UM will launch three different variants of the Renegade series of motorcycles, designed specifically for the Indian market and will price them below Rs 2 lakh

American two wheeler manufacturer UM Motorcycles has postponed plans of launching their bikes in India to February 2016.

UM was earlier slated to launch a new series of cruiser bikes in June 2015 and then later the launch was postponed to September 2015.

Three new bikes – the Renegade Commando, Renegade Classic and Renegade Sport – will be launched in February 2016, around the time the 2016 Auto Expo is held. All three bikes will share the same heart - a 300cc single-cylinder air-cooled engine that is expected to make around 18PS of power.

UM’s three new bikes are expected to be priced below Rs 2 lakh and they will be officially unveiled in November 2015. All bikes will have features like dual disc brakes and ABS.

UM has already signed a 50:50 joint venture with Indian electric bike maker Lohia Auto. Manufacturing is believed to be underway at Lohia’s existing facility in Kashipur, Uttarakhand. Eventually, the manufacturing unit in India will serve as an export hub for UM to markets in South East Asia and Africa.

The subsidiary will directly sell to dealers and even to customers as a well as directly conduct all market development and support activities such as marketing, service, after sales etc for the Royal Enfield brand in North America.

To cater to the North American market, niche bike maker Royal Enfield has set up a direct distribution subsidiary in the US, its first outside India.

The company, the two-wheeler division of Eicher Motors, also plans to open its fully-branded retail stores in the US that will sell its entire product line up of motorcycles and gear.

The subsidiary will directly sell to dealers and even to customers as a well as directly conduct all market development and support activities such as marketing, service, after sales etc for the Royal Enfield brand in North America, the company said in a filing to the BSE.

"North America is a key international market for Royal Enfield with a rich history of riding enthusiasts. Given the lack of attractive options in the mid-size segment, we are well poised to fill the gap and serve potential customers at a close, intimate level by localising our operations in North America," Royal Enfield President Rudratej Singh said.

This strategic announcement is in line with Royal Enfield's focused international thrust of leading and expanding the global mid-sized motorcycle segment (250cc-750cc), with North America representing a priority market for it, the company said.

Royal Enfield's current product line up in North America includes Bullet 500 cc, Classic 500cc and the Continental GT 535 cc cafe racer, priced between USD 4,995 to USD 5,995.

Royal Enfield North America, President, Rod Copes said: "Royal Enfield's first fully branded retail store in the US will soon be launched in Milwaukee that will retail its entire product line of motorcycles and gear."

Over the next 18 months, the company plans to launch several such stores in key metropolitan areas across the US, he added.

"We are also focussing on building a strong independent dealer network that will maximise our brand awareness and sales," Copes said.

The company's current distributors - Classic Motor Works (CMW) located in Fairbault, MN, would be transitioning out of distributing Royal Enfield motorcycles by the end of 2015, he added.

The Chennai-based bike maker has been exporting bikes to North America for 15 years.

All manufacturing activities of the company would continue in Chennai, while global headquarters would also continue to reside in Gurgaon, it said.

In 2014, Royal Enfield sold more than 3 lakh bikes globally. In 2015, the company aims to produce 4,50,000 motorcycles to support its growth strategy globally.

Courtesy : Autocar

The Z250SL is powered by a single-cylinder 249cc, four-stroke, liquid-cooled engine; Kawasaki may use locally sourced components.

Kawasaki is expected to launch the Z250SL in India, its first single-cylinder offering in the market. Unlike the Z250, which uses a parallel-twin, 249cc, 31.5bhp engine, the Z250SL uses a similar displacement, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled, four-stroke motor which is expected to develop around 27bhp.

The Z250SL is 20kg lighter than the Z250, thanks to the use of high tensile steel for its trellis frame. The models weighs 148kg for the non-ABS model, while the ABS-equipped model weighs 150kg.

