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    Ola CEO announces Meme contest – Winner gets free S1 Pro

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    Meme fest on Ola CEO’s Tweet replyWhoever posts the best petrol vehicle or ICE meme, Ola CEO will gift him an Ola S1 Pro Special EditionBhavish Aggarwal, CEO of Ola Electric, recently announced a free Ola S1 Pro Special Edition scooter for anyone sharing the best meme on ICE vehicles or petrol vehicles in general. Memes flooded in from multiple participants. Some of them are crackling, for sure. Let’s take a look.10. Feel like the kingLook at the smugness on their faces. Yes, petroleum prices are rising due to oil surplus capped from markets that are sanctioned against. EV owners should be feeling smug right now to see that they don’t have to be a part of this price hike.Twilight characters used as meme9. If you know, you knowThere are times when fuel prices jumped suddenly by a big margin. These are announced prior to effect and this meme seems to be signifying one of those days. People rush to fuel stations to get as much fuel as possible and fuel station guys always limit fuel per customer. If you know, you know. But, EV owners are impervious to it.Fuel station rush8. Petrol and Diesel users are “bonked”The classic Shiba Inu bonked doge meme. Petrol prices and diesel prices don’t fight between each other. Amount of petrol and diesel extracted from crude oil is mostly consistent most of the times. But it doesn’t affect EV users at all.Bonked!7. Thala Ajith Kumar agrees with EVsI’m from Karnataka and I have watched Vedalam. This scene is one of the smoothest transitions from docility to dominance. Ajith Kumar’s performance is second to none. It soon became a meme template. I don’t understand how diesel car owners are sadder than petrol car owners. But, kudos to creativity, eh?Ajith Kumar meme6. The aashiqs take over everything“If you love someone, let them go”. So beautiful, isn’t it? “With petrol at Rs. 91.07 per liter, how far will they go”? In Karnataka, it is Rs. 103. So, trust me. They’re not going anywhere.Fuel price meme5. Scaredy-cat? No, scaredy-carThis image would generally be used to signify women’s driving scenario (no offense). But here, the car has jump scared and probably had a heart attack looking at fuel prices.Car accident at fuel station meme4. Job chod du?Abhishek Upamanyu is a popular stand-up comedian. Some of his creative dialog deliveries are now meme templates for being so good. One of them is “Me kya karu fir? Job chod du”? Also, I don’t understand why no one used “Aa gaya swaad” template from the same comedian. Mr. Aggarwal, if you finalised “Aa gaya Swaad” meme for the win, I gave away that idea. Now, give me my S1 Pro.Job chod du meme3. Scooter buyers are getting distracted by EVsThe classic distracted boyfriend meme has spawned an EV joke. Now, I have seen everything. This meme has got a point though. Potential scooter buyers are considering EVs. Now more than ever. I know what the guy in the meme is tempted at. But what are scooter buyers tempted by in an EV? Economy? Gimmicks? Features? Convenience? Or Gadgetry?Distracted boyfriend meme2. Now Batman seems to be approving tooThis meme deserves to be in the second place. It captivates the essence of increasing fuel prices perfectly by depicting Batman taking Superman’s help to commute as it is green and also free. Considering Bruce Wayne is a fricking billionaire, it amplifies the hilarity exponentially.Batman meme1. I know the price, but what’s the cost?iPhones cost a kidney. But petrol costs an owner’s entire clothing nowadays. This meme is so good, it climbed up the ranks and is the funniest meme that was posted on Mr. Aggarwal’s post. We all know the price, but we often ignore the cost associated.Guy on boxers riding motorcycle memeIt wasn’t all sunshine though. There were significantly more complaints, grievances, glitch reports, malfunction reports, fork replacement requests and refund requests on Bhavish Aggarwal’s post than there were memes. Also, there were quite a few people who trolled EVs rather than trolling ICE vehicles as Ola CEO had suggested. Here are some of the best.4. Electrifying performance leads to less electricity in BatteryEVs are known for their zippy performance as motors can harness all their torque from 0 RPM. But wringing the throttle all the time will eat into the batteries considerably. In the movie Interstellar, Cooper’s maneuver around Gargantua black hole costs him 51 years. This meme signifies how important every bit of the juice in the battery is.Interstellar meme3. Lemme hear that turbo spoolEVs pose more goodness than ICE vehicles in terms of technological advancements. But they are eerily quiet. For purists, this might not enthrall their sensory experience. Jezza (Jeremy Clarkson) would make more sense in this meme than James May, considering his opinions about EVs.James May smoking pipe meme2. Let people do their jobs, Greta!Greta Thunberg rose to fame after posing “How dare you?” speech against world leaders. Hailed as a climate activist, Greta Thunberg urges stopping usage of fossil fuel, and afforestation all leading to climate change. But EV transition can’t happen in a day, can it? Also, creating awareness is not equal to finding solutions to mitigate the cause (last time I checked).Greta Thunberg meme1. Elon Bhaiyya is not impressedThis is by far the most logical fight against EVs. Green vehicles are only green if the energy source is green. For example, most of the electricity I consume comes from KPCL’s thermal power plants in Shaktinagar. Wouldn’t help the green cause any further, would it? In the meme, a diesel generator is charging a BMW i3 which negates the whole cause. Elon Bhaiyya is not impressed at all.Kaleen bhaiyya Elon Musk meme More

