DSK Hyosung GT650R and Aquila Pro 650 Launch Photos

Today morning we witnessed the launch of the first Super Bikes in India for this year by DSK Hyosung. Here are some of the launch photos of GT650R and Aquila Pro 650.

You can find more photos in our official facebook fan page.

The Ducati Dry Clutch

As the Italian Exotic super Bike Manufacturer who involves itself in extensive racing believes in using Dry Clutch is what makes their bikes unique. Let’s take a peek into the Dry Clutch Technology.

Just as someone can identify a distinctive V-Twin of a Harley that passes by, it’s even more unique to hear a Ducati pull over. Although people might think that the rattling sound that screams for attention needs serious attention for a tune-up. The assumption ends there, the bike is perfectly fine and what the sound the bike produces apart from the sweet exhaust note the clutch rattle is a signature tune of a Ducati that only a Ducati enthusiast will understand.

Basics: What is a Clutch?

A Clutch is an arrangement of plates that are stacked in alternate fashion, one geared on the inside to the engine and the next geared on the outside to the transmission input shaft. In simple terms the friction plates and steel plates are depressed under the spring load that transmits the power from the engine to gearbox which subsequently transmits the same to the wheels.

Wet Clutch

As a Common practice to all the manufacturers and seen almost in all motorcycles the conventional method of the clutch mechanism is the clutch plates and pressure plates bathed in oil and completely sealed that requires a very little or no maintenance at all if driven under ideal conditions. This is the universally followed method by almost all manufacturers even with Ducati with some of their models like 848 and Mosnter 1100 Evo.

Dry Clutch

Dry Clutches on the other hand are totally free from oil and need not require sealing. The dry clutches are exposed which makes the naked eye to see the spinning clutch plates which is not possible with the wet types. The initial dry clutches were designed for racing purposes which enabled the teams to do a quick swap of the clutch without having to drain the oil. This eventually helped them to save a lot of time and get back on to the track. Although some feel that incorporating this technology on street bikes is just a marketing gimmick, the pleasure to watch the clutch spinning at the twist of the throttle is a pleasure too.

Pros and Cons of a Dry Clutch

As the heading says, this will not be a put off for a guy raring to own a Ducati, beware even some of the world class manufacturers such as BMW use this technology too.

Pros:

• Easy access for repairs. Draining of oil not required. Especially useful for racing teams.
• As the name says the Dry clutch does not share oil with the rest of the engine and thus disintegrating the clutch for a service or replacement will not harm the engine’s internals
• Heat generated by the clutch plates on continuous usage does not heat up the engine oil especially important to note for bikes that uses oil to cool the system.
• Oil bathed clutch creates a small amount of drag which will affect the engine power. Although not to a great extent but does get some brownie points for this.

Cons:

• Noisy to some people and music to enthusiasts, a matter of personal preference here.
• With the clutch parts being exposed high chances of the springs getting rusted in the coastal regions. Peace of mind assured by replacing them with stainless steel ones.

Having said all the Pros and Cons about the Dry clutch, ever wondered why does a Dry clutch sound like rattling of stones put inside a steel bucket? It’s simple; the sound heard is the clutch plate bouncing off one another when the clutch is disengaged.

This is the distinctive sound heard when a Ducati pulls over making the rider to pull the clutch lever, freeing up the plates to knock into each other. So, hearing this as a noisy rattle or a sweet clatter is your preference next time you encounter a Dry Clutch Ducati.

Mahindra ‘Likely’ To Launch Mojo By Next Fiscal

We, as Auto Editors and Review Writers will become too busy all of a sudden covering left, right and center on Mahindra’s Mojo as and when the bike is showcased in any expo. The bike was initially showcased in the 2010 Auto Expo and the bike was a prototype at that point of time. Then came the 2012 Auto Expo and the bike was still a prototype. (I still remember visitors craving to get a pic clicked with the Mojo)!

Finally, there seem to be some discussions and progress with Mahindra on making this bike hit the roads. The Mojo, a 300cc bike conceptualizes the trend of Indian youth, and the design concept of the bike reflects the same kind of mood deep within.
But for some reason, Mahindra had stopped progressing with its bikes soon after the issues it faced with its Stallio model. Now, with the coming up of two new models – Pantero and Centuro, Mahindra has again opened its discussions on the Mojo.
Mahindra seems to be giving a try id they can launch the Mojo by next fiscal. They are now looking out for engine prototype that would ideally go with the Mojo. “We are going through testing protocols right now for the engine. We are hopeful of its launch in the next fiscal,” president of two-wheeler sector and member of the group executive board, Mahindra & Mahindra, Mr. Anoop Mathur, said.
He also added that the company is also making sure that the vehicle is duly tested in all aspects including its engine performance before Mojo would strike the roads.

