Bike India Team

KTM’s future plans

February 2, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Dutch magazine spill the beans on KTM’s strategy for the next two years

Recently, our friends from Nieuwsmotor.nl visited the KTM headquarters in Mattighofen, Austria, and went back home with some very interesting tidbits, skillfully gleaned out of Robert Prielinger, head of R&D for KTM’s streetbikes. We have the extract here.

According to Prielinger, KTM will launch all-new versions of the Super Duke and Adventure bikes in 2012, which will be fitted with brand-new twin-cylinder engines. The 2012/2013 KTM Super Duke is likely to be a very high-tech machine, with a 1200cc V-twin and advanced electronics, including sports-ABS, traction control and ride-by-wire technologies. The off-road-oriented 2012 Adventure would be available with at least two engine sizes – 1200cc/1000cc and 700cc/800cc. Next year, the KTM Duke 690 may be replaced with the Duke 700, fitted with a revised single-cylinder engine and revamped styling. There might also be a more expensive ‘R’ version of the Duke 700, with higher-spec components.

KTM, in collaboration with Bajaj who now owns more than a third of it, will also continue to develop smaller streetbikes for India and other Asian markets and some of these bikes will also make their way to Europe by mid-2011. The two companies have started working in close coordination in the area of technology development. In fact, the 2011 RC8R even uses dual spark plugs in each of its cylinder heads, which is a development of Bajaj’s patented DTSi technology. The two companies will continue to develop small capacity single- and twin-cylinder motorcycle engines for Asian markets, while Bajaj will also introduce the KTM brand in India shortly, which is the world’s second largest motorcycle market.

Words: Saeed Akhtar

New CEO astride Royal Enfield

February 2, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Dr. Venki Padmanabhan takes the riding seat as R. L Ravichandran moves on to the Eicher Board

Royal Enfield Motors, manufacturer of the iconic Bullet motorcycle has announced the appointment of Dr. Venki Padmanabhan as the company’s new Chief Executive Officer. The motorcycle maker has in the recent years strengthened their brand image in India and internationally by their witty commercials and bike rides. Dr. Padmanabhan will have the task of taking this to the next step.

Dr. Padmanabhan first joined Royal Enfield two years ago, acting as COO under marketing wizard CEO R.L. Ravichandran. During that time, the company posted a 21-percent growth in sales volume, 54-percent growth in sales turnover and a return to two digit profitability. Prior to joining Royal Enfield, Dr. Padmanabhan, a citizen of the United States and an Overseas Citizen of India, was Managing Director of Chrysler’s South East Asia Global Sourcing Office based in Chennai, India and responsible for $1 billion worth of material sourced to its parent manufacturing units in the United States.

Words: Sarmad Kadiri

Royal Enfield headed westwards

January 31, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

The Chennai based company is all set to enter the Brazilian market

Royal Enfield, the classic Indian motorcycle manufacturer has a strong desire to enter the Latin American market and wishes to begin this venture with Brazil. The company is apparently in talks with various contract manufacturers in Brazil. RE is looking for a contract manufacturer as the company doesn’t want to raise the stakes too high and enter an unknown market all by themselves. The Brazilian two-wheeler market is approximately 6-7million units a year and it would benefit RE if they enter this market. This venture will also help them to create a bigger footprint the world of two-wheelers. However, the company has not released any information confirming these plans. But we expect RE to do it shortly.

Words: Ravi Chandnani

The latest and best helmets in business

January 28, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

This month we bring you the latest and best helmets in business

This month we bring you the latest and best helmets in business

1&2. The Arai
Chaser V Helmet
The Chaser V lid is a highly evolved version of the very popular Chaser helmet. It features a wider visor aperture as compared to the Chaser and a highly sophisticated ventilation system.
It has larger rear vents that help create 50 per cent more vacuum which also aids in improving the overall ventilation. This lid also has larger side vents. The interior is very ergonomic and the design is such that it avoids any pressure points yet it offers a tight and comfortable fit. This lid is priced at about Rs 29,500 and is available through various Websites worldwide.

