What are some easy mods to increase performance?

[Simon Symonds]

I Own a first generation Bajaj Pulsar 180, purchased second-hand, The bike had done 20,000km when I bought it, and is in good condition, But I find the performance of the bike is not at par with similar Pulsars, The owner says he always rode the bike sanely at not more than 80kmph, The bike barely touches the rev limit and also feels slower, What can I do to improve the performance without any modifications?

[Jorge Watson]

Engine performance will tail off in time, this is natural. The reasons include wear and tear, worn out bits and so forth - and riding a motorcycle carefully can slow the dropping off of performance but all machines, from a Chinese-made 50cc moped to the Honda Fireblade will show a tail off in performance, The higher the quality of components and manufacturing, the slower this tailing off will be, As to your Pulsar, if the engine itself is working well, you could try changing all the fluids and filters to ensure that the engine's correctly lubed and has the best possible shot at achieving good combustion, Then check that the wheels and brakes work properly - wheels should rotate freely and brakes should not bind until you use the lever or pedal, Then check the chain - it should be in good condition and well lubricated. If not, change it or oil it respectively Finally, check that the throttle cables are not jamming up - which might manifest as less performance, If all of these checks show no problems then you just have a slow Pulsar 180 - all bikes nevel have identical performance - and you cannot make it go faster without modifications.