The facelifted A-class is the carmaker's final launch for 2015; updates on the car will be entirely cosmetic.

Mercedes-Benz is set to launch the facelifted A-class in India on December 8, 2015. Revealed globally earlier this year, the facelifted A-class for international markets got a host of styling and mechanical changes. However, the car headed to India will only receive styling tweaks. This is the last model to be launched as per the carmaker's '15 in 15' strategy which was planned for the year.

The facelifted A-class gets restyled bumpers, optional LED headlamps, tweaked tail-lamps and a new integrated ASME BPVC Code Download
  exhaust. Mercedes' diamond grille will also be offered on the facelifted model.

Inside, the new A-class gets a large 8.0-inch touchscreen with Apple Carplay and Mirrorlink software for smartphone integration along with a revised steering and instrument cluster. The cabin also sees the use of new materials and gets interior colour choices. 

When launched in India, the facelifted A-class is likely to get features such as climate control and reverse parking camera as standard, while mood lighting is expected to be an option. Internationally, the new A-class is equipped with Mercedes' Dynamic Select system with three drive modes – Eco, Sport and Comfort. This could be offered on the model headed to India.

The engine line-up for the facelifted A-class will be the same as the previous model's with a choice of a petrol and a diesel engine mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.

The A-class facelift will rival the likes of the BMW 1-series and Volvo V40 when it is launched in India.

Courtesy : Autocar

Yamaha has launched the M-Slaz (MT-15 in India), which is a streetbike based on the Yamaha R15 in the Thailand market. The bike has been priced at Rs 1.7 lakh in Thailand while we can expect it to be launched in India by mid-2016

Yamaha launched the M-Slaz at the 32nd Thailand International Motor Expo 2015. The new motorcycle is a 150cc streetfighter based on the Yamaha R15 Version 2.0 that is sold in India. The new bike will be most likely renamed as the Yamaha MT-15 in India and it is expected to be showcased at the 2016 Auto Expo in Delhi early next year. The Yamaha MT-15 or M-Slaz has been priced at Rs 1.7 lakh in the Thai market. Being a streetfighter, the Yamaha MT-15 adopts sharp and edgy styling which should make it a popular offering among youngsters. Also the snazzy decals with bright colours further enhance its visual appeal. The Yamaha MT-15 sports LED headlamp which along with the beefy front forks endows the front with a muscular stance. The chiselled fuel tank, belly pan, LED tail lamp, split seats and fuel tank extensions are the design highlights of the motorcycle. 

The new Yamaha motorcycle employs a full-digital instrument console as opposed to the part-digital unit as seen on the Yamaha R15. Being a naked motorcycle, the riding posture has been tweaked, it sports a flat and wide handle bar which results in an upright riding posture. Power figures hasn’t been revealed yet but expect it to be the same 150cc motor as seen on its faired sibling. The liquid-cooled, single-cylinder engine churns out 17PS of peak power and 15Nm of maximum torque. Power will be transmitted to the rear-wheel via a 6-speed gearbox and we can expect the gear ratios to be tuned to suit its streetbike credentials.

World MotoGP champion Jorge Lorenzo interacted with fans and the media after riding around the BIC with 30 lucky Yamaha YZF-R3 owners. The visit is part of Yamaha’s plans of promoting motorsports in India

Three time World MotoGP champion Jorge Lorenzo spent the better part of the day at the Buddh International Circuit on the invitation of Yamaha Motor India Sales Pvt. Ltd.

And after riding a few laps around circuit on a Yamaha YZF-R3, Lorenzo was all praise for the track and expressed his desire to see MotoGP come to India.

“I can only hope and wish that one day MotoGP comes to India. It is such a big country with a lot of people. I saw several people riding bikes on the streets. I am sure they would be interested in seeing the best bikers of the world racing in front of them,” Lorenzo said.

The visit is described as India Yamaha’s continued efforts to promote motorsports in India. Lorenzo was welcomed by Indian biking and motorsport lovers as he rode Yamaha’s flagship motorcycle, the Yamaha YZF-R3 on a wet track at the Buddh International Circuit.

"I went on the limit, as fast as possible but had to slow down because it had rained so the track was wet. The bike (Yamaha R3) was obviously not as fast (as a MotoGP bike)," said the 28-year-old Spaniard.

"It is an amazing young track. It has very different corners, the back straight is more than one km long so it can really test riders. It is a technical circuit and fun to ride on. Overall, a very good circuit."

