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Car registration fee hike put on hold The government has decided to review the proposed increase in registration fee of petrol and diesel vehicles amid heavy lobbying from the auto sector that is facing its worst slowdown in nearly two decades.  A draft notification by the ministry of road transport and highways issued last month proposed to increase the registration charges for new internal combustion engine (ICE) cars to Rs 5,000 from Rs 600 at present. Renewal of registration of ICE cars is proposed at Rs 15,000.  http://www.shalomcabs.in/

Upcoming 300-400 cc motorcycles in India Thanks to the growing popularity of the existing 300-400 cc KTM and Royal Enfield models in India, companies are seeing a lot of potential in this segment now. Here are five upcoming new entry-level performance motorcycles with engines in the displacement range of 300-400 cc: Yes, the KTM 390 Adventure has been a long time coming. Based on the KTM Duke 390, it is expected to be unveiled at EICMA 2019. The bike  will be launched in India first . The KTM 390 Adventure will be suspended over upside-down fork up front sourced from WP and a monoshock in the rear. The former will be spruced up with extra travel. The KTM 390 Adventure will have a 19-inch front wheel and a 17-inch rear wheel. Tyres will be on and off-road biased. Besides that, expect top-level spec features in the KTM 390 Adventure. This will include LED headlamp, coloured TFT display and optional Bluetooth connectivity as seen in the Duke 390. Other features like ride-by-wir

BS-VI TVS Apache RTR 160 4V spotted ahead of imminent launch The revised front-end of the BS-VI Apache RTR 160 4V features bigger pilot lamps, along with a LED headlight setup. The redesigned headlight mask (in a dual-tone finish) adds a refreshed look to the front fascia of the Apache RTR 160 4V. Another set of clear spy images from CarToq reveal the rest of the design, which is identical to the current (BS-IV) version. Thus, you can see a muscular fuel tank with an asymmetrically mounted filler cap, a single-piece step-up seat, a boxy exhaust design, an engine cowl and a split-style pillion grab rail. The saddle appears to feature a dual-tone finish for a premium look. The cockpit retains the digital instrument console along with switchgear, bar-end weights, grips and levers from the current model. Apart from the regular ride-related information, the feature-rich display includes a gear position indicator and a lap timer. A single-piece handlebar will continue to perform the

Scoop: Honda Breeze (Honda CR-V twin) exterior leaked The Chinese market is one of the core markets for the automakers considering 25% of the world's new cars are sold in China. In order to make the best out of it, companies often sell the same cars with two different names and styling in order to grow the volumes and maximize profits. In the latest, Honda has created a twin model of the CR-V, called 'Breeze'. Honda has been selling  a number of twin models in China  under two joint ventures, namely GAC-Honda and Dongfeng-Honda. While the original Honda CR-V is sold by Dongfeng Honda, the Honda Breeze will be sold by Guangzhou Honda. The Honda Breeze has more stylish front and rear fascias, but its interior is likely to be almost identical. At the front, it incorporates the latest iteration of the brand's design language, apparently with inspiration from the tenth-gen Honda Accord. With a large chrome bar on the front grille that mates with the “jewel eye” hi

US EPA reveals Ducati Scrambler 1100 Pro and Scrambler 1100 Pro Sport variant names After the  Multistrada 1260 Grand Tour and the Scrambler Icon Dark , the US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) has revealed names of two more upcoming Ducati models - Ducati Scrambler 1100 Pro and Scrambler 1100 Pro Sport. The details are very limited right now, but we assume that the new motorcycles will carry off-road biased styling and hardware. The  existing Scrambler 1100 range  comprises three variants – 1100, 1100 Special and 1100 Sport. Between the three models, only one packs a rugged persona with wire-spoke wheels – 1100 Special. The upcoming Scrambler 1100 Pro and Scrambler 1100 Pro Sport may have more off-road focused genes with a tall-set front fender, a headlight grille and a longer travel suspension setup. The Scrambler 1100 Pro Sport could benefit from more premium feature list comprising Ohlins-sourced suspension setup (likely with the electronically adjustable Ducati S

