Scoop! 2010 Bajaj Pulsar 220 Naked

We told you the brawnier, naked Pulsar 220 was on its way, and viola! we already have the scoop pics of the new streetfighter in flesh! The new bike brings back the styling standard set by the Pulsar 200 and houses within itself the highly acclaimed 32mm venturi carbureted 220cc engine from the 2009 Pulsar 220 DTS-i. To check out the pics and more info on the new Pulsar 220 Naked, check out www.motoroids.com now!

Want to be the first to know when we update more news, reviews, previews, features and other exciting features? Then follow us today on:

New Yammies for the festive season

We told you in the September issue of the Motoroids2 e-mag that Yamaha is on the brink of launching the V-Max in India very soon. Well, here's the word from the horse's mouth! The Indian subsidy of Yamaha Motor has indeed put the V-Max up for grabs provided you have Rs. 20-lakh to spare for the torque monster. As for the colours, we are not sure whether its the 2009 or the 2010 liveries that will make their way into the peninsula, but since the engine remains unchanged for the upcoming year, rest assured that you are getting the same bang for the buck as the biking brotherhood outside India.

Also joining the V-Max on the Indian showroom floors are two new limited production colour schemes of the FZ16 and the Fazer. We have already posted pics of the LE FZ16 below this post. Stay tuned for pics of the Fazer LE...
In the meanwhile, feast your eyes on the hi-res wallpapers of the V-Max HERE.

'Yamaha Performance Kit' Prices Announced!

The Yamaha performance parts that have been creating so much buzz have finally been valued! The prices are as follows:

The ex- showroom price of Muffler Kit (For FZ16 and R15) is Rs. 16,000 /- .

This kit includes

a) Racing Exhaust System
b) Exhaust Pipe
c) Bracket Kit Exhaust

The ex- showroom price of Engine Kit (For R15) is Rs. 31,000 /- . This kit includes
a) ECU
b) Cam Shift
c) Muffler Kit

The ex-showroom price of Body kit (For FZ16 and R15) is Rs. 20,000/- . This kit includes

a) Brake Caliper Bracket
b) Brake Disc
c) Brake Hose Front
d) Brake Hose Rear
e) Front Brake Master Cylinder
f) Step Plate

Mahindra's Scooter-ing Ambitions

Mahindra has been taking steps to develop its brand value in the Indian two-wheeler segment ever since it took over Kinetic Motors. With the Flyte relaunched, the company is now looking forward to expanding its product portfolio with three more products. Mahindra will be achieve this by (re)launching the now defunct Kinectic Blaze and the Kinetic 4S with a cosmetic makeover similar to the new Flyte. It is likely that there would be no technical changes on these scooters, apart from a few tweaks for the new emission norms. The first two scooter launches would be to merely establish its presence in the scooter market, while the thrid will be the a completely new product to highlight Mahindra's foray into the two wheeler market. The Blaze and the 4S will be see the light of the day in about a months time. The company's third scooter however, which will be an entirely new offering from yesteryear Kinetic's SYM range, is likely to be available in showrooms in around six months time.

The company is reportedly looking at acquisitions to enter the Chinese, Taiwan and European scooter markets as well. Mahindra is reportedly trying to acquire Italy-based two-wheeler manufacturer Malaguti - which will help Mahindra enter the higher end scooter segments in other two-wheeler markets as well.

2010 MotoGP season buzz

With half the MotoGP 2009 season already underway, its that time of the year now when the interesting buzz about the 2010 rider-shifts starts erupting. The first bit came in the form of the brave rumor indicating FIAT Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo's shift to the Repsol Honda factory team for 2010. But that seems to be over now, with Lorenzo most likely continuing alongside Valentino Rossi - making sure he has atleast the same (if not better) equipment levels as Rossi to continue their battle for supremacy.

