Suzuki plans 250 cc by 2008, 4 bikes by 2010

Even as the top three players Hero Honda, Bajaj and TVS fight it out in the growing mass market 100 cc and 125 cc segments, Suzuki Motorcycles India Pvt Ltd (SMI), a 100% subsidiary of Japanese auto major Suzuki Motor Corporation, is gearing up for a presence across all the segments of the Indian two-wheeler industry and plans to launch four new bikes over the next three years. On the anvil is a foray into the fast growing premium segment, with two (250 cc and 150 cc) of the planned four launches to be in the premium segment and the other two in the high volume, fast growing executive segment.

Being a late entrant in the Indian market, SMI intends to create a separate market for itself and plans to come out with a 250 cc bike by the end of 2008. Sources close to the company said, "Following the launch of the 150 cc bike in mid-2008, the company will launch two variants of the 250 cc motorcycle. One of them would be a sports bike and the other would be a naked/muscular bike."

Speaking on the sidelines of the launch of company's new 125 cc scooter Access, Atul Gupta, vice-president (sales and marketing), SMI, said, “By March 2010, we would be adding at least 3-4 products to our current product portfolio, which would give us a presence across all the segments. We would be a niche player in the premium segment with our high-end product and we would be a mass player in the executive segment."

The company has already invested Rs 350 crore and it will be investing Rs 150 crore more on capacity expansion, dealer networks and product development. It will be ramping up its production capacity to 1 million from the current capacity of 1,75,000 units by 2010.

Gupta said that the exports were currently minimal, but post 2010, the company intends to make India the export hub for the markets like Africa, South America, and countries around India.

The company's premium play would also include importing its cult super bikes Hayabusa and ZXR as completely built units (CBU) in next six to eight months. It has a market share of close to 1% today, and it expects to take it upto 4% by 2010. It is also plans to double its dealer network to 290 over the next one year from the current 145.

Honda to sell hybrid motorcycles from 2011

According to a report in the Mainichi Daily News, Honda is developing gasoline/electric hybrid engines for its motorcycles. The technology, made famous by cars like the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight, supplements gasoline power with electricity stored in on-board batteries with the aim of improved fuel consumption and reduced emissions. It works best around town, where frequent regenerative braking tops off the batteries, which then run the vehicle at low speeds in place of the internal combustion engine. The technology is less effective on the open road, where it amounts to added dead weight that needs to be hauled around. Honda intends to offer hybrid versions of bikes ranging from a capacity of 200 to 1000cc. Smaller bikes, a successor to the Cub included, will be powered strictly by electricity.
By sharing parts with its automobile division, Honda believes that it can make the up-front cost of hybrid powertrains viable for two-wheel platforms. In cars, it's often 36,000 miles or more before the money saved on fuel equates to the added cost of the hybrid technology. If Honda is to succeed with hybrid motorcycles, it'll need to bring that pay-off point much lower, while leveraging the already excellent fuel economy ability of two-wheelers for some seriously impactful green marketing. 100mpg+ 600cc UJM anyone? Expect vacuous Hollywood celebrities to be riding them at the beginning of the next decade.

Suzuki launches GS150R

Live coverage of Suzuki GS150R launch from Delhi

.Suzuki today launched the much awaited 150cc bike. The bike which is known as Lanza is christened as GS150R. GS 150R’s muscular fuel tank adds character to the bike. GS150R’s massive fuel tank can hold 15.5 of fuel.

Styled with inspiration from Suzuki’s international superbike GSX-R, GS150R is a mean looking machine. The bikini fairing, pilot lamps mounted on either side of wolf eyed headlamps is not exciting but looks pleasing. But the real attraction is the rear part of the GS150R. Stunning integrated LED tail lamp cluster also houses turn indicators on both sides.which is again an GSX-R inspired.

GS150R is powered a engine which respires through BS26 carburettor (NO Fuel Injection or FI). The engine also gets TPS (Throttle positioning Sensor). Suzuki says GS150R engine is tuned to ride better for city riding. The 150cc engine is designed to with an acceleration performance in the low to mid range speed which is important for city driving. GS150R engine is equipped with engine balancer technology. According to Suzuki, engine balancer technology of GS150R which seeks to minimise vibration usually associated with the vibration. GS150R balancer system is fitted with balancer-driven gear fitted with a rubber damper for reducing the impact noises generated by its meshing with the balancer-driven gear.

