Hero Glamour X: First Ride Review

The Visuals

Some say, what’s in the name? Well, the Hero Glamour X has quite the name to live up to. To be honest, the new Glamour is the best-looking Glamour of all time. To my eyes, the Hero Glamours of the past didn’t look appealing at all with their disjointed, disproportionate designs. The new Glamour X is much, much better in this regard.

The new LED headlight is large and striking to look at, and the XL windscreen atop it adds to the visual presence when viewed from the front. The fuel tank is neatly sculpted with chunky tank extensions adding to the visual flair. Even the side and tail sections are designed to look cohesive, while the contrasting graphics are neat and thankfully aren’t overdone.

That said, I do feel that the windscreen is too large and when you look at the motorcycle from the side, the length of the tail section is quite long, extending much beyond the wheelbase, resulting in a slightly disproportionate appearance. It clearly is a case of function winning over form since Hero wanted to accommodate a long seat.

On the whole, however, the Hero Glamour X is a good-looking motorcycle, and attention to detail, like the chrome element on the side panels, turbine-shaped alloy wheels, and the sharp belly pan, add to the visual appeal of the bike.

As far as quality is concerned, fit and finish, as well as the paint quality, are good. There are some apparent cost-conscious bits on the bike, if you look at the nuts and bolts or the quality of the switchgear. But these aren’t deal-breakers in any way.

The Package

Hero has simply hit it out of the park with the features and equipment they’ve offered on the Glamour X. In a segment first, the bike gets cruise control that is operated using a rather intuitive switch on the right switchcube. The bike also gets ride-by-wire, and that allows Hero to introduce ride modes on the bike.

There’s Eco, Road, and Power, and these modes alter the engine mapping, which consequently changes the responsiveness of the bike. More on that a little later. Besides this, the Glamour X also gets a full-colour LCD with Bluetooth connectivity and its associated functions.

Coming to the heart of the matter, the Glamour X is powered by the same 124.7cc, air-cooled, single-cylinder engine that you see in the Hero Xtreme 125R. It makes 11.4bhp at 8,250rpm and 10.5Nm at 6,500rpm, and is paired with a five-speed gearbox. This engine is known for its refinement as well as tractability, and it was interesting to see how it served the Glamour’s commuter application.

The Ride

Once you are seated on the motorcycle, you get a sense that the spacious seat, wide handlebar, and forward-set footpegs together make for a rider’s position that’s akin to being seated on a chair.

Start rolling off, and you notice the engine is refined as the revs build. I started in Eco mode, where the throttle response was relaxed but not dull or sluggish. It’s the mode you’d want to stick to, in order to extract maximum fuel economy. While that is stating the obvious, what came as a pleasant surprise is that the engine was responsive enough to pull quick overtakes in traffic, which is usually the case while dealing with city roads.

Switching to Road mode made the engine feel more alive, the throttle response got quicker, and the difference between this mode and Eco was apparent. This is the mode that one should probably stick to if they find Eco to be too dull for their liking.

However, it’s the Power mode that will appeal to the youngster, or those young at heart. The engine feels peppy, turn of speed is quick for a 125cc, and pulling overtakes on the highway doesn’t feel like it takes an age. In fact, the fifth gear is tall enough to ensure one can sit at 80kmph without the engine crying in agony. The bike went on to hit a top speed of 105kmph, which is par for the course.

I also got the opportunity to test the cruise control feature on a few open stretches on the highway. Whether it is 60kmph or 80kmph, the cruise control will take the effort off holding the throttle grip open for extended periods of time. That’s until you come up to a slower-moving vehicle or have to brake for an obstacle, which results in the system disengaging.

The only caveat with this otherwise useful feature is that Indian roads are seldom devoid of obstacles or idiots, so the duration for which you can cruise without the need to slow down or touch the brakes is anyone's guess. The other issue I felt was with how slowly the system responded to inputs for raising or lowering the speed using the +/- toggle on the cruise control switch. Hero should work on refining this system further.

The sweet engine aside, I also liked the dynamics of the Glamour X. Hero is known to engineer good chassis over the last few years, and this bike is no exception. It feels planted at high speeds and flickable at low speeds, say while threading your way through traffic. The grip from the JK tyres is also decent, but wet-weather grip is something I can’t comment on.

The braking is progressive and predictable, but I wish there was a little more initial bite from the front. Also, I absolutely detest the CBS or Combined Braking System nonsense in these 125cc motorcycles, regardless of the make, and I wish to see ABS being made mandatory sooner rather than later.

As for the ride, it was absorbent and kept my backside happy for the most part, except for the odd pothole that crept through. That said, most of the roads we encountered were smooth, as is usually the case in Rajasthan. Perhaps a proper road test on Mumbai’s infamous pockmarked roads would serve as a true test of the Glamour X’s ride.

Verdict

Hero has been the king of the commuter class for decades and all that accumulated wealth of knowledge is why motorcycles like the Glamour X take shape. Based on our initial impressions of the bike, it does tick a lot of boxes when it comes to getting commuter motorcycles right.

Add the new approach towards design, improved performance, and a distinct set of features, and it seems like the Glamour X packs a lot to entice buyers. And then, when you consider the solid price - beginning at Rs. 90,000, ex-showroom - what you have is a Hero that’s got the teeth to fight in the highly competitive 125cc segment.

Images by Kaustubh Gandhi