Ford is expected to launch the new Endeavour in India on January 19, 2016. The company has started training for its sales and service staff for the SUV.

The new Endeavour features a prominent trapezoidal grille, projector headlamps, bumpers with scuff plates, side steps, a roof-mounted rear spoiler, wraparound tail lamps, ORVMs with integrated turn-indicators and alloy wheels.

The interiors of the SUV are modern compared to the outgoing model. There are seven seats, a redesigned dashboard and centre console, reworked controls for the air-conditioning and a new Ford SYNC2 infotainment system.

The new Endeavour is likely to come with an option of two diesel engines - 2.2-litre, 4-cylinder and 3.2-litre, 5-cylinder. The vehicle is expected to be launched in manual and AWS Standard PDF Download  automatic transmission versions and two-wheel drive as well as four-wheel drive configurations.

The Endeavour will compete with the Toyota Fortuner, Mitsubishi Pajero Sport and other SUVs in the D2 segment.

Courtesy : Team BHP

Yamaha has issued a worldwide recall for the YZF-R1 and YZF- R1M motorcycles. The company has found a defect, which relates to deformation of the transmission gears and breakage in the R1 and R1M motorcycles manufactured in the year 2015.

In India, the company has recalled 9 units in total including 7 units of the YZF-R1 and 2 units of YZF-R1M. The company will rectify the error by replacing the transmission with a modified one on a free of cost basis.

Yamaha plans to begin the recall exercise through a factory modification campaign, which will be run through its authorised superbike dealership network across the country. The owners of the affected bikes will be contacted through mail as well as phone calls, to fix an appointment.

Yamaha claims that there has been no problem reported from anywhere in India so far.

Courtesy : Team BHP

Ford is reportedly pairing up with Google to create a joint-venture for the development and manufacturing of autonomous vehicles.

Whether we, as driving enthusiasts, like it or not, there is no escaping the fact that autonomous cars are the next big thing in automotive evolution. Every carmaker worth its name is hard at work perfecting its own self-driving car, but Silicon Valley has clearly taken the lead in this race. So it only makes sense that they team up and make use of the resources of the other.

Now, according to a report from Yahoo Autos, Google and Ford are forming a partnership to build self-driving cars, a move that pairs one of the world's top automakers with one of the pioneering companies developing robo-car technology. The partnership is slated to be announced at the Consumer Electronics Show taking place in Las Vegas next month, the report stated, citing multiple anonymous sources.

Ford spokesman Alan Hall said the automaker would not comment on speculation.

"We have been and will continue working with many companies and discussing a variety of subjects related to our Ford Smart Mobility plan," Hall said. "We keep these discussions private for obvious competitive reasons, and we do not comment on speculation."

Meanwhile, the two companies ASME Standard  have the connections and have laid the groundwork. Last year Google’s self-driving car group teamed up with Roush to develop and build a self-driving pod. Roush is building a test fleet of pods in Livonia, which are shipped to California where there is no snow to worry about.

In January, Chris Urmson, director of Self-Driving Cars for Google, said the Internet company's goal is to have driverless cars available on the market within five years. Still, experts say it will be many years before fully self-driving cars are actually available to the general public, with a slew of technology, regulatory and legal issues yet to be ironed out.

Courtesy : Zigwheels

Initial details about the Honda Civic Type S are reported to have been leaked by anonymous sources

Japanese car manufacturer Honda is working on the Type S version of the all-new Civic that will reportedly be a 2017 model, according to theCivicX forum. It’s scheduled to go on sale sometime between late fall 2016 and early spring 2017.

Under the hood, the car is expected to be powered by a detuned version of the turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine of the Type R from where it will inherit many components. Mated to a six-speed manual transmission, the engine will generate power somewhere in the region of 223 and 233PS. The manual transmission is said to be an exclusive for this new Honda offering.

The Civic Type R will be commercially available in omega replica most of the established as well as emerging markets. However, it is not very clear, yet, which body styles will benefit from the Type R treatment, but the hatchback will get it for sure.

In the meantime, the regular Civic Sedan and Coupe will be a 2016MY and Honda apparently has plans to sell all three body styles (sedan, coupe, hatchback) in all markets.

All this information though is simply based on rumours and speculations, as Honda is yet to confirm any of its plans in this regard.

Courtesy : Zigwheels

Stefan Pierer, CEO of KTM, has revealed that the company will build Husqvarna motorcycles at its plant in Austria and introduce them in Europe and the US from 2017. Initially, the engines and components for these bikes will be sourced from India.

The bikes will use 125cc and 390cc engines. They are likely to be based on the 401 Vitpilen and 401 Svartpilen motorcycles, which were unveiled at EICMA in 2014.

Later, KTM is likely to introduce the Husqvarna brand in emerging markets as well. One of these markets is India. Additionally, the company is considering the production of Husqvarna bikes in India.

India is a production hub for KTM's bikes under 500cc. The company has a partnership with Bajaj Auto and uses the Indian company's plant at Chakan, Maharashtra to build 125cc, 200cc and 390cc motorcycles for global markets.

Bajaj Auto holds a 48% stake in KTM. The partnership has given KTM access to a low-cost production hub. 

Courtesy : Team BHP