KTM CEO confirms RC390 launch in 2014.

Following the successful entry into the Moto3 World Championship – KTM brought the World Championship title to Austria in the premiere year – and the completion of the Duke range of naked bikes with the 125, 200 and 390 displacement models, there will now also be a fully faired sports bike available for sale. In typical fashion, there is a direct connection to motorsports. The “ADAC Junior Cup powered by KTM” will see the RC 390 in action for the first time worldwide as the exclusive motorcycle used in this Brand Cup competition.

Naturally it is not difficult for the sports motorcycle manufacturer from Mattighofen, Austria, to make the connection between racing and series production. In short: as always, KTM once again underlines that it is always “Ready to Race” in every aspect by presenting the RC 390 Cup at the eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland.

TVS expands beyond Indian borders. Plans to set up manufacturing facility in Uganda

AMPALA: TVS Motor Company today said it plans to set up manufacturing footprint in Uganda, besides launching two new motorcycle models in the African nation, as the company aims to have 25 per cent market share in the country.

In keeping with its commitment to serve Ugandan customers, the company plans to set up an assembly line in that country, TVS Motor Company said in a statement.

"The company will also launch two new motorcycles models for Uganda. These motorcycles will be specific to the Ugandan markets in terms of usability and durability," it added.

Commenting on the development, TVS Motor Company President and CEO, KN Radhakrishnan, said the company has reaffirmed its commitment to the Ugandan customer with the opening of its distributor Yuvaraj International Uganda Ltd.

Helmet with Augmented Reality vision like Iron Man.

GPS & naigation for motorcycle riders has always been a terrible mix. Turn by turn directions leave riders distracted from the road which for a motorcycle rider can be far more costly than a car driver. However, a company in Russia is working to change all of that.

LiveMap, a startup based in Moscow, is developing a motorcycle helmet with a head-mounted display, built-in navigation, and Siri-like voice recognition. The helmet will have a translucent, color display that’s projected on the visor in the center of the field of vision, and a custom user interface, English language-only at launch, based on Android.

Kawasaki Ninja 300 launched at INR 3.50 lakh.

NEW DELHI: Bajaj Auto today said it hopes to sell around 2,000 units of the premium sports bike from the Kawasaki Ninja platform launched today, which is priced at Rs 3.5 lakh.

The new 'Ninja 300' is the fourth of the Kawasaki Ninja range of products launched in the country and the company said it will phase out the Ninja 250R model soon.

"We have sold 3,500 Ninja family bikes (250R and 650R models) since the first launch in 2009. We are planning to sell 1500-2,000 units of the Ninja 300 by the end of the fiscal," Bajaj managing director Rajiv Bajaj told reporters at the much-awaited launch here.

Honda CB Trigger unveiled.

Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Ltd. (HMSI) has unveiled the CB Trigger, a naked streetbike and sequel to the Dazzler. The new CB Trigger takes some styling cues from the full size CB1000R, and is a naked 150cc streetbike, purpose built to thrill the Indian market. The CB Trigger will sell alongside Honda's popular 150cc Unicorn in the competitive 150cc market space.

The CB Trigger is a street focused motorcycle which bears resemblance to the Yamaha FZ series of 150cc bikes. The CB Trigger headlamp sits encased within a sharp bikini-fairing. The CB Trigger comes with a chunky, well sculpted fuel tank, with twin pseudo intakes set below. It provides an amber backlit digital instruments bay that includes a speedometer, odometer, and cascading tachometer. The CB Trigger's LCD display reads out fuel-level, and offers the convenience of a digital clock. Only minimal body panels and decals adorn the zesty looking new motorcycle.  

TVS Wego gets disc brake.

TVS Wego will now come with an option of a disc brake at front, keeping the standard non-disc variant still in place. TVS Motors was already producing the disc variant of Wego but to ship and sell it in other markets (read countries) but now India will also have it as an option for those who want the disc up front in their scoots as well.

Wego follows the suit and becomes the second scoot in the market to have telescopic shock abs and a disc brake up front as option, after Honda Aviator. This can be a start of a trend of offering these features as standard for all scoot manufacturers to keep up the competition.

The disc plate on Wego will be a 220mm one, and the rear will still sport the same 130mm drum brake as in standard variant. The disc variant can we seen in showrooms quite soon with a ex-showroom (Delhi) price tag of 49,157 INR, while the standard variant comes against 45,807 INR.

TVS Motors President (Marketing) H.S. Goindi resigns.

Chennai-based two-wheeler maker TVS Motor Company today said its President for Marketing H S Goindi has resigned from the company.

"H S Goindi, President Marketing, TVS Motor Company has expressed his desire to pursue interests outside the company and as such has requested to be relieved by March 31, 2013," the company said in a statement.

The management of the TVS Motor Company has accepted Goindi's resignation by acknowledging the efforts put in by him for the success of the company during his tenure, it added.

"No immediate replacement has been announced," the statement said.

TVS Motor Company had reported 3.70 per cent decline in its total vehicle sales in February at 1,65,696 units. It had sold 1,72,061 units in the same month last year.

Aprilia Caponord 1200 comes to India. Bookings Open!

The Caponord 1200 touring motorcycle from Italian motorcycle manufacturer Aprilia has reached Indian shores. The bike is available in two variants, the Caponord 1200 and Caponord 1200 Travel Pack.

Royal Enfield to hike annual capacity beyond 1.5 lakh in 2014

Royal Enfield, the two-wheeler arm of Eicher Group, is looking to increase its production capacity beyond 1,50,000 units per annum by 2014 as it looks to strengthen position in the niche bike market.

The company, which is currently setting up a new plant near Chennai at an investment of Rs 150 crore, expects to start production from the new facility within two months.

"With our new plant at Oragadam (near Chennai) coming onstream within the next few months, in 2013 we will have a total combined capacity of 1,50,000 units. We are already working to increase it beyond that by 2014," Eicher Motors Ltd Managing Director & CEO Siddhartha Lal said in a teleconference.

When asked what kind of additional capacity and investment the company is looking at, he said: "We have not decided on any particular number but all the fresh capacity will be by and large at the new plant."

Honda to launch CB1000R inspired CB150R in India.

As per the recent announcement about launching new 2-wheelers every quarter of the year, Honda came up with the tweeked up engine technologies for Activa, Aviator and Dio. To carry forward the same, Honda is all set to bring the CB150R to India and the bike is expected to hit the roads on March 11.

Harley-Davidson to assemble 3 models in India, price cut by Rs 4.55 lakh.

NEW DELHI: US-based iconic cult bike maker Harley-Davidson today said it will start assembling three more models in India that will result in slashing of prices by up to Rs 4.55 lakh, close on the heels of the government increasing customs duty on imported superbikes in the Budget.

The company's Indian arm Harley Davidson India will now assemble models Fat Boy, Fat Boy Special and Heritage Softail Classic at its Bawal facility in Haryana.

The Harley-Davidson Fat Boy will now be available at Rs 14.9 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) as against the previous imported price of Rs 19.45 lakh. Similarly, Fat Boy Special will cost Rs 15.6 Lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) as against the previous imported price of 19.70 lakh. The Heritage Softail Classic model will be tagged at Rs 16.25 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) as against Rs 20.45 lakh earlier.