BS Motoring - May 2013

EDITOR, PUBLISHER &
PRINTER: Paresh Nath

MANAGING EDITOR:
Pablo Chaterji
SENIOR EDITOR:
Rohin Nagrani
WRITERS:
Aneesh Shivanekar, Ruman
Devmane, Aditya Upadhyayula
ART TEAM
Smita Pradhan, Prashant
Bane, C R Ramachandran,
Lopa Prabhu, Sandeep
Kotian, Parag Kulkarni
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V O L U ME X I V
I S S U E 5
MAY 2013
FOLLOW bsmotoring ON
MAY 2013 BUSINESS STANDARD MOTORING 3
A MEMBER OF
P
hew, what a month its been. For those of you who
may not have heard already, some momentous
changes have been taken place at your favourite
automotive magazine. On the 15th of April, the Delhi
Press Group took over the magazines reins from
Business Standard, which has nurtured the magazine for
all these years. You will soon see a completely new
avatar of Motoring, both in print and on the internet.
Well continue to bring you the witty, incisive writing
and great photography that you expect from us only
itll be even better. Thats a promise!
The bike you see on the cover has had enthusiasts
drooling in anticipation for a while now, and Alan
Cathcart beat everyone to the punch (as he tends to do)
by being the first journalist in the world to ride the new
KTM 390 Duke. The Austrian buzz bomb takes all the
good bits from the 200 Duke and dials up the volume
375cc, 44 bhp and 3.56 kgm make for a heady
combination! Oh, and theres ABS as well, to keep you
right side up. We have no doubt that this bike will be
attractively priced, given the strategy we saw with its
younger sibling, so start getting that chequebook ready
as you will read, the 390 Duke is a bike worth lusting after.
Chevrolet has seen success with an MPV before, in
the shape of the venerable Tavera (the stories I can tell
you of how we managed to get it stuck on a river bed)
oh wait, that was an MPV, the Chevy Enjoy is an MUV.
While you figure that out, Ill tell you that Aditya drove
the bowties answer to the Suzuki Ertiga and Mahindra
Xylo/Quanto, and you can decide for yourself if the
Enjoy will be your next MAV er, MUV. At an estimated
price of between ` 5.5 to ` 8 lakh, it could well make a
case for itself.
The Mercedes-Benz A-Class has been in the pages of
Motoring before, but just prior to its imminent launch,
we drove the funky hatchback in Germany to bring you
an idea of what the India-spec cars will be like to drive
(rather nice, actually). Aneesh, meanwhile, did what he
does best and tracked down a real whopper a Unimog
U1150! Check out his story (and stunning photos) on the
legendary off-roader on page 84.
As always, weve made sure our biking audience has
lots to chew over. The Motofocus section has Rumans
impressions on the new Kawasaki Ninja 300 a mean,
green little machine if there ever was one. With Harley-
Davidson having taken the CKD route, you can now have
significant change left over if you want to buy the
Heritage Softail Classic or the Fat Boy Special splash
out on some custom bits and bobs, then! Alan, that lucky
man, gets to ride all of the worlds best, most exotic
motorcycles, and he brings you a piece on the amazing
MotoCzysz electric racer thats won the Isle of Man TT
Zero race for electric bikes three years in a row and it
can crack 250 kph. Talk about electric dreams!
As always, thank you for being passionate, dedicated
readers we look upon each of you as part of an
extended family of petrolheads. Enjoy the issue!
AUTOGRAPH
PABLO CHATERJI
MANAGING EDITOR
pablo.chaterji@delhipress.in
Twitter: @pablochaterji
Scan the code to watch videos of
cars featured in this issue
THE WINDS OF CHANGE
10 BUSINESS STANDARD MOTORING MAY 2013
36
COVER STORY
KTM DUKE 390
DUKE MISSILE
CONTENTS
Volume XIV Issue 5
84
SHORT SHIFT
MERCEDES-BENZ UNIMOG
RARE END
50
HEAD TO HEAD
RENAULT SCALA CVT VS HONDA CITY CVT
CV(L)T FOLLOWING
92
SHORT
SHIFT
FORCE
GURKHA
4X4XFORCE
WRITE HAND DRIVE
WRITE ALL THE WAY 14
LUST
LAMBORGHINI COUNTACH
RED SERIOUS 16
REWIND/PLAY
MCLAREN F1/P1
1 LOVE 18
FAST
SSC ULTIMATE AERO XT
XTRA FAST 20
HOW TO
SELL YOUR BIKE ONLINE
A CLICK AWAY 22
SINS
THIS IS HOW WE DO IT 24
AD HOC
AD INFINITUM
MAZDA MIATA 25
NEWS
LAUNCHED: HONDA AMAZE, NISSAN
SUNNY CVT, UPDATED BMW 7 SERIES,
DZIRE AND VENTO SPECIAL EDITIONS,
UNVEILED: MASERATI GHIBLI, REVISED
PORSCHE PANAMERA, AND LOTS MORE
FROM THE SHANGHAI MOTOR SHOW
PLUS GET THE DRIFT 26
ROAD TEST
HONDA CR-V
V LIKE IT 46
TYRE TEST
APOLLO 4G TYRES
GRIP 4GOOD 58
SHORT SHIFT
TOYOTA ETIOS FACELIFT
STAND IN Q 75
SHORT SHIFT
TOYOTA LIVA TRD SPORTIVO 1.5
TRD AND TESTED 76
MOTOFOCUS
JVB MOTO DUCATI PANTAH, YAMAHA
X-MAX 400, HONDA CRF250M, AND
EX-STEVE MCQUEEN 1914 INDIAN
MODEL F PLUS MOTOQUIZZING 97
54
SHORT
SHIFT
VW POLO 1.2
GT TSI
GT THE DRIFT
62
SHORT SHIFT
CHEVROLET ENJOY
THATS ALL, VOLKS!
78
SHORT SHIFT
M-B A-CLASS
A-CLASS ACT
100
SHORT SHIFT
KAWASAKI NINJA 300
FREE WHEELIE
SHORT SHIFT
H-D HERITAGE SOFTAIL CLASSIC AND
FATBOY SPECIAL CKD
A GOOD VIBE 106
CHEAP THRILLS
HONDA ACCORD 110
KIT BAG
PERIPHERAL PROVISION 111
LEAN ANGLE
MOTOCZYSZ 012 E1PC RACER
SAY THAT AGAIN? 112
SHUTTER SPEED
SCHUMI AT THE NORDSCHLEIFE118
TRACK RECORD
MOTOGP AT QATAR AND TEXAS, F1 AT
SHANGHAI AND BAHRAIN,
WRC AT PORTUGAL, AND OTHER
MOTORSPORT NEWS FROM
AROUND THE WORLD 120
SURVIVOR
MAHINDRA QUANTO
GOT THE MOVES 128
SURVIVOR
HYUNDAI ELANTRA
ACTION HERO 130
SURVIVOR
RENAULT DUSTER
NOT DONE YET 132
SURVIVOR
BAJAJ PULSAR
PULSE RATE 134
SURVIVOR
MAHINDRA DURO
ON STANDBY 135
QUICK COMPARO
MAHINDRA E2O VS TATA NANO
SMALL WONDERS 136
THE DIFFUSER
SERVICE INTERVAL 138
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SLIM SHADY
While going through the May issue of the magazine, I
noticed it was unusually slim. At first I thought Id been
taken for a bit of a ride, and then I saw that the number
of stories were the same as always. You lot have
actually managed to do away with the ads entirely!
Can we continue this trend? Pure Motoring pleasure
with no interruptions? On another note,
congratulations to Pablo on taking on the mantle of
editor. Im looking forward to great stories and
evocative photos. Good luck, all. It is in your blood. We
live vicariously through you.
D. Lara, Bangalore
IN CASE OF
EMERGENCY...
After all these years of reading BSM, I still cant
figure out how you guys manage to do it. Every single
issue leaves me speechless at the end of it. Okay, I
might be getting a little carried away here, but
honestly, Id be very surprised if there wasnt
something in this magazine every month that
makes driving around to find it worth it. This month,
there were plenty of those somethings in there
for sure.
First up is the Porsche 911 C4S story. My god,
Rohin, that was brilliant! As if that wasnt enough,
the add-on part right after the story with all the
other significant 911s got me very excited! Its great
fun to read about SUVs that can take on sports cars
on a race track and such, but for me, the everyday
supercar takes the cake. Heres to years and years
of BSM madness!
Vijay Krishna, Bangalore
SHOCKER
Among all the cars featured in the April edition, it was the
e2o that had me shocked'. Im very impressed at how
Mahindra Reva have engineered the car and indeed, its
a huge leap from the previous one, considering how
basic and flimsy it was. The new ones bigger, better-
With the string of people quitting Motoring, I was afraid it would be
shutters for my favourite automotive magazine, but Im delighted to
know it will push on in the hands of Delhi Press, as I found out on
your Facebook fanpage. In fact, with only five people on board, Im
quite impressed with how you guys have been able to bring out an
issue which doesnt see even the slightest drop in quality.
Those two custom bikes built by JC Moto are among my
favourite machines featured in this issue. The pink paint job aside,
which is a little too wild for my tastes, I am totally in love with that
RX cafe racer!
With Srini gone, I was starting to wonder what would happen
to my beloved Motoring, but knowing Pablo is at the helm, I know
the future of the magazine is in good hands.
Shubham R, via email
WRITE HAND DRIVE
Email: bsmotoring@gmail.com
L E T T E R O F T H E M O N T H

CREW CUT
G R E A T
C A R M A !
Instant motoring
pleasure! Write to us
and you could win
Bijoys book, INSTANT
CARMA!
Write to us and if your letter
is chosen as the winner of the
month, you get to win this
special prize. Do include your
full mailing address and
telephone number.
THE EDITOR, Business Standard
Motoring, H3 Paragon Centre,
Opp Century Mills, P B Marg,
Worli, Mumbai 400 013
Fax: (022) 2497 8540 Email:
bsmotoring@gmail.com or
srinivas.krishnan@bsmail.in
Your letters may be edited for
space or content.
SHUBHAM WINS WINS A COPY OF BIJOY KUMAR YS BOOK INSTANT CARMA. CONGRATS!
looking, roomier, stronger and, er, pricier, too! I
was really pleased to know that the company will
be setting up charging points all over the country.
The Sun2Car package also seems like a fitting
idea for those whod like to park their buzzy
runabouts under a solar panel for a full charge.
These are clever initiatives, I say. But from a
personal point of view, I still feel India is a country
that isnt prepared for something like this at the
moment. Perhaps car manufacturers should give
it a couple of years more for these electric-
powered vehicles to roam our streets. Look at how
Toyota brought in the Prius. Even having been a
hybrid, it sold like a pair of second-hand socks. The
last time I saw a Prius was, er, never. Sigh! You see,
I love the e-two-oh just as much as Ruman does,
but not everyone thinks along the same lines. I
know that there are cynics whod remark it for
being a mere block of plastic that, if parked in
glaring heat, would melt like a marshmallow. Of
course, at the end of the day, there are always going
to be such people. So its not just Ruman whod buy
one (right after that Aventador), but me as well.
Also, Id like to wish Vaishali all the very best on
her new job. It was a pleasure having her as one of
the funny scribes in BSM.
Rehan Conyers, Secunderabad
JEEP THRILLS
After years of driving around in a Mahindra Jeep,
Im glad that the actual Jeep brand is
making it here. The Grand Cherokee, of
course, will be well out of my reach and the
new Cherokee has got a face even a mother
will have to try hard to love, which leaves me
with the Wrangler!
I know it wont be priced anywhere near
the Mahindras, but just the fact that I can
finally say I have a real Jeep is worth it for
me. And I do fully intend to make use of its
off-roading abilities, too!
Gaurav Seth, via email
ELECTRIC DREAMS
This is with reference to the Mahindra e2o review.
While Im excited that technology is finally moving
forward from fossil fuels, Im afraid its moving in
the wrong direction. At least for India, electric cars
are most certainly not the future.
For starters, everyone not living in a major city
(and even some that do) has experienced power
cuts at some point. Well, where are you going to
charge your car then? Sure, theres solar energy,
but thats more of a supplementary system than a
full replacement. So if youve had a particularly
long outage, you wont be able to get to work the
next morning. That doesnt sound too good, now
does it?
For the price of a new e2o, I could get myself a
well equipped hatch and pocket some money, too.
Plus, when it runs out of fuel, I can just tank up and
continue along on my journey. Instead of burning
coal for electricity, Ill just burn diesel or petrol.
Also, this summer was supposed to be
particularly bad for the state of Maharashtra,
where some people have been going without
electricity or water for days on end. Doesnt it seem
just a little selfish that were not only enjoying
uninterrupted supply of energy, but were also
using that up to charge up our cars when other
means are available?
For now though, Im sticking with my internal
combustion engined car and I hope the future of
transportation takes another path.
Vikram M, via email
AMAZE-ING GRACE
I was a little disappointed when I didnt get my copy
of BSM at home and I went looking for it on the
stands, but failed to find it even there! Finally, after
much delay, I got my hands on BSM and all was
well with the world once again.
Just looking at the issue contents once is
enough for me to forgive you guys for making
me wait. This time though, I headed straight for the
Amaze story because Its most relevant to me at
the moment. I promise Ill read everything
else, too!
Ive already read about the Amaze in BSM
earlier, but it
always feels better to read the story
when the car actually makes it to India. Ive been
toying with the idea of getting myself a compact
sedan, and until now, the Maruti Suzuki Dzire or
the Tata Indigo were my only options. But
somehow, I wasnt satisfied with them. With the
arrival of the Amaze, I think I now know what to
get myhands on.
Siddhesh V, via email
L E T T E R E T T E S
Theres just something very exotic about
that GTS1000. I cant believe Yamaha
made it!
Adwait G, via email
The motorcycling scene is finally picking
up! I cant wait to get my hands on the
KTM 390 Duke. I hope they price it right!
Sanjay R, via email
I
ts the stuff of legend: half a century ago, the
head honcho of a successful tractor maker
based in Italy was as upset with the reliability
of his Ferrari as he was with his resulting
dealings with Enzo Ferrari. Like other game
changers throughout history, he was convinced
that he could do better than the best, so he started
building supercars that would go down in history
as some of the fiercest, most untamable yet
ultimately gratifying driving machines. It started
out because Mr Lamborghini wanted to flip Enzo
the bird but in the process, it became so much
more. Because of icons like the gorgeous Miura, the
unhinged Diablo, the bloodthirsty Murcielago and
the fabled Countach pictured here, we cannot
imagine a world without these man-eaters.
Lamborghini is not just a mere car brand; its a
religion, and were devout followers.
LUST
LAMBORGHINI COUNTACH
LAMB
OF GOD
REWIND
/PLAY
THEN
ORIGINALLY CONCEIVED as the ultimate road car, the
McLaren F1 was the car to pioneer a lot of the stuff we see on
supercars today
THE ORIGINAL BENCHMARKS for the F1 were the Ferraris
and Lamborghinis of the day, but after driving the Honda NSX,
Gordon Murray decided that this was the car that would inspire
the design of the ultimate road car.
MCLAREN even approached Honda, its then F1 partner, to
build a V12 engine for it, but Honda refused. After this, Isuzu,
which was working on setting up an F1 team of its own, had a
V12 engine they wanted to see in the McLaren F1, but because
it didnt have a reliability record or racing pedigree, Gordon
Murray rejected it.
FINALLY, BMWS M division took interest and a 6.1-litre V12
engine was made by merging two 3.0-litre straight-six engines
from the M3 together.
THE FORMULA FOR THE CAR was quite simple, really. Keep
the weight low and the power high, and to achieve this,
McLaren used a range of very expensive, lightweight materials
like magnesium, kevlar, carbon fibre and titanium. In fact, the
McLaren F1 was the first production car to come with a carbon
fibre monocoque chassis.
THE DOWNSIDES OF USING A FULLY CARBON fibre chassis
were that the heat from the engine and transmission could
potentially melt the chassis. So, the engine bay was lined in
gold foil to prevent the heat from getting to the tub
THE REST, as they say, is history. The McLaren F1 went on to
become the fastest production car, with a top speed of 391 kph.
A record it held since its inception in 1992 until very recently.
F1TASTIC
From one legend to the next
MCLAREN DID COME OUT with the MP4-12C, but that was more
of a stop-gap solution before the true successor to the F1 arrived.
The P1 is just as much of a technological marvel as the McLaren
F1 was.
UNLIKE SOME of the more recent supercars, the P1 still maintains
a rear-wheel-drive powertrain.
UNLIKE THE F1 though, this one makes use of a 3.8-litre
twin-turbo V8 engine in addition to an electric motor to make
its power.
TECHOLOGY FROMFormula One like Drag Reduction System
(DRS), which reduces aerodynamic drag to allow the car to achieve
a higher top speed, and Instant Power Assist System, which uses
the cars electric motors to give the car a sudden burst of power,
made their way into the P1.
IN TERMS OF benchmarks, save for the top speed, which is
electronically limited to 350 kph, the P1 blows the F1 away. It does
the 0-100 kph dash in under three seconds, while the 200 kph
mark comes up in seven seconds. No more than ten seconds after
that, youll be looking 300 kph in the eye. For reference, the F1
takes a good 22 seconds to hit 300 kph!
NOW
MCLAREN F1
MCLAREN HYPERCARS
MCLAREN P1
FAST
SSC ULTIMATE
AERO XT
TERMINAL
VELOCITY
A fast hurrah for what used to be
the fastest car in the world
T
he folks at Guinness you
know, the guys who verify
records of all sorts
recently triggered an
internet blizzard, a virtual
flurry of chatter and
opinion, as they stripped the Bugatti
Veyron SuperSport of its coveted title of
the fastest production car in the world.
The controversy revolved around the fact
that even though the SuperSport hit a
frankly ludicrous 430.9 kph, the
production cars that the buffets of this
world buy come with a speed restrictor,
which only allows a measly 415 kph.
Thats just... slow, isnt it? Still, after a few
calls from the top brass at VW to zink
abous zis once again, they backtracked
and returned the trophy to the SuperSport,
which was sitting in the corner sobbing.
Between all of this, the title was
reclaimed by the (still) relatively unknown
American missile, the SSC Aero, which
had nailed a 412 kph run back in 2007.
This Aero XT is a last hurrah for
the line, a handful of cars built to show
the world where the limit really is. Using
mechanical bits borrowed from its next-
generation Tuatara supercar, Aero claims
its car will see the SuperSports record
and raise it by another 9-odd kph. At
the speeds were talking about, thats a
fair lead. Behind the seats lies a SSC-
developed 7-litre, 1300 horsepower V8
thermonuclear device, and given its heady
9200 rpm rev limit, it will pull like a M16
round coming out of the barrel. Its
equipped with a 7-speed gearbox, a triple
disc carbon clutch and other systems from
the Tuatara. For a 1270 kg car, that is a
serious amount of firepower.
From standstill, Aero claims it will
hammer past 100 kph in 2.6 seconds and the
insanity continues to come at you at warp
speeds, because in precisely 15.5 seconds, it
will hit....(any guesses?)...322 kph! These
are mere claims at this point, but since Aero
was right about its top speeds back in 07,
were guessing it doesnt fool around.
Dont imagine the Aero XT to be just a
sparse race-car tub inside either its got
air-con, a navigation system, a nose-lift
system, power windows and a reverse
camera too! The kind of performance
were seeing here is possible only with
cutting-edge tech and design. The Aero
XTs aluminum space-frame supports a
carbon-fibre body, the suspension
comprises top-shelf, fully adjustable
Penske units and the forged wheels come
shod with Michelin PS2 rubber. There are
a million other optimizations that go into
achieving such speeds.
Its next supercar, the space-age
Tuatara, is alleged to be even faster; we
just cannot imagine what it will be like.
Aero is suggesting that theoretically it will
nail 444 kph (yes, 444!) and the only way
to know for sure is to line up the Tuatara
at an airstrip and mash the loud pedal.
Only five will be built, and the earlier you
order, the more money you save. Fair deal,
wed say.
HOW QUICK?
0-322 kph in 15.5 seconds. Nuff said.
HOW FAST?
North of 439 kph (unverified)
HOW MUCH?
` 4 crore for Chassis No 1, going up to
` 4.6 crore for No 5
HOW
TO...
Want to part
with the apple
of your eye?
We tell you
how to go
about it
TIME IT RIGHT
By means of research (or not Ed) we have
learnt that the majority of online automobile
deals are struck on Sunday afternoons or by
the first half of every weekday. Theres a
reason for this people love to daydream.
This is only possible once they land up
at their work desks or on idle Sunday
mornings. So, make sure you post your ad in
the wee hours, or late at night on Saturday,
by which time inebriation and the
weekend vibe will have ensured a
willingness to part with a lot of money.
SHOOT IT ALREADY
You could have a Suzuki Hayabusa to part
with, but an ad without pictures will lead
prospective buyers into believing youve
posted a link to weight-loss related spam,
or something worse. Leave arty shots for
your social networking page get clean
shots from all angles of your machine, and
make sure you shoot the details (interiors,
badges, meters), things that people are
wary of tinkering around with. Uploading
manufacturer-sourced shots has the same
effect that reading a brochure about a
cheap hotel in Goa has its too good to
be true.
DESCRIPTION IS THE KEY
Your car/bike may have been with you in
the shower, but there is no point in telling
the world about this. No one cares what
you think of your machine; what matters
to any buyer is the state the vehicle is in,
the parts it comes with and the parts its
missing. A bit of trivia you may have
picked up along the tenure of ownership
(say, a service tip, or an ingenious quick-
fix solution) does help a lot, giving the
impression that youve actually cared for
your motorcycle. However, avoid any
references to ridden to the limit at the
BIC or always jumps so high on speed-
breakers!'. Such mentions will slash your
asking price by half. We warned you!
TELL ALL
Your motorcycle may look like its just rolled
off the production line, but it will still be
judged by the following parameters age,
number of kilometres on the clock, state of
paperwork (green tax payment for vehicles
over 15 years old can be a major cause for
conflict its too much of a hassle to get in
order), and service history. Also, dont
forget to mention your exact location, a
phone number and an e-mail address, so
people wont just have to daydream about
your advertisement and then go back to
their unexciting lives.
MONEY MATTERS
If you think your Bajaj Pulsar deserves only
10 per cent depreciation even after a
decade, stay away from the internet
online buyers will hate you! A lot of factors
determine depreciation, and you must
respect them the same way you would if
you were on the other side of the fence.
Avoid referring to ads with machines
identical to yours to decide what price to
ask for. In reality, those Yamaha RX100s for
75 thou go for far less than you imagine. It
doesnt hurt to make a quick buck, but set a
sensible price tag, leaving
a small margin for
negotiation. Oh,
and if you have
any Yamaha
RD350s to part
with for cheap, let
us know, will you?
When
O
U
T

O
F

A
C
T
I
O
N

TH
I S M
ON
TH
SH
OOTIN
G BREA
K
In an absolute epidemic of goodbyes, Aneesh is the latest to
succumb to the bug. Our chief photo-takouter began badgering us for
a job when he was barely out of his diapers, and after taking a look at
the impressive photos he sent us, we hired him on a hunch and a very
good one it turned out to be. In his four years with us, hes shot some of
the best pictures that have ever been seen in these pages, and he was
also in sole charge of shooting and editing the videos that you see on our
website. He wasnt half bad as a writer either, mind you, in keeping with
BSMs tradition of having multi-faceted snappers. Hes now off to
Canada to study film making, as natural a progression as youre likely to
see. Good luck, we say, and dont forget to take off the lens cap!