TVS Motor announces MotoSoul for global performance motorcycle enthusiasts TVS Motor Company has announced a new global event for performance motorcycle enthusiasts – MotoSoul. The motoring event will be held in association with TVS Racing on 18 & 19 October 2019 in Vagator, Goa. With the event, TVS aims to establish a strong connect with Apache Owners Group as well as performance motorcycle enthusiasts across the world. The MotoSoul will be an annual event. Speaking about the new initiative, Meghashyam Dighole, Head - (Marketing) Premium Motorcycles, TVS Motor Company, said: MotoSoul is our flagship initiative to create a differentiated platform for our global brand – TVS Apache. The brand has built a strong community of over 3.5 million customers across the globe with our differentiated customer experience initiatives such as Apache Owners Group, Apache Racing Experience & Apache Pro Performance. MotoSoul is a culmination of the Apache Owners experience as well as a

BMW M8 Convertible spied in India for the first time The design of the bumpers of the test mule seen here clearly confirm that we are looking at the wild BMW M8 Convertible and not the regular BMW 8 Series Convertible. The BMW M8 Convertible (just like the BMW M8 Coupe) sports a high-revving 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol engine which delivers ground shattering 441 kW/600 PS of maximum power and 750 Nm of peak torque. This engine comes paired with an 8-speed automatic transmission and an all-wheel drive system. A 0-100 km/h sprint takes just 3.3 seconds, while the top speed is electronically restricted to 250 km/h. An optional M Driver's package allows a higher top speed of 305 km/h. There is even a more powerful model of the M8 Convertible, the 'Competition' model, in which the 4.4L engine develops 625 PS and 750 Nm of torque. It also gets the same standard 8-speed automatic transmission. Thanks to the higher power and other performance components, the 'Co

Tata Nexon with new steering wheel and cruise control spied The test mules seen here could be of the BS-VI Tata Nexon. Apparently, the more eco-friendly Tata Nexon will come with some interior revisions. Firstly, there will be a new steering wheel, the same unit from the upcoming Altroz. In addition, cruise control will make it to the sub-compact SUV, a feature already available in the rivals Ford EcoSport, Mahindra XUV300, Maruti Vitara Brezza and Hyundai Venue. Tata Motors will upgrade both the engines of the Nexon to BS-VI, the 1.2L Revotron petrol unit and the 1.5L Revotorq unit. The BS-IV 1.2L Revotron turbocharged petrol engine produces 110 PS and 170 Nm of torque. The BS-IV 1.5L Revotorq turbocharged diesel engine develops 110 PS and 260 Nm of torque. Both the engines are available with a standard 6-speed manual transmission and an optional 6-speed automated manual transmission. The Nexon has been quite a successful product for Tata Motors. Recently, the company rolled

MG receives 28k Hector bookings, delivers 1.5k units in June MG launched its maiden product in India, the Hector, on 27 June this year. Touted as the 'the First Internet SUV' in our market, the Hector is already off to an excellent start. MG Motor India today announced that it has received 28,000 bookings for the Hector and has delivered 1,508 units of the same in the first month Earlier reports  had said that MG had paused bookings at 21,000 units, but now the officially confirmed number is 28,000 units. With the bookings rocketing higher than the expectations, the company has been compelled to stop taking further bookings temporarily, and the Hector is now sold-out for this whole calendar year. This is certainly a bummer for the people still planning on to get their hands on the Hector, who will now have to wait until the company is ready to balance out the supply-demand chain. Commenting on the sales performance, Gaurav Gupta, Chief Commercial Officer, MG Motor In

BS-VI Honda Activa 125 TVC shoot begins as launch nears Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India’s brand ambassador and Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar has posted a photograph revealing that the TVC of the upcoming  Activa 125 BS-VI  is being shot. His wife, Twinkle Khanna, an author, newspaper columnist, a film producer and a former Bollywood actress, will also feature in the commercial. The BS-VI compliant Honda Activa was unveiled in June, while its launch is scheduled to take place towards the end of the second quarter of FY2019-20 (September). This will be the first BS-VI compliant product from the HMSI. The new Honda Activa 125 uses 26 new patent applications. The BS-VI compliant model uses PGM-FI Honda Eco Technology (HET) along with the Honda Enhanced Smart Power (eSP). The power and torque output figures are yet to be announced but we do not expect to see a massive change in the numbers. For reference, the  BS-IV compliant model  that is currently sold in the country draws 8 B

