Ducati Diavel launched in Indiatitle

Ducati has not only launched its new bike Diavel in the Indian market but also a new dealership in Bangalore. Diavel is the new power-cruiser from Ducati recently introduced in international markets. It’s good to see Ducati taking the Indian market seriously and not delaying the launch of the product. The bike has been priced from INR 17 Lac to 22.50 Lac depending on the level of equipment.

With the launch of the new showroom in Bangalore Ducati has also announced the opening of the signature Ducati Cafe restaurants in the city for enthusiasts of Moto GP. The Cafe would serve Italian food and air MotoGP races on the weekends. Wi-Fi, LCD Screens and Live music will increase foot falls.

The Bangalore dealership would be operated by Matrix Agencies Private Limited. The bike will be available in 2 versions and would be sold for Rs 17.06 lac for the base model, Rs 22.06 lac for the carbon model and Rs 22.43 lac for the top of the line Carbon Red version. This puts the bike directly in competition with the Yamaha V-Max power-cruiser.

As per Ducati, the Diavel promises to provide the most thrilling riding experience. Powered by a 1,200 cc engine generating 162 bhp, the Diavel weighs only 204 kg hence putting up a scary power to weight ratio.

Diavel Carbon has been heavily made from carbon fiber and hosts features like the LED headlamps, ABS, Traction control, Pirelli racing tires and allows riders to choose from three riding modes (Sport, Urban and Touring).

Ducati Diavel Image Gallery

Diavel can satisfy on both sporty as well as touring grounds. The construction is light weight and the bike has been designed to look muscular as well as sporty.

Post titleSupreme Court – No new two-wheelers without helmets

The Supreme Court of India has upheld the Delhi High Court’s earlier order which mandated every two-wheeler manufacturer to compulsorily include a helmet along with every new two-wheeler they sell in the country. The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) had filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court last year against the Delhi High Court’s order.

SIAM argued that the Motor Vehicles Act already stipulated the use of a helmet by a rider while riding a two-wheeler and that the Delhi High Court’s ruling completely changes the existing rule of a helmet for a person to a helmet for every new vehicle.

The main problem of the new ruling as per Industry Officials is that the new rule will cause problems for those customers buying their second two-wheeler and those who already own a helmet, because it will force these customers to buy another helmet in addition to the helmets which they already possess. Another problem of the new rule is that it will force two-wheeler manufacturers to bear the brunt of the additional cost of providing the helmet with new two-wheelers, since most customers may not be ready to cough up the extra dough for the helmet.

The High Court’s ruling also states that two-wheeler manufacturers should only provide Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certified helmets to their customers and that customers should be provided with the helmetsonly by the dealers.

The ruling of the Supreme Court does have some flaws in it like forcing customers to buy a new helmet even if they have one and not allowing customers to purchase helmets from shops in the open market. But, the bigger picture is that instead of implementing rules to force customers to buy helmets even when they have one already, it should be ensured that two-wheeler riders and pillions across the nation are forced to wear a helmet whenever they are aboard a two-wheeler.

Post titleCarbon fiber helmets from Steelbird @ just10k!

As and how the two-wheeler market is developing, so is the motorcycle accessories business. Popular brand Steelbird has provided Indian customers with quality helmets, panniers and luggage accessories at an affordable price for quite some time now.

And now they have launched India’s first Carbon fiber helmet at the price of Rs. 10,000 which is very economic comparatively. Carbon fiber is the one of the toughest and lightest materials in the automotive industry. It is the same material that is used as the body panels of high end sports cars.

Being one of the lightest materials to be used in the industry, it will reduce the fatigue and stress level on the neck and shoulders of the users. The light weight will make it a favorite on long trips where fatigue and stress level induced is high.

In the international market, where the helmet industry is pretty evolved, prices range from 60, 000 and can go northwards of 84, 000 too! A Valentino Rossi replica from AGV will cost you beyond Rs. 85,000/-. In India itself another popular brand Vega has launched a Bluetooth enabled helmet which can be paired to the cell phone as well as another helmet of same make.

Post titleBajaj aims to sell 1,200 bikes during Jakarta fair

The Indonesian arm of Bajaj Auto Limited, PT Bajaj Auto Indonesia (BAI), is targeting sales of 1,200 bikes during the ongoing Jakarta fair in Indonesia. The company has set this target after gauging the response of the public towards its products at the fair.

The company has already managed to sell 30 % of its total target of 1,200 units. The theme of the company’s stall at this year’s fair is ‘Light Sport” and the company has on display products from the Pulsar range of bikes like the Pulsar 135 LS, Pulsar 180 and the Pulsar 200. The company also has on display a couple of modified Pulsars modified by modification house Phoenix as the centre of attraction of its stall at the fair.

