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It's time for new hybrid of Volkswagen the 100 kmpl car.

2012-02-15T07:28:00.000-08:00

VOLKSWAGEN displayed their new XL1 plug in hybridconcept car, for the first time at the inaugural 2011 Qatar Motor Show. Earlierthis year, VW once again displayed their XL1 100 kmpl two seater car atthe India Auto Show in Delhi. Volkswagen has built the XL1 on the same platformon which Skoda Citigoand VW Up! are built - their MQB platform.

Production variant of XL-1 should be 153 inches in length,65 inches in width and have a 45 inch height. It is supposed to be powered byan 800cc two cylinder diesel engine generating 48 hp power and 88 lb/ft torque.This together with its electric motor, will offer additional 27 hp power and103 lb/ft torque. XL1 will have lithium ion batteries, which will ensure thatthe vehicle travels upto 24 miles (35 kms) on a single recharge.

The plug in motor will ensure that the XL-1 travels from 0to 100 kmph in 11.9 seconds and a top speed of 160 kmph. Expect to see this newXL-1 in company showrooms by 2013 while greater details of price and otherfactors will be made known at the upcoming Paris Motor Show.

Three More IITs Put to Work On the cheapest Aakash Tablet...

2012-02-04T13:04:00.000-08:00

The Government Of India intends to involve other three IITs (along with IIT Rajasthan) in the Aakash tablet PC project, with an eye to manufacture the product using local resources, and simultaneously bringing down price of the same. According to the HRD Ministry, IIT Mumbai, IIT Madras and IIT Kanpur are the other three institutes picked out for the project.

The meeting presided over by HRD Minister Kapil Sibal along with other senior officials from the ministry, was followed by this decision to include other IITs as well. A lot of attention was drawn over the indigenisation of the tablet. Currently, a number of components like the processor are arranged from outside. The point is to bring in more Indianness to the product within the coming two years, and make the tablet 90% Indian (ambitious!). Also, the lowering of the price was stressed upon. The current pricing of the tablet stands at Rs 1,100 for the students, which also covers the government subsidy.

In the first place, the HRD Ministry had settled the bidding for the improved version of Aakash, this will now be handled by the Department of Information Technology. This because of the differences between IIT Rajasthan and Datawind that came to fore, while the issue of increased specification demands concluded. According to the HRD, more 22 crore units of Aakash are needed, and to meet this demand, new tenders shall be issued to other companies along with Datawind.

Now Lenovo upgrade ThinkPad Tablet to Android 4.0

2012-02-01T11:22:00.000-08:00

Lenovo plans to upgrade its popular ThinkPad Tablet to the latest version of the Android 4.0 operating system in the second quarter this year, the company said Monday.

The ThinkPad Tablet was launched in July last year as a business tablet. The tablet retails starting at $479 and runs on Android 3.1, which is code-named Honeycomb.

Lenovo in the past has said that upgrades to Android 4.0 would be delivered over the air to its ThinkPad and IdeaPad tablets, but had not provided specific guidance on dates.

The upgrade will provide users access to the latest version of Android 4.0, which provides user interface, connectivity, application and multimedia improvements. The OS, which is designed for both smart phones and tablets, also improves encryption layers for data and e-mail security, which could appeal to enterprise users. The new OS also provides administrators more stronger remote control over tablets.

However, the Android 4.0 upgrade may not enable some hardware-specific features such as Android Beam, which uses NFC (near-field communications) technology to share Web content, maps and directions between tablets by simply tapping. The ThinkPad Tablet does not have NFC features yet.

But the upgrades should provide Lenovo a leg-up over other competition fromCisco, which sells the enterprise-focused Cius tablet with Android. Cisco did not immediately respond to requests for comment on when it would upgrade the Cius.

Upgrades to Android 4.0, which is code-named Ice Cream Sandwich, are already trickling out for a few tablets. Asus is already delivering upgrades over-the-air to Asus' Eee Pad Transformer Prime tablets, but some users are experiencing install problems.

The ThinkPad Tablet has a 10.1-inch screen, weighs 1.65 pounds (0.75 kilograms) and provides eight hours of battery life.

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THE KTM’s Duke 200 bike launched in india by BAJAJ....

2012-01-30T23:23:00.000-08:00

Bajaj launched a new bike in india The Duke 200.......