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      Kinetic Luna Electric to be called ‘e Luna’ – Confirms CEO

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      Kinetic LunaKinetic e Luna might feature a battery enough for 50 to 100 km range – Could be priced in the Rs 50k rangeWe are well acquainted with the iconic Kinetic Luna moped. It was so popular that people often call a moped as Luna, even today. This name is now making a comeback. Not with its 50cc engine of the past, though. Instead, upcoming Luna from Kinetic will be an electric scooter.Kinetic Green, Founder and CEO, Sulajja Firodia Motwani took to social media to reveal the name of their electric venture. They’ve named it ‘e Luna’, paying tribute to an iconic name in the 2W industry. First debuted half a century, Luna name is making a comeback and hopes for a good reception among Indian EV buyers.Kinetic Green CEO Confirms NameSulajja Firodia Motwani tweeted “A blast from the past!! “ Chal Meri Luna” and it’s creator.. My father, Padmashree Mr. Arun Firodia!” Furthermore, she asked Twitter users to “Watch this space for something revolutionary & exciting from Kinetic Gree….. U r right … it’s e Luna!!!”Along with this Tweet, she even posted a picture of her father Mr. Arun Firodia, Chairman of Kinetic Group riding a Kinetic Luna and along with that, the iconic “Chal Meri Luna” advert from the yesteryears.Kinetic Luna Electric to be called ‘e Luna’Electric Luna or e Luna will be the product of Kinetic Green Energy & Power Solutions, a sister brand of Kinetic Group. The company commenced production of chassis and other sub assemblies as well. Earlier production numbers are likely to be in the 5,000 unit per month ballpark. With scope for increased production with time.Kinetic is setting up a separate assembly line for its iconic e Luna. The company installed up to 30 new welding machines in the assembly line that are exclusive for e Luna. Along with that, special paint booths and fabrication shops get set up for e Luna too. Kinetic Green Energy & Power Solutions will manufacture e Luna in Ahmednagar, Maharashtra.What to expect?Considering that affordability was Luna’s primary strengths, we would wager e Luna will follow a similar path too. Speculations mention Kinetic will target the last mile delivery sector operating in both B2B and B2C models. This is where Honda Benly e is also likely to make an entrance.Speaking of Benly e, it features a swappable battery from Honda Power Pack Energy India. We’re not sure whether Kinetic will follow a similar path. That said, swappable battery make a lot of difference in the delivery sector as their asset can go from 0% to 100% battery capacity in just a minute. This is a night and day difference when compared to fixed rechargeable battery equipped EVs. Kinetic may launch Luna in 2024. Price could be around Rs. 50,000 mark with around 50 to 100 km range. Electric scooters for PV space might follow later. More

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      Budget Rs 1.2 Lakh – Should I Buy An Activa Or Electric Scooter