GS150R 149cc engine develops 13.8bhp of peak power at 8500rpm and 13.4Nm of peak torque 6000rpm. is mated with a six speed transmission. Gear shift pattern is 1-down and 5-up. According to Suzuki, GS150R will return a mileage of 50kmpl in City and 55kmpl in Highway 60kmpl in City and 65kmpl in Highway.

Pictures of Suzuki GS150R

GS150R length is 2095mm, its width is 775mm and it height 1120mm. The ground clearance of the GS150R is 160mm and its wheelbase stands at 1340mm. At the fore GS150R gets 2.75 -18 and at the rear Suzuki GS150R features fatter 100/90-18 tyre.

GS150R features disc brake at the front and drum brake at the rear. Hydraulics forks and gas charged rear suspension of GS150R will give you a comfortable ride. GS150R is neither Fuel Injected nor have monoshock suspension at the rear.

Suzuki has given GS150R contemporary features such as digital console. The digital console of GS150R features a digital speedometer and it let’s you to select two modes - Power mode and economic mode. As the name indicates once the power mode is opted, GS150R starts behaving a racing animal and the eco mode let’s you to conserve fuel. The GSX-R inspired engine rpm indicator glows to give an indication to the rider about the optimum up-shift timings. Eco and power modes of GS150R functions to cater to wide range of speeds and riding conditions. The digital console also indicates the which gear is selected.

GS 150R comes with a six speed transmission. GS150R is available in four colours - pearl nebular black,metallic flint gray,candy max orange and Candy dark greenish blue. Suzuki has come up with a killer price for the GS150R. GS150R is attractively priced at Rs59000 (ex-showroom Delhi)

More details are expected and Pictures will be uploaded soon.

Maruti Suzuki A-Star

The A-Star will be the fifth world strategic model from Suzuki which means the same car can be manufactured simultaneously in other countries. Suzuki will sell the same car in Europe but under the Alto as well as under the Celerio names.

The car manufacturer will use the K-series engine for the gasoline driven car and the engine production will begin in October this year. The official said the A-Star has been positioned as an A2 premium segment car. The A2 segment has a 71 per cent share of the Indian passenger car market which is about 1.3 million units.

The official said the A-Star model will be the eighth car launched by the company in four years. He said time to market for Maruti Suzuki had come down significantly. Earlier, Maruti Suzuki used to take between two and three years to launch a new model.

The A-Star model is part of the Rs 9,000-crore investment plan spread across five years (ending 2010).

According to the plan, Rs 2,500 crore is being invested in setting up a diesel facility which will have the capacity to produce 3 lakh engines by 2010. Another Rs 2,500 crore is being invested for the Manesar plant for expansion and upgradation and the rest for setting up the K-series engine plant and for upgradation and expansion of the Gurgaon plant.

The A-Star will be the fifth car platform for Maruti Suzuki.

Hyundai to launch i10 diesel,i20 and facelifted santro in 2009

Despite the slowdown, Korean auto giant - Hyundai shown its commitment to its Indian market by unveiling its mega plans for next year. Hyundai which started shipping out i20 -the punto competetior will launch atleast three models in the small car segment in India over 2009. Here are details on Hyundai’s new small cars for 2009.

Hyundai i20:

i20 is the getz replacement in european markets but in India Hyundai is yet to make headway in the premium small car segment. reason, Getz is totally eclipsed by swift. But soon this might be the thing of past, following the success of i10, i20 is solely made in India and will be exported to countries across the world. i20 is designed at the company’s European design centre at Russelsheim, Germany, and is designed and engineered to meet the European tastes and needs.Hyundai makes i20 in three variants — 1.2 litre, 1.4 litre and 1.6 litre — in both petrol and diesel versions. European styling, powerful engine, impressive cabin space and quality interiors of the new i20 makes us to believe Hyundai has already a winner in its hands. Hyundai will launch the i20 in January 2009.

Hyundai i10 diesel:

While i10 has been a success story for Hyundai, a diesel would make the car to reach heights. The i10 diesel would come with a 1.1L CRDi engine developing 75PS of peak power at 6000rpm and 155Nm of max torque at 2000rpm. When i10 diesel comes to India, it would take the credit of carrying smallest diesel engine under its hood. i10 diesel is expected to be a fun to drive machine at the same time offering greater mileage. Going by the success of swift diesel, we expect cutomers to make a beeline in Hyundai’s showrooms. i10 diesel would hit the showrooms in 2009.