M
o
o
o
v
e
r, R
a
n
ge
R
o
v
e
r
Finally, a car
w
it h t he
proverbial
kit chen sink
as standard
S
IN
S
THIS IS HOW WE DO IT
T
H
E
P
O
TA
T
O
T
H
E
O
R
Y
At 80 kph in 6th gear, I rumbled down the NH4
connecting Mumbai to Pune, with a cloudy sky providing
just the right ambience for contemplation. Here's a route
I do several times a month, usually at almost twice
the speed (Shhh! Don't tell anyone), but comfortably
in the lap of the Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail
Classic, speed was the last thing on my mind. Yes,
any BMW GS is way more capable and any KTM
supermoto is way more fun, but the Harley has an air
of ease around it. Effortless motoring pleasure.
Heck, it can't wheelie (although YouTube videos
suggest otherwise), but there's something about
looming dark clouds and winding tarmac that's best
enjoyed at 80 kph. This one's definitely on my
ambitious shopping list, then. Anything for a cool
breeze in my lid and a consistently good vibe (heh),
with somewhere to go.
Ferruccio
Being superstitious
brings bad luck
The j oy of
motoring. And
t his is only
t he t railer
A
D
H
O
C
Being constantly bombarded with advertisements these days, we cant help but think that the
golden age of advertising has long gone. We miss it. Most of the adverts these days are so
bad they either make us cringe or laugh hysterically because theyre apocalyptically lame.
Everyone would agree that the most epic automotive advertising came in the form of the VW
Think Small adverts in the 1950s and 60s. So, inspired by the same, in this series, each
member of BSM will create their own VW-style advert for any car or motorcycle from any era.
Lets see what comes through. And no, were not getting any funds transfers from anyone for
putting these out. That said, we wouldnt mind a few long-termers.
D
ilip Chhabria probably
sees something most of
the auto market doesnt. Or at
least, thats the theory. Heres
the truth; the top end of the
performance spectrum is
nicely covered in India,
starting from the Porsche 911,
to the mid-engined brilliance
of the Audi R8 and Ferrari
458 and going all the way up
to the Ferrari F12 and
Lamborghini Aventador. At
the other end is the sports coupe and
cabriolet range, in the ` 50 lakh to ` 1 crore
bracket. This end of the market has some
brilliant cars, too, like the mid-engined
Porsche Cayman and Boxster and the
upcoming Jaguar F-Type. The problem is,
this end of the market doesnt seem to
excite, or interest, those looking for
performance. In fact, one manufacturer who
offers a product each in the entry supercar
and sports coupe market tends to sell more
of the former than the latter. So what gives?
Most sports coupes/cabrios lack that
edge one would expect in terms of
performance, but there is also a lack of
understanding about the fact that one
graduates to the next level of performance.
Instead, social standing and the ability to
show off seem to play more of a role here, in
a significant number of cases.
Where then, does DC fit into the scheme
of things, you ask? It has to do with trying to
fill this latent need; a car that looks the part,
doesnt cost the earth (` 25 to 35 lakh is
what DC is indicating), but offers some sort
of mid-engined driving experience that one
can eventually use as a stepping stone for
the next level.
Speaking to Dilip, one gets the sense that
he wants to make it a user-friendly sports
coupe that can be bought not just by those
looking for a ` 50 lakh sports coupe, but
even those with an annual income of ` 5
lakh! Now, I wonder what sort of EMI
scheme that would work out to be, but the
numbers he talks about arent small a
4,000 unit run in the first two phases and
then 4,000 to 5,000 units a year (with no
exports). Powering the Avanti is a 2.0-litre,
turbo-four engine with 240 bhp. It may not
sound like much, but considering its being
built on a lightweight chassis, the potential
to crack 100 kph in under seven seconds
does sound enticing, as long as they manage
to sort out integration and engineering
issues. Eventually, there will be a 395 bhp
V6 version too. But more importantly, the
Avanti doesnt have to fit into the shoes of a
brand that carries the baggage of a maker of
excellent supercars'. Instead, Dilip can
leverage the Avanti to eventually create
something more exciting, if he gets it right.
What DC will have to cross is a very
difficult chasm to appeal to the enthusiasts
with not-so-deep pockets, but also prevent
them from waiting it out, probably for even a
lifetime, till they have enough to buy a
name-brand supercar. He will also need to
navigate around the lack of racetracks in
this country. Apart from the two tracks
down south and the F1 track in Noida, there
are no options for those residing in the
western or eastern parts of the country to
hone their skills. Until track days and
specialised multi-day courses are set up, the
challenge to crack open this market will
continue to be a tough one. Its very easy to
slip back into the social standing nonsense
and drown the potential of a car like this.
Who knows, those looking to start a
Facebook page called We want the Toyota
GT-86 in India could find some ammo for
their cause, after all!
AVANTI GARDE
GET THE DRI F T
R O H I N
N A G R A N I
THE AVANTI DOESNT
HAVE TO FIT INTO
THE SHOES OF A
BRAND THAT CARRIES
THE BAGGAGE OF A
MAKER OF EXCELLENT
SUPERCARS
rohin.nagrani@delhipress.in
NEWS
NATIONAL NEWS
Tired of those jerky geaar shifts while youre
trying to sleep on your way home? Well, the
Nissan Sunny CVT is just the car for you(or your
chauffeur, rather). With a Continuously Variable
Transmission taking care of sending power to
the wheels and the resultant lack of any gears,
the car claims to offer jerk-free driving even on
roads with heavy traffic. Features wise, the
Sunny CVT packs everything the manual
transmission models do, with the only
differences being the gear shifter and the
instrument cluster. So youve still got a good bit
of kit as standard on the car, and of course
youve got class-leading leg room to boot! Whats
more, Nissan claims an ARAI tested fuel
efficiency figure of 17.97 kpl, higher than the
manuals 16.95 kpl.
Interested? The Sunny CVT is priced at ` 8.49
lakh, ex-showroom, Delhi. So head to your local
Nissan dealership, then.
CVeeT RIDE
If youre in the market for a sub 4-metre sedan,
your list of options has just gone up. Honda launched
the Brio-based Amaze recently, which also happens
to be Hondas first diesel car in the country.
The Amaze comes in at ` 5.35 lakh for the base
petrol model going up to ` 8 lakh for the top-end
petrol automatic while the diesel version starts at
` 6.49 lakh going up to ` 8.01 lakh for the
top-end variant.
For comparison, the Maruti Suzuki Swift
Dzire starts at ` 5.22 lakh for the base petrol, going
up to ` 6.72 lakh for the top-end, while the diesel
Dzire ranges from ` 6.41-7.82 lakh (all prices
ex-showroom, Mumbai).
Youre bound to be
AMAZED
Jnaneshwar Sen, Senior VP, Marketing and Sales, HCIL, Shigeru Yamazaki, Senior VP and Director,
Marketing and Sales, HCIL, Hironori Kanayama, President and CEO, HCIL, and Raman Kumar Sharma,
Senior VP and Director, Corporate Affairs, HCIL with the Honda Amaze at the launch
The BMW 7 Series competes with the likes of the
Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Audi A8 and the Jaguar
XJ, and when youre going up against teutons like
those, it helps to be on top of your game.
Thats exactly what this facelift hopes to do to
the 7, focussing more on giving the customer a
better rear seat experience. On the outside, the
basic design remains more or less the same,
with the addition of new
LED headlamps, a
more upright grille and new fog lamps up front,
while at the back, theres now a strip of chrome
running across the bootlid.
Prices for the 7 Series start at ` 92.9 lakh for
the 730Ld, going up to ` 1.12 cr for the 740Li,
` 1.29 cr for the 750Li and ` 1.73 cr for the 760Li
(all prices ex-showroom, India).
With the launch of the Mahindra e2o,
Mahindra also announced a partnership
with the telecom major Vodafone recently.
The deal is such that every e2o rolls out of the
factory with a Vodafone SIM card built-in, with
a 5-year contract thats already accounted for
in the price of the car. This turns the e2o into a
connected vehicle, sending vehicle information
back to Mahindra for remote diagnostics,
allowing you to plan your routes taking into
account the amount of range you have
available, and theres also the possibility of
making your car a WiFi hotspot.
Apart from that, owners of the car can also
control various aspects of their cars remotely
through a new app. This app, available for
download for Android, iOS and Blackberry, lets
you schedule your car charges, turn on the AC
and heater and will even let you lock and
unlock your car remotely. Thats bound to
come in handy for those who constantly worry
whether theyve locked the car or not.
And for those with range anxiety, you can
get an additional 8-10 km of range at the touch
of a button, so that you can safely get to a
charging point when youve run dry.
REGAL ATTIRE
Marking the fifth anniversary of the Dzire
name, Maruti Suzuki has launched the
Dzire Regal edition. Available only in Vxi
trim, the Regal edition gets a built-in
music system, wood and brushed steel
accents in the interior and a dual-tone
blue and silver paint job. It is priced at
` 5.95 lakh, ex-showroom, Mumbai.
STYLING HARD!
Continuing with the special editions,
Volkswagen is offering a new variant of the
Vento called the Style. Its available in both
petrol and diesel on the Trendline and
Comfortline variants. The Style variant
features alloy wheels and chrome trim on
the outside and leather seat covers inside.
The Volkswagen Vento Style starts at
` 8.33 lakh for the petrol while the diesel
will cost you ` 9.41 lakh (all prices
ex-showroom, Delhi).
SHORT BURSTS
Seventh wonder
CONNECTED LIVING
NEWS
METAL, GLASS, PLASTIC
This is
The revised Porsche Panamera
What about it?
What was usually considered the ugly
duckling of the Porsche range has
finally turned into a swan. Well, sort of.
The Panamera gets its mid-cycle
refresh and we are definitely liking it.
The design sees a lot of changes, some
subtle and some not, all of which help
make the Panamera look a lot better.
That rear end, especially, has been
BABYS
GOT BACK
This is
A baby Quatroporte presenting the
Maserati Ghibli
What about it?
Maserati is bringing in the Ghibli to go head
on against the BMW 5 Series and the
Mercedes-Benz E-Class, to get more volumes
going for the brand. The Ghibli will come
with three V6 engines, two petrol and a
diesel. The base engine will be a 3.0-litre
turbo-V6 that will make in the vicinity of
330 bhp of peak power, good for a
0-100 kph time of 5.6 seconds, while the
Ghibli S will come with a twin-turbo V6
capable of 410 bhp of peak power. This
engine propels the car to 100 kph in 5.0
seconds flat! As for the diesel, that, too, is
a 3.0-litre unit that makes 274 bhp.
The top-end variant is also available with
Maseratis latest all-wheel drive system,
called Q4, but only on LHD models, for some
reason. Of course, this means more sideways
action for us!
So, when can we expect it?
Expected by the end of this year!
Trident
tested
This is
A rolling movie theater. Wait, no, its the
new Mercedes-Benz GLA Concept
What about it?
Okay, we werent kidding when we
said movie theater. Apart from what
looks like a production ready body, the
car has a few features which are most
certainly getting clipped from the
production version, like twin cameras
mounted on the roof and a couple of
projectors capable of showing movies, for
that self-sustained drive-in experience.
That aside, the GLA is most likely
going to be Mercedes newest entry level
SUV, which borrows a lot of design cues
from the A-Class and the CLA-Class.
Powering this concept is a
2.0-litre turbo-petrol
engine that makes a little over 200 bhp,
which is sent to all four wheels
Middle of next year, is our estimate.
GLAss
full!
given a thorough seeing to, leaving the car
a lot better for it.
There are a lot of changes under the
hood, too. Apart from the usual power
bumps all around, the 4.8-litre V8 engine
has been replaced by a 3.0-litre twin-turbo
V6 engine that makes 20 bhp more. There
is also a new E-Hybrid model, which
comes with plug-in capabilities. With a
two and a half hour charging time, the E-
Hybrid can go up to 32 km on pure electric
range. Along with that, theres also a
couple of new models which have their
wheelbase extended by 150 mm for extra
rear seat leg room.
Late 2013/early 2014 for the standard
model.Sadly, the LWB Executive edition
probably wont make it here.
This is
The Lamborghini Aventador LP 720-4 50
Anniversario. What a name!
What about it?
You didnt think Lamborghini would let its
50th anniversary go without fanfare, did
you?Theyve thus built a special edition
Aventador with power upgrades. And to keep
up with all that extra power, it also gets a new
aerodynamics package. All 100 examples will
be painted in this particular shade of yellow,
which has been the most popular
Lamborghini colour since it debuted on
the Miura.
Inside, theres a special colour scheme to set
it apart from all the other Aventadors, and the
seats are stitched in a unique diamond pattern
that further sets these cars apart.
Considering Lamborghini managed to sell
three Venenos, this one should move pretty
fast off the lots, so you had better hurry up!
Golden jubilee
TRUE BLUE
This is
BMWs latest cannibalistic creation, the
X4 crossover
What about it?
As if there arent enough
crossovers with sloping, coupe-like rooflines
already, BMW went ahead and added another
one to its line-up. The X4, as the name
suggests, slots in between the X3 and the X5,
sort of like a baby X6, if you will.
Its still in the concept stages right now, so no
powertrain details are known, but you can
definitely expect a few turbo-
petrol engines as well as a couple of turbo-
diesels to make it under the hood. Being what
BMW calls a Sports Activity Vehicle, it will
also come equipped with BMWs X-Drive all-
wheel-drive technology, sending power to all
four wheels if need be.
The production version is going to debut
soon enough, so give it till next year to see it
on our soil.
X marks the spot
This is
The VW CrossBlue Coupe Concept
What about it?
The Volkswagen CrossBlue Concept isnt a
new one, but at Shanghai, its sporting a
new powertrain under the hood. Instead of
its combination of twin electric motors and
a turbo-diesel engine, the concept now
sports a 295 bhp V6 petrol engine with the
electric motors.
The combined power output, then,
goes up to 415 bhp while still having a
range of 1160 km. With the help of the
internal combustion engine and the
electric motors, the CrossBlue is capable
of a 0-100 kph time of just under 6
seconds, while top speed is pegged at
237 kph. Whats more impressive is that
in electric mode, it can go up to 34 km.
This could make it into production as a
separate model soon, but if that doesnt
come through, just the powertrain could
also be used in a future model.
This is
Something Honda should seriously consider
bringing here the Concept M
What about it?
Okay, were going to tell you before you
get too excited about it this is a model thats
only going to be sold in China, but heck, that
hasnt stopped us from wanting
something before, has it?
Not too many details are known about this
minivan/MPV, except for the fact that it will
try to lure customers by playing the value
card. Either way, a fun-to-drive, practical and
economical option like the production version
of this concept sounds like the perfect car for
our market as well.
Honda is bringing in an MPV next year which
could be inspired by this.
This is
The Ford Mondeo with a 1.5-litre EcoBoost
engine under the hood
What about it?
Theres nothing new about the Ford Mondeo,
also sold as the Ford Fusion, but whats
important here is the debut of a new engine
from the EcoBoost family, the 1.5-litre
EcoBoost. This engine produces 177 bhp of
peak power while keeping torque at a healthy
24.5 kgm. This engine is from the same family
as the 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine that will make
an appearance in the upcoming Ford
EcoSport. Ford already has both a 1.6-litre as
well as a 2.0-litre EcoBoost engine doing duty
in various products across the world, but the
1.5-litre unit falls under the excise duty ceiling
of many countries, making it a value leader.
On top of that, while we dont have any
proper numbers, the 1.5-litre EcoBoost engine
is also a class leader in terms of fuel economy!
The car wont be making it here anytime soon.
Too bad!
VITAMINM
Delta Eco
So, when can we
expect it?
Well, its called a concept for a
reason, yknow!
This is
The sedan version of the new
SX4 the Suzuki Authentics
concept. Looks good, eh?
What about it?
For something that was
supposed to be the sedan
version of the SX4, the Authentics
ends up being larger. Like, a lot larger.
In fact, it may even be larger than the
Kizashi! Powertrain details arent known, but
this model is aimed squarely at the
C-Segment market in China.
The overall design is a little on the
bland side, to be honest. And this is the
concept version, so imagine a toned down
production car!
Anyway, dont hold your hopes up for this
thing making it here, our market is just not
ready for another large Suzuki.
Judging by what happened to the Kizashi,
theres pretty much no chance of this making
it here.
This is
The revival of the Escort nameplate
What about it?
Have you ever looked at a car design and
thought to yourself that it would look great if
it were toned down a bit? Well, apparently
thats what a majority of Chinese customers
are thinking, so Ford brings them the Escort
concept. A stylish, clean car that
doesnt have any over the top
styling cues. Its about the same
size as the Ford Focus, or the Toyota
Corolla, but it is targeted at people who
just want basic transportation, rather than a
style statement. For something that doesnt
want to make a style statement, the Escort
actually ends up looking qite nice. We
definitely like the way the Escort looks and
hope Ford at least thinks about bringing the
production version here.
When it starts production, we expect a range
of EcoBoost engines and possibly some
diesels under the hood of the Escort,
which should give it some decent
perfornamce as well. All that aside, we
definitely hope that this one doesnt carry the
not-so-stellar reputation of the old Escort
along with it.
Not soon, sadly. This is a China-specific
model, and were not exactly a strong market
for Ford.
The original!
ESCORTED
This is
Mitsubishis version of the Toyota
Etios, the G4
What about it?
Mitsubishi hasnt exactly been
doing great over the years, but with
a couple of new models planned, it
looks like it might pull through after
all. The G4 concept, which is basically
the sedan version of the new Mirage it
showed a couple of months ago, isnt too
impressive at first glance. Its powered by a
1.2-litre MIVEC engine mated to a CVT
gearbox, so its not going to set any
performance charts on fire anytime soon, but
what it does claim is good fuel efficiency and
a decent design.
Though this is still a concept, Mitsubishi
claims class leading interior space for the
production version of the G4, for both the
front and rear seat passengers, so youre at
least comfortable, even if youre not going
anywhere in a hurry.
Considering Mitsubishi has been in a
bit of a funk lately, we hope this one brings
some life into their line-up.
Itll be production ready in about a year, so
we might get it after that.
This is
A Chinese car that actually looks nice the
Icona Vulcano
What about it?
Okay, we lied! Its not exactly a Chinese car.
Icona is an Italian design house based in
China, and the Vulcano is a one-off, coachbuilt
design that looks pretty stunning.
Its got a front mounted V12 engine thats
supplemented by electric motors, which,
together, are capable of a peak power output
of up to 900 bhp. The claimed top speed of the
Vulcano is around 350 kph, and if you think
itll take an eternity to get there, think again
the car manages to sprint from a standstill to
the 200 kph mark in under 10 seconds.
Thats all very dandy, but who here has
even heard of Icona? Well, rest assured, they
do have some capable hands at work. The
powertrain, for example, was designed by
ex-Ferrari engineer Claudio Lombardi, who
also worked on such legends as the Lancia
037 and the Delta S4. If that doesnt impress,
then we dont know what will.
Its a one-off design, but were sure theyre
willing to let it go for a price.
ICONIC
G4s
COVER
STORY
KTM 390 DUKE
DUKE
DUKE
MISSILE
MISSILE IS THE 390
DUKE TWICE AS MUCH FUN AS THE 200?
G
reat business is best done
by those who have one Big
Idea, sell the hell out of it,
and then build on that to
diversify upwards. Look at
Volkswagen, McDonalds,
Dunlop, Coca-Cola, Honda, etc.
Last year, KTM overtook BMW to
become Europes largest motorcycle
manufacturer by selling 107,142 units
more than 32 per cent up on the year before,
and a big increase on its previous best-ever
annual sales back in 2007, when the
Austrian manufacturer was predominantly
a dirtbike specialist, and it sold 92,385
bikes. Its 2012 record volume came on the
back of its Big Idea in on-road motorcycles,
thanks to teaming up with its 47.18 per cent
shareholder, Indias Bajaj Auto, to
manufacture the 22,000 examples of the
KTM Duke sold last year that were built in
the Bajaj factory at Chakan, near Pune, split
between the 125cc version as an entry-level
model for mature markets, and the 200cc for
developing markets like India.
The latest new product of this
flourishing joint venture is a key step
towards achieving this goal, for the KTM
390 Duke launched at last Novembers
EICMA Milan Show and now appearing in
KTM dealerships in Europe and Australasia,
is a true world bike, the first model in the
Indian-made Duke family that will be sold
globally, reaching Asian and Latin
American customers later this year, and
those in the USA and Canada from October
2013 onwards. As such, its arrival adds a
further payoff for the shrewd gamble made
by KTM President/CEO Stefan Pierer and
his counterpart Rajiv Bajaj in developing a
range of cool, affordable, single-cylinder
streetbikes which, in showcasing the
youthful KTM brand image, are helping to
attract the next generation of riders to
choose motorcycling over other forms of
leisure pursuit, from wakeboarding to
mountain bikes, digital entertainment to
Text ALAN CATHCART Photos HEIKO MANDL
rock-climbing.
However, there is but only one way to find
out whether the 390 Duke delivers on the
expectations its built on, and thats to take the
keys of one of the very first production bikes
shipped to Europe, and head off on an
exclusive 100 km first ride through the hills and
valleys surrounding its Mattighofen HQ.
Like the 125/200, this bigger-engined
variant with similar cool-looking Kiska Design
styling was primarily developed in India on the
basis of an Austrian-designed engine and
chassis package. To produce the 390 Dukes
liquid-cooled wet sump four-valve single-
cylinder motor with chain-driven DOHC, the
Bajaj/KTM R&D team bored and stroked the
200cc versions 72 x 49 mm dimensions to
89 x 60 mm, for a capacity of 375cc. The major
engine castings, including the crankcase and
cylinder head, are all unchanged from the
125/200 Duke, but the cylinder is all new not
only to encompass the much bigger bore, but
also because its a chrome-bore Nikasil design,
unlike the 125/200, which both have a steel
liner. The forged one-piece plain-bearing crank
with ball-bearing mains carries a forged steel
conrod bearing a three-ring piston, which is
now also forged (its cast on the smaller bikes).
The chain-driven twin overhead camshafts
operate the four valves by DLC/diamond like
carbon-coated aluminium finger followers,
with a single gear-driven counterbalancer that
does a good job of eliminating undue vibration
even revving the willing midi-mono engine to
its 10,000 rpm revlimiter doesnt result in any
real tingles.
The 390 motor features a higher 12.6:1
compression ratio (vs. 11.5:1 on the 200, but
theres the same higher ratio on the 125) thats
compatible with 95-octane unleaded fuel, with
the same cam profiles but a larger 46 mm
DellOrto throttle body (against 38 mm on the
200, and 33 mm on the 125), breathing through
a bigger airbox, and with a larger single
injector controlled by the same Bosch ECU
common to all three models, made in India by a
subsidiary of the German firm. Interestingly,
there are now two oil pumps on the 390 motor,
one for high-pressure force-feed lubrication,
with another suction pump for crankcase
evacuation. Thats because using the same
crankcase as the smaller motors means that
the 390 versions crankshaft sits deeper within
the engine, plus a spinoff benefit is that theres
reduced friction derived by draining the
crankcase chamber, thus minimising oil drag
and so enhancing performance. This entails
an enlarged external cooler compared to the
125/200 Duke, located in a modified belly pan.
The revised exhaust systems compact
three-chamber silencer thats mounted in close
proximity to the entire motorcycles centre of
gravity in order to compact its mass for
optimum handling just as on, say, the
Yamaha R6, Triumph Daytona 675R, or Ducati
Panigale has a slightly larger, heavier, three-
way catalyst cleverly located between the
engine and the cantilever rear shock. Space for
this is provided by the vertically stacked shafts
of the six-speed gearbox thats been
redesigned and fitted with a larger clutch in
order to handle the substantially increased
power and torque, thus delivering a very
compact engine unit weighing just 36 kg
compared to 28 kg for the 125/200 version.
Service intervals are held at 7,500 km.
All this results in a serious step up in
engine performance for the 390 Duke to 44 bhp
at 9,500 rpm, some way up from the 200s
26 bhp at 10,000 rpm. But wait torque is up
commensurately, too, with 3.56 kgm delivered
at 7,250 rpm, compared to the 200s 2 kgm.