Mahindra 2 Wheelers is trying hard to expand in both the scooter and the motorcycle segment and coming up with new models would be of top priority for the company in order to compete in the Indian two wheeler market.
Expect the company to come up with more products in both these segments in the years to come. “We want our presence across segments and ranges. Our plan is to come out with new models of scooters and motor cycle at frequent intervals over the next three to five years,” Mathur said.
A new variant of the Rodeo would mark its foray into the India market by the third quarter if next fiscal. Before the end of March 2012, Mahindra 2 wheelers would have also started its export plans. However, the company has not revealed any details as of now on what are the models that are focussed to be exported. Also, there are no hints on what are the markets they are eying on.

“It is our strategic plan to have a significant presence in the motor cycle exports market. We hope to start shipping out our bikes within this fiscal,” Mathur said.
I had also posted a news on Mahindra’s R&D centre that was recently opened in Pune. This R&D centre has been recognised by the Department of Science and Industrial Research (DSIR) and will enable Mahindra Two Wheelers to undertake in-house design and development of engine technology for its motorcycles as well.  This facility is the home to over 175 engineers and designers. The new Mahindra Two Wheelers R&D facility was created at an investment of about Rs. 100 crore and has two wheeler experts who are leading in various technology and product development projects.
The two commuter bikes – Pantero and Centure which were launched very recently were brainchild of this centre and this would be of great use in coming up with the right kind of engine for the Mojo.
Regards,

Yamaha May Lose Its Second Spot to Hero Motocorp in Worldwide Sales

India’s largest two wheeler company Hero Motocorp ltd. is all set to surpass Yamaha Motor Corporation of Japan in the year 2012. It is likely possible that Hero Motocorp will surpass Yamaha Motor Corporation global sales by few thousands unit in the year 2012. Hero Motocorp will grab the second spot behind its former partner and now arch rival Honda Motor Corporation of Japan.  Does this mean Yamaha Motor Corporation has lost the battle? Does this mean that Hero Motocorp is really performing well? Does it mean that Indian two wheeler companies will rule the world in upcoming days? Let’s check it out.

Single v/s Holding company

First and foremost, which is world’s number 1 two wheeler company? Our homegrown company Hero Motocorp always claims that it’s world’s number 1 two wheeler company. Now, that is correct only in a single company method. Hero Motocorp is the only company in the world which sells more than 6 million units of two wheelers in a single year across the globe. The second spot belongs to PT Astra Honda Motor of Indonesia, a joint venture between Honda Motor Corporation of Japan and PT Astra International, with 4.27 million Units in the year 2011 and the third spot belongs to our homegrown Bajaj Auto Ltd. with 3.8 million units in the year 2011.
However, if we take the holding company method than Hero Motocorp is not the number 1 two wheeler company. According to holding company method the world’s number 1 two wheeler company is Honda Motor Corporation of Japan with 12 million units in the year 2011 which is followed by Yamaha Motor Corporation of Japan with 7 million units in the year 2011.

Both Honda and Yamaha operates though various subsidiaries and Joint ventures due to which these companies do not have number 1 or number 2 rank as per single company method.  For example Honda Motor Corporation of Japan has a subsidiary HMSI (Honda Motorcycle and Scooters India ltd) in India and Joint venture in Indonesia Astra Honda (Joint Venture is between Astra group of Indonesia and Honda Motor Corporation of Japan).  Honda also had the joint venture as Hero Honda in India which was ended last year.  It is to be noted that although Honda does not have any stake in Hero Motocorp, Hero Motocorp still sells the Honda engine only.  Similarly Yamaha Motor Corporation has various subsidiaries like India Yamaha Motor Pvt. Ltd. (IYM)  in India and PT. Yamaha Indonesia Motor Manufacturing (YIMM) in Indonesia.

Hero Motocorp v/s Yamaha Motor Corporation in 2012.

As per holding company method Hero Motocorp has the third spot and in the year 2011. It was just 0.86 million units behind the Yamaha Motor Corporation of Japan.  Both the companies were bullish about their prospect for 2012 year sales. Hero Motocorp targeted to sell 7 million units for the financial year 2012-13 and Yamaha Motor Corporation targeted to sell 8.3 million units.  However, the year 2012 remain sluggish for global two wheeler demand which made both the companies to revise their annual sales target.

Yamaha’s global sales in 2012

Yamaha’s 75% sales come from South East Asia Region.  Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand are the major markets in South East Asia from where Yamaha’s most of two wheeler sales origins.  The situation remained disappointing in these markets in the year 2012. Indonesia which, accounts for almost 46% of Yamaha’s total two wheeler sales pie is going through one of the worst year in Indonesian two wheeler industry. For the nine months the sales remain in negative territory compared to last year. In fact in the May 2012 Indonesian two wheeler industry was shrunk by 13.5%. Moreover, Yamaha Motor Corporations has lost some market share to its arch rival Honda in Indonesia. The situation in other markets like Vietnam, China and India is also not encouraging enough. Sales growth in India has come down to single digit.