Ather 450 and 340 get a massive price cut post GST rate reduction Ather Energy has revised the prices of its 450 and 340 electric scooters post the GST rate reduction. The Ather 450 is now available at INR 1,13,715*, while the 340 retails at INR 1,02,460*. Check out the pre- and post-GST rate reduction prices* in the table below: Model Pre-GST Cut Price Post-GST Cut Price Difference Ather 450 (Bangalore) INR 1,22,647 INR 1,13,715 INR 8,932 Ather 340 (Bangalore) INR 1,10,647 INR 1,02,460 INR 8,187 Ather 450 (Chennai) INR 1,31,683 INR 1,22,224 INR 9,459 Ather 340 (Chennai) INR 1,19,091 INR 1,10,608 INR 8,483 The GST Council reduced the GST rate for electric vehicles to 5% as against the previous rate of 12%. With the GST cut, the entry-level Ather electric scooter is available at very close to INR 1 lakh (on-road) mark in Bangalore. The 4% road tax that is levied by the Tamil Nadu government is one of the reasons behind the higher price tags in Chennai. The reduc

MG eZS all-electric SUV spied in India ahead of Q4 2019 launch The MG eZS is 4,314 mm long, 1,809 mm wide and 1,620 mm/1,644 mm tall. It has a 2,585 mm wheelbase and a 161 mm ground clearance. The B-SUV powered by an electric motor which develops 110 kW (150 PS) of maximum power and 350 Nm of peak torque. This electric motor is capable of pushing the vehicle off the 0-50 km/h mark in 3.1 seconds. The electric motor draws its juice from a 44.5 kWh battery pack which is rated to deliver a maximum range of 335 km (NEDC). The battery pack takes about 6.5 hours to reach full charging in an AC charger, while a fast charger charges it to 80% in just 30 minutes. Its power consumption rating (NEDC) is 13.8 kWh/100 km “That’s (MG eZS is) going to be a CBU programme,” P Balendran, Executive Director, MG Motor India, had told IAB in April this year. Local assembly would have followed if there was enough demand. However, the plan has been changed to localise right from the start, possibl

Production ready CFMoto 300SR spied for the first time The cat is finally out of the bag. Spy shots of CFMoto’s upcoming fully-faired sports motorcycle have come up for the first time. This model was showcased first as the  CFMoto 250SR concept , in May 2019. Regular readers will remember that CFMoto will be launching its production version with a bigger, more powerful powerplant, and name it CFMoto 300SR. This model has been confirmed to be launched in India by  mid-2020 (May-August 2020) . The spy images have revealed a reworked front nose from the race track-based concept. The LED headlamp is surrounded by a C-shaped LED daytime running lights. Gone is the Akrapovic-sourced exhaust canister from the concept and in is an underbelly exhaust. This will not only help reduce costs but also make the bike road-legal. The racing cowl from the concept has been replaced with a pillion seat in the CFMoto 300SR. The sharp pseudo air ducts next to the pillion seats are reminiscent of th

New Royal Enfield motorcycle variants confirmed, to be launched soon Royal Enfield is all set to introduce new motorcycle variants soon. The Chennai-based brand has been experiencing weakened sales volumes for the past few months. Hopefully, new products will help the brand regain some volumes. Royal Enfield’s new CEO, Mr. Vinod Dasari has confirmed that the new products will widen the brand’s offering and provide greater accessibility. This gives clear hints of a more affordable version of the Royal Enfield Bullet. The company may also throw in more colour options, a trick which helped in getting favourable results in case of the Royal Enfield Thunderbird X. This will allow the brand to take on the single-cylinder competition from the Japanese as well as the Indian contingent. Indian two-wheeler market entered a slowdown just before the festive season last year due to a spike in insurance costs. Royal Enfield sales (domestic as well as exports) dropped by a whopping 19% in

Tata Tigor EV prices slashed by INR 80,000 Thanks to the recent reduction in GST on electric vehicles, the price of the all-electric Tata Tigor has been slashed by INR 80,000. Tata Motors has decided to pass on the benefit to the customers with an immediate effect. The Tigor EV was earlier priced at INR 12.35–12.71 lakh* and will now be available to customers at INR 11.58–11.92 lakh*. However, these prices do not include FAME II scheme subsidy and TCS (vehicles costing more than INR 10 lakh gets 1% tax levied on them). The FAME II subsidy would decrease the prices to INR 9.96 lakh* for the base variant and INR 10.30 lakh* for the top-of-the line XT variant. The Tata Tigor EV stays exclusive only to the fleet operators and government officials, and there are no updates if the same would be launched as a public vehicle anytime soon. It is now available in three variants including XE (Base), XM (Premium) and XT (High). The Tigor EV makes use of a 16.2 kWh battery pack which