This significant increase in performance
transforms KTMs midi-mono hot-rod into a
Digital speedo/tacho is identical to that on the 200, as is all of the bodywork. The 375cc mill packs a punch and so does the ABS-equipped disc
ITS A FULL-SIZE MOTORCYCLE, WITH
SUBSTANTIAL ZEST, MAKING IT EVEN MORE
WORTHY OF THE DUKE NAME
seriously fun bike via the vital added
dimension of extra power compared to the
40 per cent less potent 200.
This new motor is installed once again as a
semi-stressed component in an identical
tubular-steel trellis frame to the 125/200s. The
43 mm upside-down fork developed by KTM
subsidiary WP in Austria, but made in India by
their suspension partners Endurance (wholly
owned by Bajaj!), is set in the frame at a
25 head angle via forged tripleclamps, with
100 mm of trail. Theres a 150 mm cushion of
wheel travel at both ends, to cope with rough
road conditions in key target markets, and
even though non-adjustable, the full-size front
suspension gives added visual substance to
the minimalist package, though the rear direct-
action shock thats the product of the same
partnership is adjustable for spring preload, to
allow for a passenger or luggage.
The good-looking Chinese-made Jingfi
wheels carry a single 300 mm ByBre steel disc
up front thats now common to
all three Indian-made
Dukes, gripped by a
radially-mounted four-
piston calliper, with a
single-piston rear gripping the 230 mm rear
brake. And yes, ByBre is the Indian division of
a certain Italian brake manufacturer, as in By
Brembo! However, ABS is here fitted as
standard for the first time on an Indian-made
Duke indeed, its now on the 125/200, as well
with a Japanese-made Bosch 9M two-
channel system (which can be disengaged)
adding an extra 2 kg in weight and operating
on both front and rear wheels. This offers
improved dynamics and safety benefits for
fantastic fun in the twisties, it says in the KTM
press kit blurb cant argue with that, and the
inclusion of ABS makes this a lot of bike for not
so much money by European standards. Half-
dry weight of the 390 is 139 kg with oil and
water, or 148 kg complete with a full 10.5-litre
tank of fuel, with 50/50 per cent weight
distribution just under ten kilos more than
the two smaller-capacity, less powerful models
fitted with ABS.
Beneath the iconic Kiska Design styling, the
390 Duke is a full-size motorcycle, with the
substantial 810 mm high seat incorporating
space for a passenger, delivering a pretty
natural-seeming riding stance thats
comfortable even for a six-foot rider, and the
pulled-back taper-section handlebars grips
falling naturally to hand. Really, this is a bike
whose controls are so light and easy to use,
and thus confidence-inspiring the way your
MOTODATA
KTM 390 DUKE
POWERTRAIN
Displacement: 375cc, fuel-injected,
single cylinder
Max power: 44 bhp@9500 rpm
Max torque: 3.56 kgm@7250 rpm
Transmission: 6-speed
CHASSIS
Type: Tubular trellis-style space frame
Suspension: WP USD forks (f), WP
monoshock (r)
Brakes: 300 mm disc (f), 230 mm disc
(r) with two-channel ABS
Tyres: 110/70 R17 (f),150/60 R17 (r)
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 1367 mm
Kerb weight: 139 kg
Fuel tank capacity: 11 litres
PRICE: ` 2LAKH
Estimated,
ex-showroom
knees tuck tightly into the cut-outs in the
sculptured fuel tank helps deliver a sense of
control, and the upright riding stance gives
plenty of confidence. But unlike on the 125/200
Dukes, whose 17-inch radial tyres were
specially-developed by MRF, Indias No.1 tyre
manufacturer, on the 390 version theres
German-made Metzeler M5 rubber fitted to
cope with the bikes extra performance, albeit
the same 110/70R17 front and 150/60R17 rear
sizes, and in cool Austrian late-winter
conditions these gave excellent grip.
Finally, that Italo-Indian brake package is
excellent it was quite a surprise how well the
single radial front disc worked in spite of being
so lonesome, and it showed reasonably good
bite in hauling down my 84 kg of personal
weight from 140 kph the most I saw
indicated to rest in a panic stop. Engine
braking is quite good, too. Yet the 1367 mm
wheelbase and that rangy steering geometry
give the Duke substance combined with agility
its not a minibike but a full-size motorcycle,
now with substantial added zest making it
even more worthy of the Duke name. And the
distinctive, sonorous, great-sounding exhaust
note that you hear when you thumb the
electric-start button and the Dukes twincam
engine whirrs instantly into life, is just icing on
the cake. Even deeper than the 200s, it makes
the cubed-up 390 Duke sound potent and rorty.
With that 40 per cent extra hike in power
and torque compared to the already more
sprightly 200 Duke, the 390 motors
acceleration is now really punchy, though you
must keep it revving above 4,000 rpm for
smooth pickup on a wide open throttle without
any trace of transmission snatch. With 3.1 of
torque already on tap at 6,000 rpm, you dont
need to use the six-speed gearbox as hard as
on the two smaller bikes, though this has the
same flawless operation as before, with a light,
progressive-action clutch that feeds out very
controllably though you must wind it up quite
hard to get the pleasing acceleration launch
that the midi-mono motor provides. Revs
mount steadily rather than hurriedly, though,
but up above 6,000 revs acceleration is even
more zestful, and theres a good sense of
flywheel effect, with a long-legged feel to the
390 Dukes performance which is unexpected
for an engine with just 375 cubes, thanks to
that flat torque curve - you dont need to work
the clutch nearly as hard as on the smaller-
engined bikes. Roll-on response in the higher
gears is much more responsive, and
immediate, without needing to hook down a
ratio and rev it hard to get any sense of zest a
crucial feature in many markets, where riders
resist using revs in order to save fuel, and so
get used to short-shifting all the time.
The extra engine performance makes the
390 Duke really invigorating to ride, with the
engine literally pulling off the 1,300 rpm idle
speed mark without excessive use of the clutch.
Its very forgiving as well as torquey, and
theres totally linear acceleration all through
the rev band, with that extra little kick above
6,000 rpm, when revs start to pick up a bit
faster. You dont need to row it along on the
gear lever to get really pleasing performance,
and the gear selected is shown on the KTM
Duke familys trademark comprehensive dash,
an important riding aid not just for beginner
riders, which every manufacturer ought to offer.
Is the KTM 390 Duke really three times more
fun than the 125, with three times the engine
capacity, three times the performance and three
times more torque? Sorry its a no-contest no-
brainer, because there aint no substitute for
cubes, especially when wrapped up in the
same chassis package as its smaller sisters. Is it
time to go orange, then? Yes, indeed! And
remember, you heard it here first!
BSM
TALKS
STEFAN PIERER
TOPGUN
An in-depth
conversation with
Stefan Pierer on
KTM, Husqvarna
and more
Text ALAN CATHCART
K
TM President/CEO
Stefan Pierer is the
most powerful man in
European motorcycling
a fact cemented by
BMW Motorrads shock
sale of its Italian subsidiary Husqvarna to
Pierer Industrie AG, his personal holding
company. But even before Husqvarna
changed hands, KTM had posted record
production and sales figures while
competing for the title of top dog in the
European motorcycle industry. Not
much later, the label of the best-selling
European motorcycle manufacturer
went to the Austrian company in which
Bajaj Auto, Indias second largest
manufacturer, holds a 47 per cent slice of
the equity. We meet Stefan Pierer in his
Mattighofen office for the first one-to-one
in-depth personal interview hes given
since acquiring Husqvarna, and he
speaks on the background behind this
rollcall of success, and his plans to build
on it for the future.
AC: Stefan, KTM enjoyed a spectacularly
successful 2012. You won every World
Championship you contested, you sold
over 100,000 units for the first time, and
now you're number one among European
manufacturers in terms of unit sales.
How did it all come so good?
SP: Its been a great year for KTM, and
thats thanks to the people in our
workforce. Here in Mattighofen we
employ 1,400 people, plus another 300
around the globe in our 26 sales and
marketing subsidiaries the latest one is
in Singapore covering the ASEAN
countries. Theyre the ones that made
this happen.
AC: This is a dramatic turnaround over
the past five years, after KTM sales
collapsed in 2008. What did you learn
from the experience, and would you say
this is a product-driven rebirth?
SP: In 2008 we lost 30 per cent in sales
and almost 40 per cent in turnover, so that
was a very, very tough year. But, we
reinvented ourselves after that, and
obviously we made the right strategic
decisions, so we are now getting the
benefits of this. I think the success of KTM
is based on three pillars. One pillar of
course is innovation, so new products
which are the best available in their
categories. The second pillar is
globalisation we have growth rates in
Asia beyond 500 per cent, and we also
have three-digit growth rates in South
America, so globalisation is a key issue.
Last but not least, the third pillar is
having a very, very strong brand, with
clear core attributes and the ready-to-race
philosophy. I think these three ingredients
at the moment are driving our success.
AC: How much has your Bajaj connection
helped in producing this outcome?
SP: Its a huge factor! Without this
collaboration it simply would not work.
Thanks to Gerald Kiska and our R&D
team we developed some super-cool
motorcycles, and thanks to Bajaj we can
offer them for a reasonable I would not
say cheap price. In India we sold 3,500
of the 200cc Duke, having started in
April, and I think thats OK for the first
year, plus we basically had to fend off
Honda and Yamaha in that segment.
AC: It can be understood that the basis
of KTMs record growth was the 125/200
Duke. So, what comes next?
SP: Yes, I must admit so. We started
out with the Duke naked bikes, but KTM
is developing another family of
motorcycles based on the same
platform which will be full fairing
sport motorcycles with clip-on
handlebars. The RC 125, 200
and 390 that will be launched at
the EICMA Milan Show in November
will look a little similar to our World
champion Moto3 Grand Prix racer,
which gives a good marketing linkage
to that. These will essentially be the
same platform as the Dukes but with
different styling the look is completely
different, and I think Gerald Kiska and
his designers have done a great job. The
fully faired RC 390 model is coming at the
beginning of 2014, then the fully faired
RC 125 and RC 200 in April next year,
which we will use as the basis of various
KTM Cup one-make race series around
the world, especially in developing
markets to promote the brand. Then
were also developing a so-called dual
purpose or dual-sport version of each
model, which I would say is a mix
between Supermoto and Enduro. These
will appear next, all made at the Bajaj
factory in Chakan.
AC: You mentioned a 250-390cc engine
platform. Does that mean youre
developing something in between the
200 and 390?
SP: Yes, thats coming too! We aim to
offer a complete range of models to suit
every customer, so they have no possible
reason not to buy a KTM.
AC: So now let me ask you to change
hats, Stefan, and Im now talking to the
president of Pierer Industrie AG! Youve
just acquired Husqvarna from BMW.
First of all, what is Pierer Industrie, how
long has it existed, and was it formed
exclusively for this acquisition?
SP: This holding company was
especially established for this
acquisition, but its also part of my Pierer
GmbH group which controls KTM. So
basically Husqvarna is a part of our
existing motorcycle company as a
whole, and the reason we used this
vehicle to buy it was mainly to do with
the speed of the transaction, and
secondly not to disturb KTM and its
success. We didnt have much time,
because BMW wanted to close the deal
very fast you must ask them why!
AC: What is your take on Husqvarna,
their legacy, and what would you like
to change?
SP: Husqvarna wasnt that successful
for the last couple of years frankly
speaking, their offroad competition range
is very outdated. The first step we must
take is to work to Husqvarnas traditional
strengths, which means immediately
developing state-of-the-art
Enduro and Motocross lines, and
also going back to two-strokes. For
me, Husqvarna has a huge
competence in Supermoto, so
thats the perfect outlet for the
brand with Supermoto single-
cylinders as its core products.
AC: However, Husqvarna produced
some very attractive single-cylinder
concept street bikes, using their Steve
McQueen heritage. Is this something
that you might like to do?
SP: We are looking into it, but do the
youngest customers know who Steve
McQueen really was? To rewrite history,
you cant make a bridge going back 30
years, as nobody will get it. I think the
first step is to come back and offer a
range of Husqvarna competition bikes as
serious competitors in a two-pronged
attack on the Japanese brands. Well
look into competing with the reds
[Honda! AC] with KTM, and
Husqvarna can take care of the other
three chips on the table green
[Kawasaki], blue [Yamaha] and yellow
[Suzuki] and then well see who wins!
AC: Was one of the reasons you agreed to
buy Husqvarna to assist Bajaj, because
BMW was in negotiation with TVS in
India to produce Husqvarnas in India, as
frankly a competitor to
the KTM Duke?
SP: Yes, that was their idea, but it
hadnt progressed as far as you might
think. That said, we are also planning to
manufacture Husqvarnas in India based
on the engine concept we are working
on together with Bajaj. These will be
real Enduro models, a typically
Husqvarna kind of motorcycle that will
be a dual-purpose entry-level equivalent
of what we are doing with the Duke. We
have a lot of things that we could do,
but basically the important thing is that
KTM and Husqvarna will remain two
separate companies which have two
separate distribution channels.
AC: Final question: looking at where
KTM was five years ago when sales
slumped and compared to where you are
now, did you ever envisage that this
could happen so successfully?
SP: To be honest, I didnt expect it to
come so well to this extent, but as a
racing brand you're used to winning and
losing, and what you learn from going
racing is never to give up when you
crash. Get up, pick your bike up, and try
to catch up to the leaders again. And
what we never gave up on was
development, product development
of new models, even all through
the crisis. Plus, I also learned to
keep focussed on the core
content of our product, and on
our ready to race sport
motorcycle spirit!
ROAD
TEST
HONDA CR-V 2.0 MT
AHEAD
OF THE CR-V
ARE YOU GOING TO BE SEEING A LOT
MORE OF THESE?
Text ADITYA UPADHYAYULA
Photos ANEESH SHIVANEKAR
& ADITYA UPADHYAYULA
T
hats probably a chance-taking
headline, considering Im
talking about a petrol-only
SUV, but stay with me and Ill
tell you exactly why its there.
If youve read our initial
impressions of the new Honda CR-V, youll
know that its still a favourite of ours, just like
the last one was. But what does it really feel
like on the road?
HOWS IT LOOKING?
Overall, its a much sharper looking car than
the one it replaces, and its certainly got
enough presence to grab eyeballs. The front
end is basically an evolution of the previous
generation model, with all the changes
adding up to give the CR-V a pretty
aggressive stance. From the rear, its a dead
ringer for the Volvo XC60, but take a glance
at it from a slightly offset position and youll
see that its quite an eyeful. Our test car, in
that shade of red, looked quite brilliant under
the glow of sodium vapour lamps at night!
Just like the last car, the shape of the
windows gives it that sloping-roof look that
seems to be popular these days.
INSIDE LINE
If youre stepping right out of the old car and
into this one, youre bound to notice that the
quality took a bit of a nose dive, but by itself,
its a pretty nice interior. Taking centre stage
on the dash is a small screen used to display
the feed from the reverse assist camera; the
screen also serves as the display for the
music player. You get pretty much everything
you expect in a premium SUV, and this was
only the base model I was driving. As you go
up the trim levels, you get a second screen,
which displays navigation information and
has Bluetooth connectivity as well.
Its still a five seater, which might be a bit
of a disappointment to some, but rest
assured, those five seats are very comfortable
and come wrapped in some supple leather.
One of the areas Honda has improved on this
car is the height of the floor. In the older car,
getting something into the boot meant you
had to lift it up pretty high, but now the
loading lip has been lowered significantly.
The rear seats also sit lower in the car, giving
the rear-seat passengers better head room.
GOES LIKE STINK?
I drove the 2.0-litre model mated to a six-speed
manual transmission of late, some of the
better manual transmissions Ive driven have
been from Honda, so its no surprise, really,
that the one in the CR-V is right up there
with the best. The throws are delightfully
short and the shift action itself is nice and
crisp. Whats more, the shifter positioning is
near perfect as well, so, you know, you can
go all WRC with it!
In terms of outright acceleration, the
CR-V suffers a little because of the low rolling
resistance rubber that is wrapped around
its 17-inch wheels. That, of course, means
that if you want to make a particularly
quick getaway, youll be met with lots of
wheelspin, then an abrupt loss of power
when traction control kicks in and finally,
youll be off once the wheels find enough
grip. If you decide, however, that you can do
a better job of modulating the power, traction
control can be switched off. After I did that, I
basically lit up the front wheels in 1st, 2nd
and 3rd gears before it finally settled down.
Right, then, Im keeping traction control on.
Despite all of this, the CR-V clocks a
0-100 kph time of 10.02 seconds, pressing on
to a top speed of 190 kph, which is about par
for the course. Youll be better off with the
2.4-litre version if you want better outright
performance, naturally.
Theres also a new Econ mode you can
drive in, which dulls the throttle response a
little, but the result is a higher fuel efficiency
number; with it on, I managed to get 9 kpl
overall. That pretty much went out the
window once I got addicted to the way the
car sounds above 5000 rpm!
AUTODATA
HONDA CR-V 2.0 MT
POWERTRAIN
Displacement: 1997cc, I-4, petrol
Specific output: 77.1 bhp/litre
Power to weight: 104.76 bhp/tonne
Torque to weight: 13.17 kgm/tonne
Transmission: 6-speed manual
STEERING
Type: Rack and pinion with power assist
Turning radius: 5.65 m
SUSPENSION
Front: MacPherson struts
Rear: Double wishbone
BRAKES
Front: Ventilated discs
Rear: Discs
TYRES
(F/R): 225/65 R17
DIMENSION
L/W/H (mm): 4545/1820/1685
Wheelbase: 2620 mm
Kerb weight: 1470 kg
ACCELERATION
0-60 kph: 4.56 secs
0-100 kph: 10.02 secs
80-120 kph: 6.9 secs
100-140 kph: 9 secs
Top speed: 190 kph
0-100-0: 15.1 secs
MILEAGE
Overall: 7.5 kpl
PRICE: ` 21.63-25.82LAKH
Ex-showroom, Mumbai
Material quality inside has seen a slight dip over the last car, but its still a very nice place to be
TURNING POINT
Another area the CR-V improves on is the
handling department. Really, you say? On an
SUV that already has some impressive on-
road manners? Well, yes. A completely new
rear suspension setup means that the CR-V
feels a lot more planted during directional
changes. You can really attack corners in it
once you get it out of your mind that youre
driving a rather large vehicle. The only thing
that bothers me is that theres also a new
steering system in the mix, which ditches
hydraulics in favour of an electric unit.
That works wonders for city use,
but it feels just a tad too light and lacking in
feel for me out on open roads. It also rides a
lot better over rough terrain, keeping body
movements in check while soaking up bumps
at the same time. Quite impressive, I say.
Oh, and one more thing we suggest you
ditch those eco tyres in favour of some
stickier rubber, both for the sake of handling
and some peace of mind you wont be
missing that tyre squeal anytime soon.
FINAL CALL
Okay, so its a petrol-only SUV in a country
obsessed with diesels, and this might hurt
Honda in the sales charts. It still has an
ace up its sleeve, however. The CR-V is
assembled in India, which means youre
saving a good chunk of money on it initially,
fuel efficiency is pretty good if you manage
to keep your right foot in check, and its
such a nice car, all told, that youll question
whether you really need to cough up more
cash for an Accord!
Save for bluetooth, the stereo comes with all the features youd expect. And doesnt that rear-end remind you of the Volvo XC60?
HEAD TO
HEAD
SCALA CVT VS CITY AT
GET AUTO HERE
WHICH OF THESE TWO C-SEGMENT SEDANS
SHOULD BE YOUR AUTOMATIC CHOICE?
Text ADITYA UPADHYAYULA Photos ROHIN NAGRANI
A
lright, heres the deal; its
pretty much a given that
if someone goes for an
automatic variant of a
C-segment sedan, paying the
price premium over the
manual transmission one, its going to be
owner-driven, no?
Well, Renault doesnt seem to think so.
Yes, its true that the Scala CVT does
command a premium over the manual, and
yes, it goes a long way in reducing fatigue in
traffic, but according to them, the main
purpose of the automatic is to give the person
sitting in the back the most comfortable
experience possible. How does it fare against
the current champion in the automatic sedan
realm though? Lets find out!
This particular version of the City came to
the market in late 2008, and despite being out
for nearly five years now, the car still looks
sharp as ever. Okay, so after the recent
facelift, there is more chrome on the outside
than we would have liked, but that
nonwithstanding, its still a very sharp
looking car. The Scala, while admittedly much
better looking than the Sunny, thanks to its
revised front and rear end, is still a little
disproportionate. The droopy rear end is
somewhat mitigated by the tail-lamp design
and the chrome strip running across the boot
lid. And while that electric blue colour really
sets the car apart on the roads, its no match
for the City in the looks department.
Once you step into the cars, you'll notice a
world of difference between them. Both, the
City and the Scala automatics are
available in top-of-the-line trim levels,
which means they've got all the
embellishments you could want; leather
interiors, integrated audio systems,
steering mounted audio controls, ABS and
dual airbags, you know, the whole
shebang. Despite the Scala matching the
City evenly, feature for feature, it still
seems like a world of a difference when
you step out of the Scala and into the City.
The leather seats feel more plush and all
the materials used on the dash, while
they're not exactly soft-touch plastics, still
look and feel better. Heck, the part of the
car you are constantly in contact with, the
steering wheel, feels much better than the
hard plastic one in the Scala. And the
general colour scheme also gives off a
more premium feel. In this case, I think the
design of the dash on the Scala, which
makes you feel like you're sitting on the
car rather than in it, contributes a little to
this. Sure, it's great for creating a feeling
of space, but in a car like the Scala, which
already has a lot of room inside, that's not
really necessary, now is it.
And when it comes to the rear seats,
the City might not have the acres of
legroom that the Scala has, but its still a
pretty nice place to be. Youve got a centre
armrest for yourself and a pretty nice view
of the road as well, but if you really want
to relax and stretch out, the Scala is the
place to be. As much as Id like to call this
a tie, though, I think for an automatic car,
the front seat is the more important one
and in this case, the City takes it away.
Right, so now that youre in the drivers
seat, lets talk about performance.
Fundamentally, these two cars are quite
different. The City comes with a
traditional torque converter automatic,
which may sound like old school
technology, but rest assured, it comes
with both, a sport mode and steering
mounted paddle shifters as well, to keep
you entertained.
The Scala, on the other hand, comes
with a continuously variable transmission
or a CVT, which doesnt have any gears at
all, but rather, through a series of pulleys,
manages to vary the gear ratio almost
infinitely. In theory, that is. Practically,
youve still got limitations on the amount
of variability you have. By the very nature
of the CVT though, its a little eery to
drive the Scala. As you accelerate away
from a standstill, the engine revs rise till
the point where the torque peaks and
basically stays there as the transmission
changes ratios to get you up to speed, and
finally, once youre at your desired speed,
the revs fall off, letting you cruise. Its not
the most ideal set-up, that, mostly
because it gets pretty noisy everytime
you step on the throttle. Thats not
exactly ideal for the sethji sitting at the
back, now is it?
What about the driver, then? Is it at
least enjoyable? Not really, to be honest.
Sure, the CVT also comes with a sport
mode and an L mode (low-ratio,
essentially), but in the Scala, it only
seems to make the engine louder. The
brakes arent all that great and the
steering doesnt give enough feedback to
be enjoyable. It is a nifty little city
commuter though, Ill give it that.
Speaking about city commuters, the City
has some pretty nice programming on its
transmission. Its almost telepathic in the
way it either holds on to gears when you
need them or shifts just when you want
to. It almost makes the paddles
redundant, but then again, how else are
you going to play out your F1 fantasies?
In terms of both, driving pleasure and for
the peace of mind of the passengers, the
City is better than the Scala.
