of Ownership:
The Shine SP is also bound to have better resale value than the Discover 125 after 5 to 7 years of usage. Mostly because of the superior build quality and reliability of Honda. Expect the Shine SP to depreciate at least 5000 Rs. lesser than the Discover 125.

Resale Price (after 5-7 years, 60,000 km):
Bajaj Discover 125 - 27,000 Rs.
Honda Shine SP - 38,000 Rs.

Total Cost of Ownership (Price + Fuel Cost - Resale Price):
Bajaj Discover 125 - 97000 Rs.
Honda Shine SP - 97600 Rs.

Verdict:

Bajaj Discover looks like a lucrative offering at the time of purchase but with the running cost and resale value attained after a period of five year make the Honda Shine SP a clear winner 
Bajaj Discover 125


Honda Shine SP with complete black velvet finish

Bajaj Discover 125
Honda Shine SP
Type
Single cyl, 2-valve, DTS-i with ExhausTEC
Air Cooled, 4 Stroke, SI Engine
Capacity
124.6 cc
124.73cc
Max. Power (Ps @ RPM)
10.78 bhp @ 8000 RPM
10.57 bhp @ 7500 rpm
Max. Torque (Nm @ RPM)
10.8 Nm @ 5500 RPM
10.3 Nm @ 5500 rpm
Bore x Stroke
54 x 54.4 mm
52.4 x 57.8 mm
Compression Ratio
9.9:1
9.2:1
Starting
Kick + Electric Starter
Kick & Electric Self Start
Top Speed
100 Kmph (internally tested)

Transmission
5 Gears
5 Speed, Gear pattern1-N-2-3-4-5
Frame
Semi-double cradle
Steel Diamond
Front
Telescopic, 130 mm fork travel
Telescopic Fork
Rear
Twinshocks, Nitrox(Gas filled),110 mm rear wheel travel
Loaded Hydraulic Type (Swing Arm)
Disc Variant


Front
200 mm Disc
240 mm Disc
Rear
130 mm Drum
130 mm Drum/CBS
Drum Variant


Front
130 mm Drum
130 mm Drum
Rear
130 mm Drum
130 mm Drum
Disc Variant


Front
2.75"x17"
80/100-18 Tyre Tubeless
Rear
100/90-17"
80/100-18 Tubeless
Drum Variant


Front
2.75"x 17"
NA
Rear
3.00x 17"
NA
Fuel Tank Capacity
8 L
10.5 L
Usable Reserve
1.5 L
1.3 L
Length
2035 mm
2007 mm
Width
760 mm
762 mm
Height
1087 mm
1085 mm
Wheel Base
1305 mm
1266 mm
Saddle Height
800 mm
790 mm
Ground Clearance
165 mm
160 mm
Vehicle kerb weight
120.5 kg
124kg (CBS Variant)
Maximum Speed
100 km/h
100 km/h
Battery
12V 5Ah
12V 3Ah
Head lamp
12V 35/35W
12V 35/35W

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