Bajaj Pulsar N180

Two Bajaj dealers in Pune told me the same thing within a week of each other: the N160 has been selling faster than they can stock it, and a bigger version is coming. Test mules have been photographed near Chakan with a wider rear tyre and a taller tank, which lines up with what I saw on the road in July.

If Bajaj keeps the N160's chassis and simply stretches the engine, that is good news. That bike already turns nicely and does not punish you on broken tarmac. What people actually want is a little more pull in fourth and fifth gear on the highway, and roughly 18 more cc should sort that out.

My honest advice if you are shopping right now: the N160 is not going to feel obsolete the day this launches. The bigger bike will likely cost eight to ten thousand more on road, and unless you ride out of the city every other weekend, you will not miss the extra cc in traffic. Buy the N160 if you need a bike this month. Wait if you can hold out until the festive stock arrives, because that is also when dealers get generous with accessories.

One more thing worth saying out loud — Bajaj has a habit of launching a bike and then adding variants six months later. The first batch usually skips something, whether it is the bigger front disc or the fancier console. If a specific feature matters to you, read the variant sheet at the dealership rather than the brochure photos.