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      Honda Activa or electric scooter – What to buy?While buying Activa will work out cheaper, operating cost will be on the higher side in comparison to an electric scooterA few years back, most people looking for a scooter would have chosen Honda Activa. However, the decision making is not so easy now with a multitude of electric scooters on sale. The decision to buy an Activa or electric scooter will have its own distinctive advantages and disadvantages.To simplify the decision making, one can focus on the cost component. It will primarily include acquisition cost, fuel cost and maintenance cost. Not getting into resale value, as there are way too many variables to consider. But in a  general comparison between a plasticky EV vs a metal-bodied Activa, it is easy to see which one will last longer. Of course, exceptions are there such as all-steel Bajaj Chetak.Activa vs electric scooter – acquisition cost (Delhi)With a budget of Rs 1.20 lakh, choosing Activa will allow you to make significant savings. Activa 110 is available in Standard, DLX and H-Smart variants. Prices are in the range of Rs 75,347 to 81,348. Considering on-road price of approximately Rs 90k, savings worth Rs 30k can be made. This can be used to buy accessories for the scooter. Or just splurge on electronics, clothing, travel, etc. One can also opt to invest the savings in equity, FD, etc.Popular electric scooter options available in the budget of Rs 1.20 lakh include Ola S1 Air, Ola S1, Ather 450X, TVS iQube & iQube S, Bajaj Chetak and Hero Vida V1 Plus & V1 Pro. Buying low-spec variants of these electric scooters can probably save you some money from your Rs 1.20 lakh budget.For example, the cheapest option available is Ola S1 Air, priced at Rs 84,999. Ather 450X is also a good deal at Rs 98,079. Vida V1 Plus effective price is Rs 1.03 lakh. TVS iQube starts at Rs 1.06 lakh. Bajaj Chetak is available at a starting price of Rs 1.11 lakh.Activa vs electric scooter – Fuel costPetrol and electricity cost varies from state to state. In general, cost of fuel is significantly less in case of EVs. In Delhi, petrol price is approximately Rs 97 per litre. Assuming average fuel efficiency of Activa at around 50 km per litre, running cost is roughly Rs 1.9 per km. In comparison, running cost of an electric scooter is much lower. For example, Ola S1 Pro claims just 17 paisa per kilometre. Clearly, huge savings can be made with an electric scooter.Activa vs electric scooter – Maintenance costWith fewer moving parts, electric scooters generally require less maintenance in comparison to a petrol-powered scooter like Activa. However, metal-bodied scooters like Honda Activa can last more than a decade. They can fetch decent resale value as well. Electric scooters are yet to complete their lifespan test. By 2030, a clearer picture will emerge about the durability of electric scooters.Other factors such as cost of battery replacement also need to be considered. Battery packs are the most expensive component of an electric scooter. Most OEMs offer a warranty of 3 years. Of course, the battery will continue to work after 3 years. But it may witness a drop in its range. If the battery pack is replaced after 4-5 years, it will cancel out much of the savings made via lower fuel cost.As better technologies are expected in the future, it will be better to wait for a few years before experimenting with an electric vehicle. For example, upcoming Gogoro electric scooters with battery swapping tech can be a game changer. For those who don’t have the financial capability to take risks, it would be better to go with Activa. If funds are not an issue, a whole set of new experiences with an electric scooter seems desirable. More

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      Royal Enfield 450cc Bike Spotted With Accessories – Scram 450?

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      Royal Enfield 450cc bike is likely to be Scram 450Royal Enfield 450cc bike is likely to be a variation of RE’s 390 Duke rival, with Scrambler-y design bitsExpanding product portfolio to include new and exciting body styles is Royal Enfield’s newest agenda. The Chennai-based motorcycle manufacturer has found unprecedented response in the past couple of years. Resulting in utter dominance in neo-retro and classic motorcycles in India and global markets.Extending this popularity to multiple new segments is key to broadening Royal Enfield’s current horizon. Ride with Kali channel recently uploaded a video about RE’s new 450cc motorcycle which could either be Scram 450 or Roadster 450 (390 Duke rival). This test mule even features a set of accessories as well.Royal Enfield KTM 390 rival – Is it a Scram 450 with slicker tyres?Speculations suggest Royal Enfield is foraying into street-naked motorcycles to rival the likes of KTM 390 Duke as well. If we look at Royal Enfield’s arsenal of test mules, there is a motorcycle that fits the bill perfectly. There is a sportier (by Royal Enfield standards) test mule spotted testing alongside Himalayan 450.If this is Royal Enfield’s sportiest motorcycle, the recent test mule is a slightly ruggedised version of that which is likely to take the Scram 450 name. On closer inspection, it has very minimal body panels, a smaller subframe and a single-piece seat. All these are similar to its Roadster counterpart.[embedded content]What Scram gets additionally is saddle stay along with jerry can mounts. This version is likely to sport block-pattern tyres and not a lot more. Round headlights lend it a neo-retro look. It will share the same 450cc single-cylinder liquid-cooled engine with similar power and torque figures.Remember Bullet Trials? A similar strategy, where Royal Enfield can carve Scram 450 and Street 450 from a similar product. This particular test mule had accessories too. A rear top box, a small windscreen and bar-end mirrors. Unlike a Himalayan 450, Scram 450 skimps on USD telescopic forks too. Alloy wheels seem to be 17 inches at both ends.Royal Enfield is planning three different motorcycles on its 450cc platform. First of the lot will be Himalayan 450. Scram 450 and KTM 390 rival street bikes will follow later. Himalayan 450 will be the heaviest of this lot. Only Himalayan 450 is getting USD telescopic front forks. Both Scram 450 and Street 450 will get conventional telescopic front forks.RE Scram 450 stubby exhaustWhat to expect from the upcoming Street 450?LED headlights, sleek horizontal seat-integrated LED tail lights, LED turn indicators, rear mono-shock, round ORVMs, single-piece seat, 35 bhp of power and 40 Nm of torque, a 6-speed gearbox are some of the likely elements with Scram 450 and Street 450. Rivals include BMW G 310 R, KTM 390 Duke, Yezdi Roadster and more.Given the sheer number of motorcycles that Royal Enfield currently is testing, we would wager that Royal Enfield Street 450 is likely to launch by the end of 2024. We expect Himalayan 450, Bullet 350 and Classic 350 Bobber to hit the road first. Royal Enfield has a four motorcycles per-year strategy and it would be interesting to see which of these many motorcycles will see the light of day first.Scram 450 test mules with accessories More