As far as handling goes, Im a little
disappointed in the City. Chalk it up to
the low rolling resistance rubber that its
shod with, but the City complains every
time you want to change direction. Even
light braking makes the tyres squeal, so if
you want to extract some fun in the corners
out of the City, youll be better off upgrading
to stickier rubber. Ride quality, however, is
pretty plush while still retaining some
sportiness. The Scala does a slightly better
job in the corners while you dont have too
much feedback from the electronic power
steering system, it still sticks to the line
youve charted out for it. The ride, however,
is a little too soft for my tastes, and over
undulating terrain, the car takes a while to
get settled.
So, which one should you go for? The
City walked away as the winner of our three
car automatic sedan comparo last year, and
this time too, the result is the same. The
City is just that much better an overall
package that you simply cant go wrong
with it. Price wise, the Scala and City are
pretty much evenly priced, save for the top-
end model of the of the City with the sunroof
which is about a lakh more expensive. If you
go one level down and opt for the solid roof,
youre actually looking at saving a couple of
thousand over the Scala, and in that case,
its a no brainer. If, however, you want to sit
in the rear seat and be driven around, just
buy a diesel Scala and call it a day!
AUTODATA
HONDA CITY AT
POWERTRAIN
Power to weight: 100 bhp/tonne
Transmisison: 5-speed auto
STEERING
SUSPENSION
Front: MacPherson strut
Rear: Torsion beam
BRAKES
Front: Ventilated disc
Rear: Drum
TYRES
(F/R): 175/65 R15
DIMENSIONS
L/W/H (mm): 4440/1695/1485
Wheelbase: 2550 mm
Ground clearance: 165 mm
ACCELERATION
0-60 kph: 5.2 secs
0-100 kph: 11.9 secs
80-120 kph: 9.7 secs
100-140 kph: 11.3 secs
Top speed: 183.8 kph (achieved)
MILEAGE
Overall: 12.4 kpl
PRICE: ` 9.7 - 11.13LAKH
Ex-showroom, Mumbai
AUTODATA
RENAULT SCALA CVT
POWERTRAIN
Max power: 99.6 bhp@5600 rpm
Power to weight:95.76 bhp/tonne
Transmisison: CVT
STEERING
SUSPENSION
Rear: Torsion beam
BRAKES
Front: Ventilated disc
Rear: Drum
TYRES
(F/R): 185/65 R15
DIMENSIONS
L/W/H (mm): 4425/1695/1505
Wheelbase: 2600 mm
ACCELERATION
0-60 kph: 5.4 secs
0-100 kph: 11.93 secs
80-120 kph: 9.3 secs
100-140 kph: 13.6 secs
Top speed: 162 kph (achieved)
MILEAGE
Overall: 12 kpl
PRICE: ` 9.34 - 10.27 LAKH
Ex-showroom, Mumbai
The Citys interior is warm and inviting
while in the Scala, you end up feeling like
youre sitting on the car, not in it
SHORT
SHIFT
VW POLO GT TSI
VOLKSWAGEN DOWNSIZES ITS HOT
HATCH, BUT WITHOUT LOSING THE
PERFORMANCE GRADE
E
ight years ago, someone in the ministry
of Heavy Industries sent a proposal to
the Finance Ministry to allow tax
concessions for small cars of a certain
length and cubic capacity in the
country. What followed is an explosive
growth in the auto industry, something most of us
have been witness to. Trouble is, no one really used
the concessions to the benefit of auto enthusiasts;
i.e., there havent been small capacity, forced
induction hatches that leave a trail of dribble down
your chin. So, after all this while, someone has come
forward to satiate the requirements of the small,
merry band of enthusiasts, and then married it to an
automatic transmission and stiffled the power with
ESP. Clearly then, the new VW Polo GT TSi cant be
termed enthusiastic by that argument. Or am I
getting too old for this job?
Text ROHIN NAGRANI Photos PABLO CHATERJI
To find out, VWwas kind enough to
hurriedly organise a few cars in Goa for us to
get a taste of its newest offering. Now, the
German firm has been a rather astute
developer of small capacity, turbocharged
petrol motors for years. Yet, it ignored this
very motor when it planned a hotter Polo
and went in with the naturally aspirated
1.6-litre motor instead. This motor is different
from the naturally aspirated 1.2-litre mill on
the Polo, on account of being a four-potter,
instead of three. It uses an aluminium
crankcase and a small turbocharger to churn
out 103.6 bhp@5000 rpm and a solid 17.7 kgm
of torque from 1400 to 4000 rpm. Akin to the
Jetta 1.4 TSi in terms of technology, the
1.2 TSi also gets direct injection and VW
claims a very impressive 17.2 kpl (ARAI
ratified) for this turbocharged petrol. What is
even more interesting is that its mated to a
seven-speed DSG box that has been further
engineered to improve the lifespan of the box
by installing an improved mechatronic unit,
an upgraded clutch steering and changes to
the software. Expect these changes to be
carried forward to all DSG-equipped
VW-Group cars in the forseeable future.
Crank it up and the first thing you notice
is how silent and refined this motor is vis-a-
vis the 1.2 and even the now defunct 1.6.
Interestingly, the car doesnt come with
paddle shifters, though changes to the
interior include new seats that will be carried
on to other Polo variants as well (with
improved legroom at the rear by scooping
the front seats out), while the rest of the car
is pretty much what you will see on the
Highline trim. For India, the DSG box gets a
set of ratios designed to improve driveability
in Drive and Sport mode, with the manual
mode allowing you to kiss the 6,000 rpm
redline, all day long! There is an abundance
of torque, pretty much from low revs, and Im
talking relative to cubic capacity given that
its a petrol. Get going and the Polo 1.2 gets a
touch vocal and sounds pretty nifty too,
though most of that sounds like a hint of
exhaust roar. A nicely tuned intake and
sports exhaust would only amplify it more,
and in turn sound better. In drive, the gears
change reasonably quickly, though they tend
The GT TSi comes with a spoiler and badging all around. Well-kitted and finished interiors now get contrast stitched seats and sporty pedals
MASH THE THROTTLE AND IT FEELS LIKE IT
CAN DO 0-100 KPH IN 11 SECONDS!
AUTODATA
VW POLO GT TSI
POWERTRAIN
Displacement: 1197cc, I-4, turbo-petrol
Max torque: 17.84 kgm@1500-4100 rpm
Transmission: 7-speed DSG
STEERING
SUSPENSION
Rear: Torsion beam
BRAKES
Front: Discs
Rear: Drums
TYRES
(F/R): 185/60 R15
DIMENSIONS
L/W/H (mm): 3970/1682/1453
Wheelbase: 2456 mm
Kerb weight:1140 kg
MILEAGE
Overall: 17.2 kpl
as per ARAI
PRICE:
` 7.99
LAKH Ex-
showroom,
New Delhi
to hold a touch longer on downshifts,
although none of this is as slow as a large
number of torque convertor boxes, mind
you. Keep the throttle pinned to the
firewall and it feels like it can do a 0-100
kph time of around 11 seconds or less. If
thats indeed the truth, it would become
the quickest acceleratingB-segment hatch
in the country!
Slip the lever into Sport and the car
gets a bit more vocal and holds gears for
even lesser time. The best solution for
enthusiastic driving is to slot the lever into
manual. It seems to then behave like a
proper manual box, allowing you to
explore all the revs and stay in the meat of
the power band pretty much all the time.
The steering on the 1.2 also feels a touch
sharper than on the 1.6 its a bit more
direct and doesnt slack like it used to
earlier.. This has probably got to do with
the fact that theres more weight on the
front-axle now, given the weight of the
gearbox, turbocharging and ancillaries.
In fact, the car now weighs a good 50 kg
up on the 1.6!
Despite the increased power, the Polo
continues to ride on the same suspension
gear and brakes as well as 185-section,
15-inch tyres like the 1.6. Volkswagen has
made some minor changes to the damping
at the front on account of the increased
weight. At high speeds, on flat surfaces,
the Polo shows great grip and feels
planted, though if you hit a bump, the
soft dampers increase the cars vertical
movement a tad. Throw the car into
corners and the softer sprung 1.2 TSi
tends to bob and roll, robbing some of the
fun factor that the motor otherwise
provides. Ride quality, like the regular Polo
is good, if a bit soft. Given the cars overall
stiffness, it doesnt really feel
lost out at sea, though we would have
preferred a stiffer suspension setup.
What comes to the aid of this car is the
addition of ESP, another first in the
segment apart from the turbocharged
petrol motor and a twin-clutch box. You
can choose to switch it off and the car
becomes more alive and less prone to
understeer, which is the natural setting of
the ESP on the Polo.
So, with Volkswagen being the first to
exploit the use of excise duty concessions
for the enthusiast, has it hit the nail on the
head? In terms of outright performance,
probably yes, but we wish it just were a
little tighter and had a better sense of
flow, like the Maruti Suzuki Swift for
example. Other than that, the host of
features, tech and sheer engineering
might give the Polo a chance of being
more than just a warm hatch. Now to see
if tuners will bite the bait and explore
further hidden talents of this motor.
TYRE
TEST
APOLLO 4G TYRES
TYRE STRAITS
WE TRY OUT APOLLOS NEW TYRES FOR THE
INDIAN MARKET AT THE ZANDVOORT CIRCUIT
IN THE NETHERLANDS
Text & Photos RUMAN DEVMANE
H
aving been on the wrong
side of grip only too many
times, I value the idea of
grippy rubber. Surely, the
tree, the Activa and the
rock Ive collided with in
the past would appreciate this. Its a huge
disappointment that despite the car and the
tyre both being over a century old, its often
the latter that lets you down despite having
far fewer components and virtually no
mechanical parts. However, it is important to
understand that the tyres of today dont only
need to cope with steering and braking, but
also very high speeds, awful roads and
extreme weather conditions, and they need
to be cost-effective, while at it. Apollo
understands this, it appears, and it has
launched three new series of tyres, all of
which are really rather good.
Having set up an R&D and production
facility at Enschede in the Netherlands back
in 2009, Apollo thought it best to invite a
bunch of enthusiastic motoring scribes to
experience these new tyres the 4G
range at the Zandvoort Circuit outside of
Amsterdam. The tyres that are part of the
4G range are the Amazer, the Alnac, and the
Aspire and between them, they will cover
segments from between the 12-17 inches.
Each of the tyres are different not only in
terms of size but also composition and
functionality, and the only way to find that
out was to be let loose on the Zandvoort
Circuit. Now, who would decline such
a proposition?
BEING DRIVEN
I like most BMWs, but being driven in one a
3 Series while at it is not the wildest of my
fantasies. However, I would even opt to be
driven over by one, thanks to the biting cold
and wind at the circuit, so being ferried
around in one at speeds in excess of 200 kph
didnt seem like such a bad idea. The man at
the wheel was one of Apollos chief test
drivers and because our conversation for the
duration of the flying lap was continuously
interrupted by G-forces, I couldnt quite
gather his name. That, or maybe the Dutch
have characteristically un-phonetic names.
Anyway, the 328i I was being ferried around
in was surprisingly quiet hardly any road
noise and very poised (even after putting in
a 100 hard laps around the circuit with no
cool-off period). Usually, I hate being ferried
around on a racetrack, because thats rated
sin in my mental diary, but with an
enthusiastic and articulate Dutch driver for
company, life wasnt so bad. We were doing
only the short loop of the 4.3 km circuit,
however, so before I knew it, it was time to
cruise back into the pits.
DRIVING ON A DRY TRACK
We started this session by driving a bunch
of Mercedes-Benz A-Class around an even
shorter loop of the short loop circuit and
allow me to be frank it was boring. Four
laps of driving in a convoy of five cars at
no more than 70 kph on a racetrack thats
far more challenging than even Laguna Seca
given the ferocity of its corners and elevation
changes is bound to make you restless.
There was little to decipher about the tyres
performance from this stint, but fortunately,
the more serious (and fun) stuff lay ahead.
When you put BMW 1 Series and short
slalom course in the same sentence, you
know its going to be fun. And it was! Here is
where you could actually get every bit of
feedback from a tyre being pushed to the
limit and it the 1 Series responded very well
to aggressive steering inputs. Considering
we almost went faster at the slalom than on
the sighting lap speaks volumes for the level
of grip and confidence the Alnac tyres
provide. Dont believe me? Ask the
instructor who went gaga over my
alleged driving skills, whereas it was
actually the tyres (and the Beemers
excellent handling) that enabled me to
do a stonking lap around the cones.
DRIVING ON ICE
Where are they going to get
ice from? I admit it was cold out there, but
the conditions were far from what can be
casually termed as Arctic. My curiosity was
interrupted by the sight of two Fiat 500s
engaging in lurid slides thanks to a wheeled
stilt they were mounted on. Heres how it
works: the cars only contact patch comes
from the front tyres, by the means of which
you accelerate and steer, and the rear wheels
are up in the air, with the rolling frame
attached freewheeling about, with as much
sense of direction as me. Whats more, we
had to do a slalom course with the provided
setup and needless to say, it was fun but also
a good way to enhance driver control. I dont
think I can say much about the tyres here, but
I do think this format should be added to the
Indian driving test. It will save lives!
DRIVING ON WATER, WELL,
SORT OF
A fast-ish course around intelligently
arranged cones on a bed of tarmac
generously sprayed with water sounds like
every driving enthusiasts food for thought,
no? Piloting an Audi A3 hatchback for this
test, I had an absolute blast tackling the
course. Be it hard cornering, hard braking or
hard acceleration, the tyres were as grippy as
they were on the dry course if not more, and
feedback was excellent, too, despite the
relatively numb steering feel of the A3. Not
that Im qualified to compare the
performance of these tyres to that from other
brands, but on their own, these tyres are very
grippy and confidence-inspiring.
VERDICT
Apollos new tyres are excellent overall but
whats more impressive is the way it has
expanded as a domestic brand in the
overseas market. Having gone up from
producing commercial vehicle tyres to
producing high-performance passenger
vehicle tyres, Apollo has had a healthy, if
conservative, growth. With the Vredestein
brand of tyres coming in next, Apollo will
cater to cars such as the Audi R8 and others
of its kind as well, with much better price
positioning. Great news, then, and I hope
were let loose on the full length of the
Zandvoort circuit the next time, behind the
wheel of a Lamborghini, preferably!
ROAD
TEST
CHEVROLET ENJOY
BOXED IN
ANOTHER NEW MPV? WELL, ITS SPACIOUS,
VALUE CONSCIOUS AND IS FROM CHEVROLET!
Text ADITYA UPADHYAYULA Photos ANEESH SHIVANEKAR
A
s if there wasnt enough
competition in the MPV
segment, come next month,
there will be a newcomer in
the mix. This also marks the
third product to come out of
GMs joint venture with SAIC. The Chevrolet
Enjoy looks to go head-on against the likes of
the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga and Mahindra
Xylo/Quanto. Does it have the chops to make
a mark in the segment, then? Well, theres
only one way to find out.
IS IT A LOOKER?
Stepping up to the Enjoy, you wont be
mistaking it for anything other than an MPV.
It doesnt have the elongated hatchback look
of the Ertiga. Its short nose and slab-sided
body looks pretty much like youd expect an
MPV to look. At the same time, its not
exactly a bland design either. There are a
couple of well placed creases running along
the side of the car to break the monotony of
the design. While it doesnt look too
impressive from a head-on angle, both the
front three-quarters and rear three-quarter
views are quite pleasing to the eye. At the
rear, the Enjoy competes with the Evalia for
the longest tailgate ever on an MPV. Of
course, the Evalia wins this competition, but
you could still provide shelter to a decent
sized gathering underneath the rear hatch.
The top-of-the line LTZ variant I drove
came with, apart from a few chrome accents
around the car, 175/70 R14 rubber wrapped
around a set of alloy wheels which give it
that upmarket feel. Overall, the Enjoy has a
Euro MPV vibe to it, which should hopefully
work to its advantage.
BUT IS IT PRACTICAL?
The interior of the Enjoy is a bit of a mixed
bag. Theres plenty of space for all three rows
of seating. Again, our test car, being the top-
end variant, came with captain seats in both
the front and middle rows, making access to
the last row very easy. The seats are wide
and supportive and are all swathed in a very
convincing substitute of leather.
Access to the last row is very easy, thanks
to the captain seats, and because those
middle seats slide, theres actually enough
space for adults to sit back there. The only
problem is, the seat bottom is placed a little
low, so under-thigh support is lacking.
The dashboard, though, is a bit of a
disappointment. Suddenly, it seems as if
Chevys entire budget went towards making
sure the seats were comfortable, so the
dashboard was put together using whatever
materials were left over. The design itself is
decent, save for the straight-out-of-the-90s
integrated stereo system (which, in its
defence, does have USB and aux-in inputs),
but quality could be much, much better.
Everything from the rotary dials for the AC to
the door handles and locks have edges which
could seriously hurt your fingers. To save
face, the LTZ does come with twin-airbags
and ABS with EBD as standard.
Another point to note is that because its a
rear-wheel-driven car, the engine and
transmission eat into front legroom. In fact,
forget actually having a dead pedal for the
driver, theres barely any room to move your
feet around in the footwell.
WILL IT MAKE YOU SPILL
YOUR DRINK?
The MacPherson Strut and multi-link
suspension set-up is tuned quite well, so at
low speeds, the car soaks up the bumps
nicely, but as the speeds rise, with only two
The interior is simple and functional, but the materials quality could definitely see an
improvement. The middle row gets their own AC vents, which will be a boon in Indian
summers. The instrumentation is simple, well lit and easy to read
people on board, the ride tends to be a little
bouncy, especially at the rear.
It does handle well though, so long as you
remember that youre piloting an MPV and
not a small hatchback. Theres a good bit of
body roll in the corners, but it does have a
higher centre of gravity, so thats to be
expected. The 175 section, 14-inch tyres do
seem a little inadequate for the car, though,
an upsize could do a lot more for its grip
levels and stability through the bends.
AND FOR THOSE STOP-LIGHT
DRAG RACES?
While the Enjoy is built on a monocoque
chassis like the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga,
unlike the Ertiga, it has its engine placed
longitudinally in the engine bay, which sends
power to the rear wheels. Its available with a
pair of powertrain options a 1.4-litre,
102 bhp petrol engine from GMs STEC-II
family of engines and the ever popular
1.3-litre multijet producing 76 bhp.
The petrol motor seems a little weak right
off idle, but once youre on the move, it
actually pulls cleanly right up to the redline.
Dont expect to set any performance
benchmarks though, because the gearbox
isnt exactly conducive to quick shifting, not
unlike the one found on the petrol Sail. In-
gear acceleration is pretty nice, but then
again, I only drove it with two people on
board. With a full load of passengers and
their luggage, the petrol Enjoy may well be a
completely different animal. It manages a top
speed of just over 160 kph, while the dash to
100 kph takes just under 15 seconds. Also, I
dont know if its the particular example I
COMPETITION
CHECK
Both, the 1.4-litre petrol engine (left) and the 1.3-litre diesel (right) are placed longitudinally in the
engine bay, sending power to the rear wheels and are well-specced, but certainly not excitingly so
MARUTI SUZUKI ERTIGA
Maruti Suzuki
snuck into the
market in
2012 with
whats
described
as the perfect family car. Something
thats not so large that its a burden in
the city, but at the same time, its still
got enough space inside to carry seven
people comfortably. It is easy to drive as
a regular hatchback, while its diesel
and petrol motors are peppy and frugal.
MAHINDRA XYLO/QUANTO
With room to seat seven comfortable
and their luggage as well, the Xylo really
doesn't disappoint. Engine choices
range from basic fleet spec engines to
the top of the line mHawk which
produces 118 bhp of peak power. Need
all that in a city friendly package? Enter
the Quanto, which is, for all intents and
purposes a mini Xylo. Even the engine
has been downsized to a 1.5-litre unit
which is extremely
fuel efficient.
drove or the very nature of the petrol
Enjoy, but the engine seemed to be tuned to a
lean setting, which could well work towards
giving it better mileage in the city.
The diesel is the one to drive though.
Right off the line, it feels a lot more alive than
the petrol. Its not a high revving mill, but the
mid-range is where all the action is. With
19.1 kgm of toque on tap, its more than
capable of lugging the 1300-odd kg Enjoy
around. Even the gearbox that this engine is
mated to is a lot better than the petrol cars,
with shorter, slicker throws and no hints of
notchiness either. In terms of outright
performance, youre probably better off with
the petrol, the diesel not bettering 21.4
seconds to 100 kph and its top speed of
139 kph. But if you want to use the Enjoy for
its intended use, youre much better off with
the diesel. And whats more, the 1.3-litre
Multijet engine is a proven performer that
does duty in everything from the Swift to the
Punto to the Ertiga, so youve got that extra
peace of mind as well.
IS IT WORTH A BUY?
The Enjoy, when its launched sometime next
month, is expected to be priced a lot lower
than the Ertiga, and at that price point, it
makes a lot of sense. So if they go as low as
` 5.5 lakh for the base petrol variant and up to
` 8 lakh for the top-end diesel version, then
they could have something sweet cooking in
there. But more than that, the Enjoy has the
potential to be a huge hit in the fleet market,
which currently relies on the Chevrolet
Tavera and the much more expensive Toyota
Innova. It can seat seven people just as
comfortably, will come in at a much lower
price point and with that Multijet engine, will
incur much lower running costs too. Its a no
brainer, really.
AUTODATA
CHEVROLET ENJOY
POWERTRAIN
Displacement: 1248cc, I-4, turbo
diesel/1399cc, I-4, petrol
Max power: 76.43 bhp@4000 rpm/
102.5 bhp@6000 rpm
Max torque: 19.1 kgm@1750 rpm/
13.35 kgm@4400 rpm
Specific output: 61.24 bhp/litre/
73.26 bhp/litre
Power to weight: 56.82 bhp/tonne/
81.34 bhp/tonne
Torque to weight: 14.2 kgm/tonne/
10.59 kgm/tonne
STEERING
Type: Rack and pinion with
power assist
SUSPENSION
Rear: Multi-link
BRAKES
Front: Discs
Rear: Drums
TYRES
(F/R): 175/70 R14, light truck, tubeless
DIMENSIONS
L/W/H (mm): 4305/1680/1750
Wheelbase: 2720 mm
Kerb weight: 1260-1345 kg
ACCELERATION
0-60 kph: 7.36 secs/ 6.13 secs
0-100 kph: 21.28 secs/ 14.84 secs
80-120 kph: 22.4 secs/ 12.7 secs
100-140 kph: NA secs/ 17.2 secs
Top speed: 130 kph/ 160 kph
0-100-0: 26.3 secs/ 20.5 secs
PRICE: ` 5.5 to 8LAKH
Estimated, ex-showroom
ROAD
TEST
TOYOTA ETIOS
RIGHT
Toyotas Etios gets a mild makeover.
We spot the differences
W
ait, are you sure this is the
right car? I asked a
seemingly convinced
Aditya when he turned up
at the shoot location. Id
only just parted with the updated Liva, and I
was hoping to see an Etios with decals and
spoilers, as is almost mandatory with updates
in the country. The changes, as I discovered
with much help from Aditya, are subtle and
few, but they do help the Etios case.
SO, WHATS NEW?
To list the new bits in order, the Etios has new
outside rear-view mirrors with turn signal
indicators embedded into them, a mildly
reworked tail-lamp, a two-tone dashboard and
a new multimedia unit. Yes, that sums it all up.
HOW GOOD IS IT?
Simply enlisting the new bits is not much use.
Whats to like is that Toyota has been listening,
if not very attentively, to market feedback. The
Etios, even prior to its launch, was a much-
hyped product simply because it was the
bearer of the Toyota badge, and it was very
disappointing when it didnt turn out to be the
mini-Corolla we thought it would be. Its not
that the Etios didnt feel premium enough it
didnt feel premium at all. There were no
features to boast about, and the interiors were
a huge let-down. However, by means of this
update, a lot of that is set to change. Step
inside and the two-tone (beige, primarily, and
dark grey top and bottom) dashboard
immediately lends a light feel to the interior,
and together with the fairly swanky
multimedia unit and the chrome surround on
the gear lever shroud, it looks a lot more
acceptable as a family car.