The second bit of news comes in the form of Bautista's confirmed seat for the Rizla Suzuki team. The 250cc championship contender will take advantage of the fact that Suzuki have received a dispensation from the rookie rule which usually forces new entrants to sign with satellite teams. This will earn him a factory seat - something that he has been desiring for quite some time now. Since his current partners, Aspar, are trying in vain to convince him to join their MotoGP operations, it seems that their two bikes would find the reins under Tony Elias and Hector Barbera!

Tony Elias' Gresini seat on the other hand will be filled 250cc category's racing wonder Marco Simonchelli. His team mate will be none other than Macro Melandri - who will make a comeback to the Gresini team after having spent the last two years at Ducati and Kawasaki respectively. In spite of losing factory support this year, the Italian rider has proved his worth in almost each and every race he has participated in, and hence, looks forward to a successful comeback with the San Carlo Gresini outfit.

Stay tuned to the Motoroids Blog as we bring you more exciting news from around the paddock. For other interesting news, reviews and features, download the absolutely free Motoroids2 e-magazine for www.motoroids.com now!

Image Credits: MotoGP Press

Venom GT to be faster than the Bugatti Veyron?

The debut supercar from any low-volume ultra-exclusive supercar maker (read Ascari, Koenigsegg, Pagani) is preceded by claims to beat the best 0-100 acceleration and top-speed figures. Following the trend, American tuning firm Hennessey, better known for tinkering with Cadillacs, Corvettes and Dodges is now planning a supercar, to be introduced at the next Geneva Motor Show.

The mid-engined two-seater, christened the Venom GT will be powered by a V8 dishing out a claimed 1,200bhp. Hennessey claim that the new car with so much power and a kerb-weight of less than 1100 Kg will take no more than 2.4 seconds to hit the 100kph mark from a standstill and should be good for a top speed of 272mph.

Those figures could easily shame a Veyron, but as you would assume, its easier said than done. Hennessey have made some real tall claims, let's see whether they manage to live up to them.

Asian Road Racing Championship round in Chennai

Finally there’s something for Indian bike racing aficionados to cheer about. The fourth round of the Petronas Asian Road Racing Championship will be held in the country. The earlier three races of the season took place at Malaysia, Japan and Indonesia in the month of April, May and June respectively. In each round, two races are held in the 600cc and 115cc engine (underbone) category. The fourth round is scheduled to take place from 3rd to 6th September at the Madras Motor Sports Club race track in Irungattukottai, Chennai.

Dilip Roggers, Preetham Dev Moses, and K.Rajni have reportedly confirmed participation in the 600cc class. India is set to host an international race event after more than a decade’s gap. The Petronas Asian Road Racing Championship is one of the important biking events in the Asian continent.

For passes contact:
Madras Motor Sports Club,
123/1, Guru Mansion,
TTK Road, Alwarpet,
Chennai 600 018
You can also drop in a mail at mmsc_chennai@yahoo.co.in or info@madrasmotorsports.in

The Yamaha Fazer 250 story - more information

The question that everyone's been asking after reading about the possible launch of the Fazer 250 on Motoroids is when exactly are they going to introduce it. Well, the 10th Auto Expo is just around the corner, and there cannot be a better platform for the Japanese company to launch the big bike. They'll also showcase what they have in store for the coming years for India.

The Fazer is selling well for Yamaha India with a waiting period of well over 30 days. If a well-styled 150, priced so optimistically can sell so well, we don't think the blokes at Yamaha will have much problem introducing a bigger engine in the same bike for a higher price. And a well styled half-faired bike, with a fuel injected 250cc torquey single, priced in the region of Rs 1 lakh sounds like the perfect offering for someone who wants an all-rounder. FI would mean that the bike won't go breathless, be it while scaling the altitudes of the Himalayas, or while cruising through the highways at sea level - a virtue that's perfect for touring. The well-sorted dynamics and wide rubber on the Fazer would mean that it'll be a great corner carver for the weekends as well.

Yamaha are also planning to increase sales in the 100cc segment as nothing below the Gladiator is moving out of the showrooms. Yamaha are looking very keenly at the scooter segment as well. We have a fair idea of what exactly they want to do in those two segments. Stay tuned for the updates..

