feel comfortable, so you won’t really want to
venture off road. at 795 millimetres, the seat
height is accessible for most riders and the
motorcycle’s light kerb weight of 160 kilograms
makes it feel very nimble to manoeuvre.
Powering the TVs Ronin is a 225.9-cc motor
that has been derived from the 197.75-cc motor in
the RTR 200 4V. in this application, it puts out
20.4 hp at 7,750 rpm and a peak torque of 19.93
nm at 3,750 rpm. it comes mated to a five-speed
gearbox. The bore has remained the same at 66
millimetres but the stroke has been increased
from 57.8 mm in the RTR 200 4V to 66 mm in
the new Ronin.
With the integrated starter-generator (isG),
the bike starts up quietly and effortlessly after
which one hears a nice grunt from the exhaust
unit. i really did appreciate the tuning of this
smooth motor, because, with all of the torque
available from just 3,750 rpm, there is a good
amount of force propelling the bike forward in
the low and mid-range which facilitates quick
overtakes. The engaging nature of this motor
Gear CheCk
Rider: Azaman Chothia
Helmet: AGV K1
Jacket: Rynox Evo Storm L2
Pants: Rynox Airtex Pants
Gloves: Alpinestars Drystar
coupled with the light weight of the bike makes Boots: Forma Galaxy
it feel really nice while riding in stop-and-go
traffic. i was able to cruise at around 35 km/h in
fifth gear which shows the tractable nature of the
engine as well. from there, get on the throttle
and it quickly builds up momentum and gets up
to speed. The gear-shifts are super slick and the
extremely light and easy-to-use slipper clutch
makes the Ronin very effortless to ride around
town. overall, this motor proves to be a great
companion on account of the refinement level,
good low-end grunt, and how it behaves in the
city as a daily commuter.
The chassis of the Ronin is a double-cradle
split-frame while the suspension duties are
handled by a 41-mm showa UsD fork at the
front and a monoshock unit at the rear. This is
the same front fork seen on the apache RR 310
which has been set up slightly differently to suit
the character of this motorcycle. This set-up is
slightly on the stiffer side but manages to easily
get past undulations and bad sections of road.
equipped with this set-up, the Ronin is a cruiser
that is very nimble and flickable through a set of
corners. its 17-inch alloy wheels have been shod
with newly developed TVs Rumbler tyres.
These dual-purpose block-pattern tyres were
great in the wet during our first ride in Goa and
they further impressed me through the streets of
Pune. With these tyres, the bike is very
confidence-inspiring to ride even when i
encountered sections of scattered gravel. The
braking set-up comprises a 300-mm disc at the
front and a 240-mm one at the rear, which get
the bike to stop easily and all that is required are
two fingers on the front brake. With the threestep adjustable brake lever, riders can easily set it
up to their liking.
This top-of-the-line variant gets a dualchannel aBs set-up with two riding modes,
“Rain” and “Urban”, that only affect how the
aBs kicks in and can be switched on the go at
he push of the “mode” button. in Rain mode, the aBs kicks in later, which makes
it feel much safer while wading through wet roads.
The three variants are priced from Rs 1.41 lakh to Rs 1.79 lakh (ex-showroom).
This is competitive pricing when we take into account all that this bike has to offer.
considering that TVs want this to be an unscripted motorcycle, there is no direct
comparison but it will surely appeal to those riders who like retro motorcycles such
as the Royal enfield hunter 350, Yezdi Roadster, and the honda h’ness cB350.
The Ronin might just be the beginning of a new platform, so we may expect to see
some other models, likely a proper scrambler, in the near future.
coming to the end of this review, we have established that while the Ronin is
trying to be a lot of things at once, it is best suited to be an easy-going cruiser. in the
city, it is a pleasing motorcycle to ride and, with all the features and accessories on
offer, an attractive proposition for someone looking for a comfortable, lightweight,
and good-handling daily commuter.
TVS Ronin (TD)
Price: 1.79 lakh (ex-showroom)
Overall star rating: 11112
dImensIons
Width: 805 mm
Length: 2,040 mm
Height: 1,170 mm
Saddle Height: 795 mm
Wheelbase: 1,357 mm
Ground Clearance: 181 mm
Kerb Weight: 160 kg
engIne
Configuration: Air-cooled with oil cooler, single-cylinder
Valve-Train: SOHC, four-valve
Displacement: 225.9 cc
Bore x Stroke: 66 mm x 66 mm
Compression Ratio: NA
Fuelling: Fuel-injection
Maximum Power: 20.4 hp at 7,750 rpm
Maximum Torque: 19.93 Nm at 3,750 rpm
trAnsmIssIon
Clutch: Wet, multiplate, slipper
Gears: Five-speed
Primary Drive: Gear
Final Drive: Chain
Gearshift Pattern: One down, four up
CHAssIs
Type: Double cradle split “Synchro Stiff” frame
Front Suspension: Showa 41-mm USD fork