Latest Bike News

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

Adrenaline fest

May 6, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Pune to host a Freestyle motocross event.

The popularity of motorcycle stunting is increasing rapidly. And now it is about to get even bigger, higher and flashier. A Pune based sports management firm Entourage Sports & Entertainment has organised a Freestyle Motocross (FMX) show named ‘Kingdom Of Stunts’ at the Indian Law College (ILS) ground on May 14 and 15. International Freestyle Motocross and BMX stunters from the US, Australia, Canada and Chile will be performing daredevil stunts during the two day event. Even Indian street stunters will get a platform to display their talent in front of international stunt-stars like Clinton Moore, Jorel Bermudez and Lance Rusell. The stunts will be accompanied by dance, music, laser shows, fire performers and fireworks to get your adrenaline soaring even higher. Tickets of the event are available at the organisor’s office on Prabhat Road Pune, Mocha, Big Wheels Motoring Cafe Kamshet, all ABS fitness outlets, City pride multiplexes, Kolors, ABC farms Koregaon Park and the venue itself. Tickets start from Rs 500 and go all the way upto Rs 5000 to get you closer to the action.

Words: Piyush Sonsale

Hero Electric Goes West

May 5, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Electrovaya and Hero Electric showcase electric scooters for the North American market

Hero Electric recently augmented their collaboration with Electrovaya Inc., the Canada-based manufacturer of Lithium Ion SuperPolymer batteries. As part of this collaboration, Hero Electric showcased its electric scooters, powered by Electrovaya batteries, at the recently-concluded International Spring Motorcycle Show in Toronto. Hero Electric has also developed two electric scooters unique to the North American market, the Zion and Optima Plus. The Hero Group subsidiary plans to start selling electric scooters fitted with Electrovaya’s Li-ion batteries in the Canadian market in the third quarter of 2011. According to Sohinder Gill, CEO of Hero Electric, the scooters will initially be marketed in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and the distribution network will thereafter be expanded to most of the critical markets in Canada.

“Hero Electric is an established company with a solid brand reputation in an industry that will see its share within the transportation market grow as the price of oil continues to rise,” said Dr. Sankar Das Gupta, CEO of Electrovaya Inc. “Our Lithium Ion Super Polymer battery technology is an ideal fit for the two-wheeler electric vehicle model because of its scalability, efficiency and green NMP-free production process.”

Words: Saeed Akhtar

More slots on the MotoGP grid?

May 4, 2011 by Bike India Team Leave a Comment

Plans in progress for next year

With MotoGP engines rules changing next year, many new outfits are considering the prospect of competing in the 2012 season. Some are skeptical about the 1000cc format, calling it “The end of protoype racing” while others see a reduction in running costs and a better connect to the production 1000’s. The International Road Racing Teams Association (IRTA) has received 16 new team applications for next year in accordance to the Federation Internationale De Motorcyclisme (FIM) directions. 14 out of those with a total of 21 riders have been selected for further consideration by the IRTA and Dorna (the commercial rights holder of MotoGP). The final list of teams will be declared after the Catalan Grand Prix in June. The British bike maker Norton has submitted an application to run a two rider team with a 1000cc V4 racer. Norton is in talks with the Spanish Inmotec outfit for the V4 while the technical support may come from the Autrian KTM factory. The Swiss chassis expert Suter, backed by the team Marc VDS Racing is also planning to enter MotoGP with a BMW 1000 engine embracing their chassis. The Italian Aprilia factory and Kawasaki from Japan may also consider re-entering the sport.

Words: Piyush Sonsale