Chinese two wheeler market

It is to be noted that the world’s first, second and third largest two wheeler market is China, India and Indonesia.  China is world’s largest two wheeler market; however it is fragmented between many Chinese motorcycle manufacturers.  Moreover, Japanese manufacturer are fraction of Chinese two wheeler industry be it Honda or Yamaha.
Apart from this China is also an unfavorable market to other global two wheeler manufacturers due to IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) issue. For example, Chinese manufacturer Taian Chiran Machinery Co.,Ltd. copied Pulsar and made Gulsar motorcycle. Other copy of Pulsar made by Chinese manufacturer Chongqing Union Company Limited is SUM200 Pulsar. Japanese manufacture Honda and Yamaha also had bad experience of Chinese motorcycle manufacturer for selling two wheelers under their brand names.

Indian two wheeler market

The world’s second largest market India, is dominated by Hero Motocorp and Yamaha has only 3% market share in India.  As mentioned above Yamaha will register de growth in Indonesia which is world’s third largest market.  In order to come out this situation Yamaha has planned to produce world’s cheapest motorcycle at $500, it has also planned to launch scooter in India and capacity expansion in Vietnam to increase its sales. However all these efforts will take time to boost sales and for the year 2012, Yamaha will not achieve its sales target for sure.
Compared to Yamaha, Hero Motocorp is in better condition to take Yamaha’s second spot. The company is registering more than five lakh units’ sales in India only and for the year 2012 the company has registered final figure of 6.12 million units which is lesser than what the company targeted.  However it is enough to compete with Yamaha Motor Corporation which registered 4.52 million units sells for the first nine month of 2012. Although the 2012 number is yet to be announced we expect the company to close the year around 6.05 million units which is more than 25% less than what company targeted initially.
Hero  Motocorp will have 9 million units production capacity by 2014. Further, Hero can use Honda engine till 2014 so the company will bind to grow in India given its brand equity. The only challenge which Hero Motocorp will face is retaining its market leader position without Honda support which is very crucial to its future.  However, for next two year we will not see any major change in the condition of Hero Motocorp.
Yamaha Motor Corporation will have to perform better in the South East Asian and Indian market if the company wants to regain it’s second position worldwide. Yamaha Motor Corporation has come out with medium term business plan where company is planning 250 new models to its overall line up to regain  its lost position.
It is interesting to see if Yamaha has retained its second spot or Hero Motocorp have gained world’s second largest two wheeler manufacturer spot on consolidated basis in the year 2012, once Yamaha Motor Corporation will declare its fourth quarter sales of the year 2012.
- Mahavir Kothari

Hyosung To Pull Wraps Off The GV650 In India On January 17th

The middle-weight displacement cruiser motorcycle might see some flurry of activity again with the advent of long awaited Hyosung GV650 on 17^th of this month. DSK Motorwheels who is engaged in the assembly and distribution of Hyosung branded motorcycles in the Indian market will be unveiling the bike. It is to be noted here that rumors of the launch of this bike were afloat on the internet since a long time, when Hyosung was under the realm of Garware Motors. According to the rumors, the Hyosung GV650 was supposed to arrive in the Indian market mid last year, but with Hyosung changing hands from Garware to DSK Motorwheels, it is understood that plans took a setback.
Coming to talk about the motorcycle, the Hyosung GV650/ Aquila is powered by a 647cc, liquid-cooled, DOHC 8-valve 90° V-twin engine that churns out 79 BHP of power at 9000 RPM and 67 NM of torque at 7250 RPM. This engine is mated to a 5 speed constant mesh gearbox sending power via a belt to the rear wheels. The front comes loaded with upside down Telescopic forks with adjustable compression and rebound while the rear gets Swing arm with Hydraulic Double shock absorber, which gets adjustable pre-load settings. Braking power is provided by 300mm diameter Semi floating double discs with dual piston caliper at the front and 270mm diameter single disc with dual piston calipers. The front rides on 120/70 ZR18 59W tires while the rear rides on 180/55 ZR17 73W fat section tires. With fuel injection technology loaded, it is expected to deliver a decent fuel economy figure. It is expected that DSK will be launching this motorcycle in the price bracket of Rs. 4.5 lakhs to Rs. 5 lakhs (ex-showroom). At such a strategic pricing, it will be a good hit in the Indian market since a cost effective middle weight cruiser segment is currently void in India. Let us hope for the best.