Five labours of the Bajaj Dominar 400 ABS: Review

Can it stunt?

The Pulsar range shot into the consciousness of the youth on one wheel, and it can even be credited with encouraging the sport in the country by virtue of not just easy-to-stunt motorcycles, but easy-to-maintain bits as well. The Dominar’s fat midrange and large displacement mean that hoicking the front wheel is as easy as pie, as our resident stuntman Abhishek shows. That same midrange torque coupled with a good chassis means that sliding it is very easy, too, provided the surface is not very grippy, although the limited steering lock does get in the way a little. On a grippy surface, a burnout is just a matter of squeezing the front brake and giving it the beans. Unfortunately, stoppies are a no-go because the ABS isn’t switchable, meaning it doesn’t allow the rear to lift. Great for safety, but just about competent for stunting, then, as it does some things really well and others not at all.

Can it tour?

Bajaj markets the Dominar as a power cruiser, and linked to that image is the assumption that long distances are a cinch in the Dominar’s saddle. We did take it for a long ride with another similarly-priced product that has a similar claim, and we found that it is the best in the business at the price point to ride with at night, thanks to that headlamp. It is an all-LED one, and lights up the road better than anything at the price. On smooth roads, the Dominar is in a class of its own. It cruises at up to 120kph without breaking into a sweat. It can handle corners with ease. Overtaking involves a twist of the wrist and nothing else. Overtaking at night is even easier – the LED high beam flashing convinces those in front that a very expensive machine is rolling up, and everyone moves over immediately. The ABS offers confidence to cut speed at a moment’s notice. However, at 100kph, the engine note is a characterless, resonating drone that grates on your nerves after a while. The vibrations are excessive and can be felt through all the touch points on the motorcycle, including the seat. On bad roads, the same suspension that offered confidence at 120kph and turned the world into a blur makes it blur again, but not in a pleasant way. The riding position is such that you can’t stand and ride comfortably to avoid your seat taking the shock. The tank range is acceptable, too. So yes, it can cover ground impressively, but only if the roads are smooth – that’s a fifty/fifty in a country with roads like ours.

Can it corner?

There’s an emphatic ‘yes’ here. The twin-spar frame is overkill for the kind of motorcycle the Dominar is, but it offers the maximum returns here. I know the photograph doesn’t make it look like much, but that’s more the rider than the machine. Tip it into any corner and it responds with a willingness to play. It will hold its line, and the lean is limited purely by the placement of the footpegs. The engine and gearbox also help here – there was a time or two on our ride that I found myself in a gear higher than I needed to be, and the conviction that I was about to lowside had set in, but in throttle we trust, and even at low rpm, the midrange torque (yes, that again) bailed my heavy, ham-fisted self out of the situation. On bumpy corners it does go pear-shaped, yes, but full marks to the Dominar for cornering like no cruiser has any right to.

Can it commute?

There are two distinct camps in the team when it comes to this question. One camp dislikes it very much because of the vibrations and the jittery ride and the constant corrections needed in traffic. The other camp quite likes it because the torque makes it so easy to filter and constant gearshifts aren’t needed, making life easier. The key is in the amount of traffic – in light traffic, the Dominar can keep its momentum going and use its displacement and handling to its advantage. Heavy traffic brings out its negative characteristics like the limited steering lock, above-average size, and the 182kg weight. That said, special mention needs to be made of the clutch lever’s weight and action, which are light for the engine’s displacement and torque. If you have equal parts light and heavy traffic, you’ll like the Dominar. If it is heavy traffic all the way, you won’t.

Can it take a pillion?

There is a pillion seat, but I approached it with trepidation because I know it shares its seat’s genes with the KTM 200 and 390 Dukes. If you’ve ever felt how hard those seats are, and how small they are (not to mention how large my derriere is) you’d be nervous, too. However, the Dominar’s pillion seat is quite comfortable in comparison to the Duke pillion seat. I know, most of you will claim that a plank of wood is more comfortable than a Duke’s pillion perch, but the Dominar’s pillion seat is genuinely usable. But since it places the pillion rider upright, accelerating hard is out of the question – the pillion can only grab the rider for support. The stiff suspension also makes it twice as tough for the pillion, since the footpeg placement doesn’t offer the option of taking the body’s weight and thus absorbing the shock. To summarise: short rides are okay, and remember to avoid accelerating hard and go around the bumps and potholes.

Verdict

If you’re confused with this review, well, you should know that I’m more confused about the Dominar now than when I started out with this story, myself! Here is a motorcycle that I want, and I certainly want it to succeed, but it needs smoothening of its rough edges to truly make it a great product. However, that will then drive the price up, and will we want it then, now that Bajaj has dangled the Rs 1.5 lakh/400cc carrot in front of our noses? None of this changes the fact that at the price, the Dominar has no competition for three of these questions. For the commute and a pillion rider, there are other options.

Photography by Kapil Angane