34 2011 Yamaha R15 (?) Spied..!!

New/Upgraded R15 on cards in 2011..??

Two photos of what looks like an upgraded Yamaha R15 has been recently reported on Orkut and xBhp.Com. (by one of its member Vaibhav Saigal)..!!

Could this be the Yamaha R25, the possible 250 cc answer to the Honda CBR250R?

Just in the previous post I had put the Yamaha R15 in "Not the Best Styled Motorcycles of India: My Top 10" list. The reason was its relatively "thin" looking rear which was out of sync with its super sports inspired full fairing. The following spy shots show that Yamaha has probably finally decided to address the Achilles Heel of the R15, its malnourished looking rear portion.

2011 Yamaha R15 (?)

What's new?

16 "Not the Best" Styled Motorcycles of India: My Top 10

My own Top 10 motorcycles from India which do "not" have the best styling..

Forword: Although styling is a matter of personal taste.. and in most cases lies in the eyes of the beholder. But one can't argue against the fact that a bike has to look good from "every possible angle".

One might not agree with me, but posted below are my "Personal top 10" bikes which have a little bit of problem in their styling or in some cases totally bad styling. Please do not get offended if you happen to own one of the motorcycles mentioned below.

10. Bajaj pulsar 220 DTS-Fi (2007)

Even though I myself own a Fuel Injected Pulsar 220 DTS-Fi, I am not shying away from calling a spade a spade. Although the bike looks good from the front and rear and three quarter view, when viewed bang side on, the fixed half fairing appears as an after thought. The shape of the front fairing and the tank is not in proportion to each other.

But the visual appearance of the bike has improved after the 2009 Pulsar 220 DTS-i (carbureted) version got the all back theme (engine, alloys finished in black) which has helped keep the visual impact tighter.

35 Best Looking Motorcycles of India: My Top 10

My own Top 10 best looking motorcycles from India..

A properly styled bike in most cases guarantees that the sales numbers will keep on ticking. As they say it "Well begun is half done" Personally to me, styling is what makes a bike more emotional and closer to the heart. In fact to me, styling of your bike defines what kind of person you are.

Although styling is a matter of personal taste.. and in most cases lies in the eyes of the beholder. But one can't argue against the fact that a bike has to look good from "every possible angle" to be called as one of the best styled bikes.

Also a bike need not be always "sporty" to be called good looking. Beauty can definitely be found in simplicity as well.

Note: Bikes like the Ninja 250R has not been included since it is an import assembled in India. Bikes like the Honda CBR250R and KTM 200 Duke have not been launched in India yet, therefore they do not find a place in the (2010) list below.

Bikes like the TVS Apache RTR and Hero Honda Hunk do not make it to the list because in terms of styling they have just followed the leader, i.e. the Bajaj Pulsar and do not bring anything novel in terms of styling.

Posted below are my Top 10 Best Styled Bikes of India.. till date.

10. Hero Honda Splendor

Styling of the Splendor has remained exactly the same (except the addition of alloy wheels and graphics changes) since 1994. This has actually helped the Splendor retain its simple/classic commuter looks. I like the styling of the Splendor. Kind of reminds me of the simpler days of my childhood.

11 India might get the KTM 200 Duke..!! Not the 125 Duke

Yeah.. baby yeah..!! Europe will get the KTM 125 Duke, but India might get a bigger KTM 200 Duke..!!

Just a casual search on the internet will land you on many sites and blogs which have already declared with authority that the KTM 125 Duke will be launched in India. Its actually sad that even a couple of the mainstream media actually have joined the party in spreading this piece of unconfirmed news.

I say unconfirmed, because there was never any official statement from either Bajaj or KTM about the engine size of the KTM bike meant for India. Just like its difficult to stop dominoes from falling after the first one, similarly after one site/blog makes a breaking "unconfirmed" news it’s almost impossible to stem the flow.

I myself never made the same "125 Duke for India" proclaimation on my blog because I knew that Europe was getting the 125 cc/15 Ps bike because of the European licensing laws for beginners (and for someone with a car’s license, which allows them to ride a bike upto 125 cc with a max 15 Ps power).

Since this law is not applicable in India, so why restrict at 125 cc engine capacity for India? Especially when it’s almost known that there would be very few who would be ready to shell out 1 lakh plus Rupees for a 125 cc bike, no matter how it performs or looks.

While the rest of the crowd might swoon over the full faired Honda CBR250R..

I’ll prefer an Orange KTM 200 Duke in my parking lot. Thank you.

By the way Honda manufactures the 125 cc, CBR125R in Thailand and exports it to Europe, but at the same time it also sells an identical looking CBR150R but with a 150 cc engine in the Thailand market. I am actually surprised that no one has guessed that there could be something similar for India from KTM.


Official word of a 200 Duke for Asia and South American markets

10 Ad Campaigns: Yaari Ki Gaadi & O Suzuki Slingshot

2010 Splendor NXG Campaign, "Yaari Ki Gaadi": "Good TV Commercial, Irrelevant Positioning"

The Splendor NXG according to me has always had an identity crisis right from its very inception. Let’s try to analyze how Hero Honda has tried to position it in the mind of the customer in the last couple of years.

1. 2007: When it was launched the launch campaign was something called "The Splendorful Bike". Confused as to what it means? Don’t ask me.

2. 2009: This campaign this time it revolved around "Bharosa bhi, Style bhi". After all the Spendor NXG borrows its name from Splendor+, its 100 cc cousin which has the reputation of reliability. So therefore the "Bharosa"(i.e reliability) part comes in. Hero Honda has tried to give the Splendor NXG stylish looks compared to the Splendor+. [Watch the TVC here]

I have heard of Friendship Bands, but a Friendship Bike?

But there was/is one small problem for the Splendor NXG. The NXG comes across as just a copy of the Passion Pro, its other 100 cc cousin. Actually the current Passion Pro is any day a better looker than the NXG. So anyone who wants a Stylish looking Splendor will obviously go straight for the Passion Pro, why should he look at the Splendor NXG?

3. 2010: "Yaari Ki Gaadi"