Austrian motorcycle maker KTM has said it expects India to become No 1 market for its bikes after overtaking United States by the next year. The firm rode into India, the second largest motorcycle market after China with the launch its bike ‘Duke 200’ on Tuesday.

“India will become the biggest market for KTM in 2013 by volumes. In India, we will launch our models above 200 cc engine capacity. We will launch the Duke 350 model next year,” said Hubert Trunkenpolz, member of management board and chief sales officer, KTM Power Sports. “However, we do not plan to launch models below 200 cc due to competition,” he added.

KTM, Europe’s second largest motorcycle maker, sold 81,200 units globally in 2011 with 18,000 units in US as its lead market, France with 8,500 and Germany with 7,800 units. “Bajaj (Auto) expects to sell 2,000 to 3,000 KTM bikes every month in India (24,000-36,000 yearly),” Trunkenpolz said. The company plans to sell 2,00,000 units globally by 2015, of which the major share is expected to come from India.

Bajaj Auto that owns 39.26 per cent stake in KTM will sell the model alongside Ninja super bikes from Bajaj’s premium pro-biking showrooms across the country. Bajaj’s premium motorcycles such as Pulsar and Avenger will thus stop being sold through the pro-biking network set up by Bajaj Auto in 2003. With the launch of KTM, the 34 pro-biking showrooms across the country will now be renamed as KTM stores and will also sell KTM’s merchandise and accessories.

“What Pulsar was in 2001, KTM is today. Bajaj and KTM will fill most requirements of motorcyclists,” said Rajiv Bajaj, managing director of Bajaj Auto. “Our own conviction about KTM is that it is a matter of time that it becomes the world’s largest selling premium motorcycle brand,” Bajaj added. The off-road Duke 200 priced at Rs 1,17,500 (ex-showroom, New Delhi), falls into a niche segment between Japanese sport bikes such as 150 cc Yamaha R15 (Rs 1.07 lakh) and Honda’s 250 cc CBR 250R (Rs 1.43 lakh). The Duke has a rigid suspension and will appeal to riders that are ‘young at heart’, according to the company. However, company officials refused to reveal the mileage of the Duke 200.

Trunkenpolz said Bajaj and KTM would together develop joint motorcycle platforms for future models. KTM plans to double exports from India to about 22,000 units this year with new markets including Indonesia, Philippines and Brazil. It exported 11,000 motorcycles in 2011 including Duke 125 and Duke 200 models produced at Chakan plant. KTM plans to launch six to seven new models in next two years, globally.

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Bajaj launched "RE-60" a 35-kmpl car Before The Delhi Auto Expo 2012

2012-01-29T03:02:00.000-08:00

Atlast Bajaj has did it!!!

The Indian two-wheeler giant has finally forayed into the 4-wheel segment with the launch of Bajaj RE-60 three days before the Delhi Auto Expo 2012. What’s interesting is that the RE-60 promises mileage of whooping 35 kilometers per liter of petrol! We bet every visitor is is going to drool over the new car and praise Bajaj Auto. It’s clear that the battleground is ready for the war of cars between Tata nano & Bajaj RE-60. I wrote about the possible launch of the Bajaj car at DAE 2012.

Bajaj officials say that the car has been in development since last 4 years. The RE-60 delivers top speed of 70 kmph and has been designed considering the city driving conditions. The car has a rear mounted, 200 cc petrol engine. Bajaj plans to sell the car overseas. Bajaj’s MD, Mr. Rajiv Bajaj informed the reporters that the target customer for this car is those who use 3-wheelers. The company manufactures over 520,000 three-wheelers a year and exports over 300,000 of them. The company is eyeing Sri-Lanka to export the new RE-60 cars.The mileage Bajaj is promising is definitely impressive! We aren’t big fans of the economy cars and we’d refrain from commenting on the looks of Bajaj’s RE-60; but it seems to be inspired by the auto-rickshaw Bajaj manufactures. The mileage crazy Indian customers would definitely want to own this car, and Bajaj’s already established servicing centers would be an added advantage. However ever rising petrol prices could hold potential customers from buying this car right away. The price of the car is expected to be around INR. 125000 – 160000. We do not have information about the versions of this car Bajaj plans to launch and the price point. As always, we promise to keep you updated about the new RE-60. In the mean time, we want to know what do you think about the Bajaj RE-60?

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