The Bajaj Pulsar N160 Engine

The Bajaj Pulsar N160 is, essentially, the Pulsar N250 with a smaller displacement engine, a 164 82cc, air- and oil-cooled single, to be precise And it is Bajaj's prime contender in the fiercely competitive 160cc segment. Does it have what it takes to not just survive, but thrive !

First things first, let us tell you that we are riding the top-spec, dual-channel ABS-equipped Pulsar N160 It is available in this exclusive Brooklyn Black colour and gets the Pulsar 250's 37mm telescopic fork. The lower, single-channel ABS equipped variant is available in three colour options and has a smaller 280mm front disc and much thinner, 31mm diameter fork Those are quite significant differences and they dilute the appeal of the base model quite significantly

The Pulsar N160's engine has nothing to do with the existing Pulsar NS160's mill. This engine, in fact, has been under development around the same time as the Pulsar 250's engine It has a long-stroke configuration, with a simple two-valve head and makes 16hp and 14.7Nm of peak torque These figures aren't class leading, although it is quite close to the motorcycles at the top of the segment. Only the RTR 160 4V and the NS160 outdo the N160 in claimed engine output figures However, there is also the fact that at 154kg, N160 is the heaviest bike in the segment

You would imagine that with a power to weight ratio of 103.89hp/tonne, compared with the RTR’s 119 86hp/tonne, the Pulsar N160 is already on the back foot But that's only on paper

In the real world, the engine is delightfully smooth, packs oodles of torque and has decent top end performance as well The low and midrange between 4,000 to 7,000rpm, especially, is astonishingly good. You can be as lazy as a sloth, slot the gearbox in 5th and ride at 30-35kph in the city without any signs of protest from the engine Roll on the throttle from this point and the bike pulls cleanly, albeit at a slow pace. However, if you need to pull a quick overtake you will have to go down a gear or two Not that you'll mind this because the gearbox is smooth and the light clutch lever action will also make it a breeze to go up and down the cogs.

All said, the engine's superb tractability will make it natural for those graduating from 125cc-150cc motorcycles to feel at home with the N160.

Top-end performance isn't lacking either and the bike can hold a steady 80-90kph without feeling or sounding strained. Sitting at 100kph, too, doesn't cause the engine to sweat. From then on, however, the performance begins to taper as the digital speedo climbs to an indicated top speed of around 120kph At this point, the revs are also pretty close to the redline, which again is an indicator of the engine reaching its performance ceiling.

Overall, the N160's engine is the star of the show here and I'm also a fan of its throaty exhaust note.

Bajaj Pulsar N160: ride and handling

The advantage of platform sharing is clearly evident in the way the N160 rides and handles. It has the same frame, suspension, wheels and brakes as on the Pulsar N250 So, it isn't surprising to see that the N160 is blessed with high-speed stability and sure-footedness around a corner.

The ride quality is quite good but not as plush as the N250, despite the suspension being exactly the same, down to the spring rates The mild but clear firmness in the ride is felt at the rear, particularly while riding over the sharp edge of a pothole Mind you, we didn't tinker with the stock preload settings; plus, the N160 is about 8kg lighter than the N250. We think the ride quality should improve once the preload has been suitably adjusted and when a pillion hops on-board.

As for the brakes, the Grimecas are my new favourites in this segment as they offer strong bite and progression with more than enough feedback through the lever.