ROAD TEST
MAHINDRA DURO
M
ahindra and Mahindra
are well known for their tractors
and commercial vehicles that roam
desi roads. They are also famous for their
SUVs, however, the two-wheeled segment is
an entirely new field for the firm. In their
initial innings, the company has launched
two new scoots – the Rodeo and the Duro.
The first offering is for the fun loving rider
whereas the latter scoot is for the serious and
no-nonsense types.
What is Duro?
Well, the Duro is a scooter with an attitude
that commands respect on the road. It is
aimed at men and women who prefer to ride
around the city doing some serious stuff like
going to the office, dropping kids to school,
grocery shopping and similar tasks. In
today’s world we notice a lot of scooters with
Sensible
City Knight
Mahindra’s debutant scooter in the market,
the Duro is an ideal vehicle for city riding
Words: Ravi Chandnani Photography Sanjay Raikar
50
India December 2009
similar designs and specifications, however,
the Duro is not like the ordinary models. It
features a 125cc engine with a comfortable
seat, an easy to read console, ample storage
capacity and enough power to leave the
100cc scoots behind. This scoot retails at
around Rs 43,477 (OTR, Pune) making it
cheaper than the competition.
Underneath the contemporary design, the
Duro is powered by a 125cc mill with quite a
good amount of power. Taking a closer look
at the details you realize that the proportions
are well in order and nothing seems to be out
of place. The neat front end with vertically
mounted blinkers appears quite decent. The
subtle layout of the front is evidence of the
no-nonsense image of the scooter. This
subtleness is also quite evident in the
analogue console that features a speedometer
and a fuel gauge. Continuing towards the
51
December 2009 India
 ROAD TEST
MAHINDRA DURO
rear, one can notice the flowing construction of
the foot board that merges quite well with the
rear body panels. However, the overall quality
of plastics is satisfactory and nothing great. A
huge seat with a stylish body colored grab rail
is comfy and can accommodate riders with a
fat bottom quite easily. Ample leg space up
front means that you can ride comfortably in
the city without worrying much about a leg
ache. However, tall riders might find it a bit
uncomfortable as the handlebars may touch the
knee while negotiating turns and U-bends
from a standstill because of the lowered
position. The rear end is attractive with a huge
tail lamp that has integrated blinkers. Storage is
in abundance on the Duro as it has a front
storage box for accommodating your
knickknacks like gloves, scarves or documents
and the under seat storage space can gobble up
a full size helmet with a little bit of space to
spare. The Duro is available in six different
shades and has minimal use of stickers to keep
the scoot looking decent and subtle.
How does it handle?
Acceleration is good with ample power flowing
to the rear wheel when you wring the throttle.
Being majorly dedicated to city riding, the
Duro handles traffic without any hassles. The
125cc engine develops 8PS of power and 9Nm
of torque which is more than enough for
negotiating crowded streets and tight spots on
52
India December 2009
the road. The powerful and torquey engine
helps when negotiating steep inclines like the
ones in parking lots and flyovers with very less
stress on the engine. Performance is quite good
as the scooter can reach a true top speed of
87km/h and does the 0-60km/h run in 12.5sec.
With this kind of power you can load up the
footboard with goods and the Duro’s engine
will run smoothly without a protest.
The powerful motor starts pulling quite
nicely right from the start even with a
lightweight pillion on board. The suspension is
nice and balanced as it absorbs road
undulations without letting the rider know
much about it. However, it may rock you
when you hit a big pothole or a ditch. City
riding demands sudden acceleration with
constant braking so having good brakes
becomes indispensable and the Duro provides
you exactly that in the form of 130mm drum
brakes up front and at the rear.
Verdict
When you consider buying a scooter that will
spend much of its life in the city you need to go
in for a tough and durable machine that not only
offers good quality but also value for money. A
125cc engine, a top whack of 87km/h, a
comfortable ride with loads of storage space and
fairly good suspension and brakes at a pretty
reasonably price, makes the Duro a good value
for money scoot to ride around in the city.
OVERALL 1111
Mahindra Duro ROAD TEST # 81
GEAR CHECK 1 2 PRICE Rs 43,477 (OTR, PUNE)
Rider: Saeed Akhtar GENERAL DATA
Helmet KBC
Jacket Technik
Gloves DSG
Height 1076mm
Boots Puma
Saddle Height 770mm
Ground Clearance 155mm
Wheelbase 1290mm
Length 1819mm
Width 740mm Kerb Weight 105kg Battery 12 V / 9.0 Ah, Analogue
speedometer, odometer, fuel gauge and tell-tale lights
1. An easy to read console makes life easy FUEL ECONOMY 1111
while negotiating the Indian traffic situation 3 Overall* 41.5 kmpl
Highway 50 kmpl
2. The smart front storage space is ideal for City 38 kmpl
small items like gloves or documents Fuel Tank Capacity(usable) 6 litres
Range 249 kms
3. The positioning of the tail lamp is quite nice
*is 75% city riding and 25% highway
as it is easy for the vehicle behind to notice
you ENGINE 11112
Type 4-st,single cylinder, air-cooled
4. The Duro is an ideal candidate for the Displacement 124.6 cc
ultimate city scoot Bore x Stroke 52.4mm x 57.8mm
Valvetrain OHV, 2-valve/cylinder
5. The underseat storage can gobble up a full Comp Ratio 10.6:1
sized lid quite easily Fuel supply Carb
Max power 8PS@7500rpm
6. The powerful and torquey engine is quite Max torque 9Nm@5500rpm
Power To Weight 76.19 PS/ton
smooth
Ignition Digital CDI
Starting Electric/Kick start
TRANSMISSION
6 4 1111
Clutch Automatic Centrifugal Type with torque sensor
Gears Variomatic
Gearshift Pattern N/A
Primary Drive Gear
Final Drive Belt
CHASSIS 1112
Type Frame high rigidity underbone
Suspension (Front) Hydraulic
Suspension (Rear) Hydraulic singleunit shock absorber
Brakes (Front) 130mm Drum brake
Brakes (Rear) 130mm Drum brake
Tyre (F/R) 3.5x10” / 3.5x10”
PERFORMANCE 1111
120
ACCELERATION
100
80
5 60 12.20
40 5.70
20 1.71
Time, seconds
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22
Standing Quarter Mile (0-400m) 26.01s@80.62km/h
ROLL - ON
30-60 km/h 8.53s
SPEEDOMETER ERROR True Speed Indicated Speed
36.8km/h 40 km/h
56.5 km/h 60 km/h
76.5 km/h 80 km/h
Top Speed 87km/h (True)
BRAKING*
60km/h to standstill 23.28metres / 2.62s
(* Drum Brakes)
Performance testing by Adhish Alawani 53
December 2009 India