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      200-500cc Motorcycle Sales April 2023 – Classic, Pulsar, KTM, Jawa, Yezdi

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      Image – An ExplorerIn total, 200-500cc motorcycle sales chart showed 24.94% YoY growth, but sales fell short by 906 units and there was a decline of 1.18% MoMWe saw how 500cc+ motorcycles fare in a previous post. Here we will see how the segment with motorcycles displacing between 200cc to 500cc fared last month. Royal Enfield has the biggest pull in the 200-500cc motorcycles space. With its slew of 350cc and a couple of 411cc motorcycles, Royal Enfield has an 86.71% market share in this segment with 65,877 units sold.Classic 350 is by far the highest seller for both Royal Enfield and this space. With 26,781 units sold last month, Classic 350 saw 17.79% YoY decline as opposed to 32,575 units sold last year and 9.46% MoM growth as opposed to 24,466 units sold in March 2023. Classic 350 holds a market share of 35.25%.200-500cc Motorcycle Sales April 2023200-500cc Motorcycle Sales April 2023Hunter 350 is one of the newest entrants in this space, but sold 15,799 units and registered 45.96% MoM growth. This is the highest MoM growth on this list and Hunter 350 gained 4,975 units MoM. The OG Bullet 350 sold 8,399 units. YoY growth was 11.79%, but sales declined MoM at a rate of 2.28%.Meteor 350 sold 7,598 units and registered 64.57% YoY growth and 22.33% MoM growth. Volume growth stood at 2,981 units YoY and 1,387 units MoM. Electra 350 and Himalayan sold 3,779 and 3,521 units respectively. While Electra sales fell by 3.55% YoY and gained 12% MoM, Himalayan scored green in both, 14.69% YoY and 33.73% MoM.200-500cc Motorcycle Sales April 2023 – YoY analysisAfter breaking a chain of Royal Enfield bikes, Honda CB350 family sold 3,013 units and took 7th spot. YoY decline was 5.96% and there was a 3.75% MoM growth. KTM 250 range sold 1,404 units last month. As opposed to 25 units sold a year ago, KTM 250 saw 5,516% YoY growth, but sales declined by 18.13% MoM.KTM 390 range sold 817 units and followed a similar pattern as the 250s. YoY growth was 84.28%, but MoM decline was 30.63%. Dominar 400 and Dominar 250 sold 817 and 499 units each. Just like their KTM counterparts, Dominar 400 saw 543.31% YoY growth and 0.37% MoM decline and Dominar 250 saw 186.78% YoY growth and 22.40% MoM decline.Bajaj Avenger 220 registered 21,750% YoY growthAs opposed to 2 units sold last year, Bajaj Avenger 220 sold 437 units last month and saw 21750% YoY growth and 15% MoM growth. TVS Apache RR 310 sold 324 units, but fell into the red completely with 19.60% YoY and 20.98% MoM decline. Pulsar 220 and 250 sold a combined 254 units. Even though there is 176% YoY growth, Bajaj surprisingly lost 8,890 units in just one month.200-500cc Motorcycle Sales April 2023 – MoM analysisKawasaki Ninja 300 and Ninja 400 sold 125 and 5 units respectively. Ninja 300 gained numbers by 47.06% YoY, but dropped by 18.30% MoM. While Ninja 400’s numbers dropped by 64.29% MoM. The Husqvarna 250 duo managed to sell 100 units between them. They registered 1900% YoY growth and 20.63% MoM decline. Yamaha FZ25, Suzuki Gixxer 250 range, V-Strom 250, Honda CB300R and CB500 all sold 0 units.Jawa/Yezdi sold a total of 2,274 units with a 38.84% YoY decline and a 30.10% MoM decline. In total 200-500cc motorcycle sales chart registered 75,967 units. As opposed to 60,801 units sold in April 2022 and 76,873 units sold in March 2023, this segment saw 24.96% YoY growth and 1.18% MoM decline. Volume growth YoY stood at 15,166 units, but volume decline MoM stood at 906 units. More