Click here for the first part of the Yamaha story about the Fazer 250

Click here to read about Yamaha India's scooter strategy for India.

Visit www.motoroids.com to download India's first bike e-magazine, absolutely free!

Super Scoop! India-spec Ninja 250's production pics revealed

Tired of waiting for the Ninja? Done reading the speculations about the naked/street/modified versions of the Kawasaki pocket rocket? Well, here's the real deal! Motoroids have the latest pictures of the production ready, India-spec Ninja 250.

Seen here for the first time in India, are the pics of Bajaj's production ready version of the Kawasaki quarter litre motorcycle! And as you can see, the Indian authorities have once again managed to degrade the beauty of this Japanese machine by forcing the loud front number plate in the most ungainly position ever. Yet to come is the all-so-important saree guard which will deteriotate its sporty stance further.

The headlights of the new bike won't probably be as functional as the superb projection-beam headlamp of the Pulsar 220, but do the job of endowing the front with oodles of style rather well. The blinker lamps as well as some other body panels will be locally manufactured, making sure you don't have to pay through your nose if ever you drop this Kwacker. We love the angular, chiselled styling of the RVMs and the big wave rotors up front add a lot of oomph to the visuals apart from promising great stopping power for the Ninja. From whatever little we can decipher from these low-res images, the fit and finish of the bike seems to be top notch. Bajaj have done the right thing by not tinkering with the styling of this machine, and it'll be one of the sportiest and the most well-proportioned machines on Indian streets when it makes its debut.

Motoroids have many more pictures and much more dope on the Ninja 250. Stay tuned for more more insights on probably the most awaited bike in India. We'll be back as soon as we are done analysing the pictures and have found out where those high-performance components are coming from.

Visit www.motoroids.com to download India's first bike e-magazine - absolutely free!

Valentino Rossi rides at the IOM:TT!

Valentino Rossi! The demigod of motorcycle racing gets his dose of the holy tarmac at the Isle Of Man TT! Check this video as Valentino Rossi rides alongside the legendary Giacomo Agostini...



And here's MCN's (Motorcycle News) take on the same lap:

MOTOGP: Stoner to go underground!

Casey Stoner - one of the vital contenders for this year's MotoGP Championship, has been diagnosed of a secret illness which has been leading to his chronic fatigue for the past few races. The Australian will hence take a break from the MotoGP championship for at least the next three races.

While addressing the media, Ducati Boss Livio Suppo said: “Casey is very sorry that he is not able to race, especially as he feels the bike is very competitive. But he said he needs to fix this problem and come back at full strength for Estoril. It is one thing to stop if you are struggling but even more difficult when you know you are capable of winning.”

With Stoner's temporary retirement, Ducati satellite rider Mika Kallio will be promoted to race for the factory team, alongside Nicky Hayden for the next three races of Brno, Indianapolis and Misano. His current team mate Niccolo Canepa on the other hand will be joined by Ducati's WSBK rider Micheal Fabrizio.

Image Credits: Motogp.com

Scoop! Yamaha mulling the Fazer 250 for India

We all know that Yamaha sells the Fazer 250 in the international market. And we were as disappointed as all of you when the Fazer was launched in India with the small 150cc powerplant of the FZ16. Well, it seems all of us have a reason to cheer, as we've heard reports that Yamaha is seriously considering equipping the bike with a bigger 250cc mill. Our sources have told us that the bike with the bigger, single cylinder 250cc fuel-injected engine is currently at ARAI, undergoing testing, probably even homologation.

The Fazer's chassis, suspension and other cycle parts are strong enough to take the bigger engine, and adding a 250 single to the package with a price tag of close to 1 lakh will make the project sufficiently feasible for Yamaha India. At that price, there will be quite a few takers for the bike as well to generate the requisite volumes for the Japanese bikemaker.