Hyundai’s new facelifted santro:

Though the santro is put to graveyard in the international market after the launch of i10, it continues to enjoy good response from Indian customers. To make it contemporary and to further boost its volumes Hyundai will launch a facelifted santro sometime in 2009. Expect the changes to be cosmetic as Hyundai is aggressively pushing the i10.

Hyundai’s ultra low cost car:

Ever since the Nano came out, Hyundai has set an eye on this segment. Though Hyundai earlier denied the fact that its low cost car won’t compete with Tata’s Nano. Now it accepts the low cost car would appeal the two-wheeler users aspiring for a car. “We are developing a small car in the entry level range and it should hit the market by 2011,” HMIL Managing Director H S Lheem said. “We have adequate capacity to manufacture (the new car) in the plant. It’s capacity is about 6.5 lakh cars per annum and we are sure that it will accommodate,” Lheem added.

Suzuki A-star Interiors

Suzuki officially unwrapped the covers of new Alto the A-star at the ongoing paris auto show. Styled with european customers in mind, A-star is the true global to be produced solely in India. Suzuki will market this car under various names and various badges in almost 150 countries. Result the Indian customers gets a product on par with European customers after the Hyundai’s i10.

Suzuki A-star: The funkily styled new Alto is 3500mm long, 1600mm wide and 1470mm high and is meant to urban runabout. With a wheelbase of 2360mm the front passengers are given prominence over the rear. The boot space of 129L is abysmally low but can be expanded to 774L.

Suzuki A-star: An Euro 5 compliant three cylinder 1.0L petrol engine which produces 68PS at 6000rpm and 90Nm of torque at 4800rpm powers the A-star. A five speed manual/automatic will complete the powertrain of the A-star. According to Suzuki,A-star (new alto) has a combined fuel consumption of 22kmpl and the top speed is claimed as 155kmph.

Interior pictures of Suzuki A-star

Suzuki A-star: The two tone dashboard and aptly placed items gives the A-star an upmarket look. Space is efficiently used, the vertical glove box is the nice design thought, it occupies less space and should be found highly useful by Indian customer. Ergonomics should be ideal as Suzuki engineers claim.A/C louvres and integrated music player is placed on the upper part of the dashboard and the A/C control knobs on the lower part of it. Instrument binnacle houses the speedo and other tell tales as the rev counter is shelved into a different unit. However the Swift sourced steering wheel and gear knob inhibits the A-star interiors from giving an all new look. Cost cutting is a bit overtoned. Suzuki should try something different, hereafter, A-star,swift,swift Dzire, SX4,Grand Vitara and upcoming splash all features the same steering wheel and gear knob.

Suzuki A-star: Suzuki says an emphasis has been put on ensuring the ride and handling progressive and the steering light, while a turning circle of 4.5 metres adds to its appeal for city car users. Front suspension is by Macpherson struts and at the rear is the three-link rigid axle.

Suzuki A-star: Expect the Maruti Suzuki A-star before the end of this October and will be priced between Rs3-4 lakhs. The good news is Maruti Suzuki has said it would be carefully monitoring the condition and if the demand spurts it will offer more number of cars to the domestic market from the planned 50000 units a year.

Yamaha FZ16 Pictorial Review

source : vicky.in

Test drive report on Yamaha FZ16

1) Yamaha FZ16: Billed as a ’street’ tool in Yamaha’s line-up, as opposed to the R15′’s ’sports’ tag, the FZ16 is presumably designed largely for posing around town on. FZ16 looks so mean and purposeful and the potential owners will doubtless be hoping some of that rubs off on them.

Styled by iconic designers of GK Dynamics, this new bike also takes the credit of being the second bike after R15 to use wind tunnel for better aerodynamics. Take a close look at the headlamp, front fender and strip over the engine there are plenty of angular curves and cuts to redirects the air to the engine. In addition these distinct shapes increases the aesthetic sense of the bike. The designers have efficiently used the steel bolts all over the frontal part to give a rugged look which the potential owners would like.

