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Timely injection

The Hero Honda Glamour has the distinction of being India's first fuel injected bike

Until a few years back, nobody would've even toyed with the idea of producing a fuel-injected bike in India. However, Hero Honda not only toyed with the idea but also actually built one and became the first to come up with the fuel-injected bike. This is a version of the 125cc Glamour, which uses programmed electronic fuel injection or PGM-FI technology from Japanese giant and partner, Honda.

The Glamour FI is identical to the Glamour, but comes with a new set of decals that instantly set it apart from its carburetted sibling. Also, the FI's fuel injected engine is finished in black. Quality and attention to detail is the keyword on the new model — a useful addition to the Glamour FI's instrument binnacle is a real-time mileage indicator that Hero Honda calls `RTMI'. One glance at this digital display tells riders the precise fuel economy their bike has delivered in the last ten seconds. RTMI calculates the amount of fuel consumed over the distance travelled. The new bike also comes with an engine malfunction-lamp, LCD display fuel gauge and body-coloured grab bar and mirrors.

While retaining the internals from the Glamour, the new 124.8cc engine has been tweaked to accommodate the PGM-FI system. Peak power of 9bhp at 7,000 rpm and a torque output of 1.05 kgm at 4,000 rpm remain constant, with weight remaining the same too. The Glamour FI therefore may deliver near-identical performance as the older bike. The injection system features a bank-angle sensor that shuts down fuel supply in the event of the rider taking a fall. The new Glamour is expected to offer better economy, lower emissions and an ability to start easily under the most trying temperature or altitude conditions.

The bike comes in two variants, across 60 cities in India. The base version uses a drum brake up ahead and a kick-starter, while the top-end variant self-starts and features a disc brake. However, note that the new Hero Honda is more expensive than its non fuel-injected 125cc counterparts, already fuel-efficient motorcycles. The manufacturer is confident that one singular benefit of fuel injection will offset the cost of higher capital investment — an expected improvement in fuel economy. Hero Honda is also working on rapidly introducing PGM-FI technology across its product line-up. So, for all those people who are closely monitoring fuel costs and wondering about the fuel efficiency of this bike... look out for a test drive of this bike on our pages soon. It might well be worth your time.

RISHAD COOPER

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