The recently launched Fazer is touted as a touring bike by Yamaha, and the bigger engine will actually endow it with the biggest virtue of a touring bike - bucketloads of torque. The fuel injected single cylinder engine produces roughly 22PS at 7500 rpm. Even after being detuned for the inferior quality Indian fuel, we can expect a healthy peak power output of 20PS, which would probably make the Fazer the fastest production bike in the country. But the more important thing is 20Nm of peak torque that'll make the Fazer a potent tourer with its strong mid-range surge and weight lugging capabilities. Both FZ 16 and the current Fazer are bikes with well-sorted dynamics. A few alterations with the position of the handlebar and footpegs should make the them competent corner carvers as well.

We think Yamaha will make subtle changes to the design of the current FZ and Fazer when they introduce the bigger version. The FZ would still be a streetfighter and the Fazer would be a half-faired machine, but there would be distinguishing elements to make the bigger machines stand out. Yamaha India have a medium-term strategy of introducing a new bike every six months. The new launches will be in line with the strategy. Either the FZ or the Fazer 250 will be launched first, followed by the bigger engined version of the other bike.

We have plenty of dope on Yamaha's other plans for India as well. Click here for the second part of the story..

Click here to read about Yamaha India's scooter strategy for India.

Visit www.motoroids.com to download India's first ever bike magazine - absolutely free!

VDO: Ken Block and Travis Pastrana on the sal flats

This time around, the duo go around doing their thang on the salt flats

VDO: Burnout gone bad

Here's a clip of a long burnout going bad as one of the bikes - a Yamaha Thunderace 1000 EXUP bursts into flames. The other machine, a Gixxer, feels some of the heat too! Kids - DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME OR OUTDOORS OR WHERE EVER!

2010 models coming thru: Yamaha Vmax

The 2010 Vmax has no technical upgrades what so ever. So the only difference comes in the form of a new paint scheme - a combination of Silver and metallic red. Click on the image below for more wallpapers of the 2010 Yamaha Vmax:

VDO: Shaggy's Fly High

Loads of eye candy!!
Check out the music video of Shaggy's new track "Fly High":

VDO: BMW Power

BMW's F1 operations might be on hold now, but that hasn't stopped the Bavarian giant from showcasing some of its prowess. Featured here are Nick Heidfeld and Troy Corser swapping their world championship machinery and racing against each other around the Nurburgring circuit. Enjoy!

2010 models coming thru: BMW S1000RR

Its been hardly a few months since the controversial looking BMW S1000RR litre-class bike has made its public appearance. However, the German bike maker has already unveiled its new color scheme for 2010 - the Bavarian white-with-red-and-blue-stripes!

We think it looks stunning as compared to the metallic green that we have seen so far. No technical changes ofcourse, the new paint scheme can be seen in action in the video posted in the earlier blog entry. For more images of the new paint scheme, click on the image below:

2010 models coming thru: Harley Davidson

If you are an avid biker and follow new launches every year, then you must be very well aware that such models are generally unveiled/previewed between the months of October and November, before they go on sale by February of the following year. This year however, the trend seems to be changing, with the first of the 2010 unveiling already under way.

Enter the 2010 model range of the Harley-Davidson motorcycles! For the next calendar year, the American bike maker will have as much as 9 new models on sale to cater to the young generation. All the models will benefit from HD's new 'Midnight Pearl' plating technology which gives a novel finish to all the metal parts like the headlight, clutch and derby covers etc.. Other upgrades include slimmer exhaust pipes, slammed suspension, optional larger front wheel, new tail light assembly and the oh-so-popular flame paint jobs.

The company seems to have blown in a lot of dough in these new models to try and save the sales from depleting further, but we guess it would need much more than that to cope with the Japanese competition. If HD's plans of entering India bear fruit, then these would well be the models you could spend some valuable rupees on.

Click on the image above for HD's 2010 model gallery

Fireblade vs. Fireworks vs. Golf Ball!

One of our favorite Top Gear presenters, Richard Hammond, takes on a cracker rocket and a golf ball with his 300 km/h Fireblade! Let the video do the rest: