Latest News

Zero Motorcycles releases electric motorcycle specially developed for law enforcement agencies

Motorcycle manufacturer Zero have released the new version of the 2012 Zero DS which is designed specifically for the police and security agencies. The motorcycle has been produced in response to the increase in interest shown by law enforcement agencies around the world, who, are looking to explore more environmentally friendly vehicles.

The Santa Cruz Police Department, Scotts Valley Police Department, Sebastopol Police Department and the London Metropolitan Police. Many other agencies have been testing Zero’s product line over the past two years. Zero has received positive feedback from them and is looking to expand one of its fastest growing markets globally. The Zero DS Police Motorcycle offers a claimed top speed of 130 kmph, the company touting on its design’s, instant torque, no shifting, no noise and no exhaust. Other favorable attributes claimed by Zero for are its light weight and low heat emissions. The Z-Force power pack is rated to 3,000 complete charge cycles before the battery life depletes to 80% of its original capacity, and includes emergency lighting harness, programmable Whelen siren system, 4-way emergency flasher system etc.

Mark Cummings, Manager of Fleet Sales, Zero Motorcycles, states, “We are honored to have the support of so many different police and law enforcement agencies. Police officers put their lives on the line every day to protect and serve, so our goal was to give them all the tools necessary to allow them to be successful. The resulting Zero DS Police Motorcycle opens up new patrolling possibilities.”

Would you buy a bike for Rs 1.6 crore?

Yes, you heard right, 1.6 crore! Several years ago, Donald Atchison, a road racer and engineer, wanted to build his idea of the ideal street bike. And so,in the spring of 2001, he set out to build his bike with inspirations from works of previous arts as diverse as Aston Martins and fighter aircrafts. Donald reckoned it was time someone built an equivalent machine in the motorcycle industry for those who appreciate attention to detail, superior craftsmanship, performance and exclusivity. ECOSSE Moto Works was formed with one thing in mind: to create distinctive, purposeful, memorable machines for discerning enthusiasts, and to provide them all in limited quantities. One of these models the Iconoclast Series which combines a highly engineered chassis, massive torque, sleek lines, exquisite detail and race-bred components. But all at a price.  The engine is a 2-liter, machined from solid billet aluminium, chassis is a 4130 Chrome-moly TIG welded by hand, custom Öhlins, fully adjustable forks and rear shocks, dual 6-piston front brakes with 12 individual brake pads and does 0 to 100 in 2.8 seconds. In the US its sells for $300,000 and if you wanted to buy it in India, it would come up to 1.6 crore. Now that’s sure to burn a hole in your pocket. To add to the exclusivity, only 11 were built.

John Abraham Gifts Akshay Kumar a customised Harley Davidson CVO

Actors Akshay Kumar, and John Abraham have always been great buddies. But John, has now taken it to a whole new level. The motorbike enthusiast, who has worked with Akshay in various blockbusters, has gifted the latter a customised Harley Davidson CVO which reportedly costed around INR 30 lakhs.

John stated that Akshay has always been a great friend to him and has lot of love and respect for him, and both love motorbikes, so he is really happy to gift him the Harley.

This gesture, however, has a reason. John had got his own motorcycle transported to London from Mumbai for the shoot of Desi Boyz movie last year. Akshay really admired his bike and often used it. Later, when they teamed up together for Sajid Khan’s Housefull 2, John told Akshay that he would gift him a similar bike to celebrate their joint success if their film becomes a hit. The film did indeed become a huge hit and, sticking true to his word, John ordered a customised Harley Davidson CVO bike.

The CVO Harley will be delivered to Akshay in black, his favourite colour, with a specific license number plate for his bike.

Audi and Ducati’s first ofering is certainly more radical than we thought

After German car maker Audi took over Ducati, we did expect something worth raising eye-brows from the clan. But much to our surprise (and unlike our guesses of a ‘diesel L-twin’), the news is that the company has built an electric pushbike. The electric pedal bike, or “pedelec’ has been designed keeping stunting in mind, with a dedicated mode (called ‘Wheelie’ mode, in which the power to rear wheel is moderated when front wheel is in air). Weighing about 7 kgs more than a conventional pushbike, the bike has a carbon fibre frame and 26” carbon fibre-reinforced plastic wheels. Powered by a Li-ion battery, the range of the pushbike is 50-70 km, with a top speed of 80 km/h. The most interesting feature of the bike is an on-board computer which wire-lessly communicates with the rider’s smart-phone, along with keeping a record of the number of stunts rider has performed, along with comparing them to others on Facebook.

This interesting piece of machine will be revealed at Worthersee Volkswagen Group enthusiast expo later this year.

Bajaj launches new Discover 125 ST

Bajaj Auto has just launched the Discover 125 ST in India. The ST monicker here stands for ‘Sports Tourer’ which Bajaj says is a first for the Discover platform. The 125 ST is powered by a 125-cc, twin-spark, air-cooled, 4-valve engine producing 13 PS of peak power and 10.8Nm of peak torque. The big change here is the inclusion of a monoshock suspension, designed to endow the Discover with sportier handling than its peers which traditionally employs archaic twin shock absorbers at the rear.

Like most of its siblings, the ST will also employ Bajaj’s patented ExhausTEC, and also incorporate a 200 petal disc brake setup upfront for better braking prowess. With a kerb weight of 124.5 kgs, the ST is good enough to reach a top speed of around 105 kmph thanks to a new five-speed gearbox and all the aforementioned innovations. Fuel tank capacity stands at a conservative 10 litres.

The new Discovers will go on sale next month, and pricing will be released at the time of its sale. Currently, the price of the Discover range starts from Rs 50,000 (on-road, Pune).