Latest Bike News

Elec-Trans announce ‘rent-a-bike’ campaign in Pune

May 30, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Elec-Trans announce ‘rent-a-bike’ campaign in Pune.

Pune goes green with electric bike rentals.

Elec-Trans announce ‘rent-a-bike’ campaign in Pune.

Pune goes green with electric bike rentals.

ET Elec trans Ltd. has announced the ‘rent –a- bike’ campaign in the city of Pune. For the first phase the company has appointed three franchisees in the city and will be renting out 50 bikes. The electric bikes will be powered by a 750 hp motor and will be completely eco friendly. If all the formalities will be completed by the Region Transport Authorities (RTA) the services will be available from 29th May itself. Bikes will be charged on per minute basis.

Although bike rentals have been available in Goa, Kerala and Himachal Pradesh for quite some time, the concept of electric bikes in a city is unique and purpose oriented. Hopefully, the concept will be adopted in other cities across the country where personalized mobility is preferred.

Words: Aniruddha Mulgund

Royal Enfield makes a mark globally

May 30, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

6 % of sales expected from global sales by 2012

Royal Enfield makes a mark globally

6 % of sales expected from global sales by 2012

In the last 5 years, Royal Enfield has made significant strides in the global market. From North America to Europe in the West and Japan to Australia in the East, today Royal Enfield has pride of place across the globe. By 2012, Royal Enfield’s export would contribute around 6 per cent to its annual sales and find its presence in more than 40 countries around the world. In 2010 Royal Enfield was ranked among the top 10 selling motorcycle brands in UK in the 125-500 cc category and after reviewing the available models at the Progressive International Motorcycle Show in New York in January 2011, Popular Mechanics has ranked the Royal Enfield Classic Chrome and Bullet 500 among its Top 10 picks from the show. It has also found a place in Celebrity talk show host Jay Leno’s garage

MV Agusta 150 limited edition

May 27, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Brutale 990R receives paint job as Italy celebrates unification

To celebrate 150 years of Italian unification MV Agusta has announced a limited edition Brutale 990R. The bike features tricolored body panels in colors of the Italian flag and will be available in red, black and white themes. The numbers 150 and the serial number etched on the bikini fairing will make the bike instantly recognizable. A premium of Rs 22,458 will be charged over the standard price of Rs 10,20,255 in Europe for the cult status aesthetics. True to Italian flamboyance, MV Agusta has described the limited edition Brutale 990R as the marriage of Style and Technology.

Words: Aniruddha Mulgund

BMW Motorrad clocks the 2 million mark

May 26, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Chris Pfeiffer celebrates with burnout action

BMW Motorrad celebrated the production of its two millionth unit at the Berlin Spandau plant since its inception in 1969. The company has expanded its markets across 130 countries over the four decades. The Bavarian manufacturer celebrated the event with a special edition R1200GS, unveiled by the popular stunt rider Chris Pfeiffer and a stunt show on his BMW F 800 R. An enthusiastic Chris ended the event with a burnout spelling out ‘20000000’. BMW, with a daily production of up to 510 units, has gotten the Spandau plant very busy. The humble beginnings in 1969 recorded an annual production of 12,000. With fresh new models like the S1000 RR and the luxury tourer K1600 GT the figure has risen to 97,076 units in 2010.

Words: Aniruddha Mulgund

Katrina rides Classic 500

May 23, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Bullets have got a way with celebrities.

Looks like days of fancy sportscars, yachts and airplanes are long gone for directors have shifted their focus to bikes now. To add to that, there is no Tom Cruise riding a Ducati, but our very own Bollywood lassies riding the big bulls, Katrina Kaif being the latest one to do so for her upcoming movie, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. We had reported American about TV host Jay Leno riding the cult bike earlier and this time it’s Kaif riding a Royal Enfield Classic 500 in her upcoming movie.

Even Gul Panag was seen riding a Thunderbird Twinspark in a recently released movie, and even owns one. Looks like, the bike manufacture is attracting celebrities across the globe. So strap the helmet, put the shades on and ride your Bullet… who knows, the paparazzi might mistake you as a celeb too.

Words: Gasha Aeri

Hero Honda to be renamed Hero Moto

May 18, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Hero group applies for a name change

As their first step after the spilt from their 20-year old venture with Honda Japan, Hero group has applied for a name change from Hero Honda to Hero Moto. As per further information, the brands under this group will however remain unchanged. The name change process is likely to take about two months’ time.