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      Top 10 500cc+ Motorcycles April 2023 – 650 Twins, Ninja, Tiger, Hayabusa

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      Royal Enfield Sultan by Neev MotorcyclesAs opposed to 2,485 units sold in April 2022, 500cc+ motorcycle sales for the month April 2023 thrived by 31.91% YoY growth and gained 793 units in volume tooFor a long time, Royal Enfield’s 650 Twins outsold rest of the big bikes by a huge margin. But in March 2023, Super Meteor 650 had surpassed both Continental GT 650 and Interceptor 650 combined. Tables have turned last month and RE 650 Twins (Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650) have taken the lead back by selling 1,865 units.This was not enough to cross 2,159 units sold a year ago, facing 13.62% YoY decline, losing 294 units in volume. Still, market share stood at 56.89%. Super Meteor took second place with 1,139 units and 34.75% market share. In total, Royal Enfield sold 3,004 units last month and secured a 91.64% market share in the big bike space.500cc+ Motorcycle Sales April 2023Kawasaki Versys 650 and Suzuki Hayabusa sold 59 and 57 units respectively and registered 25.53% and 1,800% (highest in this list) YoY growth respectively. Versys 650 gained 12 units YoY as opposed to 47 units sold a year ago, while Hayabusa gained 54 units as opposed to just 3 units sold in the same period.Triumph Tiger 900 and Kawasaki Ninja Z900 sold 34 and 33 units respectively. Where Tiger 900 saw 385.71% YoY growth as opposed to 7 units sold in 2022, Z900 saw 13.16% YoY decline, despite being the most affordable 4-cylinder bike in India. Tiger 900 gained 27 units in volume, while Z900 lost 5 units in volume.500cc+ Motorcycle sales April 2023Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R and Ninja 1000SX sold 24 and 19 units respectively. Both Ninjas registered positive growth. ZX-10R saw 500% YoY growth gaining 20 units in volume YoY and Ninja 1000SX saw 46.15% YoY growth with volume growth of 6 units YoY. Triumph Speed Twin sold 17 units in total, of which 9 units were of Speed Twin 1200 while 8 units were of Speed Twin 900.At 11th place, we have Triumph Tiger 1200 with 6 units sold in its name with 200% YoY growth, followed by Rocket III with 5 units sold. Rocket III boasts the largest production motorcycle engine and gained 25% YoY. Harley-Davidson Sportster S and Kawasaki Versys 1000 sold 3 units. Both of them didn’t register any growth.Big bikes sold a total of 3,278 units last monthKawasaki Vulcan S, Z650 RS, Harley-Davidson Fat Boy and Pan America all sold 2 units each last month. Except for Fat Boy 114, none of the others showed any positive growth YoY. Kawasaki Z650, Triumph Bonneville T120, Harley-Davidson Fat Bob, Street Glide and Road Glide all sold 1 unit each in April 2023.500cc+ Motorcycle sales April 2023Honda CB650R, Africa Twin, Triumph Tiger 660, Trident 660, Street Triple, Street Twin, Street Scrambler, Bonneville T100, Tiger 800 XRX, Bonneville Bobber, Scrambler 1200, Speed triple, Harley-Davidson 883 Iron, Heritage Classic, Street Bob, Kawasaki Ninja 650 and Suzuki V-Strom 650 all sold 0 units last month.Surprisingly, Honda’s big bike sales is pretty much nill for a long time. Also, Trident 660 sold 0 units too, which is the most affordable three-cylinder motorcycle in India. In total, 500cc+ motorcycle sales stood at 3,278 units in April 2023. There is a 31.91% YoY growth as opposed to 2,485 units sold in April 2022. Volume growth stood at 793 units YoY. More

