Cruisers are in. Wait, let me rephrase that. Cruisers have always been in, but we just haven’t gotten our fair share of options over the years. Royal Enfield’s Thunderbird is designed to please old-school riders and its styling isn’t for everyone, for more than one subjective reason. That leaves us with the two motorcycles you see here — the Bajaj Avenger Street 180 and the Suzuki Intruder. The Street 180 is what Bajaj recently replaced the Avenger 150 with, and it stretches the legacy of the company’s popular cruiser further, with a few new features. The Suzuki Intruder, meanwhile, is a flamboyant take on the cruiser format. It is based on the formidable Gixxer, and the version we’re riding today is the carburetted, ABS bike.
So, which is cooler?
You probably wouldn’t be seeking a cruiser if you didn’t — even in the slightest — want to look cool. It’s a cruiser thing, yeah? Cruisers are meant to be statements on two wheels. Both Bajaj and Suzuki have their own spin on this brief. The Avenger has an only-too-familiar silhouette, and even when you bring it out of the shadows, it’s instantly recognisable as the motorcycle that started life as the Eliminator. This isn’t a bad thing, because the Avenger is stylish in a classical way, and in this (Street) guise, it does look quite up-to-date as well. It’s got a funky new headlight, all-black cycle parts and all-round healthy proportions. The flipside is that this is a motorcycle you see everywhere, and its age-old design — despite the best of Bajaj’s attempts — just doesn’t make it stand out in a crowd, any more.
The Intruder sticks to the other extreme when it comes to design philosophies. This is an extroverted, almost-outlandish design which draws inspiration from the original (bigger) Intruder, and looks like an exercise in excess. This is a motorcycle that may not be up everyone’s alley but, boy, it does make heads turn. I suppose Suzuki has gone to an uncomfortable length in its quest to make jaws drop, but the Intruder, undoubtedly, looks snazzier as a result.
Up close
The Avenger comes with an analogue single-pod speedo, a fuel gauge mounted on the tank, a single-piece seat, alloy wheels and a neat LED DRL housed within the aforementioned funky headlight. The Intruder, meanwhile, gets a fully digital instrument console (borrowed from the Gixxer), which includes a tachometer as well as a gear position indicator. Other features include a split seat, alloy wheels, a monoshock, a disc brake set-up at either end, and single-channel ABS. The math is simple enough for those amongst you who aren’t rocket scientists. The Intruder is better equipped, and that does attempt to justify the premium it commands. Is it the cooler motorcycle, then? Yes, in a very millennial context.
Swing a leg over the Avenger and you find yourself seated in a commanding position with an unrestricted view.
Clash of the titans As the big boys take on each other
The shorter handlebar (in comparison to the Cruise 220’s mini ape hangers) adds a dose of sportiness to the mix — and since the Street is targeted at the urban audience, it works in its favour. For my six-foot frame, the Avenger does feel cramped, however. This is mainly owing to the foot pegs, which aren’t too forward-set and are also positioned higher up than they should have been.
You also find yourself sitting ‘on’ the bike rather than ‘in’ it, although this feeling does disperse to a fair extent once you clock in some decent saddle time. When you do, though, you’ll also find that the seat isn’t the best you could have asked for, for a long day out on the highway.
That seat is to be found on the Intruder instead. The Intruder is plusher, more welcoming and is definitely more in the cruiser mould than the Avenger is. The split seat is a better-designed unit for long hours in the saddle, and its deeper contours make you feel one with the bike — a feeling you just can’t discount. The handlebar is more swept back, and the overall riding position is easy-going and almost completely laidback. The foot pegs are positioned better, too — in the sense that your legs are more comfortably stretched out — completing the cruiser imagery perfectly. Without a doubt, then, it’s the Intruder that’s comfier.
Ride experience
The Avenger Street 180 gets a 180cc, two-valve, DTS-i motor paired to a five-speed gearbox — the same as in the Pulsar but detuned to suit its cruising aspirations. Thankfully, it hasn’t been detuned all that much, and it still produces a healthy 15.5hp and 13.7Nm. This results in an encouraging performance package that’s linear and tractable, and it sure does advocate aggression. Bajaj has also made a commendable effort to refine this bike; as a result, the Avenger 180 is smooth and also pretty vibe-free.
The Intruder’s 155cc, two-valve motor is one that delivers its 14.8hp and 14Nm effortlessly, almost as if it’s an app-controlled phenomenon, and while this is commendable, it robs the Intruder of an important cruiser element — character.
To be fair, the Intruder can keep pace with the Avenger very well, in a non-competitive riding environment, and it, too, has terrific tractability. In fact, it’s the Intruder which has the better 5-speed gearbox.
Overall, the Avenger is an enjoyable motorcycle, but so is the Intruder .The Avenger Street 180 can be had in one trim only and is priced at ₹84,346. The Intruder, is available in two variants—carburettor and Fuel-injected and the base variant is priced at ₹1,02,072 (all prices, ex-showroom, Mumbai). It’s simple, then.
Buy the Avenger if you want a cruiser that’ll blend in, without raising eyebrows. Buy the Intruder – the better cruiser, all things considered – if you want to do exactly the opposite.
