I was looking for a bike for city errands. I had three main considerations; (1) costs less than Php50,000.00 (cash price), (2) small and nimble enough to weave through traffic, and (3) a gas sipper. I was thinking about the TMX 125 Alpha at first, due to its anecdotal rave reviews. This little brother of the TMX 155 Supremo sure has classic lines and light enough but it's too long for tight corners and slipping between cars.
I have already seen the "obvious" china-made mini-bikes (seems like a lot of people doesn't know that most Honda parts are already made in China and the motorcycles are assembled in the Philippines) zipping around my city and they sure looked fun. The nagging feeling to get off the beaten path and shift into a different gear (I’ve already have ridden Hondas, Suzukis, Kawasakis, and Yamahas) finally won and I went to a Rusi sales center to get close to a mojo or a gremlin. The Skygo Pony was cute, especially the pink one, but I was determined to get a fun bike and a fun bike must be fun-looking, like a gag. The Mojo has the miniaturized curves of a Ducati, including a false trellis-frame tacked on for looks, while the Gremlin is a caricature of a Honda Grom.
When I got to the Rusi sales center, I immediately spied a shiny new Mojo. Beside it was another red mini-bike which I thought was a Gremlin, seen from a distance. Upon closer inspection, it definitely is a new animal in Rusi’s stable of mini-bikes. The sales person informed me it is the Korak, the midget version of racing machines with forward sweeping wings. I liked its cleaner lines than the Gremlin’s Grom Styling. By the way, the sales person confirmed the korak and Mojo shares the same 110cc engine.
So I went through an hour’s worth attempting to read the documents, listening to the assistant manager, and making squiggles on paper. Taking out a loan at Rusi is not for the faint of heart. I already got a migraine before I was done. I even have to sign that a document that I will have a oil changed after the first 500 kilometers and every month thereafter. I told the assistant manager that I use Top 1 synthetic motor oil for my bikes, which doesn’t need to be changed after a month. After an eternity, the assistant manager finally took the papers and asked me to check my new bike (They have a checklist which I have to sign as well).
Since I was already busted, I requested a buddy to check and verify if everything is in order and take the Korak around the block. My buddy was all smiles when he returned and the mechanic (who was friendly and helpful with the checking) told me to take my bike. I was surprised because I thought it’ll take a week to process the papers but the sales person confirmed it so I rode my shiny new red mini-bike into the sunset…errr, the office.
Got to give readers a warning. If you don’t want people at the office swarming around your shiny new red mini-bike, resist the temptation to buy a Korak. Just a few meters from the Rusi sales office, an XRM stopped right in front of my Korak, with the driver and back-ride staring at my shiny new red mini-bike. At the office, a buddy announced that he’s going to buy his daughter a Korak too (and he did call her the next day).