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      Bajaj Sales Breakup April 2023 – Pulsar, Platina, CT, Boxer, Dominar

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      Bajaj PulsarBajaj Auto domestic YoY sales improved substantially in April 2023 while exports fell 44.43 percent with every model posting a YoY de-growthBajaj Auto Limited announced its two wheeler sales figures for April 2023. Total sales (domestic + exports) in the past month stood at 2,74,154 units, a YoY growth over 2,68,284 units sold in April 2022. While the company performed well in domestic markets, sales globally were lackluster.Two wheeler sales in domestic markets improved by 90.67 percent YoY in April 2023 to 1,76,512 units, up from 90,577 units sold in April 2022. This was volume growth of 83,935 units. Bajaj Auto had sold 1,45,873 units in March 2023Bajaj Auto Domestic Sales April 2023The Pulsar range added the most numbers to total sales with 1,15,371 units sold in the past month, a 150.59 percent YoY growth from 46,040 units sold in April 2022. Of the Pulsar range, it was the 125cc variant that commanded the most attention with 78,799 units sold in the past month, up 84.34 percent over 42,747 units sold in April 2022. There were also 19,437 units of the Pulsar 200cc and 16,881 units of Pulsar 150cc sold last month along with 254 units of Pulsar 250cc, with each posting outstanding YoY growth.Bajaj Platina sales also saw a 17.82 percent YoY growth to 46,322units last month from 39,316 units sold in April 2022. CT sales grew by 26.83 percent to 6,973 units from 5,498 units on a YoY basis with CT110cc garnering sales of 4,665 units along with 2,308 units of CT125cc.Bajaj Sales Breakup April 2023At No. 4 was Chetak electric scooter with 4,546 units sold last month followed by Bajaj Avenger which has posted the most YoY growth of 1027.27 percent. Sales of Avenger stood at 176 units in April 2022 which improved to 1,984 units in the past month. Avenger 200cc sales were at 1,547 units along with 437 units of the Avenger 250cc. Dominar also saw a 337.21 percent YoY growth to 1,316 units from 301 units sold in April 2022 with Dominar 250cc at 499 units and Dominar 500cc at 817 units.Bajaj Sales Breakup April 2023Bajaj Auto Exports April 2023Where exports were concerned, Bajaj Auto saw every model in its lineup post a YoY de-growth. Total exports fell 44.43 percent to 97,642 units in April 2023 from 1,75,707 units sold in April 2022. Boxer and Pulsar were the only two models to post exports above the 20,000 unit mark.Boxer exports dipped 47.43 percent to 52,306 units in April 2023 from 99,500 units sold in April 2022 relating to a 47,194 unit volume de-growth. It was the Boxer 110cc that received the most attention with 37,180 units exported last month along with 9,210 units of Boxer 150cc and 5,916 units of Boxer 125cc.Bajaj Exports Breakup April 2023Pulsar exports fell by 23.07 percent YoY to 22,282 units from 28,965 units sold in April 2022 of which it was Pulsar 200cc that saw 15,520 units exported last month. It was the Pulsar 250cc that saw some improvement in exports by 315 percent to 2,700 units in April 2023 from 650 units exported in the same month last year. Bajaj Auto recently updated the Pulsar NS200 and NS160 with a new RED colour option.CT exports fell by 30.91 percent to 14,616 units in the past month from 21,156 units exported in April 2022. Dominar exports also fell by 15.37 percent to 4,896 units with Dominar 500cc gaining 3.93 percent to 3,858 units from 3,712 units exported in April 2022. Bajaj Platina (1,644 units), Discover (1,484 units) and Avenger (342 units) completed the export list with each posting YoY de-growth. There were also 72 units of the Bajaj Chetak exported last month. More

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      New Harley Davidson X440 Debuts – Made in India by Hero MotoCorp

