Bajaj Pulsar F250 Long Term Review: City Report

What do I like?

The Pulsar F250 is easy to ride and feels very light on its feet, which helps while riding in the city. It changes directions without any drama and is easy to filter through traffic, courtesy of its 17-inch wheels. The agility is further complemented by its comfortable ergonomics. The Pulsar F250 gets an accessible seat height of 795mm, which makes it easy to mount yourself on the bike.

Then, it offers a comfortable rider’s triangle with optimally set clip-on bars and slightly rear-set foot-pegs. This setup provides a good balance between comfort and control in city riding conditions. The tank recesses allow you to grip the bike with your thighs, thereby helping with accurate inputs while changing directions.

Coming to its ride and handling, the Pulsar F250 offers an incredible balance between sporty and comfort. The suspension setup is well-damped for Mumbai’s pothole-ridden roads and the motorcycle glides over undulations and roads with endless patchwork. Only the sharpest of potholes or taller unmarked speed breakers unsettle the bike’s composure. On the other hand, the inherently stiffer chassis helps in cutting through traffic without much effort.

Then, the engine offers excellent tractability in stop-go traffic with good low-end performance. And the mid-range performance is equally potent to make a quick overtake on open roads. Although the gearbox isn’t the slickest of the lot, the cogs offer precise shifts, and seldom will you encounter a false neutral.

This is further complemented by the light clutch action, which can be pulled in with just a finger or two. This helps in stop-go traffic situations where you need to continuously use the clutch to manoeuvre through traffic.

What I don’t like?

With all its positives, the Pulsar F250 would make you believe that it’s a near-perfect city motorcycle. And to be honest, it is a borderline perfect urban bike. But, if I had to nitpick, it does have its share of negatives. For starters, the mirrors, although they look sporty, restrict the rear view significantly. No matter how well you adjust them, you are rendered with 50 per cent visibility.

Secondly, the bolts on the mirror come loose within weeks if not days. On one of our shoots, the mirror fell from the bike while on the go. Luckily, we did retrieve the mirror, but couldn’t find the bolt. And if that wasn’t enough, the propriety bolt isn’t available at the service centre. A quick ‘jugaad’ helped us fix the mirror, but unless we find the actual bolt, we cannot close the right-side mirror stalk when needed.

Moreover, the paint quality on some of the parts leaves a lot to be desired. We have noticed paint chipping on the mirror stalks and the suspension. Sure, these are minor issues, but the fact that these issues have cropped up within the first 2,500km leaves a sour taste in the mouth.

What’s Next?

Next up, we will tell you about its highway performance. Although the Bajaj Pulsar F250 is a city-friendly motorcycle, we will take it on a couple of inter-city runs and perhaps even some touring. How well does it perform and does it have any shortcomings? We shall detail that in the next report.

Product Details

Make: Bajaj Auto

Model: Pulsar F250

Kilometres this month: 973km

Fuel Efficiency: 42.52kmpl

Price as tested: Rs. 1.85 lakh, OTR, Mumbai

Photography by Kaustubh Gandhi