Bajaj Is Making Fancy TFT Dashboards Normal On Cheap Motorcycles

Your commuter bike’s calculator screen may finally be living on borrowed time.

Photo by: Bajaj

By: Enrico Punsalang

Aug 18, at 8:09am ET

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There was a time when getting a full-color TFT dashboard on a motorcycle meant you were shopping somewhere considerably higher up the food chain. I remember how excited I was to have one when I bought my KTM 390 Duke way back in 2017, and could you really blame me?

I mean, superbikes had them. Expensive adventure bikes had them. Premium sport-tourers had them. Meanwhile, small-displacement commuters and scooters got an LCD that looked vaguely related to a microwave display. Bajaj, apparently, has decided that arrangement has gone on long enough.

The company is starting to push TFT instrumentation down through the Pulsar family, beginning with the new Pulsar N160 SS in India. More affordable models are expected to follow in phases, including the upcoming Pulsar 150 Classic, while test bikes based on the Pulsar 125 have already been spotted wearing similar screens. If this continues, color TFT dashboards could become normal equipment on motorcycles that are very much built around everyday affordability.

And the N160 SS isn't exactly dipping one toe into the electronics pool.

Photo by: Bajaj

Its 5-inch TFT brings smartphone connectivity and Google Maps navigation, replacing the simpler displays normally associated with small-displacement commuters. You also get four riding modes, traction control, throttle-by-wire, Bajaj's Crawl function, dual-channel ABS, an assist and slipper clutch, an inverted fork, and disc brakes at both ends. That's a rather serious toys-to-engine-size ratio, and for a very attractive $1,500 USD price tag, too.

Power comes from a 164.5cc oil-cooled single making around 18.2 horsepower and 10.6 pound-feet, sent through a five-speed gearbox. Those numbers aren't going to frighten a Hayabusa, but that's missing the point. Bajaj is taking equipment riders associate with expensive motorcycles and putting it on machines intended for commuting, daily transportation, and buyers who aren't trying to vaporize an entire paycheck at the dealership.

Photo by: Bajaj

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A TFT obviously doesn't make a motorcycle faster, lighter, or better suspended. But perceived quality matters, especially on something you're staring at every time you ride. A crisp color display with navigation and phone connectivity can make an inexpensive bike seem substantially more modern without requiring a bigger engine or a completely different chassis.

That's what makes Bajaj's strategy interesting. If TFTs really do spread across the Pulsar lineup, the company won't just be adding another feature to a spec sheet. It'll be helping turn something that recently screamed "premium motorcycle" into regular commuter-bike equipment. And once riders get used to that, going back to calculator-grade dashboards is going to be a much harder sell.