‘Freedom’, its something that all of us as humans strive for; may it be from financial debt, family responsibilities, health issues, the stress of work or even from proving your worth. A large chunk of us find that freedom in riding on two wheels, with most of us starting out on 100-125cc commuters. Enter the Bajaj Freedom 125, world’s first mass production CNG motorcycle which makes claims to give you the freedom from our countries’ sky high petrol prices or the long waiting times for your EV two wheeler to charge, all at an accesible and sensible price point for the common man.
Design and Styling
It intends to fully disrupt one of the most competitive segments, the 125cc class and it has all the bikes in its sights that run on petrol, which in itself is why it has all of the design quirks and characteristics to make it stand out and look different from the lot of them. The first few design cues that catch your eye are the exposed steel trellis frame, a first for bikes in the commuter class and the long, flat, high standing seat that gives it a SuperMoto-esque or dirt bike, dual-sport like vibe and is possibly the biggest motorcycle seat in production. The other peculiar design choice comes in the form of the front fork shrouds. Also, at first glance you do not understand where the CNG tank actually is; it is right below the seat.
The CNG Tank
‘Is it safe?’ you must be asking; well, Bajaj claims that it is and they have tested it extensively. It passed the AIS certification with flying colours and extra tests have also been done to ensure that the tank is always going to remain intact regardless of what happens. Multiple frontal collision tests, pendulum tests from the side and front, going as far as to also run an eleven ton truck over the tank, yet nothing disastrous happened. The tank will not explode and that is a guarantee from Bajaj; the bike took more than four years to develop and to be available for purchase to the general public due to this specific reason.
Underpinnings
You will see that the engine is horizontal in a ‘sloper’ configuration (like the mighty Lord Splendor), allowing space to be liberated for both the CNG and petrol fuel tanks to exist mutually. The engine churns out modest figures of just 9.5 HP and 9.7 N-m of torque, making it the least powerful 125. The chassis is proper though, feels premium and very robustly built thanks to the trellis frame and sub-frame. But its weight of 149 Kg (kerb) puts it in 150cc bike territory and the result is it accelerates like a 100-110cc; then again if you are comparing performance figures here, you completely missed the point of this bike. As for ground clearance, it gets a pretty good 170mm of it.
Riding Experience
It is a fairly comfortable bike and also a friendly one. Clutch is easy and the engine is smooth. Power delivery is linear in either fuel mode, but the switch is not as unnoticeable as you would imagine. The fuel mapping is super smooth and the response from the throttle is fantastic when you are in petrol mode, but the fueling seems to be rather notchy and noticable too in CNG mode. It has a decent low end surge of power which is enough for taking heavy loads and passengers atop steep hills. Coming to vibrations, they are not really noticeable anywhere apart from the footpegs and the balance of the bike is properly done, making it a comfy and an easygoing city commuter.
Kitna Deti Hai?
What impresses most is just how frugal and economical the bike turns out to be. With the 2 Kg tank, the bike is capable of over 200 kilometres in CNG mode alone and the tiny 2 litre petrol tank can take you 130 kilometres on its own. Considering the current CNG and petrol prices, this amounts to around just a rupee per kilometre!
Ergonomics and Seating Comfort
Due to packaging challenges of the CNG tank, the seat is on the taller side at 825mm and seems a little daunting to the average indian height, but the seat is rather narrow, so you can be quite comfortable and still will be perfectly fine riding the motorcycle. The one bad thing about the ergonomics is that the lower half of your body is a little cramped if you are on the taller side. However, the upper half is fairly comfortable as you are in a relaxed sitting upright position and also have quite a lot of leverage. The handlebars sit quite close to you and high as well, so your arms are not stressed at all.
Shortcomings
There are a couple of things that have been given a miss. For example, a gauge for the petrol tank or even at the least could have given some sort of indication. The lack of a kill switch is pretty annoying too considering that most scooters even nowadays come with it. These small negatives mentioned are practically just small nitpicks in the grand scheme of things.
Features, Variants and Pricing
It is a decently feature rich bike for its class, getting the silent starter and side-stand cutoff as standard. The base version comes with a halogen headlight, a simple display with all the tell-tale lights and skinnier tyres as compared to the other variants. The mid spec adds the LED headlight. The top model gets a front disc brake and a more advanced meter console with basic BlueTooth setup for call and SMS alerts in addition to the aforementioned features.
Considering the price point it has been introduced at of ₹95,000 for the base variant, it makes the motorcycle pretty much a no brainer for someone who is just looking to commute within the city.
Parting Thoughts
When a brand wants to pioneer a segment, it requires a lot of research, development, testing and investment. Bajaj put their money where their mouth is and came out with a product that is a very enticing propostion for what it is, what it intends to do; all the while still being economically viable for the masses at the same time.
It is an amazing commuter that is comfortable, spacious, frugal, affordable to own, run and maintain. This is definitely going to be considered by everybody who wants to buy a daily commuter whose top priority is getting the most out of their buck and bonus points for being wrapped in such a stylish persona.