3. The Arai
X-TEND Helmet
This new lid from Arai’s SZ line features a new outer shell that extends three centimetres to the sides in order to provide enhanced safety. It also features a ‘bumper’ reinforcement at the bottom, which aids in safety. The interior is ergonomically designed to provide high comfort and flexibility. The cheekpads are made from EPS, which provides protection on side impact. Better aerodynamics are achieved as the visor holder is more recessed in the outer shell of this helmet. The lid featured here has RAF (Royal Air Force) livery. You can get one of these for Rs 23,000. Available through various Websites worldwide.

4. Furygan Brutale Sport Jacket
This cool black leather jacket from Furygan is meant for the riders who like to zip through corners at high speeds. It is made from 1.2-mm cache leather that has been treated to repel water. It features high quality and CE approved removable protectors at the elbows, shoulders and back. The price of the Brutale Sport Jacket is Rs 23,000. More on
www.furygan.com

5. The X-Lite X-802 Lorenzo Replica
Yes, it is true. The official replica of the very same lid that Lorenzo wore to victory has been launched by X-Lite, who supply helmets to Lorenzo and a few other MotoGP riders. This special edition replica helmet has graphics that are exactly the same present on Lorenzo’s lid. It features lettering done up in 1,800 hand-laid Swarovski crystals. The safety parameters are similar to those present on Lorenzo’s GP lid, so forget about how safe this lid is as it has saved Lorenzo’s head whenever he has suffered a crash. However, the biggest feature present on this lid is the price tag – which reads Rs 6 lakh (excluding taxes, duty and shipping)! This replica helmet is available only on order. So start saving, Lorenzo fans!

Riders of a feather – RE RIDERMANIA

January 28, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Saeed Akhtar visits Rider Mania in Goa and witnesses the common thread that binds Bulleteers together
Photography: Saeed Akhtar

Every year hundreds of Royal Enfield faithfuls, or ‘Bulleteers’ as we fondly call them, converge upon Goa for a two-day carnival, a more impressive bikers’ meet compared to any other in the country. This year Royal Enfield graciously provided me with a Classic 350, the possession of which would make me a Bulleteer and thus enable my entry into this elite echelon comprising solely Bullet riders. To get there, I teamed up with Pune’s famous Bullet club, the Roadshakers.

Upon reaching Vagator in Goa I followed Praveen Sathaye, the Royal Enfield chap, who took me to the Cochicos resort, a quaint little resort that had been booked for the media. After a quick dinner with other members of the media, I turned in early in anticipation of an exciting day ahead.

The next day began with a sumptuous breakfast, after which I went for my first view of the main Rider Mania venue. A huge area enclosed by red and black banners, the venue was divided into five main parts – the eating area, the stage, exhibitions, screening area and shops selling various Royal Enfield merchandise.

At the far end, glistening chrome beckoned and I made my way over there to feast on some exquisitely modified Bullets. It was uplifting to see the creativity of these Indian builders, who, despite being handicapped by the unavailability of custom parts, have carved out a niche for themselves in the second largest motorcycle market in the world.

As in previous Rider Mania editions, there were a host of events designed for the people to showcase their riding skills. The first one was the ‘figure of eight’ wherein a team of four riders were to carve the aforementioned figure in a small area without putting down their feet even once. Local lads Faizal, Sunil, Arun and Prajyot from Café Bullet Goa clinched the event.

In the ‘slow race’ event, Café Bullet Goa kept up the winning spree with Arun dominating the event, followed by Junaid from Bengaluru. As evening descended, Bengaluru-based Indian rock band Thermal and a Quarter took the stage by storm, belting out one chart-buster after another from their considerable repertoire of hits.

For those who had honed their riding in the dirt, Rider Mania 2010 didn’t disappoint. In the dirt track event the next day, Roadshakers (Pune) dominated the event in its totality-Baljeet Gill in the 500cc category and and Pravin Patil in the 350cc category respectively. the armwrestling competition for both the sexes was another huge draw,being the ideal platform for the hardened Bulleteers to flaunt their carefully chiseled brawn. Tejas Dutta from Delhi won the men’s event while Shannon from the host state itself utterly ruled the women’s round.

The camaraderie and joy and jollity at this superbly orchestrated event has to be seen to be believed. Events like these are a regular occasion in foreign countries and Royal Enfield deserve to be commended for not only concentrating on selling bikes, but also endeavouring to provide the riders a common platform where they can come together and mingle. And now, if you will excuse me, I am off to the gym to pump some iron for the next year’s event!