Words: Gasha Aeri

Yamaha kicks-off football fever in India

May 17, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Organizes the ASEAN Cup U-13 Football for the first-time in the country

India Yamaha Motor has now set its eyes on the game of football as it exclusively organizes the Yamaha ASEAN CUP, U-13 Football 2011 for the first time in India. The tournament is being held from May 15 – 28, 2011 and will witness participation from 120 players & 8 teams from Pune, Nagpur, Kerala, Kolkata and Assam.

The Tournament winner will be representing India at the third Yamaha ASEAN Cup U-13 Football Finals to be held in Thailand from July 15, 2011 to July 17, 2011. The participants will comprise of 6 teams from 5 Asian countries namely- India, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam & Malaysia. The preliminary round of the tournament will include the intra-state matches amongst the eight teams from across India. The winning teams from preliminary round will then compete at inter-state level for the final round, both to be played in Kolkata.

The Flip Carnival

May 17, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Pune witnessed a unique stunt show recently, the Kingdom of Stunts

Words: Gasha Aeri
Photography: Bhuvan Chowdhary, Gasha Aeri

“For many, what we do falls outside the sphere of physics, but we never said that everything is for everyone,” they say. Who are they? They are a special species people like to call ‘stunters’. They don’t ride the bike astride it, neither do they ride with both the wheels on terra firma. What they do is enough to scare the living daylights out of many.

Pune had just recovered from the thrill of meeting freestyle biking guru, Chris Pfeiffer, when there came another treat for the bike enthusiasts of the city – a freestyle stunt show called the ‘Kingdom of Stunts’. What’s more, the show was a fine amalgamation of some of the finest FMX riders from Australia and the USA, BMX riders from Canada and street stunters from India.

On view were 360-degree flips on a motocross bike, a back flip on a mountain bike, a high-flying stunt called the ‘Superman’, even taking both hands off the handlebar while both the bike and rider were at least 50 metres up in the air (the Rock Solid), or swinging a leg over to the other side in the middle of a flight (the Can Can) – you name it and the riders had it for you. An excellent firework show added to the thrill and adrenaline rush the stunt show offered.
What can be said about Indian biking scenario in the time to come, “World, hold on, here we come!”

They don’t follow the physics of bike riding, but what they do is enough to scare the living daylights out of many

Yamaha FZ dons new skin

May 12, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

The FZ series now offered in new colour scheme

India Yamaha Motor has introduced new colour schemes for FZ, FZ-S and Fazer. The bike will now adorn more vibrant colors along with new logos and graphics. The launch will be complemented by media campaign featuring Yamaha India brand ambassador- John Abraham.

Yamaha has introduced four new colors for FZ-S – Golden Streak, Competition White, Black Cyber Green and Yellow Streak. Fazer will also be seen in four new colors – Competition White, Black Cyber Green, Midnight Black and Lava Red while FZ will be available in two new colors – Midnight Black and Lava Red. All the models of the FZ family will now have a kick start option and will be available at a price of Rs 67,000 to Rs. 74,000 (ex-showroom Delhi).

Words: Sarmad Kadiri

Baby KTM on the prowl

May 9, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Spotted – Bajaj KTM 200 in Bengaluru

Not long after Bajaj made it clear that they would be bringing in a 200cc KTM motorcycle to Indian shores, there’s been a spate of sightings of the test mule, mostly around the Bajaj facility at Chakan near Pune. Now, Bike India reader Niranjan Skoda has sent us these images of the bike being tested in Bengaluru. In contrast to most spy pictures, Niranjan was actually lucky enough to get some very detailed pictures of the stationary bike.

KTM created the 125cc for European markets because of the licensing laws there, which stipulate that all beginners’ bikes should be restricted to below 125 cc and/or 17 PS of peak power. Since this is not the case in India, it made no sense for KTM to manufacture such a ‘small’ bike in a country where cubic capacity is (sadly) one of the most important criteria in buying a new motorcycle. The maximum power output of the 200cc mill is expected to be somewhere in the 20-25 PS region. So, given the bike’s lean kerb weight of 130 kg, it should do a top speed of about 145 km/h. Feast your eyes on the pictures till then.

Words: Saeed Akhtar

Photos: Niranjan Skoda