WHATS NOT TO LIKE?
While the new dashboard is nice to the touch,
the actual quality of plastics used is still quite
underwhelming. Odd gaps, flexing surfaces,
the odd rattle these are problems Toyota still
hasnt gotten rid of. Also, the dashboard layout
itself is just not contemporary enough,
especially when compared to other cars in this
segment, and adding more colour to it isnt a
very healthy sign of aging.
VERDICT
The updated Etios is a step in the right
direction, but its not a giant leap forward.
At ` 5.46 lakh (going up to ` 8.04 lakh for the
top-end diesel) ex-showroom, Mumbai, it is
now better VFM than before. However, I would
rather have a no-frills Etios but one that is the
last word in build quality, because thats what
Toyotas primarily stand for. So as it turns out,
Aditya did turn up in the right car, but it isnt
quite the right car not just yet if you know
what I mean.
Interiors look better than before, though we
wish theyd upped the build quality as well!
Text RUMAN DEVMANE Photos ADITYA UPADHYAYULA
ON
ROAD
TEST
LIVA TRD SPORTIVO
I
could evaluate the Liva TRD Sportivo
based on two simple, inter-related,
questions. A) Is a powerful, revvy
petrol motor really what a
manufacturer needs to inject life into
a rather staid hatchback? B) If yes,
then is this really a hot hatch?
LOOKING GOOD.
BEEN WORKING OUT?
I wouldnt say its been to the gym, but it
has definitely been to the local Nike factory
outlet and picked up some cool gear. The
TRD Sportivo badging has brought along
with it a set of snazzy 15-inch alloys, cool
body kit (okay, the front end is a mess, but
the side skirts, roof rails and rear spoiler do
look quite sporty) and, best of all, a 1.5 litre
petrol engine. There are a few changes to
the interiors, too, in the form of a revised
instrument cluster, new upholstery that
gives sporty a fair shot and a new
multimedia unit. On the surface, the
unaesthetic front end aside, this looks like
a good effort.
PACKIN SOME HEAT?
Well, certainly. But it feels more like a
capable air-pistol than a deadly .44 Magnum.
Thanks to its 925 kg kerb weight, the Livas
88.7 bhp delivers a fantastic 0-100 kph time
of 11.5 seconds but beyond 120 kph, the
engine seems to lose steam quite quickly.
This is a hot city hatch, surely, if you believe
in driving like a maniac, but if you think you
can challenge the big boys with this toy,
youre very mistaken. Gearshifts are light,
but not smooth as in the Honda Brio (which
produces identical power figures) and its
easy to identify the drop in zip once youve
gone past the last of the over-revs in third
gear and shifted into fourth and,
subsequently, fifth gear. Its quick and fast,
but not furious. Not by a long shot.
GOT THE MOVES?
The Liva has always been quite flickable
and with more horsepower, its even more
fun to snake around traffic in and to throw
into corners. However, its fun in the same
way a game of cricket with your friends is
more fun than watching an India vs
Australia ODI you may get some kicks out
of scoring a few boundaries and swearing a
Text RUMAN DEVMANE Photos ADITYA UPADHYAYULA
NOT
TOYOTA APPLIES SOME TRD LOGIC TO
AUTODATA
TOYOTA ETIOS LIVA 1.5
POWERTRAIN
Torque: 13.46 kgm@3000 rpm
Power to weight: 95.67 bhp/tonne
STEERING
SUSPENSION
Front: McPherson struts
Rear: Torsion beam
BRAKES
Rear: Drums
TYRES
(f/r): 185/60 R15
DIMENSIONS
L/W/H (mm): 3775/1695/1510
Wheelbase: 2460 mm
Kerb weight: 925 kg
ACCELERATION
0-60 kph: 4.77 secs
0-100 kph: 11.55 secs
80-120 kph: 9.3 secs
100-140 kph: 13.5 secs
Top speed: 184 kph (achieved)
MILEAGE
Overall: 13 kpl
PRICE: ` 6.84LAKH
Ex-showroom, Mumbai
FURIOUS
ITS LIVA HATCH. WE CHECK IT OUT
lot, but the finesse of a Tendulkar and the
agility of whichever other cricketer there
may exist (not a big fan of cricket, you see)
are sorely missing. In this case, because
the suspension, steering and brakes are
unchanged, the Liva feels like its spent
weeks munching on steroids and then
turned up for the final race wearing loafers
with bow-ties on them. The steering feels
light a good thing in the city but weighs
up rather vaguely as the speeds rise and
while its not something that cant be
mastered, it just doesnt feel intuitive
enough in a car with sporty aspirations.
THE LAST WORD
To go back to the two questions I posed at
the beginning of this story, while the Liva in
this iteration is a sprightly car, its not whats
expected of it. The Liva, by virtue of being a
Toyota, was expected to be high on quality,
space, reliability and the last word in brilliant
packaging. However, apart from offering a
set of decently fuel-efficient motors (absent
on this variant, of course) and fairly
presentable interior space, the Liva failed to
deliver on all other counts. I could be the
selfish enthusiast and say I love the Liva
because its a bit understated, has a rev-
happy powerplant, and is light and
chuckable, but at ` 6.84 lakh (ex-showroom,
Mumbai), its expensive for the overall
package it offers and I just have to be the
selfish enthusiast and say Id rather have the
new Kawasaki Ninja 300 instead. Some
things never change, no?
TRD Sportivo badges abound on the
exterior, alongwith lots of sporty body kit.
Interior gets a fancy multimedia unit
ROAD
TEST
M-B A-CLASS
MERCEDES-BENZ
CERTAINLY HOPES SO!
Text PABLO CHATERJI
Photos MERCEDES-BENZ
A-CLASS
APART
I
f you went back in time, to about 1997 if I remember
correctly, you would find Mercedes-Benz a bit hot under the
collar. Its newly-introduced baby car, the slightly gawky
A-Class, had been lent out to a European auto magazine,
which decided to subject it to the now infamous elk test.
The upshot was that the A-Class keeled over and failed that
swerve manoeuvre, which didnt make for very good PR. Of course,
the white coats got their act together and made suitable changes
to the cars suspension, which put things right, and the A-Class
then continued in production for the next 15 years, with reasonable
but not notable success. Cue the all-new 2012 A-Class.
Mercedes-Benz, once the undisputed heavyweight champion of
the Indian luxury car market, now finds itself in the uncomfortable
position of having to play catch-up, with arch rivals Audi and
BMW. One of the reasons the company has fallen behind is the
perception that its cars have become a bit, well, fuddy-duddy; the
obvious need of the hour is to therefore usher in products that
capture the imagination of a younger audience. If these products,
by way of relatively competitive pricing, then help shore up the
bottom line, so much the better, and the A-Class is the leading
contender for the job.
The A-Class exterior has more lines than a railway network,
and the first word that springs to mind when you see it is Whoa!
Then, however, you spend some time walking around the car, and
you realise that it all somehow works, and works very well at that.
Even though the dropping line seems too pronounced, for
example, and a more subtle interpretation may
have worked better, it undoubtedly endows
the car with character. The snub nose, with
enormous headlights on its flanks, is definitely
more OTT than is usual at Mercedes, but it
gives the profile some aggression, as well as a
sense of forward movement. Viewed from the
rear, the car sits nice and squat, giving the
impression of good road-holding. The whole, in
this case, is more than the sum of its parts, and
the A-Class is ultimately a muscular, sporty-
looking hatchback indeed, it is probably the
best looking car among the class competition
from Audi and BMW. The car has proven very
popular in Germany, certainly, and I think
Indian audiences will also appreciate the way
it looks.
I have a few reservations about the way it
goes, though. If we were to get the wonderfully
energetic A250 petrol, or the gobs-of-torque
A220 CDI, then I reckon it would be game, set
and match I drove both variants and was very
impressed with the performance levels of both
powerplants. However, we should be so lucky
reasons of cost dictate that what will instead
come to India is a set of A180s. I have no idea
what the petrol version (putting out 120.7
bhp@5000 rpm and 20.4 kgm@1250-4000 rpm)
is like to drive, because I couldnt lay my hands
on one; the engine does offer decent
performance in the B-Class, however, which
weighs the same as the A-Class.
Just to complicate matters further, the
A180 CDI that I drove was fitted with an
engine and gearbox combination that
wont make it to India either a 1.5-litre,
4-cylinder Renault-developed diesel engine
making 107.2 bhp@4000 rpm and
26.5 kgm@1750-2500 rpm, mated to a 6-speed
manual gearbox. The India-bound A180 CDI
will come with a 1.8-litre, 4-cylinder diesel,
making the same 107.2 bhp, but between
3200-4600 rpm, and less torque 25.5 kgm
between 1400-2800 rpm; the gearbox will be a
7-speed dual-clutch unit. Phew, I think its time
for a coffee break, just to let all that settle in.
Frankly, the 1.5-litre diesel feels only
adequate in the A-Class, especially when you
experience what more powerful engines can
do in the same car. The A220 CDI, for example,
is a completely different animal, with seamless
performance on tap and superb driveability in
all conditions. The A180 CDI I drove wasnt by
any means bad, I hasten to add it just felt a
The dash will become a familiar feature, since its shared between the B, A and CLA-Class. The
prominent beltline gives the A-Class a sporty character, though we wish to get the A45 AMG!
THE A-CLASS EXTERIOR HAS PROBABLY MORE
LINES THAN A RAILWAY NETWORK
bit anaemic compared to the A220, and
required some rowing of the gearbox in order
to extract maximum performance. It will
probably, however, be the perfect city car,
especially with the additional cubes provided
by the 1.8-litre engine I do wish we had been
able to drive this version!
There are no doubts as to the dynamic
capabilities of the A-Class, mind you. With
McPhersons up front and an independent four-
link setup at the rear, the car strikes a great
sweet spot between ride comfort and handling
the sportier versions with more powerful
engines have stiffer suspensions, but the
standard A180 CDI smoothed over the
(admittedly negligible) bumps on German
B-roads without fuss. For a front-driven car, the
A offers plenty of potential for having a laugh
behind the wheel, with the steering loading up
nicely at higher speeds and a finely balanced
chassis, allowing flat cornering. Most
importantly, the A-Class feels like a proper
Merc, not a smaller compromise you get the
same plush feeling in it that you would in some
of its bigger, more expensive stablemates.
The cabin is, unsurprisingly, exceedingly
well put together, and its great to feel real
metal on the air-con vents, for example, rather
than plastic with a steel finish. The seats are
one-piece, with indentations in the back to
allow for greater rear leg room, and four people
would sit in comfort in this car five at a pinch.
Theres a myriad of standard safety features,
which is always a good thing, and if youre an
iPhone user, it will be completely integrated
with the system (what about Android users, I
ask you?). The one grouse I have with the
cabin is that there are too many bits we have
seen already the same panel on the centre
console, for example, and the same fiddly
gear-selector stalk on the steering wheel.
A trick was also missed by not making the
tablet-like display screen (which sticks out
kind of awkwardly) touch-based, which would
have been much more intuitive than the
Comand dial.
By the time you read this, the A-Class
will be almost ready for its India debut, and
itll be among several vehicles based on the
MFA platform that will find their way to
our shores, including the rather delectable
looking CLA. To really make this car an
enticing proposition, M-B will have to slap a
price tag on it that will make potential buyers
drool, and I reckon that tag will be between
` 18-20 lakh. At that price, it will appeal to
existing Mercedes owners, who may look at
one as a car for the spouse, or for the college-
going sprog. It will also raise a few eyebrows
among first-time buyers, who are not flush
with funds but who are looking to make a
statement anyway; todays EMI schemes will
only sweeten the deal. As for me, all I will say
is A220 CDI and A250.
AUTODATA
M-B A-CLASS
POWERTRAIN
Displacement: 1796cc, I-4, turbo
diesel/1595cc, I-4 petrol
Max power:107.3 bhp @3200-4600 rpm/
120.69 bhp@5000 rpm
Max torque: 25.5 kgm@1400-2800 rpm/
20.4 kgm@1250-4000 rpm
Transmission: 7-speed auto
STEERING
SUSPENSION
Front: MacPherson strut with
coil springs
Rear: Multi-link axle
BRAKES
Rear: Solid discs
TYRES
(F/R): 195/60 R15
DIMENSIONS
L/W/H (mm): 4292/1780/1433
Wheelbase: 2699 mm
Kerb weight: 1395-1475 kg
PRICE: ` 18-20LAKH
Estimated, ex-showroom
SHORT
SHIFT
87 M-B UNIMOG
I
n the automotive universe, only rarely
can you use superlatives convincingly
and without getting eggs thrown
in your general direction. A
Lamborghini Miura might just be
the most heart-achingly beautiful
thing ever but when it comes to the world
of supercars, something like the 431 kph
Veyron is far more of an achievement. The
best? Well, thats your choice. Simple. Just
like the way you cannot compare a koala to a
sea lion just because theyre mammals, you
cannot even begin to compare the two. Get
off the tarmac though, and the world changes
a best has been unanimously decided. The
G-Wagen, the Jeep and the Land Rover
Defender are legends in their own right but
they arent a patch on what is pretty much
the worlds most legendary, most capable,
most versatile and probably the most
underrated hero of the automotive world
the Mercedes-Benz Unimog.
After the mayhem of the Second World
War, Germany shifted focus towards
agriculture, so the need of the hour was a
light utility farming machine. Albert
Friedrich, an ex-Daimler aircraft engineer,
drew up a capable, completely agrarian
farming tool. Lets make that agrarian-looking
because mechanically, it was bordering on
technological genius. Built to plough through
waist deep mud all day long, it had four-
wheel drive with individual differential locks,
4X4X
FINALLY, WE DRIVE THE MOST CAPABLE
a short track two rows of potatoes wide (cant
get more practical than that) and something
called portal axles but more on that later. He
called it the UNIversal MOtor Gerat which
roughly translated to Universally Applicable
Motorized Implement. Thankfully, it was
shortened to Unimog. It sure was pricey for a
war-ravaged nation but because it was so
capable, demand got the project off the
ground and eventually the whole operation
was sold to Daimler in 51. Sales took off,
fueled by massive military and public
interest, with newer, better models like the
Unimog S feeding the fire. The German Army,
running low on tanks and resources, built an
armoured personnel carrier around the mog.
Funnily enough, it looked so convincing from
a distance that the troops christened it the
Neckermann-Panzer, borrowing the name of
a value mail-order house. As the decades
went by, people understood that Friedrich
wasnt kidding when he put that universally
applicable line in there. When it comes to the
sheer diversity of applications, the Unimog is
unparalleled in history.
I thought about it for a fair bit but couldnt
name one vehicle that has served mankind
more completely. Friedrichs baby began as
an agricultural tool, evolved into a light
commercial and military truck but
because the central
GOD
OFF-ROADER IN THE WORLD
Text & Photos ANEESH SHIVANEKAR
formula was so darn solid, specialized
applications started popping up around the
world. The Germans made a bargain-
basement tank out of it and troops use it as a
mobile workshop, ambulance and a troop
carrier; some deploy it for fighting forest fires
while others use it clearing snow. Britains
elite SAS commandos famously abandoned
their Defenders and replaced them with
Unimogs during the Iraq war. It even became
a railway industry sweetheart because it
could haul trains and if thats not enough, air
forces use it to haul fighter aircraft and
jumbo jets. The Unimog even won truck
classes at the Dakar in the 80s without any
real push most of them were there to
provide rock-solid backup.
In Le Mans, France, it has its own little
tram service. For decades, travellers and
explorers have bolted on motor homes at the
back and theyve set out in whatever
direction theyd fancy; this was their ticket to
the world. The 1987 Unimog U1150 you see
here started life as a demonstrator back home
and put on minimal mileage for nearly a
decade. It was eventually sold off but
because it couldnt be registered due to
emission laws, it was converted to a camper
and shipped to India. After 10 months of
sitting at the Mumbai docks, it finally got a
plate on it, only to clock 42,000 kms exploring
India. But as fate would have it, the owner
stored it away on wooden blocks in Leh and
there it sat for five years. Half a decade later,
through a contact, the current owner,
Siddhartha Dhyan, got wind of this beast
sitting around in Leh. Interested, he flew
down all the way and signed on the dotted
line, presumably jumping up and down with
joy. After fixing some expected niggles, he
finally got Moggy running and made it The
Yeti for his travel outfit, Yak Trak.
This 26-year old Moggy is a heart-
achingly beautiful machine in real life, soulful
Two sets of gears, plus diff-locks
Impressive approach and departure angles
An inflatable balloon in the tail actually
assists in tricky situations
and brimming with character, waiting for a
chance to tell a fascinating story or to blurt
out a profound Yoda-league one-liner. The
Unimogs been a hero of mine for ages now,
so indeed, at first sight, I was stunned. There
it was, the fabled Unimog, right in front of me
and this particular one was exactly my age. I
could barely mutter Thank you, God. I
couldnt believe my eyes. Late last year,
while riding through the remote Changthang
region in Ladakh, in a place where sighting
another human being is considered lucky, I
chanced upon this mog out of the blue. I
thought it was the altitude getting to me; it
was akin to seeing a Unicorn. Little did I
know, I would be speechless yet again a few
months down the line.
After getting a few shots of Rohin
puttering around in it, it was time to finally
drive it. I had goose bumps getting into the
drivers seat, an act not unlike climbing into a
tree house. As motoring hacks, were
generally used to seeing things fresh off the
factory floor so its often refreshing to see a
well-worn interior, replete with scuff marks
and those peculiar individual customizations.
No AC ducts or soft-touch leather in here; its
all pure business. Everything is chunky,
formed out of good ol metal and put together
to take on the end of days. As youd expect,
you dont exactly slot it into D and push off.
Theres a procedure to it. The seat isnt
adjustable, so use the provided cushions to
make yourself comfortable and then, raise the
secondary hand-operated accelerator lever by
your right foot into its slot and crank up the
5.7-litre Daimler OM352 six-cylinder diesel.
Its the all-too-familiar diesel hum, no doubt,
but somehow, it still is sweetly distinctive.
Raise the idle further to 1000 RPM, muscle
the 4-speed box into place and off you go.
What joy!
Because of its distinctive stubby hood (er,
nose?), head-on visibility is brilliant and two
minutes into it, you know exactly where all
four corners of this towering light truck are.
Happily it trudges along egged on by an
abundance of turning force from the masters
of diesel and it clambers up the many
unsettling undulations we encounter, no
doubt yawning at these elementary tasks. So,
whats the fuss about? What exactly does the
worlds most capable off-roader pack? To
start off with, there are pneumatically-
operated lockable differentials front and back
and a low-ratio gearbox to feed them torque,
ITS A BEAUTIFUL MACHINE IN REAL LIFE,
SOULFUL AND FULL OF CHARACTER...
all of which can switch on-the-fly. The frame
itself allows for a high degree of flex, and in
conjunction with independent coil springs
and torque tubes, each wheel is capable of a
massive 30-degrees of individual articulation.
Furthermore, there are the much-touted and
much-praised portal axles which give it
enormous clearance. Hummers took to portal
axles too and Defenders use independent coil
springs to great effect but there isnt a single
vehicle that has combined all these elements
together in such a dependable package. Even
if youre clumsy and you mess up, you have
two sizable winches front and back, tracks,
shovels and heck, even an inflatable balloon
that you can inflate via the central inflation
system to raise this Teutonic beast out of
some dire straits. Talking about equipment,
the PTO (Power Take-Off) system can drive
all high powered accessories straight off
the drivetrain.
Once the familiarization lap was
completed, I engaged 4WD Low, slotted it
into second and it trundled over whatever we
threw at it. That little mountain? Done. Tricky
slope section coming off the mountain? No
problem. A natural axle-breaker section?
Yawn. This uber effective off-roader gobbles
up off-road test tracks like M&Ms, so this is
childs play. To be honest, its still pretty darn
scary when a seven-tonne trucks wheels are
perched at various elevations and angles and
it gets worse when the sprung camper at the
back rocks and rolls, threatening to unsettle
the whole trucks centre of gravity. It most
definitely wont, but then we were only
barely past the introductions. In comparison,
off-roading in SUVs feels like guiding a canoe
TECH THI S
PORTAL AXLES
Put simply, portal axles allow for the Unimog's axles to be placed
way above their usual position thats aligned to the wheel centre.
Drive is transferred via hub reduction gears and the result is
fantastic ground clearance without using bigger tyres. Neat, eh?
CAPABILITIES
With ultra-low ratio gearboxes some that allow for a
crawl ratio of 100:1 the Unimog climbs up places
others can only dream about. With tough-as-nails
mechanicals, its been known to take on aftermarket
gearboxes that allow crawl ratios up to 3000:1 without
affecting reliability. With approach and departure angles
of at least 45-degrees and gradability of 110 per cent, the
Unimog is virtually unstoppable.
NEWER UNIMOGS
Theyre taking things up a notch. Okay,
two or three notches, to be precise. Some
of them have this insane thing called
VarioPilot where you can switch from left-
hand drive to right-hand drive in under a
minute. This is so awesome, we want it on
every car! But officer, I wasnt the one
driving he was! Also, you get electro-
pneumatic eight forward and eight
reverse gears, up to 210 bhp, Power Take-
Off drives and 30,000 km service intervals. Impressive enough?
through rough waters. Unimog owners make
it a point to tell you that their beloved truck is
almost invincible but only in the right hands.
With the right amount of stupidity and/or lack
of technique thrown into the mix, it too can
fail. Frankly, we couldnt test it to even a
tenth of its potential but one gets an
overwhelming sense of the Unimogs
enormous capabilities right from the off.
Now, imagine this potent a platform for
exploring the length and breadth of planet
earth. Expedition crews treat it like their
second wives and with good reason. This
particular proven and supremely capable
camper is no different. The heated camper is
lined with teak inside and could sleep five
comfortably and seat way more. Onboard,
theres a marble kitchen, an on-board power
supply cleverly mated to solar panels on the
roof, GPS tracking, a 200 litre cold water tank in
addition to a 45 litre hot water one, an attached
shower by the right flank and unbreakable
perspex windows. On top of that, quite
literally, you have a huge amount of space to
stow away your spare parts and supplies. And
I do mean huge. Just standing there, I began
dreaming of month-long travels through
Mongolia and Russia and other exquisite
places . I even came up with an Oceans 11-
style heist to fund my travels. If only...
As the sun dipped below the mountains, it
was time to leave. Rather reluctantly, in the
stunning waning light of that memorable
Sunday evening, I walked away from the mog
with my jaw still dragging along the dirt. The
word epic doesnt quite cut it. Its a sad state
of affairs that when you utter the word
Unimog to many enthusiasts, all you get is a
puzzled mug in response. The Unimog is like
one of those good guy Army colonels whod
once secretly saved the world from the brink
of nuclear disaster but to date remains
faceless and unthanked.
They say that you shouldnt meet your
heroes. They, I can assure you, were wrong.
Four people, even five at a pinch, can stay in this mog for days. It comes with a kitchenette and shower, too! The 110 bhp, U1150 mog feels
sprightly at low revs; the trick is to use gears wisely and stay on top of the torque curve. It isnt as intimidating to drive as other CVs either
One for the grandchildren, eh?
'Moggy' takes in sights in the upper Himalayas. It
was for extreme conditions like these that the 'mog was built
A big thanks to Siddhartha Dhyan for letting us drive his
beloved Unimog and thanks to Desmond Rozario(above) as
well. Desmonds the one who had to put up with us!
After some hunting around in Manali, the
Unimog finally got replacement struts that fit
Nights in the Himalayas are bitterly cold. Good
thing, then, that the mog is insulated and
well-equipped too. Zero hotel expenses!