2) Yamaha FZ16: The large 12 litre fuel tank is cleverly sculpted with shrouds on both sides. The tank pretends to be large but actually it is not. - metallic tank is enclosed by a plastic tank. Be careful while riding, if you bump the bike then ready to shell out more. The aircraft type tank lid and black stripe on the tank increases the FZ16’s style quotient. But take a closer look, apache flashes in your mind. Elongated neck and large head tank design is already popular feature of apache. The tail lamp is purposefully mounted on the rear fender rather on the rear cowl. Bull the horn like grab rail with rubber mouldings would deter the followers.

3) Yamaha FZ16: Engine which is a stressed member on the diamond frame is not a sci-fi one, It is neither fuel injected nor oil cooled. Similar to any other machine available in the market, this 153cc mill produces peak power of 14PS. But remember the spec sheet doesn’t say all. Vroom the engine you would feel the difference, the enormous torque (13.6Nm) which pulls you from the word ‘go’ and will make you nostalgic. Yes, you are right, legendary RX100 comes to our mind. The engine is responsive till it touches the 9000rpm (redline). The low end and mid range performance of FZ16 speaks for itself. FZ16 zooms past 60kmph in just 6 seconds and the roll on time between 30-70 is pretty low. However the top whack is just under 120kmph. Remember this is a street fighter,absence of full fairing leads to greater wind resistance at high speeds.

4) Yamaha FZ16: These figures and solid performance are achieved through intelligent engineering, though the engine seems to be conventional. Yamaha adapts internationally proven technologies like MidShip muffler to dig out the best. While the expansion box beneath the mono cross ensures excellent exhaust efficiency, concentration of mass, and aerodynamic characteristics, the two layer expansion muffler emits an attractive exhaust note.

But the one thing FZ16 owner cannot boast about is its mileage or fuel efficiency figure. Fattest rear tyre and torque tuned engine is taking toll on FZ16’s fuel economy figure. FZ16 returns just 36kmpl in our combined test drive.

5) Yamaha FZ16: Whatever the kind of wheelie you wish, you can try in this bike. The 41mm rebounding front forks and 140/60-R17 at the rear makes the perfect menu for all wheelies. Similar to the Honda’s Unicorn, FZ16 sports a mono-cross suspension (Mono Cross is the name of a Cantilever mono suspension for the Yamaha CROSSERS) plus a beefed up rear swingarm. The suspension allows 120mm of wheel travel to comfort you on potholes. But the ride turns bumpy when you hit rough roads and it lose feedback and control on bumpy roads The pillion seat is so small that even an average size adult could find it tough. For the fair sex it’s strict no-no.

6) Yamaha FZ16: Forget the uncomfortable “crouched” position of R15, this new FZ16 is a street fighter and it offers comfortable upright riding position. Good ergonomics is because of wide handle bars, low set foot pegs and flat seats. FZ16 is hard to fault, though it appears to be massive, it flicks with ease, the rakish steering angle takes the credit.While getting around corners more front-biased weight distribution is noticeable to FZ16’s rider. But as the speed raises responsiveness hits the downroad.

7) Yamaha FZ16: The clocks are clear enough. The yellow back lit LCD console houses digital speedometer, odometer and an analogue tacho. Trip meter,fuel gauge and other indicators.are laid out legibly around it. A special engine starting signal is a nice touch. The switchgear quality are on par with its peers.

You would find a strange center stand for this bike. Unlike the R15, centre stand is a standard fitment in FZ16 but there is no kick starter.But again you would occasionally foul the center and side stand with the bike’s toe only gear shift knob

Yamaha FZ16: FZ16 available in three colours - Flaming Orange, Midnight Black and Lava Red.

Verdict: After the exotic R15, Yamaha has come up with an affordable yet powerful bike. Though its not as hi-fi as R15, it also takes for being the is the first bike in India to feature Radial and fattest rear tyre. Also the most difference between the siblings is the price. Unlike the R15, its a true 150cc bike that means it is priced on par with its competetiors. The peers of FZ16 are not karizma’s and pulsar 220cc’s. It has pull away the pulsar,unicorn,Hunks and apachians. We believe FZ16’s trendy styling and responsive engine will do that. Truly, FZ16 has raised the standards of 150cc bike yet it is priced very sensibly. You won’t get this much for Rs65000. Having said FZ16 still leaves room for other players to challenge the crown. We would love to see a better bike with much better driving dynamics and mileage. Till then FZ16 rulesssssss.