Upcoming Bajaj Pulsar 125 to have Neon variant - Report The new  Bajaj Pulsar 125 will arrive in India very soon . While we are yet to hear any official details, the launch is expected to take place this month. Now, BikeDekho reports that the company may introduce a Neon Edition of the bike along with the standard version. he Bajaj Pulsar 125, as  suggested by earlier reports , will carry the same styling as the Bajaj Pulsar 150. In fact, the motoring portal claims that the recently spotted test mule (pictured above) of the Pulsar family was the 125 cc model, and not the BS-VI variant of the 150 cc. The Neon Edition will feature bright colour treatment for the Pulsar logo on the fuel tank and for the pillion grab rail. The 125 Neon will reportedly undercut the 150 Neon by INR 10,000. For reference, the Pulsar 150 Neon, which was launched at INR 68,250*, now retails at INR 71,200*. Thus, the Pulsar 125 Neon will cost approximately INR 61,000*. The mechanical specifications on

CHEVROLET CORVETTE CONVERTIBLE, C8.R RACE CAR EXPECTED THIS FALL Soon, we'll see the  Chevrolet Corvette convertible  in its full topless glory. On its social media and YouTube accounts,  Chevrolet  indicated the convertible will debut this fall alongside the C8.R race car We've seen this footage of the convertible and race car before, but now  Chevy  is captioning it with "to be revealed fall 2019" on YouTube. We don't have any specs yet on the Corvette convertible; we just know from the photos it will be a good-looking car. The drop-top will use the same potent 6.2-liter V-8 engine, but it will likely offer less cargo space than the coupe's 12.6 cubic feet. It's quite possible the convertible will also be thousands of dollars more expensive than the C8's   sub-$60,000 starting price. As for the  C8.R race car , we don't have much concrete information on this model, either. But given that endurance racing requires the kind of reliability

CHEVROLET CORVETTE CONVERTIBLE, C8.R RACE CAR EXPECTED THIS FALL Soon, we'll see the  Chevrolet Corvette convertible  in its full topless glory. On its social media and YouTube accounts,  Chevrolet  indicated the convertible will debut this fall alongside the C8.R race car We've seen this footage of the convertible and race car before, but now  Chevy  is captioning it with "to be revealed fall 2019" on YouTube. We don't have any specs yet on the Corvette convertible; we just know from the photos it will be a good-looking car. The drop-top will use the same potent 6.2-liter V-8 engine, but it will likely offer less cargo space than the coupe's 12.6 cubic feet. It's quite possible the convertible will also be thousands of dollars more expensive than the C8's   sub-$60,000 starting price. As for the  C8.R race car , we don't have much concrete information on this model, either. But given that endurance racing requires the kind of reliabilit

2020 MINI JOHN COOPER WORKS CLUBMAN REVIEW: LET’S GET THE PARTY STARTED Mini is pushing the boat out for its 60th birthday. The British brand adds a more powerful engine to two John Cooper Works cars and is preparing a new halo car— the Mini JCW GP —and the  fully electric Mini Cooper SE. And that's not all. Bringing more emotion to an already emotional brand is a good way to get the party started, and the 2020 Mini John Cooper Works Clubman encapsulates that idea with 301 hp and a fun driving experience. We're no strangers to the Clubman. A couple years ago, news editor Alex Nishimoto drove a 2017 Clubman  for 14 months  and really appreciated its design and overall charm. But he had trouble justifying the value behind it. That won't change for the 2020 model year, as the starting price for the Clubman Cooper S is nearly $32,000. A few updates, though, make the Clubman feel a bit younger. The grille got a small redesign, the headlights, taillights and foglights rece

2019 HONDA INSIGHT: FIVE INSIGHTS AFTER SEVEN MONTHS AND 7,000 MILES In the seven months we've had our  2019 Honda Insight  long-term loaner, we've logged just over 7,000 miles of mostly stop-and-go city driving. We've used our drive time to test the  Honda  Sensing suite of driver assistance features, primarily adaptive cruise control (ACC) and lane keep assist (LKA). Although the systems must be activated separately, they work well in concert and provide just the tiniest taste of what a driverless future may hold. To be clear, the Honda Sensing system should not be confused with an autonomous driving system. The driver still must keep hands on the wheel; otherwise the system will light up an alert in the instrument cluster before shutting the systems off completely. With hands on the wheel, ACC and LKA systems activated, and a cruising speed set, the Insight stays within well-marked road lines and moves with the flow of traffic, even down to a 1- to 2-second full stop