Oh yes, even a Unimog can get stuck. But
dont worry you have a plethora of tools for
recovery, including an inflatable balloon!
Siddhartha Dhyan, the owner of this Unimog, has used his go-anywhere truck like it ought to
be. This particular shot was taken near Pang on the way down from Leh. Looks best against a
backdrop like this, doesnt it?
At 17,582 ft, the Tanglang La pass
is a monster, especially during the onset of
the winters. The Unimog pretended to be
scaredat least for a bit!
SHORT
SHIFT
FORCE MOTORS
GURKHA 4X4
I
t's rather tricky to negotiate the
articulation section of the Force
Motors four-wheel drive track,
especially when youve only driven
about five metres in the new
Gurkha. To make matters trickier,
I had to deal with on an off-road track
from the moment I got behind the wheel;
re-adjusting throttle and clutch input was
thus not easy. What surprised me was
how the Gurkha made such a difficult
patch of track look easy. As the ditches got
progressively deeper, I had to switch to
four-low, then engage the rear-diff lock,
but the only bits that caused me some
consternation were the multiple crunch
sounds from somewhere below. The
engineer in-charge for R&D testing for
the product asked me to ignore them and
press on.
Clearly, the Gurkha has needed to
make a comeback. The success of
Mahindras Thar proved that a well-
engineered, basic, four-wheel drive diesel
off-roader had potential in the market, but
while the Gurkha made the cut a few
years ago, Force Motors sold just 40 units
before shelving the project, for reasons
unknown to us. Straight off, the Gurkha
has some advantages over the Thar. For
one, its offered with the option of a hard-
top body, something its competition
currently lacks. Two, it comes with
individual diff-locks front and rear again,
features the competition cant boast of.
The third advantage is that it comes
with a three-year/3,00,000 km warranty;
the rest make do with two-year, sub
1,00,000 km warranties. So, on paper,
Text ROHIN NAGRANI Photos ANEESH SHIVANEKAR
A REGIMENTED
THE NEW FORCE GURKHA TRIES TO BREAK
THE SHACKLES
the Gurkha has a lot going for it.
It even has a motor that seems to be
the right fit. Force Motors tried-and-
tested Mercedes-Benz OM616 has been
tuned to now produce 81 bhp of peak
power and 23.3 kgm of peak torque,
figures that are better than the Gurkhas
previous incarnation. It is, however, only
BS-III compliant for now, with a BS-IV
variant (based on the OM616 as well)
possibly on its way by the end of this year.
Known for its high reliability and low-end
torque, the Gurkha is geared low, with
most of the torque available at the bottom
end and mid range, with not much at the
top. Indeed, the engine doesnt rev
beyond 3600 rpm, and peak power arrives
at a lowly 3200 rpm. Though the gear
ratios are different from its predecessor, it
works very well off-road.
The 5-speed gearbox has rather long
throws and is a bit sticky in feel, which I
found a tad irritating I had to shift to
neutral at times to re-engage gears. On
the other hand, its the nice combination
between gearing and torque that makes
this an interesting package. So torquey is
the motor that simply leaving it in a lower
gear (first or second) can mean the Gurkha
can ascend a 25-degree embankment
without you even stepping on the throttle.
That is down to clever mapping of the
ECU and is useful even in stop-go traffic
conditions. A larger diameter clutch also
adds to the overall reliability, and clutch
action is actually rather good.
What Force Motors has done is to
ensure the DNA of the Gurkha stays
intact. In fact, the tubed body-on-ladder
chassis is identical and so is the
suspension setup of double wishbones at
the front and leaf-springs at the rear. The
Gurkha has, however, been re-tuned for
road use, to allow less oscillatory
movements and better road-holding.
While the latter wasnt put to test on our
first drive, the ride quality seems to be
quite good, at par or even better than the
Thar in some aspects; only a full-blown
comparison test will reveal an absolutely
clear picture.
While wheel articulation isnt the best,
it does have a ground clearance of 210 mm
and a wading ability of 550 mm. In fact,
Force Motors ensured that the ECU is
located above that mark, to ensure you
can get home even after a day of serious
off-roading during the monsoons. Also, I
wish the steering action didnt have so
much snap back! Despite shifting to a
hydraulic worm-roller setup, the Gurkhas
steering does require a deft hand off-road,
especially whilst descending.
AUTODATA
FORCE GURKHA
POWERTRAIN
Displacement: 2596cc, I-4, turbo-diesel
Max torque: 23.5 kgm@1800-200 rpm
SUSPENSION
Front: Independent suspension
Rear: Leaf springs
BRAKES
Front/Rear: Discs/Drums
TYRES
(F/R): 245/70 R16
DIMENSIONS
L/W/H (mm): 3992/1820/2055
Wheelbase: 2400 mm
MILEAGE
Overall: NA
PRICE: ` 6.25 - 8.5LAKH
Ex-showroom, Mumbai
SO TORQUEY IS THE MOTOR, YOU CAN ASCEND A
25 DEGREE EMBANKMENT IN SECOND BY NOT
STEPPING ON THE THROTTLE!
On the inside, the Gurkha retains its
metal dash, but with new plastic inserts and
with changes to the colour combination and
plastic grain. There are, however certain
issues with the execution, especially panel
gaps and placement of instruments. The
tachometer, for example, is oddly placed.
While the seats are wide and provide good
support up front, the quality of material used
is decent, at best. The hard top variant comes
with front-facing seats and a large boot that
can be utilised all the way to the roof, which
is a useful feature rearward visibility,
however, takes a beating if you do this. The
soft top variant (which is also offered as a
4x2) comes with side-facing seats and can
seat up to eight persons, versus the hardtops
five. Space for front-facing passengers is
reasonable, though the air-con isnt that
effective at cooling the cabin.
What I would have liked to see is a better
execution of the exterior design. While its
clean and all parts sit flush, the design is
devoid of character and somewhat trivialises
the vehicle its based on, the Mercedes-Benz
G-Wagen. Even the last Gurkha had oodles
of character and chrome in the right places,
but the current one just doesnt lend to the
macho image that people expect from off-
roaders. What I do appreciate is Force
Motors guts to offer some pretty radical
exterior paint choices (especially matte black)
which are priced at par with the regular
finishes this is unique in the auto industry.
As first impressions go, the Gurkha seems
to tick quite a few boxes. Its got sound
underpinnings, go-anywhere capability and a
motor that feels just right for this application.
The downside is that there are some
execution issues and a price tag thats north
of what the competition demands,
considering they are equally well-established
products with easier access to service and
spares. With Force Motors targetting sales of
just 1,000 units in the first year, it is looking
to play it rather safe; in the bargain, it is
probably underestimating the potential of
such a vehicle. Hopefully, the Gurkha will
articulate a wheel or two in the air and put its
detractors firmly in their place.
The dash is a mix of metal and plastic,
though integration is not up to the mark.
You even get an AC knob from Mahindra,
while the air-conditioning itself is strictly
okay. But what rescues is it the front and
rear diff-locks that can be controlled from
within the cabin
NEWS
MOTOFOCUS
Mamma mia! Stunning, innit? Now, its easy to assume that this motorcycle,
the JvB Moto Ducati Pantah, is looking this tasty because the Italians are the
reigning champions of style since way back when. The fact of the matter,
however, is that this wasnt built by the Italians but instead by an outfit based in
Cologne, Germany. JvBs Jens vom Brauck wanted a motorcycle that looked
like something Ducatisti built in a shed in Bologna, a sort of 1980s motor
show concept of a 90s motorcycle. The look works oh-so-perfectly.
Looking back at the original Pantah series now, they look
decidedly 80s but somehow, JvB has managed to keep
influences from both eras intact without it looking all too
staid. Just the essentials are highlighted and nothing
else is even given a thought. If the slender tyres, retro
wheels, the boxy tank and the solid discs give it a
perfect 80s touch, the minimalist tail section with a
Desmosedici-style underseat exhaust and the carbon-
fibre bits hint at the future. The L-Twin looks beautiful,
too, seemingly floating mid-air. A bike this good,
he shouldve kept for himself. Being a smart fella,
thats exactly what he did!
Maxi-scooters, a very Euro-centric niche, has a potent new
addition in the form of the Yamaha X-Max 400. Why would
anyone want such a thing? Well, it can combine the comfort
and practicality of a big scoot with the power and the
cruising ability of a decently powered motorcycle. The 400cc
motor puts out 31.5 bhp at 7000 rpm and reports suggest
that it pulls strongly off the line. It can even maintain a
steady 140 kph on the highway if you want. It also promises
handling thats on the sportier side by employing 15-inch
wheels, twin 267mm disc units up front and a compact,
(relatively) lightweight 211 kg body. All this and it can still fit
two helmets under the seat and more luggage space can be
added with optional accessories. Provided you have the
roads in your country, this shouldnt be a bad thing at all.
X-FACTOR
CUSTOMS DUTY
Urban warfare
Before you even begin dreaming, no, theres no word on it coming to India yet.
We sure do hope Honda comes along with the CRF250L but since volumes in
this segment are miniscule, the chances are rather slim. Okay, so with that
outta the way, this is the CRF250Ls street-going, supermoto cousin. Powered
by the same motor that powers the CBR250R, this CRF250M will have
23 horsepower going to the rear wheels and to ensure it doesnt rock around
like a fishing trawler, the suspension has been firmed up, the 17-inch wheels
come shod with stickier, wider street rubber, the braking and the suspension
have been worked upon and the gearing has been tweaked to a more street-
friendly setup. Should be a cracking tool for the city, then. Since it shares
components with the CBR250R ABS, it is possible that Honda could get it in at
around the ` 2 lakh price tag. The question is, will they?
Our generation has it easy.
Automatic gearboxes, fuel
injection, anti-lock brakes, grippy
tyres, traction control and what not.
Back in the day, racing was hardcore. And
we do mean hardcore. Board trackers were
dedicated racing instruments, to the point
that they had no clutch...and no throttle and
well, no brakes either. You push started it and
it would run flat-out at 160 kph, till it ran out
of fuel. If you wanted to back out before that,
your only hope was to short the magneto.
Simple, eh? This 1914 Indian Model F was one
of those, built around a production 500cc
single and a minimal, conventional loop-type
frame. The real draw? Well, its an ex-Steve
McQueen motorcycle and if you follow
auctions, you know that anything the man has
ever touched turns into gold. Up for auction
with Bonhams, this Indian will go under the
hammer soon and is expected to fetch the
equivalent of ` 18 to 23 lakh. Not cheap but
the good stuff rarely is.
FLAT
OUT
1. The CR-V is Hondas
first in-house designed
SUV. Before it, which
SUV was rebadged as a
Honda?
2. What exactly does
Unimog, as in the Mercedes-Benz, mean?
3. The Volkswagen
Polo GT TSI comes
with both a
supercharger and a
turbocharger
installed. True
or false?
4. The Force Gurkha is based on
which legendary off-roader?
5. Which car featured in this issue is also
known as the Wuling CN100?
6. The Mercedes-Benz A-Class that will go on
sale in India comes with a sandwich floor. True
or false?
7. What is the name Softail used to signify?
8. MotoCzysz actually intended on competing
in MotoGP, but was forced to abandon that due
to regulation changes. Which part of the bike
did these regulations concern?
9. The Chevrolet Enjoy shares its petrol
powertrain with the Chevrolet Sail. True
or false?
10. The Kawasaki Ninja 300
comes with a 275cc,
V-Twin engine. True of false?
Send your answers to bsmotoring@gmail.com. The first five entries with the
most number of right answers will win exclusive Gumball3000 goodies! Tip: The
answers are related to stories in this issue, though may/may not be in there..
ANSWERS FOR LAST MONTH'S
MOTOQUIZZING ARE:
1. The Porsche 911's four-wheel-drive system
was inspired by the legendary Porsche 959.
2. The Fiat Palio 1.6 was the first hot hatch in
India, with 100 bhp on tap.
3. The beast with the 6.4-litre V8 we were
referring to is the Jeep SRT-8.
4. The Reva was called the G-Wiz in the
UK market.
5. False, the Mahindra e2o is an all-electric
car and has no petrol tank.
6. The Honda Amaze is the first Honda car to
be sold in India with a diesel engine.
7. False, the standard Bajaj Discover 100 also
comes with a 5-speed gearbox.
8. Srini thinks the facelifted Hyundai i10s
front-end looks a bit like Amrish Puri.
9. The Yamaha GTS1000 borrows its engine
from the FZR1000 Exup.
10. False, the KTM 390 Duke comes with a
373cc, fuel-injected single-cylinder engine.
THE WINNERS OF THE APRIL 2013 EDITION OF MOTOQUIZZING ARE Rohit Shetty,
Abhay Mankar, Vishal Ramani and Leroy Menezes. Congratulations, guys!
SHORT
SHIFT
KAWASAKI NINJA 300
INDIAS NICEST 250 HAS JUST
TURNED 300. WE PUT IT
THROUGH ITS PACES
I
f I could have a rupee for every time someone pointed out
the Ninjas permanently-on headlights, I could possibly
have bought a ZX-10R with the proceedings. I dont
understand what it is about running headlights that gets
people so worried and concerned that they risk falling out
of buses just to point out the supposed error of my ways.
A stretch of an arm, a wild gesture and a smug grin that suggests
You fool, your lights are on! Did you inherit your license or
something?. I often offend my audience with a wild gesture of
my own, but on this day, astride the Ninja 300, bliss was only
about 11,000 rpm away, so with one solid twist of the wrist, all
was forgiven.
WHY 300?
Why not? A smaller engine producing higher than usual power is
going to be more hair-trigger, yes, but it will also feel stressed.
With a 296cc, 38.4 bhp liquid-cooled parallel-twin motor, the
Ninja achieves the best of both worlds its got enough juice to
hold your attention and its largely unstressed, which is useful for
those imaginary cooling-off laps on the way back home from the
twisties. The 6-speed gearbox, in conjunction with the slipper
clutch, adds to the fun and is entirely niggle-free.
HOW IS IT BETTER THAN THE 250?
The Ninja 250R that has been sold so far in the country is
fast, but dated. The bodywork, while attractive, is not very
Text RUMAN DEVMANE
Photos ADITYA UPADHYAYULA
contemporary, the riding position is sporty
but not excitingly so and although the engine
revs through the roof, it only really comes to
life post 9000 rpm. That hasnt stopped
people from buying the Ninja 250R because
a) no other manufacturer has tapped the
250cc multi-cylinder segment and b) the bike
isnt really flawed, its just a bit imperfect.
With the Ninja 300, all of the 250Rs quirks
have gone. Heres a motorcycle that borrows
many styling elements from revered
Kwackers (ZX-10R, ZZR 1400, you name it),
and has the technology that can equal larger,
much more expensive machines. Its now a
more sorted package than before and while
its still not perfect, its substantially closer to
perfection and definitely the best in its class.
Which is obvious, because it still doesnt
have any competition. Not just yet.
WHATS GREAT ABOUT IT?
Lets start with the engine. Unlike the older
Ninja, this one has a substantially better
mid-range which is what matters most in
India while still retaining its peaky nature.
Translated, its now quite tractable from
4000 rpm onwards, but it still does come into
its element post 9000 rpm. It feels a lot
quicker, the typical parallel-twin howl is
only magnified at higher revs and the light
clutch and more responsive throttle add to
the fun.
Then, we have its handling. In contrast to
its predecessor, the 300 feels a lot more
communicative and agile. The 17-litre fuel
tank is narrow and good to grip and the clip-
on bars are narrow, which take away the
leverage and stability wider bars provide,
but also add a sense of flickability, which is
much appreciated on a bike of this sort. The
suspension, though set to nearly the softest
setting on the test bike, still keeps the bike
fairly planted through even the most
aggressively-tackled corners, although with
two on board, it tends to bottom out. I hope I
get to try the hardest setting next time
round! All of these elements, along with the
chassis, give the Ninja a handling package
that can keep up with the heady power
delivery of the motor, and heres a Ninja that
will be as much fun on a racetrack as it will
be in the twisties. Special mention must be
made of the IRC tyres (110/70 R17 up front,
140/70 R17 at the rear), which grip with poise
and really allow you to push the Ninja as hard
as you can dare.
The 290 mm petal disc up front is sharp
and lever feel is progressive, although under
hard braking with a pillion on board, I did
notice the front tyre trying to lock and catch
me off guard on more than one occasion. ABS
wouldnt be such a bad thing on this bike,
though the lack of it is something you can
work around by occasionally engaging the
220 mm petal disc at the rear. With very
enthusiastic riding, the entire setup of the
bike does a fantastic job of coping with the
high speeds the 300 is capable of doing.
WHATS NOT SO GREAT
ABOUT IT?
Not much to report here, thankfully. Okay, I
dont like the fact that there are absolutely no
toys to fiddle with on the new digi-analog
meter console if the KTM Duke 200 can get
an average speed calculator, a distance-to-
empty readout and even a distance-to-service
indicator, why cant the Ninja 300 have it?
The digital vertical-bar fuel gauge is about
as accurate and reliable as telling the time
by looking at the sun is its a good
representation, but not very precise. I like the
seat very much its narrow and hard but
Im not sure itll go down well with everyone.
After a three-hour stint in the saddle, I
definitely got a bit butt-sore, but maybe
thats because I was rather pampered by
that Heritage Softail Id been riding the
previous morning.
HOW WILL IT COMPARE TO
THE KTM 390 DUKE?
Now that youve already read about the 390
Duke in Alans riding impression of it, you
know what to expect here. Yes, the Ninja 300
is not volatile, and it most certainly will not
kill you. Its on the good side of fast, but its
not extreme. The 390 Duke is. Also, both
bikes are very different in character despite
serving identical purposes. The Ninja 300 is a
motorcycle you can ride hard on the
racetrack, and the same can be said about
the Duke. Its also a motorcycle you can go
MOTODATA
KAWASAKI NINJA 300
POWERTRAIN
Displacement: 296cc, inline-twin
Transmission: 6-speed
CHASSIS
Type: Steel diamond tube
Suspension: Telescopic fork (f),
monoshock with double-sided swingarm (r)
Brakes (f/r): Discs
Tyres: 110/70-17 (f), 140/70-17 (r)
DIMENSIONS
L/w/H (mm): 2015/715/1110
Wheelbase: 1405 mm
Kerb weight: 172 kg
PRICE: ` 3.5 LAKH
Ex-showroom, Delhi Digi-analog instrument cluster is minimalistic but functional. Rear-set pegs are well
positioned, and the bungee tabs on the under-tail section are a very thoughtful addition
touring on (thoughtful bungee tabs under
the tail-section are a good addition), though
the Duke, by virtue of its stance, will have
the advantage here. In terms of overall
performance, the Ninja is like an inverted
pyramid little at the bottom, and better as
you go higher. This is more or less the
opposite in the case of the 390.
IS IT THE RIGHT BIKE
FOR ME?
If wild is what youre looking for, the Ninja
300 will disappoint. Its a sweet, fast bike
with lots of handling potential and lots of fun
to be had, but its only fun if you ride it hard.
Under casual riding, the Ninja is not half as
rewarding as it can be when in its element,
and you may not love it for being this way. If
a full fairing sets you ticking, and if youve
always dreamt of owning a big bike but cant
afford (or cant be bothered to buy) a 1000cc
in-line four, the Ninja 300 is the right bike for
you. Its fast, it handles well, sounds great
towards the redline and looks fantastic! If
you happen to own a Ninja 250R and want to
replace your motorcycle, the Ninja 300 will
feel much newer and much better to you,
and you will certainly find all the limitations
presented to you by the 250R nearly absent
from this motorcycle.
AND THE LAST WORD IS?
At ` 3.5 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi), the Ninja 300
is expensive, but the price is justified for the
technology on offer. Look at it as a motorcycle
that will introduce you to the world of multi-
cylinder performance, and new riding limits,
and it starts looking just as good as its
bodywork. Alright, the KTM 390 Duke is
probably going to be cheaper, and thats bound
to create a bit of confusion, but on its own merit,
the Ninja makes for seriously good value. Im
greedy and irrational, however, so Ill just wait
for word on the ZX-10R because happiness, I
hear, is better experienced at 300 kph.
ITS A SWEET, FAST BIKE WITH LOTS OF
HANDLING POTENTIAL
SHORT
SHIFT
H-D SOFTAIL CKDs
POLES
WE TAKE TWO VERY LARGE
CKD HARLEYS OUT FOR A SPIN
APART
T
he Fat Boy Special you see
here is a bit like me. I say this
not from my own opinion of
myself, which will always be
entirely inaccurate, but from
what I often hear from people
around me. Im a bit fat (okay, make that
quite), Im gifted with the physical
properties of a large Labrador (minus
the attractive facial features), and I am
certainly not the most tech-savvy guy
you will find. I am also known to be
aggressive and not very gentle, and as far
as motorcycles are concerned, I am told
that on most days I ride as if I have just
stolen the bike Im on.
This is exactly what the Fat Boy
Special is like. Its heavy and large
and has the same technological
features as a pocket calculator, but its
fast, restless even. You see, while the
matte black paint job looks menacing, it
doesnt tell all. The prominent design
feature is still the 1590cc V-twin, but
stealing its spotlight are the Special bits
from the world of Screamin Eagle an air
filter, loud pipes, the works and word is,
the Fat Boy Special is nearly twice as
powerful as your regular Fat Boy.
Heres a Harley that wants to do
200 kph all the time and one that knows
how to goad you into attempting it. It is
physically impossible to do so, however,
given that no human being has the
aerodynamic efficiency of a teardrop and
the FBS has nothing to shield you from the
wind blast. That said, at relatively saner
speeds (between 80-140 kph), the bike is
in its element and its a lot of fun. I dont
have numbers to back this, but my mental
clock says the FBS does the 0-100 kph run
in about 5 seconds, which feels more like 3
seconds, given the lack of wind deflection,
and as long as you ride it like a high-
performance bike, its very happy. It can
cruise at 80 kph in 6th gear, as is expected
Text RUMAN DEVMANE Photos ANEESH SHIVANEKAR
of all Harleys, in the same way that I can
walk 30 km at one go, but it just opts not to.
Why walk when you can fly?
However, while the Fat Boy Special is fun,
its not very Harley-esque. For starters, its
not the friendliest Harley around the clutch
action is rather stiff, the motor is thirstier and
the matte black bodywork is a pain to keep
clean. To be honest, if I wanted a fast Harley,
Id be looking out for a Buell, or
even an XR1200R, but I suppose
the Fat Boy Special exists for
exactly that type of person
who thinks a Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG
makes sense.
I dont know what that says about me,
then, in view of the intro to this story, but I
think now is a good time to introduce you to
a Harley I like rather a lot. Say hello to the
motorcycle with a name as long as its
wheelbase the Harley-Davidson Heritage
Softail Classic. And dont be afraid it wont
bite. Just saying the name of this motorcycle
is a sheer acoustic joy, and as far as pub talk
goes, this is the most intimidating bit of
name dropping you will ever do. But
whereas the larger Road King and Electra
Glide are motorcycle-Gods you cant mess
with, the Heritage Softail Classic (HSC,
hereafter have mercy!) is as friendly as
it is imposing.
OK, so its not built for everyone. Many
will think of this bike as overkill, even for a
Harley (too heavy/too much chrome/too
quiet) but it still is, somehow, the
quintessential Harley-Davidson wire-spoke
wheels, white-wall tyres, glossy paint
that looks as if it is still wet, chrome by the
quintal and a seat thats so comfortable,
it makes a bean bag seem like
a compromise.
The Fat Boy Special gets extra horses from
all those Screamin Eagle bits, resulting in a
very agile speedometer
FAT BO
Y SPEC
IA
L
Displacement:
1690cc, V-twin
Torque:
13.4 kgm@3250 rpm
Transmission:
6-speed
Kerb weight:
330 kg
PRICE:
` 15.6
LAKH
(ex-showroom, Delhi)
Its 341 kg kerb weight may be a
disturbing figure to read, but trust me, its as
easy to weave around traffic as a Bajaj
Avenger. Okay, you need to re-adjust your
traffic movement calculations given its
dimensions, but other than that, its a baby.
