Today I have the opportunity to ride both bikes, back-to-back around the same route out of London and into Essex. The route included:
Some motorway, M25 for one junction
Dual carriageway restricted to 50 mph
Dual carriageway national limit
Conventional A and B roads but including some single car width Essex type roads
In town through Brentwood (reasonably busy) 30 mph
Busy roundabouts on the A12
Things the bikes have in common:
They are very competitively priced.
Both are well made and very easy to ride. They are light, with the rider (31” inside leg) able to put both feet down very comfortably. They would both make excellent ‘new rider’ bikes or for anyone uncomfortable on taller or heavier bikes, either due to confidence or advancing years. There is absolutely no shame in any of that, as everyone has to start somewhere, may not be the biggest or strongest person alive and everyone gets older eventually.
Slow speed manoeuvres are easy.
The switch gear on both bikes is good quality.
The clutch and gearbox operations are smooth, with neutral easy to find at a standstill and with no missed gear changes or false neutrals. Clutchless gear changes going up the box are smooth; I didn’t try going down, simply as I forgot to.
The mirrors are slightly odd but OK when you get them set up and / or used to them. The mirrors do not vibrate or blur significantly.
The bikes are not powerful. There is not much point in pushing the rev counter much beyond 4,500 whilst the bike will max out at somewhere between an indicated 75 and 80 mph. When I say not powerful, they can hold their own off the lights, for a bit of busy roundabout rodeo and for getting past vehicles going along at around 45 mph. Anything faster, like an overtake of a car doing say 50 mph’ish is possible but you do have to give it some thought and plan accordingly; there is no extra 30 or more bhp on tap to blast you out of trouble. Patience, planning and a bit of half decent riding technique should see anyone fine.
The side stand is easy to locate, when sitting on the bike, both to lower and raise.
The instruments, though different on each bike, are easy to read.
All the riding was in daylight and good weather, so I did not get a chance to test the headlights.
The brakes are OK for the sort of speeds the two bikes will do. Neither bike needs multi-pot callipers but (maybe as the bike was was a bit new) they seemed to be a bit softer on the Himalayan. Nothing frightening though.
Where they differ
Whist both bikes share the same 25 horsepower, single cylinder engine, they are strangely different to ride.
On the Himalayan, you sort of sit ‘in the bike’, slightly lower I felt than the Scram, where you sort of sit ‘on the bike’. You are maybe more upright on the Scram but the view ahead on both is good.
The Scram is certainly more ‘Road orientated’ than the Himalayan.
The Himalayan has a nod to its adventure / off-road capabilities with a 21” front wheel versus the 19” wheel on the Scram. Whilst both bikes share the same basic frame, the Scram is slightly lighter and steers a little faster, but the 21” front wheel is not lazy, it maybe requires maybe requires a small touch more effort. Both bikes do though steer nicely and respond well (in a balanced way) to counter steering input.
The Himalayan seemed to dive a little bit more at the front, maybe due to a slightly different geometry but nothing like the very soft front end that I had on BMW F800R (which I had sorted out at MCT) or the soft front end on my 850 GSA, which is now sold. Braking though is pretty well balanced on both bikes.
The instruments on the Himalayan and Scram differ, with the Scram being the simpler of the two, with just one single speedo and no rev counter. The much bigger single clock (it’s a bit Mini car like) did catch the bright sun sometimes, almost dazzling me in a full face helmet.
The Himalayan has a basic screen, which keeps some wind off the rider’s chest. I am six foot and suffered no buffeting. The Scram I rode had no screen and gave a very nice, very even, wind ‘blast’ (that’s probably too strong a word) on the chest, supporting the rider. I am though not a rider who demands still air nor do I get upset with some buffeting; I see it as part and parcel of sitting outside on a motorcycle.
The Himalayan has a two seat set up (the rider and pillion are separate) whilst the Scram I rode had a one piece seat. Both seats were acceptably comfortable.
The Himalayan is set up for luggage from the start but both will carry whatever luggage you like, no question about that.
Conclusions
Both bikes are good value, competitively priced.
Neither bike will win the TT, nor top bragging rights in the pub, for bhp, torque or top speed. What they do offer though is simple, reasonably quick (in a modest way) comfortable riding. I know I could do 350 miles in a day on both, no problem at all. I see lots of ‘underpowered’ bikes at the top of Alpine passes, sitting quite comfortably alongside all sorts of much more expensive and much more powerful machines. I am confident both bikes will make it to the tops and back down again.
