This year is going to be an exciting one for sure for the bikers in India. And most of this excitement will be courtesy Bajaj. The Pune based two wheeler giant has some very interesting bikes lined up for launch this year. Small capacity bikes from its own stables and some middle and big capacity bikes from both its Austrian partner KTM and its Japanese partner Kawasaki.
Bajaj Auto
Blade: The scooter was first showcased at the 2006 Auto Expo. It then sported a 150cc engine. This time around though it gets a 4 valve head based 125cc engine. The styling is not much different from before. Twin headlamps and a tinted visor on the handle bars give it a thoroughly sporty look. Infact, it wouldn’t look out of place in the streets of Italy. Mechanically speaking, it gets 12inch alloy wheels, disk brakes, and front fuel-filler. Expect it to be one of the most powerful scooter in its class.
Discover 150: Bajaj stopped making the Discover 112 and 125 since the launch of the XCD. The 135 was the only Discover left. This led to the Discover climbing up the ladder. And now with the 150, expect the Discover brand name to grow further. The frame looks like it has grown up a bit to house the Pulsar motor. The front shocks, the rear swing arm and shocks, the exhaust look like a carry over from the Pulsar too. The styling is based around the Discover tank, which retains its shape. The over all styling though is pretty staid to say the least. It gets tank extensions which house LED indicators. Also it gets a new headlamp. Bajaj is planning to make it the commuter 150 while the Pulsar can be expected to become even sportier.
For pictures click here
XCD Sprint: This has to be the most radically styled bikes showcased by any of the manufacturers, apart from the imports that is, at the Auto Expo. I have only seen the pictures but man does it look extreme. Again Bajaj has retained the XCD tank. There are new tank extensions (Tank extensions are becoming a bit of a Bajaj hallmark. First seen on Pulsar 200, than the XCD and now on the Discover 150 and the Sprint) sporting a chrome member in the middle. The middle section retains the triangle family look and is finished in brushed aluminum look. The tail is sporty too, with brilliantly integrated LED tail lamps. It gets sporty set of foot pegs with a new bracket for the pillion foot pegs. The bike also gets a disk brake up front which seems smaller than the regulation 240 on other Bajaj models. The rear tire hugger looks a little too big and disproportionate. The front is dominated by a new headlamp with not much to show by way of a fairing but has two colored strips on the side with stalk mounted indicators. It looks very good undoubtedly. The bike also gets digital instruments as can be expected from any new model from Bajaj now.
For Pictures click here
Bigger Bajajs: The company didn’t show any other models at the Expo, so maybe they are not going to launch any this year. But the 4 valve head is the new development and we should expect the bigger models (read that as Pulsar) to get this too by next year. It has also been reported that Bajaj is also developing bikes bigger than the 220.
KTM
Bajaj has increased its stake in the Austrian manufacturer to 20.89%. Though the joint development of engines is on the cards (starting from 125cc all the way up to 250cc, all liquid 
cooled), but it is still some time away. In the mean time, by middle of this year, the Bajaj Probiking Showrooms will get an Orange corner as well. The bikes lounging here will be the Duke 690 and the RC8.
Both the bikes look like typical KTMs. The 690 will be brought in as a CKD while the RC8 will come as a CBU. I’m hoping the Duke 990 will also be imported. It looks much better than the 690 and also has an extra cylinder as well as more power.
It will be great if Bajaj prices the 690 at around the 5lakh mark while the RC8 at around the 11lakh mark (R1 anyone?).
Kawasaki
I think when Bajaj partnered KTM, someone at the factory remembered that they had a Japanese friend with a strange sense of color choice. The green meanie had partnered Bajaj way back in the 80s producing the likes of KB100 and KB125. Anyways, next to the Orange corner, at the Probiking Showrooms, will be the Green corner. 
And the first bike sporting the maniacal green will be the baby Ninja. Not exactly a ‘baby’ compared to the current crop of bikes on sale in our country, but yes, it’s a baby compared to its elder siblings. The Ninja 250 will be introduced by the middle of this year and will come in as a CKD. The kits will be imported from Thailand. The bike had received thorough updates last year when presented at the Paris Motor Show. The bike sports a fuel injected parallel twin motor producing 30PS of power. The gearbox is a six speed unit. The bike is a huge seller for Kawasaki in the US market. It is a ‘learner’ bike for many beginners. Hopefully a price tag of around 1.8lakh will keep it within the reach of a large number of bikers.
Others who are likely to join the 250 are the ER-6n, the Ninja ZX-6R and the Z1000. The 6n is a 
street bike with a parallel twin (72PS of power) and minimalist styling. I think it’s a touch too much like the 690 as far as selling the two from the same showroom is concerned. The ZX-6R is the Super Sports contender. The Z1000 is a naked featuring a 1000cc inline four making 125 PS of power. Prices are anybody’s guess. But expect them to be competitive as the CKDs will attract less duty than the CBUs.
So all in all, Bajaj looks set to rock the motorcycling scene in the country this year.
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