The low centre of gravity adds to the ease of
steering, and sort of makes up for the
enormous turning radius.
On the move, the HSC runs like a
dream. While it is very comfortable doing
speeds in excess of 140 kph, its lovable at
80. Snick it into 6th, sit back and relax.
Heres a machine that lays emphasis on
momentum and progress, on comfort and
pure riding pleasure, minus the adolescent
thrills and spills. I could do a Mumbai-Goa
run on it and return home the same day
its that comfortable although I think
making off with it and living life on a remote
island would be a better idea. To me, the
Heritage Softail Classic is not just the perfect
cruiser, its the most perfect Harley-Davidson
out there.
Now for the good news. Both the bikes
you see on these pages are now part of
Harleys completely knocked-down (CKD)
operations in the country, and as a result, you
can now get yourself a Heritage Softail
Classic for just ` 16.25 lakh (down by a cool
` 5 lakh, over its earlier price of ` 20.45 lakh),
while the Fat Boy Special can be yours for a
fair ` 15.60 lakh (all prices ex-showroom,
Delhi). Thats good pricing for motorcycles
that are unchallenged, VFM, and in a class of
their own.
As for me, I just had a few random,
entirely unconnected thoughts. Id like my
Heritage Softail Classic in a shade of
midnight blue. Theres a bank down the lane
from my house. Id like to put my thief-like
riding skills to some use...
High-quality chrome, a relaxed
speedometer and a large, unstressed V-twin
motor are the virtues of the Heritage
Softail. Can we have one as a long-termer?
HERITAGE SOFTAIL
Displacement:
1690cc, V-twin
Torque:
13.2 kgm@3000 rpm
Transmission:
6-speed
Kerb weight:
341 kg
PRICE:
` 16.25LAKH
(Ex-showroom, Delhi)
NEXT MONTH:
LAMBORGHINI
GALLARDO
CHEAP
THRILLS
HONDA ACCORD
WHY AN ACCORD?
Even if youre in the market for an entry-level
sedan, a used previous-generation Accord
will be well within reach of you. And for that
price, youll get yourself one heck of a ride.
The Accord is available with a 2.4-litre I-4
engine mated to either a manual
transmission or an automatic, or you can go
all out and get yourself the 3.0-litre
V6 version, which, at one point, was one of
the faster cars you could get in the country.
So, we ask you, why not an Accord?
WHICH VERSION SHOULD I
GO FOR?
The 2.4 MT is your best bet if youre looking
at a used Accord. The manual transmission is
reliable as day and coupled with the 2.4-litre
engine will get you some brilliant fuel
efficiency as well. Heck, on the highways,
you could hit fuel efficiency as high as 18 kpl,
which for a car of its size is quite impressive!
The V6 is good fun to drive, but youll be
lucky if it crosses single digit fuel economy
numbers expect 5 to 7 kpl at best. Look for
a post 2007 car as that is the one that got the
facelift and minor engine tweaks as well.
HOW MUCH SHOUD I PAY
FOR ONE?
The first model year of the seventh
generation Accords are going for as low as
` 3.5 Lakh, but they are likely to be high
mileage examples. The ` 4-4.5 Lakh range is
the one where you should be looking, and
in this range, youll be able to find plenty of
2.4 MT models, which are up for the taking.
At this price level, this works out cheaper
than buying a new sedan, too!
If youre bent on a V6 model, you
shouldnt be paying over 5.5 Lakh for a
good example. Have the car thoroughly
checked by a mechanic before closing the
deal though.
Looking for a used Honda Accord?
DACCORD
Though placed
as a premium
product here,
the Accord is
pretty much a
mainstream
product the world
over. And that means reliability is top
notch, nothing usually ever goes wrong,
and when it does, it can be easily taken
care of. That apart, there are a few issues
though. The initial lot of cars had a few
issues with the CD player, but most of the
cars on sale now will have that taken care
of. Another thing to watch out for is fuel
pump issues. Again, most of these issues
have already been taken care of, but have
a competent mechanic give the car a
check-up before comitting to anything. Its
generally a good idea to avoid automatic
transmission cars, both because of the
low fuel efficiency and because the
transmission can be expensive to
maintain and repair.
WHAT TO LOOK
OUT FOR
KIT BAG
MORE IS LESS
KNOX K-PACK BACKPACK
X
-TRA
WHAT IS IT?
A really good backpack from Knox, the guys who also make excellent riding armour and kit
IS IT REALLY GOOD?
Well, theres not much you can expect from a backpack, but somehow Knox has managed to
improvise on the simple concept and create a version so good, youd seriously think twice
before buying anything else. With a 25-litre capacity, and an internal liner in an interesting
shade of red, you can lug a good amount of luggage around and, thanks to the well-
reinforced spine, not feel a thing on your shoulders or back. It comes with a water repellent
helmet bag that can be attached to the outside of the bag, and a spare visor cover now
thats really thoughtful! The bum- bag is detachable and can be used separately; it too
comes with a waterproof reflective cover as standard, to save your prized belongings from
the rain. Really, what more do you expect from a backpack?
HOW MUCH?
` 5,950 (including duties)
WHERE?
www.outdoortravelgear.com
WHAT IS IT?
Like, really?
IS IT REALLY GOOD?
If it wasnt, it wouldnt be here. Weve got one,
and its a huge help in this terribly hot summer.
No more sweaty lids, no more looking like
youve just stepped out of a sauna the
MotoTech Storm balaclava is a neat little piece
of kit, and its largely indispensable in Indian
weather. Apart from the typical virtues of a
balaclava, whats good about the Storm is its
quality the seams are well stitched together
and it definitely wont be spontaneously
shredding any time soon.
HOW MUCH?
` 240
WHERE?
www.outdoortravelgear.com
RATED
Got your basic gear in order? Now
add these to your everyday kit
MOTOTECH
STORM BALACLAVA
TOUR THE HIMALAYAS WITH THE HIMALAYAN SHEPHERD
Dreamed of touring the Spiti valley on two
wheels but were not confident enough to do it on
your own? Well, now you can, and you have the
guys at www.himalayanshepherd.co to thank for
it. Three tour options are on offer Lahaul-Spiti,
Ladakh or the two combined. You can pick from
between a Royal Enfield and a selection of
imported enduro motorcycles, and the length of
the tour varies from between nine days to about
three weeks, depending on what you choose.
Still reading this? Why? Get on the internet
already and plan your next holiday!
LEAN
ANGLE
MOTOCZYSZ 012
E1PC RACER
ALAN RIDES THE
RACE-SPEC, TT-WINNING
MOTOCZYSZ E1PC
I
n June 2012 the American-built MotoCzysz 012 E1pc
ridden by Michael Rutter defeated entries from two
Japanese teams, one entered by Hondas blue sky R&D
affiliate Team Mugen and ridden by TT ace and current
outright lap record holder John McGuinness, to win the
TT Zero race for electric bikes in the Isle of Man. Rutter
crossed the line 23.52 seconds ahead of McGuinness to win at
an average speed of 166.5 kph (with teammate Mark Miller
third on another MotoCzysz) fast enough to write his name and
that of MotoCzysz in the TT record books as the first zero
emission motorcycle to lap the TT Course at over 100 mph
(160 kph), pocketing a ` 850,000 prize in doing so. Watch the race
at http://motoczysz.com/news/article/motoczysz_iom_history. This
race-winning speed over the worlds most gruelling and demanding
racetrack demonstrates that we must start taking electric sportbikes
seriously. The chance to ride Michael Rutters TT Zero-winning
MotoCzysz E1pc came on the e-bikes home track at PIR/Portland
International Raceway, a 3.17 km circuit with a drag strip front straight,
allowing full exploitation of the aerodynamic qualities of its
svelte streamlining.
Text ALAN CATHCART Photos KEVIN WING
The MotoCzysz is deceptively voluptuous,
its swoopy bodywork leading you to expect
that its a bigger bike to snuggle aboard than
it really is. In fact, its surprisingly slim and
comparatively small, but quite long, the
1435 mm wheelbase allowing you to push
yourself right back in the seat in a straight
line to minimise drag. The riders view is
subtly distinctive, with a chunky upper triple-
clamp housing the oval-section fork tubes,
and a large-diameter steering head embossed
with the Digital Superbike slogan. The AIM
digital dashs red surround incorporates a
square LED fuel gauge readout that goes
from 99 to zero, quickly telling you the state
of charge. Theres another row of LEDs
beneath that, with green ones on the left
which flash to show youre okay to complete
your programmed route on the available
charge, then blue for neutral, and yellow on
the right standing for caution and the more
yellow lights that are displayed, the more
caution you must use. Theres a more
detailed series of switchable computer pages
on the AIM dash which even Michael Rutter
says hes confused by, but which basically tell
the rider everything he needs to know about
his journey. To boot up the MotoCzysz, pull
the toggle switch on the left out and up, and
then press the red button on the right clip-on,
noting that the left one naturally has no
clutch lever, but none for the rear brake
either, as on a scooter. Now youre live, so
just twist the throttle and get ready for
vivid acceleration comparable to a
factory Superbike.
The MotoCzysz doesnt have too
aggressive a pickup from a closed throttle,
but its pretty brusque. However, thanks to
the grippy Pirelli tyres, I didnt suffer any
problems with hook-up out of turns, even at
a couple of PIR corners, where it pays to get
as hard on the gas as early as possible, to
maximise drive and ultimate top speed down
the following long straight. Plus, the fact that
the build of power all the way to the soft-
action 10,000 rpm limiter is so smooth and
linear, with no spikes in the delivery to set
the rear tyre spinning, made it feasible to
exploit the deep reserves of performance of
the MotoCzysz motor. But its massive 22 kgm
dose of torque all the way through the rev
range meant I destroyed a brand new Pirelli
rear slick, a 200-section tyre identical to the
one that Michael Rutter used to win the
TT Zero race on, in just 16 laps of a 3.17 km
track spent exploiting the e-bikes literally
awesome acceleration, delivered to the sound
of silence the MotoCzysz wafts along
completely silently at over 256 kph. There are
zero emissions as you do so, but also zero
dBA all I could hear through my Arai
helmets carbon fibre shell was the swish of
Cool, but supremely functional, the 012
E1PC racer has bits that aid its
aerodynamics and handling, while being
crafted with a serious attention to detail
the tyres running over the tarmac, plus a
little chain noise, but thats all. There wasnt
even much wind roar, thanks to the e-bikes
effective streamlining quite uncanny, and
also a little underwhelming. The visceral
thrill of mechanical sound is a key contributor
to the thrill of going fast, whether emanating
from the exhaust, the primary drive, or the
engine itself, and riding the MotoCzysz E1pc
at high speed underlined that.
But winding the throttle wide open
exiting the final right-hander onto PIRs pit
straight saw the MotoCzysz
hunker down, as the
substantial rearwards
weight transfer of the
238 kg motorcycle helped dial up grip from
that rear tyre, yet without any massive
wheelies just a lazy wave of the handlebars
denoting mind-boggling drive out of the turn,
which let me easily out-accelerate a Ducati
1098R I came across one lap, to pull alongside
him as we headed off down the long straight.
We were dead even on top speed, although I
fluttered the rev limiter just before the end as
I hit a top speed of 259 kph, according to
the onboard telemetry. But then,
surprise, surprise, the much
heavier MotoCzysz decisively
outbraked the Italian V-twin into the double
right-hander at the end of the straight, the
great bite from its radial Brembos aided by
the regenerative braking delivered by
the ECU. This gave the equivalent
of engine braking, for at last on
the MotoCzysz I
I DESTROYED A BRAND NEW PIRELLI REAR
SLICK IN JUST SIXTEEN LAPS...
encountered what Ive been seeking ever
since I first started riding electric bikes: rider-
adjustable regenerative braking, aka regen.
Michael Czysz has installed a four-way
switch allowing you to vary the amount of
regen available, or indeed to switch it off
altogether. Doing that dials up a good
impression of a two-stroke GP bike, as you
freewheel into a bend with a good chance of
missing the apex altogether unless you work
the Brembo brakes just right. Going to the
other extreme and dialling in the most
intrusive setting will practically have the
MotoCzysz stopping dead in its tracks as you
back off the throttle, but any of the other
three are good to work with in helping you
stop from high speed, maintaining turn speed
nicely without understeering off the chosen
line and all without any trace of the rear
wheel chatter that will affect any bike not
equipped with a slipper clutch if you overdo
the engine braking. The MotoCzysz was
ultra-stable sitting it out with the Ducati and
assorted four-cylinder superbikes at the end
of the straight, where the fact you dont have
to worry about slamming it down through the
gears means you can focus 100 per cent on
track position, on hitting your braking marks
and on how early to get back on the throttle
again, especially with the immediate pickup
of the e-motor theres zero delay in throttle
response, just totally immediate pickup out
of a turn, made even better by the single
best ingredient in the MotoCzysz handling
package, the special Czysz-designed (and
patented) oval-section carbon fibre fork,
with an adjustable-rate link operating the
monoshock housed where the fuel tank
would normally be. The Czysz fork
immediately delivers significant confidence,
where even the best set of conventional tele
forks will ask you to take time exploring their
limits. Thats because the damping provided
by the fully-adjustable front RaceTech
monoshock delivers fantastic feedback from
the Pirelli tyre, with minimal stiction. Its as
if youre holding the front axle in your hands,
with only the tyre between you and the track,
MOTODATA
MOTOCZYSZ 012 E1PC
POWERTRAIN
Displacement: Electric motor with 14
kWh battery pack
Max torque: 22.4 kgm
Transmission: Single-speed gear drive
CHASSIS
Type: Carbon fibre twin spar
Suspension: Telescopic forks with
inboard shocks (f), swingarm with
monoshock (r)
Brakes: 2x320 mm discs (f),
1x220 mm disc (r)
Tyres: 120/70-17 (f),200/55-17 (r)
DIMENSIONS
Seat height: 800 mm
Wheelbase: 1435 mm
so you can feel every ripple, every
imperfection in the road surface, telling you
exactly how far you can push the tyre while
cranking the MotoCzysz hard over, and
keeping up turn speed. It feels stable, yet
sensitive those linear bearings work!
And the fact that suspension response is
separated from the steering means you can
trail-brake deep into the apex of a turn
without any fear of the fork freezing or failing
to absorb bumps.
According to Michael Czyszs stopwatch,
the confidence-inspiring handling of the
MotoCzysz apparently allowed me, while
riding in traffic, to lap within the e-bike lap
record set in the U.S.TTXGP series round
there in June by the works Brammo e-racer
that won this National-level championship,
in the absence of the MotoCzysz team as it
focused on TT Zero victory. Thats a mark
of how capable a motorcycle the MotoCzysz
is, and how accomplished its engine
performance and handling are. Indeed, the
best compliment I can pay Michael Czysz is
that hes created a sportbike with impressive
performance by any standards, which just
happens to be powered by an electric motor
rather than a combustion engine. Even while
harnessing Czyszs claimed over 201 bhp at
8,000 revs at the output shaft, its handling is
capable and confidence-inspiring, and I think
this comes down to the TT-winning bikes
low cee of gee and generally user-friendly
architecture, thanks to the clever disposition
of the batteries it has to carry to deliver that
race-winning performance. This makes the
turn-in under braking of the MotoCzysz quite
intuitive and practically indistinguishable
from a normal bike, in turn encouraging you
to throw it on its side in pursuit of higher turn
speeds. Moreover, the TT-winning e-bike felt
poised on turn-in, requiring less physical
effort to flick it from side to side than I
expected, especially in a chicane. With a
maximum quoted range from a single charge
of 240 km at road-legal speeds (compared to
61 km at TT Zero race-winning speed, albeit
including climbing the Isle of Mans 1,385 ft
high so-called Mountain), the MotoCzysz has
enough practicality to be the ultimate Sunday
morning ride. 160 km at track day speeds is
within range on a flat track like PIR so
heres hoping that the MotoCzysz business
plan includes a Michael Rutter Replica E1pc.
If he can sell it for Bimota prices, I reckon
there are customers there for this kind of
electric excellence especially with that
frankly sensuous streamlined styling.
Michael Czysz will be returning to the Isle
of Man for a fifth successive year in 2013,
with Rutter and Miller once again riding
evolved versions of his lap record-breaking
MotoCzysz. Honda sorry, Mugen! will be
returning, too, once again with TT ace John
McGuinness in the seat, while a further top
contender will be another TT race-winner,
Australian Cameron Donald aboard one more
American-built entry, the Lightning which
currently holds the world land speed record
for electric motorcycles at 345.5 kph. But the
MotoCzysz E1pc is the one to beat, after the
bike I was able to ride at PIR completed a
hat-trick of TT Zero race victories in 2012.
Four in a row this coming June? Dont bet
against it.
SHUTTER
SPEED
SCHUMI TO CONQUER
NORDSCHLEIFE
126 VEEDUB FOR
VICTORY
120 BUTTON UNDONE
122 MARQUEZ MAN
M
ichael Schumacher may have hung his racing boots
at the end of 2012, but his need for speed hasn't
diminished one bit. Come May 19, he will attempt
to lap the Green Hell in a 2011 Mercedes-Benz F1
car, only the second time since Nick Heidfeld's
attempt in a modern F1 car, in 2007, courtesy BMW F1. It's Michael's
way of saying a big thanks to his fans for his involvement in the
sport. Certainly, it's a bash worth attending!
GREEN MEISTER
Photo: L
HOPE AND
CAN MCLAREN REALLY
SALVAGE ITSELF IN 2013?
I
f Perez gives Button a difficult time,
its up to Button to come to terms
with it. Its a fact of life. He cant
expect Martin Whitmarsh to tell
Perez to back off. An off the cuff
remark from former McLaren driver
John Watson set off the tone and the mood
of whats currently happening at camp
McLaren. Rumours about Ron Dennis
being demoted after McLarens less-than-
impressive performance from the road car
business as well as F1 (which McLaren flatly
denied) and Christian Horners reminder
that even Force India at the moment are
ahead of McLaren is only adding salt to
their wounds.
If anything, races three and four of the
2013 season are forcing many within the
team to look at work on the 2014 season
instead.
CHINA: Lewis had a memorable
Saturday, qualifying in pole and was looking
to make his bosses at Mercedes-Benz
believe that their investment was worth it.
When the five lights went out, it seemed
that everything was going according to
plan. Then, things changed once DRS was
made available. The two Ferraris, who had
gained a spot on Kimi Raikkonen at the start
managed to catch up with the Brit and on
lap five, in a spectacular move, both Alonso
and Massa managed to overtake him,
relegating him to third. With Raikkonen also
on a charge, it came down to pitstops to
change the equation yet again.
Elsewhere, Webber was involved in a
scrap with Jean-Eric Vergne from sister
team, Toro Rosso, which led to a premature
retirement. Alonso, meanwhile was making
moves on his rivals after the first set of
pitstops and it seemed, under DRS, the
Ferraris were quicker around the track.
Button, who was on medium compounds,
suffered from bad pitstop strategy. Despite
making his move up the ladder after the
first pitstop, he wasnt effective enough in
his second stint and eventually was
relegated to fifth when the chequered flag
was waved at the end of the 56th lap. But
Alonso wasnt going to lose it, using his
inch-perfect driving, spot-on pitstop
strategy and pace under DRS to score his
first win of the season, with Raikkonen just
Text ROHIN NAGRANI Photos MANUFACTURERS
TRACK
RECORD
F1 2013 CHINA
AND BAHRAIN
ten seconds behind and Hamilton, probably
looking relieved that he managed a podium
finish, considering Vettel could have
bumped him to fourth were he to have an
extra lap.
BAHRAIN: Nico Rosbergs surprise run
on Saturday meant two Mercedes-Benz
poles in a row. But it would turn out to
be Vettels turn on Sunday to add some
silverware to the Red Bull family. Rosbergs
tyres didnt seem to find the right amount of
grip and by the end of the race, he only just
managed to scrape ninth, receiving two
points for his efforts, with team mate Lewis
finishing fifth.
For most part of the race, Vettel led the
race once he overtook Rosberg on lap two.
After the first set of pitstops, Paul Di Resta
of Force India briefly took the lead, but that
was just about it. What made matters worse
for McLaren, especially after a below par
qualifying performance was the scrap
between Perez and Button during the
middle of the race. Perez, who has been
under fire for being non-aggressive through
the first three races was determined to
prove otherwise, and Button was looking to
score some points. While the barrage that
followed post race (and the subsequent
apologies) may have lessened the impact, it
doesnt seem to have helped them improve
race performance just yet. Alonso,
meanwhile was having troubles of his own
with the DRS unit that seemed to be non-
functioning throughout the race. It cost
him nearly a second a lap and he slipped to
17th, before fighting back to a respectable
eighth. Teammate Massa could do no
better than 15th, but the strong showing
from Lotus Raikkonen in second and
Grosjean in third means the team is
seriously fighting for the constructors
championship as well.
As for McLaren, they must certainly be
hoping that the championship moving to
Europe, with Spain next on the calendar,
should help improve things.
JORGE LORENZO WINS THE 2013 MOTOGP
SEASON OPENER, BUT ALL EYES ARE ON ROSSI
AND MARQUEZ!
THE RACE
The floodlights covered up for the dark of
the night, and the MotoGP bikes being
fired up in the pits only added to the
anxiety of the millions of spectators
watching the 2013 season opener. Will
Lorenzo be able to hold on to his pole
position advantage? Will Rossi really fight
back and live up to the hype and
expectations? Will Marquez pull a fast one
on the Yamahas? Or will Cal Crutchlow
throw in a surprise? Well, most of that
happened during the course of what was
a very exciting MotoGP round and by the
looks of it, its only going to get better.
On the very first lap, Jorge Lorenzo
pulled away a clean length and stayed
there for the entire length of the race,
absolutely uncontested. Good for him,
because the real action was happening in
his imaginary rear-view mirrors. The
Doctor, who needs no introduction, started
the race in a disappointing seventh place,
on the third row of the grid, but on the
very first corner moved into fourth in an
impressive display of speed, although a
slightly miscalculated move around
Andrea Dovizioso (astride a Ducati Team
TRACK
RECORD
MOTOGP LOSAIL
& COTA
THE DOCTOR
STRIKES!
THE DOCTOR
STRIKES!
MOTOGP LOSAIL, QATAR
QUALIFYING
ON POLE: JORGE LORENZO
TEAM: Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1)
FASTEST LAP: 1m 54.714s
P2: CAL CRUTCHLOW
TEAM: Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1)
P3: DANI PEDROSA
TEAM: Repsol Honda Team (RC213V)
GP13) forced him to run wide and pushed
him back into seventh place.
In the meanwhile, Repsol Honda riders
Dani Pedrosa and Marc Marquez sped
away into the distance, with Cal Crutchlow
hot on their heels. Marquez matched
Pedrosas speed but the latter held his
ground and didnt let the former Moto2
champion through for a long, long time.
The battled for second took the three riders
three seconds ahead of Stefan Bradl, who
started the race in fifth astride his LCR
Honda RC213V, and Rossi, who had to wait
a while before he could pass the German
lad. But The Doctor, in his inimitable style,
did pass Bradl, who crashed soon after and
in the matter of a few laps, closed right in
on to Crutchlows tail, eventually passing
him. Marquez, too, found his way past
team-mate Pedrosa, both their Repsol
Hondas twitching and sliding in their battle
against grip and each other.
With four laps to go, Rossi pulled a
successful move on Pedrosa and an intense
battle later, with just two laps to go, passed
Marquez, too. Marquez retaliated almost
immediately, passing Rossi on the inside at
turn 1 on the very last lap of the race, but
Rossi did a one-up on him, passing him one
final time, and taking the second step on
the podium, with Marquez in hot pursuit
just 0.2 seconds behind him! A Yamaha 1-2
was the resultant finish, though Marquez
did live up to the hype and was certain to
return stronger in the next race at the
Circuit of the Americas.