A source close to the development told our sister publication Autocar Professional, “Components such as handlebars, clutch plates, front and rear suspensions, wheels, tyres, head- and tail-lamps, electrical switches, switch housings, radiator fans and other similar parts may be locally sourced for the Z250SL. The engine and its parts are, on the other hand, imported from Thailand. Kawasaki is working on localising this model to keep costs low and is sharing the part vendors of Bajaj Auto. Also, the single-cylinder engine will ensure that this model (Z250SL) would be the most affordable model from Kawasaki ever.”

However, deputy MD of India Kawasaki Motors, Shigeto Nishikawa, in an official communication to our sister publication, refused to make any comments about the upcoming new model.

The Z250SL is expected to be launched by end-2015, with a cost likely to be hovering around the Rs 2 lakh mark. Once launched, the motorcycle will compete against the likes of the single-cylinder 199.5cc, 25bhp KTM Duke 200, the single-cylinder 249cc, 26bhp Honda CBR250R and other models in the entry- level performance bike segment.

Kawasaki stated that it has no plans to discontinue the Z250.

Courtesy : Autocar

Carbon fibre chassis technology has been present in racing motorcycles and special limited edition production bikes. But until now carbon fibre chassis has been a niche technology owing to its higher production cost and is among the first features to be equipped in limited edition machines. BMW Motorrad though plans to change this scenario soon. The German brand is the pioneer in the automotive industry when it comes to this miracle material. It is the only manufacturer that has cracked the code of mass production of carbon fibre structure for the BMW i8 and i3 cars. 

The German manufacturer wants to expand this knowhow of carbon fibre mass production into the world of two-wheels. According to reports BMW Motorrad is developing new carbon fibre chassis to replace aluminium and steel frames in its range of motorcycles. Patents have leaked for the next generation frame designs along with the manufacturing procedure. The benefit of carbon fibre is its lightweight nature. Weight is the biggest enemy for any performance machine and engineers strive their level best to shed as much kilograms from a motorcycle. Carbon fibre is used extensively in the world of racing for the fact that it is almost 40 per cent lighter than its metal equivalent. BMW Motorrad is working on a carbon fibre beam frame which would be employed in its performance range of machines.

Expect the carbon fibre frame to make its presence felt on the next generation BMWS 1000RR and the BMW S1000. The Bavarian manufacturer will be using the “pultrusion” to produce the beam frame section. The second frame will be the carbon fibre trellis frame which is a bit more tedious to manufacture as in conventional trellis frame the tubes are welded together while in carbon fibre construction it would joined with cast junction blocks. The trellis carbon fibre frame would be used on the mainstream range of BMW Motorrad motorcycles. Mass production of carbon fibre frames would be a giant leap in the world of production motorcycles and we sincerely hope BMW Motorrad is able to pull of this technology advancement. 

Courtesy :  Zigwheels.

The Kinetic Group has signed a partnership to retail MV Agusta motorcycles in India; first launch slated for November 2015.

Indian two-wheeler and engine manufacturer Kinetic has confirmed that it has signed an agreement with Italian sport and superbike brand MV Agusta to sell its motorcycles in India.

In our last report we had said that both parties were interested in signing an agreement to bring the Italian brand to Indian shores. The Kinetic Group will be establishing showrooms for the brand in top cities across the country to retail as well as service the Italian manufacturer’s offerings.

The first offering from MV Augusta is slated to launch sometime in November 2015 with the rest of – or at least part of – the company’s international portfolio to follow in the coming two to three years. In international markets, the MV Agusta portfolio consists of a range of high-performance machines such as the Brutale, Rivale, Turismo Veloce, F3 and the range-topping F4. Some of which could make their way to our shores.

MV Augusta motorcycles will be imported into the country as completely built units (CBUs) or in the form of semi knocked-down (SKD) kits. Kinetic says the prices for the offerings are expected to range from Rs 12 lakh to Rs 33 lakh.

This is not the first collaboration between the two brands, with Kinetic having designed and manufactured a 125cc engine and aluminium frame for MV Agusta’s sister brand Cagiva.

Courtesy : Autocar