Had to take the Himalayan in for some warranty work yesterday and leave it, so took out one of their demonstrators to kill the time.

Easiest to get out of the line-up was a bike that I have had an idle interest in experiencing for a while - a Voge DS525X. Why the interest ? I have been considering "downsizing" from two bikes (Interceptor 650 + Himalayan 411) to maybe one under 500cc & wanted to see how one of the current crop of such bikes from the current "market disruptors" fared.

The weather was, for a welcome change, bright and sunny, but cold. 6-7 degrees until early afternoon, when it crept up to 9, and I was cool when I arrived at the dealers after a slow 20 mile ride - I tend to forget what chaos the rush hour causes these days with not usually having to travel in it any more. Mrs B. turned up on her Scram 411 shortly after I had signed my life away on the disclaimer form for the Voge & we headed off into the Yorkshire Dales.

In pictures (and stood along side) the Voge appears to be a large bike (particularly for a "500" ) in the "adventure" mould. But this is decepetive - it has a low seat that is narrow towards the tank and wider and flat further back. At 5'9" & 31" inseam I could get both feet flat easier than on the Himalayan & it felt lighter than the Interceptor (though on paper there isn't much between them).

Ergonomics were great for me - this is the first bike I have ridden for a long time where I didn't feel that anything required adjustment to suit me or "jarred" - it just fit. The clutch was very light, the cable operated throttle also & the front brake nicely weighted.

Starting was instant from cold and the first clue to a smaller engine came from the higher-than-I-an-used-to tickover and quick response to the throttle suggesting not a lot of flywheel. Negotiating town traffic took a bit of mental adjustment after the Himalayan, but into the B roads it proved to have light and precise handling, smooth and compliant suspension (set a bit firm for me, but fully adjustable front & rear - the fork adjusters looked identical to Mrs B's last VTR1000) and a suprisingly flexible engine.

The lack of "cubes" really only showed in a lack of tolerance to running to lower revs in higher gears. Fuelling was pretty good, though I only ran it in "Eco" mode not "Sport" as the conditions were not at all "sporty". The only time it felt a bit abrupt was in first gear in traffic, otherwise I could just ride it as I would the Interceptor. The standard fit Metzler Tourance tyres worked well on the cold & on mainly wet roads - no "moments" and a confidence-inspiring feedback.

All was not totaly rosy, though. The engine had a bit of a "raw" feel and various vibrations came though the seat, pegs & bars at different revs. Due to the low-ish mileage on the bike I had been asked to keep it under 5000 revs, though TBQH I didn't feel I would have been using many more anyway. There was a "resonant" patch around 4000 (50-ish in top) and, while the vibes could be felt I didn't get numb digits at all while riding - my hands did feel a bit "tingly" this morning, though. Up to 60 it didn't feel laboured & was flexible enough to be able to vary between 40 and 60 in A road traffic in 6th. On a short stretch of dual carriageway 70 was also fine, though it was starting to feel a bit busy.

By far the most negative aspect was the gearshift - in contrast to all the other controls the shift was stiff and the lever travel longer than expected. For the first several changes from first to second I hit neutral, other up changes had to be "deliberate" and down changes had to fully let the lever re-centre between shifts or multiple downshifts didn't happen.

I did around 120 miles altogether. Mrs B's Scram needed fuel early on, so I put 6 litres in it at the same time (E5 only according to a sticker on the tank - same as the Scram / Himalayan are run on) and the fuel gauge showed much the same on my return as I had set out with. Steady ridng up to the limits, in "Eco" mode, but it didn't seem to be using much. I got off with no aches or pains, suprisingly not cold, as the screen / fairing / hand guards were suprisingly efficient at deflecting the worst of the airflow.

This was a much better bike than I was expecting. Still some aspects to be improved, plus another I have not mentioned - noise. At 98 dBA (according to the VIN plate) it is not "Austrian Tirol" compliant. It was not objectionably noisy, but the Himalayan was noticabley quieter on my return home.

The gearchange action & the noise isssue would stop me buying one, but I think this is the first bike I have ridden that comes out of the showroom ready to use as I want to use a bike - it just "needs" a UK plate. It is "fully loaded" - centre stand, engine bars, 3 piece hard luggage & racks, LeD auxilliary lights, hand guards, adjustable screen all standard equipment - the only noticable item missing is heated grips - and only £6K+OTR.
And these issues may already have been addressed by the updated "595" model shown at EICMA.





I know there are concerns raised about the politics of Chinese bikes, spare parts availabilty and resale values, but judging the product on it's merits I was rather shocked by how close it came to what I feel I am looking for at the moment.

Times they are a changing.

Nigel B.