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!

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!