The company is using the fair as a platform to showcase future products, launch new products and to boost product sales in the Indonesian market. The company is going all-out and wants to leave no stone unturned in order to leapfrog the competition and move ahead.

It looks like as if Bajaj is not content with growth in the Indian market alone and wants to grow and expand deeper into export markets. If the company continues with these sort of steps to increase its visibility and create an awareness about its products in foreign markets, it can definitely look forward to growth in sales figures in foreign markets as well.

Post titleOfficial – Bajaj to launch all-new Pulsar next year

According to Business Standard, Rajiv Bajaj, managing director of Bajaj Auto limited, said in a recent interaction with the media that the company will launch an all-new Pulsar next year in India.

The new Pulsar will have “a completely new look, advanced engine and advanced technology.”

Bajaj has shown a couple of modified Pulsars, created by modification house Phoenix at the Jakarta Auto fair last month (click here for full details). The company could revive the 150 and 180cc Pulsars or could put a completely new Pulsar with higher displacement on the market.

Bajaj, during the launch of the Pulsar 135LS late last year, said it was working on higher displacement Pulsars displacing up to 400cc. We’re expecting to see a 350cc Pulsar with liquid cooling, mono-shocks, futuristic styling, dual discs, and four-valve engine.

Image for representation purpose only, has no connection with the story.

Image Source – Morukai

News Source – BS Motoring

Breaking – Hyosung GT650R and ST7 launched in Mumbai

Garware Motors along with S&T Motors announced the launch of two super bikes -GT650R (Sports bike) and ST 7 (Cruiser bike) in Mumbai today afternoon. Gracing the occasion was Bollywood heartthrob Arjun Rampal who will be the company’s first customer, riding away a brand new ST 7. Rampal is not appointed brand ambassador, his presence is only to promote the brand’ entry into Mumbai.

The Hyosung bikes will be initially available in five cities – Pune, Mumbai, NCR, Bangalore and Goa. The company has tied up with HDFC bank for providing retail finance. The ST 7 is priced at 5.96 lakh rupees, the GT650R is priced at 4.97 lakh rupees, and the GT650R dual color is priced at 5.13 lakh rupees (ex-showroom Mumbai).

Hyosung has set up a small assembly plant at Wai in Maharashtra which can manufacture manufacture 8-10 bikes a day. The company has invested 20 crore rupees in the first phase.

Hyosung is ambitious with its targets and says it is confident of selling 2,000 bikes this year. Without elaborating, Hyosung said its next product will be a 650cc motorcycle.

Live Images from the launch

PosHyosung coming with naked GT650 variantt title

Though the 250cc segment is under some strong invasion from the Japanese manufacturers and the other manufacturers alike, the 600cc segment is completely untapped in India. The homologation problems and the economic infeasibility of a 600 have been the primary factors for the manufacturers to overlook this segment.

But now, Hyosung, the Korean manufacturer who introduced the first twin-cylinder 250s in India in association with Kinetic, has initiate efforts to launch two superbikes in this segment – the 647cc GT650R and the 678cc ST7FI.

The GT650R is a track-bred sportsbike whereas the ST7FI is a classic cruiser. Both the machines have twin-cylinder powerplants in V-configuration and are fuel injected. Given the fact that there are no sportsbikes between 300cc and 1000cc, the GT650R has a considerable edge. For the ST7 though, the Harleys provide stiff competition considering the close pricing of the Harley Super Low to that of the ST7.

The Garware-Hyosung combine is also planning to stretch it’s portfolio in the coming months by adding a naked edition of the Hyosung GT650, and pricing it a touch under the GT650R sportsbike. In the coming years, based on the response of the new Hyosungs, there could be 250cc and 125cc motorcycles but expect nothing till the end of next year.

There has been news that Bajaj will launch the Ninja 650R, which if turns out to be true will affect the sales of the GT significantly. The Hyosungs will be assembled at the Pune facility of the Garware motors which has a capacity of rolling out 10 bikes per day.

The Garware motors have announced that the bookings for both these bikes will begin in early March. Though Garware plans to sell 2,000 locally-assembled bikes in a year, we doubt it will happen. The market climate is very much towards the 250cc segment now and it will take some more time for the Indian motorcycle industry to mature for the 600cc superbikes. Whichever way you look at it, this move is a bold step forward from the Garwares. Let us hope this initiative tempts the major manufacturers to launch their 600cc motorcycles in India soon!