You wouldn’t want to sit all day on a motorway on either bike, though you could if necessary. Where it would suffer on say a busy M25 or similar motorway in the SE corner around London, would be one of relative speeds. At 60, you’d catch up with lorries in lane one. Lane two might be doing 65 or faster. You’d be caught in some sort of strange no man’s land. Not impossible to deal with but not the world’s greatest fun. An hour or so, Calais to Cambrai, woukd be OK.
Ergonomically and style wise, both bikes are on a reasonably comfortable par each other. I can though split hairs and say I preference the Himalayan a bit.
I was surprised how different the bikes were to ride. If someone is looking for a more ‘sports bike’ (in the very broadest sense) feel, then they’ll maybe enjoy the Scram more. If they are looking for a more relaxed feel, then the Himalayan may be a better choice. Ride them both and make your own mind up. I’ll come back to this later.
I preferred the clocks / dash on the Himalayan, liking the separate idiot lights. You don’t actually need the rev counter, as you very quickly get used to the noise the engine makes and the way the torque maxes out at about 4,500 rpm.
From the rider’s perspective, I preferred the view looking down at the front of the Himalayan. The front of the Scram seemed a bit untidy, with the square styled indicators sticking out, rather at odds with the very round speedometer. I did wonder if the flash of the indicator might be distracting at night?
The downside, for me at least, of the Scram and its more road biased feel, was that I continuously wanted to ride it faster. That is ridiculous, as it is only 25 bhp, it won’t go any faster! If that was what I wanted to do I would be much better off just spending more by buying a purpose built (much faster, much more powerful) naked bike from one if the mainstream manufacturers. I don’t want the bike to offer that, not least as I already have a 1600 which will deliver power and handling in spades, straight out of the crate.
I want a bike that is comfortable to ride, quiet in a nice way and at home cruising at 55 to 60 mph’ish, topping out at around 75’ish on a good day, with a run up. I want to relax on the thing and not spend all day wanting to ring its neck to squeeze out something that’s really not there; I did that when I was 17. For me, the Himalayan ticked that very simple box.
Some motorway, M25 for one junction
Dual carriageway restricted to 50 mph
Dual carriageway national limit
Conventional A and B roads but including some single car width Essex type roads
In town through Brentwood (reasonably busy) 30 mph
Busy roundabouts on the A12
Things the bikes have in common:
They are very competitively priced.
Both are well made and very easy to ride. They are light, with the rider (31” inside leg) able to put both feet down very comfortably. They would both make excellent ‘new rider’ bikes or for anyone uncomfortable on taller or heavier bikes, either due to confidence or advancing years. There is absolutely no shame in any of that, as everyone has to start somewhere, may not be the biggest or strongest person alive and everyone gets older eventually.
Slow speed manoeuvres are easy.
The switch gear on both bikes is good quality.
The clutch and gearbox operations are smooth, with neutral easy to find at a standstill and with no missed gear changes or false neutrals. Clutchless gear changes going up the box are smooth; I didn’t try going down, simply as I forgot to.
The mirrors are slightly odd but OK when you get them set up and / or used to them. The mirrors do not vibrate or blur significantly.
The bikes are not powerful. There is not much point in pushing the rev counter much beyond 4,500 whilst the bike will max out at somewhere between an indicated 75 and 80 mph. When I say not powerful, they can hold their own off the lights, for a bit of busy roundabout rodeo and for getting past vehicles going along at around 45 mph. Anything faster, like an overtake of a car doing say 50 mph’ish is possible but you do have to give it some thought and plan accordingly; there is no extra 30 or more bhp on tap to blast you out of trouble. Patience, planning and a bit of half decent riding technique should see anyone fine.
The side stand is easy to locate, when sitting on the bike, both to lower and raise.
The instruments, though different on each bike, are easy to read.
All the riding was in daylight and good weather, so I did not get a chance to test the headlights.
The brakes are OK for the sort of speeds the two bikes will do. Neither bike needs multi-pot callipers but (maybe as the bike was was a bit new) they seemed to be a bit softer on the Himalayan. Nothing frightening though.
Where they differ
Whist both bikes share the same 25 horsepower, single cylinder engine, they are strangely different to ride.
On the Himalayan, you sort of sit ‘in the bike’, slightly lower I felt than the Scram, where you sort of sit ‘on the bike’. You are maybe more upright on the Scram but the view ahead on both is good.
The Scram is certainly more ‘Road orientated’ than the Himalayan.
The Himalayan has a nod to its adventure / off-road capabilities with a 21” front wheel versus the 19” wheel on the Scram. Whilst both bikes share the same basic frame, the Scram is slightly lighter and steers a little faster, but the 21” front wheel is not lazy, it maybe requires maybe requires a small touch more effort. Both bikes do though steer nicely and respond well (in a balanced way) to counter steering input.
The Himalayan seemed to dive a little bit more at the front, maybe due to a slightly different geometry but nothing like the very soft front end that I had on BMW F800R (which I had sorted out at MCT) or the soft front end on my 850 GSA, which is now sold. Braking though is pretty well balanced on both bikes.
The instruments on the Himalayan and Scram differ, with the Scram being the simpler of the two, with just one single speedo and no rev counter. The much bigger single clock (it’s a bit Mini car like) did catch the bright sun sometimes, almost dazzling me in a full face helmet.
The Himalayan has a basic screen, which keeps some wind off the rider’s chest. I am six foot and suffered no buffeting. The Scram I rode had no screen and gave a very nice, very even, wind ‘blast’ (that’s probably too strong a word) on the chest, supporting the rider. I am though not a rider who demands still air nor do I get upset with some buffeting; I see it as part and parcel of sitting outside on a motorcycle.
The Himalayan has a two seat set up (the rider and pillion are separate) whilst the Scram I rode had a one piece seat. Both seats were acceptably comfortable.
The Himalayan is set up for luggage from the start but both will carry whatever luggage you like, no question about that.
Conclusions
Both bikes are good value, competitively priced.
Neither bike will win the TT, nor top bragging rights in the pub, for bhp, torque or top speed. What they do offer though is simple, reasonably quick (in a modest way) comfortable riding. I know I could do 350 miles in a day on both, no problem at all. I see lots of ‘underpowered’ bikes at the top of Alpine passes, sitting quite comfortably alongside all sorts of much more expensive and much more powerful machines. I am confident both bikes will make it to the tops and back down again.
You wouldn’t want to sit all day on a motorway on either bike, though you could if necessary. Where it would suffer on say a busy M25 or similar motorway in the SE corner around London, would be one of relative speeds. At 60, you’d catch up with lorries in lane one. Lane two might be doing 65 or faster. You’d be caught in some sort of strange no man’s land. Not impossible to deal with but not the world’s greatest fun. An hour or so, Calais to Cambrai, woukd be OK.
Ergonomically and style wise, both bikes are on a reasonably comfortable par each other. I can though split hairs and say I preference the Himalayan a bit.
I was surprised how different the bikes were to ride. If someone is looking for a more ‘sports bike’ (in the very broadest sense) feel, then they’ll maybe enjoy the Scram more. If they are looking for a more relaxed feel, then the Himalayan may be a better choice. Ride them both and make your own mind up. I’ll come back to this later.
I preferred the clocks / dash on the Himalayan, liking the separate idiot lights. You don’t actually need the rev counter, as you very quickly get used to the noise the engine makes and the way the torque maxes out at about 4,500 rpm.
From the rider’s perspective, I preferred the view looking down at the front of the Himalayan. The front of the Scram seemed a bit untidy, with the square styled indicators sticking out, rather at odds with the very round speedometer. I did wonder if the flash of the indicator might be distracting at night?
The downside, for me at least, of the Scram and its more road biased feel, was that I continuously wanted to ride it faster. That is ridiculous, as it is only 25 bhp, it won’t go any faster! If that was what I wanted to do I would be much better off just spending more by buying a purpose built (much faster, much more powerful) naked bike from one if the mainstream manufacturers. I don’t want the bike to offer that, not least as I already have a 1600 which will deliver power and handling in spades, straight out of the crate.
I want a bike that is comfortable to ride, quiet in a nice way and at home cruising at 55 to 60 mph’ish, topping out at around 75’ish on a good day, with a run up. I want to relax on the thing and not spend all day wanting to ring its neck to squeeze out something that’s really not there; I did that when I was 17. For me, the Himalayan ticked that very simple box.
