Indian All 2003 Motorcycles, page #16

Moto blog

New Delhi Auto Expo 2012 – Motorcycle Manufacturers Draw Battle Lines for World’s Second Largest Market

In past years, the biennial Auto Expo in India slipped under the radar while the industry was focused more on shows such as EICMA in Italy and Intermot in Germany. But with India’s middle class starting to flex its financial muscle while other markets continue to struggle, the New Delhi show is becoming much more prominent, with major OEMs positioning themselves to claim a piece of the India’s 13 million vehicles-a-year market. We’ve already looked at India-produced Royal Enfield’s new Thunderbird 500 and Hero Moto’s hybrid scooter concept which debuted at the Auto Expo, and today we’ll look at what the major international OEMs presented.

Hero Moto Unveils Leap Hybrid Scooter Concept, Claims 235 MPG

Indian manufacturer and former Honda partner Hero MotoCorp has unveiled a new hybrid scooter prototype at the 2012 Auto Expo in New Delhi. The Hero Leap runs on a series hybrid powertrain with the battery-powered electric motor providing most of the power and the gasoline engine acting as a range extender, charging the battery and supplying power when the battery runs low. Hero claims fuel economy of up to 100 km/l, which translates to an eye-popping 235 mpg.

2012 Indian Motorcycle Preview

For Indian, 2012 represents 110 years since the first motorcycle bearing the namesake rolled off whatever sufficed for production line at the Hendee Co. in 1901. To celebrate, Polaris Industries, owner of the Indian brand since April of this year, is celebrating the occasion with special badging on all 2012 models.

Polaris Reports Q3 2011 Results

Polaris Industries announced another record quarter with sales growth across all its product lines including on-road vehicle sales which consist mainly of Victory Motorcycles and Indian Motorcycles. The Medinia, Minn., company reported $67.6 million in net income for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2011, a 43% increase from the $47.2 million reported in the same quarter of 2010.

US Highland Making a Comeback

US Highland appears to be making a comeback, announcing plans to begin processing new orders and having discussions with several OEMs for the use of the Oklahoma company’s powertrains. The Tulsa-based company did not mention which OEMs it is working with, though US Highland says the discussions could result in sales of over 20,000 units per year. The company is developing fuel injected V-Twin engines in 750cc, 950cc and 1050cc displacements and Singles in 350cc, 450cc and 507cc displacements.

First Polaris-era 2012 Indian Motorcycle Rolls Off Spirit Lake Assembly Line

A new era has begun as the first Indian Motorcycle under the ownership of Polaris Industries has been produced at the company’s Spirit Lake, Iowa, factory. The landmark first Polaris-owned Indian won’t be heading right to the showroom floor however; instead, it will undergo extensive testing and evaluation by Polaris. As such, this particular Indian Chief Vintage, and the rest of the 2012 Indian line, will be fairly similar to Indian’s previous offerings, save for some minor updates to catch any issues Polaris already discovered.

Lambretta Licensees Deny Consortium’s Trademark Infringement Claims

Two companies named in the Lambretta Consortium’s claims of trademark infringement say they have legitimate rights to use the Italian scooter brand’s name. Clag International and Motom Electronics Group (MEG) have released a joint statement saying Italian courts have ruled their licenses to use the Lambretta name are valid. The statement was released in response to the Lambretta Consortium’s announcement about taking legal action against unlicensed use of the brand.

Piaggio Reports First Half 2011 Results

The Piaggio Group reported slight increases in net sales and net profit over the first six months of 2011 compared to the same period in 2010. Net sales increased 1.1% to 830 million euros (US$1.19 billion) over the first six months of 2011, compared to 820 million euros (US$1.18 billion) in the first half of 2010. Piaggio reported a net profit of 33.3 million euros (US$47.9 million), a slight increase from the net profit of 33.1 million euros (US$47.6 million) reported last year.

Two Recall Campaigns for 2009-2011 Indian Motorcycles

Polaris issued two separate recalls for 2009-2011 Indian motorcycles, one for a problem with the headlight and another with the kickstand. According to documents released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the kickstands on 2009-2011 Indian motorcycles may not fold up and to the rear if the motorcycle is moving forward with the stand deployed. As a result, the kickstand fails to meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No.

Our Magnificent seven

Remember to dust your Union Jacks down if you happen to be visiting any Grand Prix this year as we have no less than seven youngsters to cheer on in the junior Moto GP classes. I don’t think we’ve ever had this many ‘yoofs’ in the GP paddock so let’s hope they can do the business and bring an end to our long drought of Grand Prix titles. And that could be soon as Scott Redding is already a hot favourite for the 2011 Moto 2 championship on his Marc VDS Suter machine.