The MotoGP Champion’s visit to India was primarily aimed at cheering up motorsports enthusiasts in India, to build a more sustainable motorsports fan community. As part of his visit to the Buddh International Circuit, Lorenzo also met 30 lucky R3 owners, who got an opportunity to share the same track with the champion racer as he participated in a riding session around the BIC with them.

In an interaction with members of the media, the 2015 World MotoGP session responded to questions about his experience at the BIC, riding the R3 and the controversy over teammate and rival Valentino Rossi’s statements at the Sepang race. To a question whether his relationship with Rossi will remain the same in the next season, Lorenzo said, “It’s up to Valentino to improve the relationship in the 2016 season.”

Twenty-eight-year old Jorge Lorenzo joined the MotoGP Yamaha Factory Racing Team in 2008 as double 250cc World Champion, having won the title for the previous two years. Following his outstanding debut year, Lorenzo came of age in 2009, winning four races and pushing his team-mate Valentino Rossi to the limit throughout a superb season.

The 2010 season saw Lorenzo build on his 2009 successes, fighting at the front to dominate the season and take the World Championship title. In 2012, Lorenzo became the first Spanish rider to win multiple premier class titles, and as of 2015, is the only Spanish rider with the most wins in MotoGP.

Courtesy : Zigwheels

A hardcore version of the GT S; power increased to around 542bhp and is lighter by 80-100kg.

Mercedes-AMG's more track-focussed and hardcore version of its current flagship sportscar GT S will be called the GT R. The name being similar to the legendary Nissan GT-R, shouldn't be an issue given Daimler’s merger with Nissan.

The new car is rumoured to feature a slightly more powerful engine with AMG CEO Tobias Moers hinting at 542bhp from the 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 engine. The GT R will also be lighter than the GT S by 80 -100kg. The weight shed and power bump will help the GT R sprint from 0-100kph in shorter time than the GT S.

The body will feature a sharper look and will get aerodynamic changes on the outside. Other modifications include stiffer suspension, bigger brakes, larger wheels and subtle changes to the interior differentiating it from the GT S. The GT R will be positioned above the GT S, but will not be the most hardcore GT for long as there is most likely going to be a ‘Black Series’ version in the works for 2018.

Courtesy : Zigwheels

Remember the tasty Yamaha Sports Ride 2-seater sports car concept that Yamaha showed off at the 2015 Tokyo Motor Show? Well, rejoice, for it is happening for real.

The Yamaha Sports Ride concept stole some of Mazda’s RX-Vision rotary sports coupe’s thunder at the Tokyo Motor Show last month, and with good reason too. The follow-up to the MOTIV.e concept, albeit in a whole different mould, the Sports Ride is a two-seater sports concept designed to “offer a driver-machine relationship similar to a motorcycle.”

Like the MOTIV.e, the Sports Ride concept was also created with the help of legendary F1 mastermind Gordon Murray, also the man almost single-handedly responsible for the peerless McLaren F1. Although Murray is not behind the car's design, which was led by ex-Toyota designer Dezi Nagaya, the Sports Ride employs a new manufacturing system derived from Gordon Murray Design’s iStream manufacturing process, but replacing the glassfibre content with carbon-fibre. It has been developed in conjunction with Japanese firm Toray, for whom Murray designed the Teewave sports car in 2011, and sandwiches a honeycomb paper core with two carbonfibre skins.

And now there are reports that Yamaha is indeed going ahead and building the Sports Ride. The motorcycle manufacturer isn’t exactly unfamiliar to the four-wheeled world, having been responsible for tuning and/or developing engines for various established manufacturers like Volvo, Toyota, Lexus, and Ford, and even supplying engines for Formula 1 cars for a short while.

And, as befitting a car with Murray’s name attached to it, the Sports Ride will be light, extremely light. The whole shebang, measuring 3,900 mm long, 1,720 mm wide and 1,170 mm tall, weighs in at a paltry 780kgs. That is less than even the Lotus Elise. Much of the concept’s interior could also carry over to production, including a mix of high-quality metal, leather, carbon-fibre and technology borrowed from Yamaha’s music division. A speaker box behind the driver’s head restraint features woodgrain trim and sunburst paint employed by Yamaha’s guitars.

Yamaha is still tight-lipped about powertrain details, but we expect a turbocharged 1.5-litre engine for the production version instead of the MOTIV.e’s 1.0-litre three-cylinder mill.  That would be likely to give the car a power-to-weight ratio in excess of 140 PS per tonne, which, again, is around that of an Elise.

Expect the Yamaha Sports Ride to debut in pre-production form at the 2017 Tokyo Motor Show, with a sticker price of $70,000 in foreign markets.

Courtesy : Zigwheels