Scoop! VW Polo caught testing in India!

What you can see in the video below is the Volkswagen Polo on test in India. Volkswagen is in its final testing procedures for the Polo before it will be unveiled at the 2010 Auto Expo. To be manufactured at VW's new state-of-the-art Chakan plant, the Polo will set new benchmarks in terms of quality, fit and finish and refined engineering.

The Polo for India will come with three choices of engines - 3-cylinder 1.2-litre/70PS and 4-cylinder 1.4-litre/84PS petrol mills and a frugal 1.4-litre TDI diesel engine. While many would speculate these to be similar to the HTP and PD engines doing duty in the Polo's familial sibling, the Skoda Fabia, take our word for it, the Polo will house completely new engines. In fact, the Fabia in turn will have its powerplants replaced with the Polo's engines once the VW goes on sale.

The hatch is one of the most awaited small cars for India, primarily owing to its competitive target pricing. If our sources are to be believed, then VW is all set to price the Polo in the Rs. 4.25 to 6 lakh price bracket which will pitch this potent hatch against market leaders like the Swift/Ritz and other hot hatches like Grande Punto, Indica Vista and the i20. Expect the car to go on sale instantly after its unveiling at the Expo in January 2010.

Special thanks to Motoroids' eagle eyed reader Satyajeet Bhaskare for the video capture!

New Lancer on its way!

A few days back we told you about HM's plans to launch the Mitsubishi Lancer Ev0-X in India, early next year. But if you are already disappointed by the speculated Rs.40-lakh price tag, then Hindustan Motors might put the smile back on your face!

Come Auto Expo 2010 and you may see HM-Mitsubishi's new Lancer gracing its exhibit. Designed to reflect the familial connection with the Evo-X, this model, if launched in India will replace the existing Lancer Cedia line-up. Doing duty under the new hood will be the 1.8-litre MIVEC petrol engine. There would be a frugal 2.0-litre diesel powerplant too.

This model is loaded with all the latest safety and dirver aids along with the fun quotient that one can associate with a 'Mitsubishi Lancer', albiet with less than half the horses.

Scoop! Hyundai's new SUV for India

Wondering where the Hyundai Tuscon suddenly disappeared? Well, to start off, the SUV never took off on the sales charts which in the past couple of years, forced the Korean car maker to give it the axe-treatment. However, with the overall SUV market showing a healthy growth now, Hyundai has now decided to make a re-entry into this segment.

And it looks good too! Seen here are the scoop pics of the Korean car maker's entry level SUV. As you can see, the car sports an aggressive stance as compared to the Tuscon that was sold here. Hyundai's recent philosophy of rating quality higher than quantity are evident from this new vehicle. The car will be powered by a 2.2-litre engine for India. The 2010 Tuscon is based on the 'ix-onic concept' which Hyundai showcased a few months back. Expect this SUV to go on sale in March 2010 and may be renamed as a the iX35 to gel with their 'i' naming convention.

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!

Porsche 911 Turbo 2010 - First pictures out!

These are the first pictures of the new Porsche 911 Turbo which is the fastest, sharpest and the most brutal 911 to have seen the light of the day. the Ferraris, Lamborghinis and the GT-Rs of the world have a new scare!

The new car will feature a twin-turbo direct injection 3.8-litre flat six engine. The engine, picked basically from the Carrera S has revised variable-vane twin turbochargers to increase responsiveness and power. The result is a 20bhp boost in power, which is now rated at 493bhp.

According to Porsche sources, the new cars will have a more playful character compared with the outgoing version with power biased more towards the rear wheels. A six-speed manual gearbox is standard and a seven-speed dual-clutch PDK is optional. The gear ratios have been revised and the clutches are larger when compared with the other 911s.

Also, as a first, the 911 gets proper paddle shifters, replacing the flawed button shifters to change gears in PDK models. The paddle shifters come at no extra cost. The new 911 turbo now does a 0-100km/h sprint in a super quick 3.4 seconds, about 0.3 seconds quicker than the older version. The top speed too has increased by 2mph to 194mph.

Stay tuned for more pictures, wallpapers and news on the new 911 Turbo

2010 Maruti Suzuki Swift

The Swift has become a volume player for Suzuki not only in India, but across the entire globe! The Japanese giant has now decided to breath a hint of fresh air into this model by giving it its second facelift. Seen here are the spy shots of the new Swift on test. Expect the car to be a combination of rakish and curvaceous body lines in various sections of the design. The headlights and tailights will retain the same outer shape, however the internal arrangement of the bulbs and refelctor elements will be significantly different and will hint towards a sporty design. The new Swift will be shown in flesh at the upcoming 2010 Auto Expo.

Pics Source: Diablomotor

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: 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