Bajaj Freedom 125 Review: Is India Ready For A CNG Bike?

Bajaj has created a new segment with the world's first CNG motorcycle. It makes use of a 125cc engine and also gets a 2 litre fuel tank. It is primarily made to run on CNG and the Petrol mode is more of a reserve option. We spent around 3 days and covered almost 300kms on the Freedom 125 CNG and here are our first impressions.

Bajaj Freedom 125 CNG: Design

There has been a lot of hype around the motorcycle especially because of its unique styling. It looks just like a supermoto because of the long and flat seat. It is also the first motorcycle in the 125cc segment to get a steel trellis frame. Even though the CNG tank looks large, it is very well packaged alongside the 2litre fuel tank and this is overall, quite a compact motorcycle. There are three variants on offer: Disc LED, Drum LED, and Drum. The bike is available in five colour schemes - Ebony Black, Caribbean Blue,  Racing Red, Cyber White, and Pewter Grey.  The variant we have for this review is the top-spec Disc LED and it is sporting a Cyber White colour scheme. The fit-and -finish levels of the Freedom 125  are really good when considering the price tag that it is being offered at.

Bajaj Freedom 125 CNG: Engine & Performance

This is a new 125cc, single-cylinder, sloper engine that is putting out 9.5PS @ 8000rpm and a peak torque of 9.7Nm @ 5000rpm. From the get go, it feels really refined and stays that way all the way up to 80kmph. Only a few vibrations are felt after that at the footpegs but nothing that would ruin the ride experience. That being said, the target audience for this CNG bike is not speed but usability and it does that really well. It is extremely tractable and can pull from speeds as low as 25kmph in 5th gear. It obviously takes time to get up to speed but there is no juddering and it picks up in a really smooth manner. In our tests, the performance was more on par with 110cc motorcycles compared to 125cc bikes. The only time more gearshifts are required is while climbing steep slopes or to make quick overtakes. Further adding to the easy riding experience is the light clutch action and slick gearbox. The bike can be switched between Petrol and CNG modes on the go with the flip button on the left hand side switchgear. In the sprint to 80kmph, there is a difference of around 3 seconds between Petrol and CNG modes.

Bajaj Freedom 125 CNG: Efficiency

After draining out the CNG tank, we filled up the CNG tank and you can read about our experience here. While Bajaj claims that the tank can fit up to 2kg of CNG, the amount that gets filled majorly depends on the pressure of the CNG pump. So we were able to fill only 1.63kg instead of the claimed 2kg volume, and this cost us around Rs 145. After riding in different conditions (mix of highway and city with two different riders), we were able to get around 140km of range before it ran out again. This essentially makes the running cost approximately Rs 1 per kilometre as we got 85km/kg of CNG. The fuel tank on the other hand has a capacity of 2litres and has a claimed mileage of between 55-65kmpl. While there is a gauge to show you the level of CNG, it misses out on a fuel gauge. 

Bajaj Freedom 125 CNG: Handling, Ride Quality, & Braking

The ride quality of the Freedom 125 is fairly plush. The bike rides on a 17-inch front and a 16-inch rear wheel and is also sporting a linked monoshock. The only issue I had with the setup was the front fork bottoming out and the fork covers rattling when riding through bad potholes. Even though the 147kg kerb weight might sound like it is heavy for a bike in this segment, the bike feels really light to maneuver. This is because of its higher centre of gravity owing to the heavy CNG tank under the seat.

Bajaj usually equips their bikes with MRF tyres but this time we see TVS Eurogrip tyres wrapped around the wheels. This is probably because the bike is sporting a 17-inch, 16-inch setup and MRF doesn't make a tyre for a 16-inch wheel as yet. These TVS Eurogrip tyres have decent grip and perform fairly well, even on wet roads. This top-spec variant gets a 240mm disc brake at the front and a 130mm drum brake at the rear with a combined braking system. When you get hard on the front brake to get the bike to halt in case of an emergency, the front tyre tends to lock easily and the front end doesn't feel really stable. To mitigate this issue, getting on both the front and the rear brakes together is advisable.

Bajaj Freedom 125 CNG: Comfort

The seat is the longest in the segment at 785mm and it is also the tallest with a seat height of 825mm. With my 5’7 foot stature, I was sitting upright,and liked the position of the handlebars. The seat is comfortable even while riding for longer durations, for a rider and pillion with backpacks. The seat height is on the taller side for the average Indian rider so that is something they will have to look out for. Overall, it is a good riding position for commuting and its compact dimensions allow it to get through heavy traffic really easily.

Bajaj Freedom 125 CNG: Features

In this segment, the Freedom 125 is simple but gets some noteworthy features. It gets an LCD screen with the basic information laid out well and there is also a USB charging port alongside. The information on the dash is simple and it also gets Bluetooth connectivity for call and SMS alerts. Unfortunately we couldn't get the bike to connect to the application but we have used it before and iot does work fairly well. As mentioned earlier, it does get a gauge for when the bike is running on CNG but we do wish that a fuel gauge was added too. A unique and segment first feature is that the dash is adjustable with a thumb screw on the left and this should be really helpful if a bike is being used by multiple riders.

Bajaj Freedom 125 CNG: Verdict

The Freedom 125 CNG is a really good package, especially because of its refined motor and comfortable ergonomics for city commuting. The performance of the motor is not on par with other 125cc bikes, but the target audience for this motorcycle is going to care more about how efficient it is. They will not have to worry about the expensive cost of petrol if they opt to switch to this CNG motorcycle. The main question about the CNG bike is the infrastructure around it. Currently, the Freedom 125 is only available in Maharashtra and Gujrat. I have heard that the CNG infrastructure is good in Gujrat but Maharashtra seems to be a step behind in that aspect. That being said, Bajaj is working with CNG providers to make it more easily available. If all of this goes according to plan, we can expect to see many of these bikes around.