MOTO2
QUALIFYING
ON POLE: Pol Espargaro
TEAM: Tuenti HP 40 (Pons Kalex)
RACE RESULT
1ST: POL ESPARGARO (SPA)
TEAM: Tuenti HP 40 (Pons Kalex)
OVERALL TIMING: 40m 31.782s
2ND: SCOTT REDDING (GBR)
TEAM: Marc VDS Racing Team (Kalex)
3RD: TAKAAKI NAKAGAMI (JPN)
TEAM: Italtrans Racing Team (Kalex)
MOTO3
QUALIFYING
ON POLE: Luis Salom
TEAM: Red Bull KTM Ajo (KTM)
RACE RESULT
1ST: LUIS SALOM (SPA)
2ND: MAVERICK VIALES (SPA)
TEAM: Team Calvo (KTM)
3RD: ALEX RINS (SPA)
TEAM: Estrella Galicia 0,0 (KTM)
THE RACE
As was expected of him, Marc Marquez
proved to be the strongest at the fantastic
Circuit of the Americas round. Having tested
rather brilliantly at the very circuit earlier,
Marquez was the popular choice for the top
slot on the podium for this race and, not
surprisingly, he delivered. As a result,
Marquez is now not only the youngest
MotoGP rider to have started a race on pole
position, but has also broken Freddie
Spencers record of being the youngest
MotoGP race winner, a title that hadnt been
challenged since 1982!
It wasnt entirely a dream run for the
20-year old, however, as he lost his pole
advantage to team-mate Dani Pedrosa and
Stefan Bradl at the very first corner. While
Marquez dealt with the latter with distinct
ease in not much time, his move on Pedrosa
came with just nine of 21 laps to go.
Thereafter, though, he made it stick and both
Repsol Hondas were engaged in an intense
battle for first place, which finally went to a
deserving Marquez, who extended his lead
by an almost miraculous two seconds!
Jorge Lorenzo fought a lonely battle as
he succumbed to third place on the podium,
with his bike proving no match for the
Repsol Hondas, and he now shares his
championship standings with Marquez.
Before you ask, Valentino Rossi started the
race in eighth, between Alvaro Bautista and
Aleix Espargaro but could only finish 6th,
ahead of Andrea Dovizioso, since the four-
second lead established by Stefan Bradl in
fifth (chasing Cal Crutchlow in
fourth) was too much of a gap
for Rossi to make up for. Next
time, Doc!
MOTO2
QUALIFYING
ON POLE: Scott Redding
RACE RESULT
1ST: NICOLAS TEROL (SPA)
TEAM: Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2 (Suter)
2ND: ESTEVE RABAT (SPA)
TEAM: Tuenti HP 40 (Kalex)
3RD: MIKA KALLIO (FIN)
MOTO3
QUALIFYING
ON POLE: Alex Rins
RACE RESULT
1ST: ALEX RINS (SPA)
2ND: MAVERICK VINALES (SPA)
TEAM: Team Calvo (KTM)
3RD: LUIS SALOM (SPA)
Next round: Jerez, Spain
ON RECORD
MOTOGP CIRCUIT OF THE
AMERICAS, TEXAS
QUALIFYING
ON POLE: MARC MARQUEZ
FASTEST LAP: 2m 3.021S
P2: DANI PEDROSA
P3: JORGE LORENZO
TEAM: Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1)
TRACK
RECORD
WHATS MORE...
T
he positive fallout of
Sebastien Loeb not
participating in more than
four rallies is being felt by
Volkswagen Motorsport.
Rally Portugal helped cement
Volkswagens lead in the championship,
something the form of motorsport hasnt
VEE DUB THEE
CHAMPION?
HIGH
FIVE
After taking nine consecutive wins in
WRC, Sebastien Loeb has set his sights
on circuit racing. Hes already taken part
in a few Porsche Carrera Cup France
races and will be taking part in the first
two rounds of the Porsche Mobil 1
Supercup.
The Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup is a
support series for the Formula One World
Championship, which will see Loeb
behind the wheel of the new Type 991
Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. With a level
playing field, itll be interesting to see
how Loeb takes on this challenge indeed.
Something else to look forward to will
be the return of Peugeot to Pikes Peak.
Loeb will be piloting a specially prepared
Peugeot 208 T18 at the hill climb later in
the year!
seen for years, given Citroens
unshakeable performance for nearly a
decade now. Despite Dani Sordos initial
surge and Mikko Hirvonens fightback
after Dani crashed out on day two, the
Citroens didnt seem to stop Sebastien
Ogier from registering a win on a third
consecutive gravel rally round.
Overcoming illness, Ogier who was
once Loebs teammate was very briefly
behind Mads Ostberg in his Ford at the
end of stage two on day one. But for
the rest of the rally, Ogier built up a
lead that his rivals couldnt seem to
narrow. Dani Sordo tried hard after day
one, but his rally ended early on
Saturday after an off-road excursion.
Hirvonen, who would eventually finish
second, lost four minutes at service, but
couldnt make up for lost time and
eventually finished 58.2 seconds behind
the leader. That has put Ogier in the
enviable position of championship
leader, by a huge 54 points over
Hirvonen and Volkswagen a good 15
points up on Citroen on the
constructors table. The next round
heads to Argentina, where Loeb makes
a comeback, but can he in any way stop
the juggernaut that is Volkswagen? You
will probably need to read this space
next month to find out for yourself.
New beginnings
After a particularly terrible rally
crash in the Canary Islands,
Robert Kubica is showing some
interest in getting back into F1
again. The ex-BMW and Renault
driver has been spending some time
in Mercedes GPs facilities in
Brackley, England,
logging hours on their
F1 simulator.
Mercedes GP
themselves took on Lewis
Hamilton this season, so theyre
pretty much full-up, but it doesnt
hurt to look at other options, we
guess. Dont get your hopes up
though, a full comeback to F1 will
still take Kubica a long time,
still. Were just
glad the wheels
are in motion
though.
The folks over at Mahindra Racing were
pretty impressed with their best ever
result in Qatar in the Moto3 class of
MotoGP, but were sure theyre pretty
delighted with a finish in 5th place by
rider Miguel Oliveira. After the Moto3
race at the circuit of the Americas was
red flagged initially, and was restarted,
with the riders positions counting
towardds their grid position. In this five
lap dash to the finish, Oliveira managed
to work his way through the pack to earn
himself a fifth place finish. The other
rider in the team, Efren Vazquez came
home in fourteenth place. Overall, a great
weekend for Mahindra Racing, then!
Getting back on track
SURVIVOR
MAHINDRA QUANTO
Considering its size, its amazing how the
Quanto delivers 30kpl!
QUANTO PHYSICS
O
kay, so now, the rest of the
team isnt too eager to take
the Quanto off my hands
anymore. Thats probably
because the AC, which saw
an improvement after the last
servicing, still makes you sweat in the sun.
Its not the ACs fault, really, its just that
theres so much glass area, that the heat
makes it into the cabin very easily. I think AC
vents in the rear of the car could really help
the situation.
Anyway, this worked out quite well for
me, because I recently shifted houses.
We hired packers and movers, of course,
but the Quanto came in really handy when
carting around all the odds and ends, like
AC units and kitchen sinks, between the
two places. Moving is usually not a good
experience, but at least it wasnt more
unpleasant than need be. Ive also noticed
that after servicing, the car runs a lot
smoother now and mileage, too
has improved.
In fact, on one of our recent runs to Pune
and back, the Quanto averaged well into the
20s, going up to 30 kpl even, on the way
back. And let me tell you, we werent exactly
going easy on the throttle either. Its mind
boggling how something that weighs this
much, going so fast can still manage such
astonishing mileage figures!
Im not going to be letting go of the
Quantos keys anytime soon!
ESSENTIALS
Fuel economy, space
Looks
AC is still overwhelmed on
sunny days
MAHINDRA QUANTO
PRICE AS TESTED: ` 8.96 LAKH,
OTR, Mumbai
TESTED BY: Aditya
ACQUIRED AT: 890 km
LAST MILEAGE: 15630 km
FUEL EFFICIENCY (OVERALL): 17 kpl
EXPENSES: Flat tyre repair ` 90
SURVIVOR
HYUNDAI ELANTRA 1.6 SX
T
he Elantra has been quite a
mile muncher over the last
few months. Apart from the
usual commutes, its also been
a useful support car and in
just four months, has
managed to clock just under 7,000 km in
pretty much no time. While this may not
sound much at first, its actually spent
about one and half months in the
service station for some TLC. Heres
what happened.
One evening in late December, as I was
heading home, an incident with a vehicle
up front led to the Elantra nursing its way
to the Hyundai Motor Plaza service station.
A private cab, running a couple of car
lengths ahead of me, came to a dead halt
in the middle of the road to tiptoe over a
pothole. Finding myself and the Elantra in
this peculiar situation, I braked hard.
However, the surface under the tyres was
lined with paver blocks, causing the
brakes to lock, the ABS refusing to kick in
(ABS units dont seem to be tuned for
paver blocks for some reason) and became
a hapless occupant as the tail of the cab
grew larger and larger in my windscreen.
The damage was done; the bonnet wilted,
the front bumper had a large crack and the
AC cooling system piping developed a
leak. It being a rather odd hour, I gently
drove it back home, checked if the
essential running gear was fine and
waited patiently the next day for
Hyundais service team to collect the car.
ESSENTIALS
TOUCH AND GO
TOUCH AND GO
The Elantra has been raking up the miles. But it hasnt
been entirely incident free
HYUNDAI ELANTRA 1.6 SX
OTR, Mumbai
TESTED BY: Rohin
ACQUIRED AT: 1953 km
LAST MILEAGE: 8,782 km
FUEL EFFICIENCY: 10.9 kpl (worst),
11.8 kpl (city), 17.2 kpl (highway),
20.4 kpl (best)
EXPENSES: Front bumper, bonnet and
grille replacement, regular service (paid
for by Hyundai)
One thing led to another and what should
ideally have taken no more than two
weeks, took nearly six.
Anyway, things did finally turn around
and by early February, the car was back
with us. In the last report, I did mention a
strange vibration during idle that
continues to remain despite having asked
Hyundai to look into the matter.
Otherwise, shes back to being fit as a
fiddle. The service has helped the car
improve its economy as well; returning
12 kpl in the city and climbing up to 20 kpl
on the highway, the speedometer hovering
at 90 kph in sixth. The engine has a decent
combination of economy and pace, though
I have to admit, it does feel slightly
overwhelmed by the cars size and weight.
Theres some lag too and at times, the
sixth gear does feel like a bit of an overkill,
if you ask me. On the highway, the soft
ride makes the car a bit dynamically weak,
though its a good step or two up on the
likes of the Verna and i20. Yet, the car is
effortless in the way it chews up miles
and feels comfy enough for four people.
There is more from the Elantra still to
come, and with the engine nicely opening
up, its time to put more serious kilometres
on the clock. Maybe, a good 1000-1500 km
drive should do the car some justice.
Comfort
Features
Blend between economy and
performance
Light steering good for city,
bad for highway
Dynamically
handicapped
SURVIVED
RENAULT DUSTER RXZ 110
O
kay, I have to confess that Ive run out of things to say
about the Duster, but I am helpless when The Great
Nagrani says you have to write about something, you
write about precisely that something. I may as well
begin by saying that Renault has made noises about
wanting the Duster back; needless to say, we are
going to make counter noises about holding on to it.
The Duster has, of course, swept every major automotive award
in the country recently, and there are several very good reasons for
this windfall. It looks interesting, to begin with good looking
may be a bit of a stretch, in my opinion. It has a definite presence
on the road, and its compact dimensions make it stand out from
other, bulkier SUVs. It scores well on the practicality front, with
impressive room in the cabin and plenty of storage space in the
hatch as well airport runs and road trips are easily accomplished
with the Duster. You cant seat seven people, of course, but thats
not a bad thing, because the optional dealer-fitted jump seats arent
DONE AND
We hope not
DUSTED?
very comfortable, nor do they have seat
belts fitted.
The engine is very fuel efficient
(its strongest point), but suffers from
considerable lag (its weakest attribute),
which can make quick getaways a frustrating
experience. This car is happiest when it gets
to stretch its legs in an uninterrupted
manner, and highway performance is very
pleasing indeed. Crawling about in city traffic
can be a literal pain, because the stiff clutch
pedal gives your left leg a proper workout.
Ride quality is excellent all-round, however,
and the Duster acquits itself well off-road,
even though it lacks 4WD. Best of all, its
handling characteristics are car-like, so you
can throw it around bends enthusiastically
and itll play along.
In general, the ergonomics are acceptable,
but the famous French design quirks are very
much in evidence the ORVM adjusters
placed under the handbrake, the awkwardly-
positioned audio control unit behind the
steering wheel, the volume controller on
the stereo faceplate that isnt, after all, the
volume controller (it scans for radio stations)
and so on. Our test car has some unique
quirks besides the standard ones the
audio system switches off after exactly ten
minutes, which is deeply annoying,
especially if your phone is hooked up via
Bluetooth and youre in the middle of a
conversation, and the cigarette lighting
socket has left the world of the living.
All told, though, the Duster is a very
enjoyable vehicle its honest and makes no
pretentious claims, its solidly put together, is
fun to drive and is very easy on the wallet in
terms of its drinking habits.
Like I said, Renault, consider these the
noises of someone wanting to drive it for a
while longer.
ESSENTIALS
Fun to drive
Frugal
Compact dimensions
Renault wants it back
Turbo lag
Ergos
RENAULT DUSTER RXZ 110
OTR, Chennai
TESTED BY: Pablo
LAT MILEAGE: 11,236 KM
FUEL EFFICIENY (OVERALL): 12 kpl
EXPENSES: None
NIGGLES: Dead cigarette lighter,
schizophrenic audio system
SURVIVOR
BAJAJ PULSAR 200NS
I
dont think weve given Bajajs
latest Pulsar enough credit. This
is one of the finest home-grown
production machines in the
country today. For the price, its
fantastic and in just one single
year, Bajaj has produced two of the best
motorcycles on sale right now. Sure,
KTMs technology has helped them make
this massive leap, its not easy meeting
this kind of success. In turn, KTM
benefitted from Bajajs cost-effective
mass-manufacturing expertise. Credit
where credits due. Good job, Bajaj.
Weve spent nearly a year with the
NS and all things considered, we really
wouldnt hesitate in recommending one.
Like we mentioned in our earlier report,
the 200NS is stunning. It looks
purposeful, the proportions are just right
and save for the hideous hugger, the
200NS looks pretty good. Weve ridden
the Pulsar hard for almost the entire
time weve had it and yet, no real issues
have cropped up. The much-improved
build quality was also much
appreciated. In the city, its nimble and
quick to change direction though we
dont like that slightly top heavy feeling.
Riding out on the highway, its a much
more comfortable motorcycle than the
Duke 200, it can cruise better at a higher
speed and even on the economy front,
it wins. No doubt, the KTM will eat it
raw in the twisties and tighter urban
spaces, but the Pulsar is just better
everywhere else.
Its fun, fast, practical, good-looking,
built right, has a good service backup,
is priced spot-on and simply put, it just
works for India. There are a few niggles
but none of them are even close to being
deal-breakers. If this is a teaser for
Bajajs future, the future looks very
promising indeed. So promising, in fact,
that were getting impatient just
bring the 375 already!
ESSENTIALS
BAJAJ PULSAR 200NS
PRICE AS TESTED: ` 99,220
OTR, Mumbai
TESTED BY: Aneesh
LAST MILEAGE: 3930 km
FUEL EFFICIENCY: 36-38 kpl
EXPENSES: None
NIGGLES: Clanking bits here
and there
Under a lakh, theres no denying that
this is one of the best deals ever
YELLOW FEVER
YELLOW FEVER
SURVIVOR
MAHINDRA DURO
A
new house which has no parking
for cars has put me in a bit of a spot.
Ive managed to find safe parking
for both my own Indica and the
Quanto long termer, of course, but its a good
four kilometres away from home. Thats
when the Duro comes in, basically acting as
my shuttle between the car and home. It
starts up at half crank nearly every time, and
when it doesnt, pulling the choke usually gets
the job done, and so far, its been very reliable.
Thanks to the poor state of the roads though,
the rear tyre went flat a couple of weeks ago.
I have to admit Ive been a little lazy
with the maintenance of the Duro, as the
squeaky suspension and main stand issue
havent been taken care of yet, but its off to
the service station for this little scoot next
week, I promise!
Ground clearance
Fuel efficiency
Headlamps, squeaks
The Duro proves itself very handy
during a move
MAHINDRA DURO
PRICE AS TESTED: ` 47,264
OTR, Mumbai
TESTED BY: Aditya
ACQUIRED AT: 22 km
FUEL EFFICIENCY: 35 kpl (Overall)
EXPENSES: ` 90 for one flat tyre
ESSENTIALS
CHUGGING
ALONG
CHUGGING
ALONG
QUICK
COMPARO
E2O VS NANO
1
FIRST,
THE ESSENTIALS
2
WHAT WILL YOU
TELL YOUR FRIENDS
ABOUT THIS CAR?
4
WHAT WILL
YOUR NEIGHBOURS
THINK OF YOU WHEN
YOU BUY IT ?
You can say its Indias first serious mass-
production all-electric car. You can tell them it will
look like a Lamborhini if they squint very much,
and that you can seat four in it and ferry them
around for roughly 110 km on a full charge. You
can even tell them it can be unlocked using your
smartphone, though that may not end very well...
Because its easy to drive in the city, because
its got smart features like regenerative
braking, GPS, a cool multimedia interface on
the top-end version, and overall good-quality
interiors. Importantly, its electric, hence
environmentally responsible. Also, it looks like
a Lamborghini if you squint very much...
That two of the four people (the ones on the rear
bench) the e2o will accommodate will be a bit
cramped. Okay, charging is technically simple,
but you may have neighbours making a fuss for
consuming general electricity units (some of us
know better about this) five hours a day. Also,
the ABS plastic panels dont feel very strong, and
for the limited practicality on offer, its expensive.
Some will say you should have bought a Swift, or
even an Alto, instead. Some will pose perplexing
questions such as what happens if you drive it
on flooded roads?. Most will think of it as a cute
car, though, but only if you park it next to your
BMW 5 Series. And keep safe distance from
technologically inclined grandpas!
Price (Ex-showroom, Mumbai) ` 7.01 7.37 LAKH
ENGINE 3 phase induction motor with 48v battery pack,
25.4 bhp@3750 rpm,
5.4 kgm@0-3400 rpm
TRANSMISSION Automatic
DIMENSIONS in mm (L/W/H) 3280/1514/1560
WHEELBASE 1958 mm
GROUND CLEARANCE 180 mm
KERB WEIGHT 830 kg
MAHINDRA E2O
5
WHY IS IT
BETTER THAN
THE OTHER?
3
WHAT WILL
YOU HIDE FROM
YOUR FRIENDS
ABOUT THIS CAR?
That you could have bought a proper Alto 800 had you shelled
out a little more money, that its too small, and that you could
have replaced your two-decade old Maruti 800 with something
more premium. Some may admire your austere tastes and
appreciate you for not contributing to traffic congestion and for
sucking up Mother Earths natural resources, but most people
will just think you are boring. Unless you buy one in yellow...
Because its larger, has a stronger powertrain,
looks more conventional and, most importantly,
can be driven for nearly 375 km on a single tank
of tuel. Also, it takes barely two minutes to fill
up that 15-litre petrol tank. Oh, and for the price
of an e2o, you could buy three Nanos and still
have some money left for a few tankfuls.
That youve bought a car for the masses ,
projected to be sold with a ` 1 lakh sticker, that
now retails at more than twice that figure. That
said, its a packaging marvel and not only can
you seat four in it in comfort, but also perhaps
squeeze in a fifth person. Its got a fantastic
air-con, a tiny turning radius and is fun to drive.
That if you had shelled out a little more money,
you could have got yourself a proper Alto 800.
That its got a tiny twin-cylinder engine, and
that while it accelerates decently, deceleration
may be an issue given that it has drum brakes.
Also, like the e2o, it doesnt have a power-
assisted steering unit sigh! Oh, and looks like
compressed Indica, not a Lambo.
Price (Ex-showroom, Mumbai) ` 1.57 2.24 LAKH
ENGINE 624cc, twin-cylinder, petrol,
37.4 bhp@5500 rpm,
5.2 kgm@4000 rpm
TRANSMISSION 4-speed manual
DIMENSIONS in mm (L/W/H) 3090/1495/1652
WHEELBASE 2230 mm
GROUND CLEARANCE 180 mm
KERB WEIGHT 600-635 kg
TATA NANO
M
y automobile scale
model collection
reached the dozen mark a few
months ago, and it hasnt
grown since. It began once
adulthood (reluctantly) kicked
in and bears no correlation to
the gazillions of Hot Wheels
models a succession of aunts
have tripped over and/or been
partially blinded with. So far, I have
managed to get my hands on a BMW
R1200GS, three classic Vespas, a
Lamborghini Miura and an Airbus A380
which has a tail-fin so sharply crafted out of
unforgiving metal, I weep like a baby every
time I even look in its direction. Thats apart
from a Lotus Evora (or is it an Exige? I can
never tell) that I inherited from Rohin and
also a little yellow Mini Cooper S, a Renault
Alpine and a (wait for this) Duster.
As word of mouth about my tiny
collection spread, I landed a 64 Corvette, a
42 Harley-Davidson WLA and a Mercedes-
Benz S-Class from a quick succession of
(ex)girlfriends well, thats good taste in
automobiles! Now, I dont aspire to own a
huge quantity of scale models, but I do want
to collect all generations of the Mercedes
S/SL-Class. And thats looking like a
problem. You see, as I recklessly wade
through rack after rack of scale models at
the local supermarket, trying my best not to
look like someone who doesnt have a real
car or is a thief, a man of the most
diminutive stature crawls up behind me and
asks Yes, Sir?.
If you ignore the forceful bestowment of
knighthood, the implication of the question
is even harder to digest. Now, heres a man
who wouldnt be able to identify a Yamaha
YZR M1 if it were to slip into his sheets in
the dead of night, and hes posed a question
that not only has no answer, but also has no
meaning. If this is to enquire whether I
intend to steal or not, theres a fat chance
hes getting the truth out of me. And beyond
this, I dont see what purpose his question
would serve. This, then, must be his vague
idea of customer service.
And, as I am sure you will agree, this is
the case with all kinds of customer service
mannerisms in the country. Go to a
restaurant and you will be asked of whether
your main course is well-prepared. Well, if
you werent sure of it yourself, how could
you serve it in the first place? This gets
worse when you visit a car dealership. The
answer to each of your questions regarding
fuel-efficiency, ride quality and warranty is
Sir, tea or coffee? Your query related to the
cars delivery date is always answered in
the accessories section, where you are
lured with floor mats you would never buy
of your own will, and the approval of your
loan application has no answer it is always
a question.
Buying a new motorcycle is an even
worse experience because no one has a clue
what a disc brake actually does, or what the
abbreviations pasted on the flanks mean.
And they cant even lure you with floor
mats. So heres a word for everyone who
wishes to sell anything at all study your
product like your life depends on it and dont
ask questions that make customers flee to
the truly awful automotive accessories
section. For every Yes? you ask, the answer
can be a very amusing No. Ive tried it, and
its very, very funny.
DONT ASK
ME NOW
T HE DI F F US E R
R U M A N
D E V M A N E
THE APPROVAL OF
YOUR LOAN
APPLICATION HAS NO
ANSWER IT IS
ALWAYS A QUESTION
ruman.devmane@delhipress.in

BS Motoring - May 2013

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