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      New Harley Davidson X440Looking at some of the images, it seems that Harley-Davidson X 440 has stupendous lean angles, which could translate to a sporty characterHero and Harley-Davidson partnership has unveiled their first new motorcycle – the X440. It will take on the Royal Enfield motorcycles upon launch. In typical American fashion, this affordable Harley-Davidson Roadster comes with a larger engine than Royal Enfield. Going by past Harley offerings, the 440 in X440 will be its displacement.It is a single-cylinder unit with oil-cooling setup and fins for air-cooling. Even though Hero MotoCorp manufactures it in India, Harley-Davidson likely designed the X440. Launch is still distant, but a starting price of Rs. 2.5 lakh (ex-sh) for a barebones model and Rs. 3 lakh for all the bells and whistles is possible.New Harley Davidson X440 DebutsWe see a lot of inspiration from Harley’s Nightster in its muscular fuel tank, round headlight, round speedo on top of its headlight, wide handlebars and minimal body panels. Headlight gets ring-like LED projectors with a horizontal pill-shaped element above them, reading Harley-Davidson.Circular turn indicators have a Harley-Davidson logo in them, a nice attention to detail. At the rear, there is a pill-shaped LED tail light. The circular instrument cluster seems to be a negative LCD unit. But we hope it is a TFT unit with Bluetooth connectivity enabling navigation, calls and notifications.New Harley Davidson X440From a lot of angles, this affordable Harley-Davidson looks like a smaller Iron 883. This might literally be true where the engine is concerned. Hero MotoCorp might use this new powertrain on their upcoming Xpulse as well.Powertrain & ComponentryMade by Hero MotoCorp in India, Harley Davidson X440 is powered by an air/oil-cooled single-cylinder unit with a single exhaust. We expect it to have a 4V head and make around 30 bhp and much higher torque (around 40 Nm), spread primarily in the mid-range. A 6-speed gearbox is very likely. Rear sprocket gets a chain drive, over a belt drive. Refinement could slightly take a hit.Componentry include USD front forks, single disc setup at both ends with dual-channel ABS and equipment by Bybre, twin shock absorbers at the rear, neutral footpegs, alloy wheels, 17″ rear and 18″ front alloy wheels. All this is mounted on a tubular trellis frame. A single stepped seat, blackened engine bay, blackened exhaust are notable elements.New Harley Davidson X440Foot peg positioning looks pretty neutral and slightly higher set. This should enable impressive (from Harley’s standards) lean angles. Street Rod 750 with 210 mm ground clearance is revered as the sportiest Harley. Maybe X 440 can match it.Launch & PricingGiven the larger displacement and Harley-Davidson badge, we expect it to be priced at around Rs. 50K to 80K more premium than Royal Enfield’s 350cc portfolio. That is not a bad proposition, considering Royal Enfield doesn’t pose the same novelty factor as it used to before with large volumes already on road.New Harley Davidson X440A base variant costing around Rs. 2.5 lakh and a top-spec variant costing around Rs. 3 lakh is a good proposition for Harley-Davidson X 440. Hero MotoCorp will be its official distributor in India. Harley-Davidson X440 is different than X350 and X500 motorcycles launched in China recently. Those are based on QJ motorcycles and are China-specific. More

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      2023 Royal Enfield Meteor 350 Spied Testing – Gets LED Headlight

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      2023 Royal Enfield Meteor 350Meteor 350 could become the first 350cc motorcycle from Royal Enfield to feature an LED headlight setupRoyal Enfield rules the 350cc motorcycle segment. In April 2023, their sales in the 350cc segment were over 62k units. Despite having a market share of over 90% in the segment, Royal Enfield continues to be focused on updating their 350cc motorcycles.In comes MY2023 RE Meteor 350, spied testing for the first time. This particular test mule is based on top-spec Supernova trim, but features wire-spoke rims, a silver-finished engine bay and for the first time in Royal Enfield’s 350cc portfolio, an LED headlight. Let’s take a look at everything new.MY2023 RE Meteor 350 Spotted TestingWith this MY2023 update, Royal Enfield is aiming at adding a few more features to the Meteor 350. These new updates with Meteor 350 are likely to bring more retro-ness and classic-ness.We say this because Meteor 350 has always embraced a neo-retro cruiser look, instead of a classic cruiser look. Elements lending Meteor 350 a neo-retro appeal are alloy wheels and a blackened engine bay. Royal Enfield is bringing more chrome into the equation that will uplift its classic appeal considerably.2023 Royal Enfield Meteor 350More chrome is in the form of wire-spoke rims, engine bay finish (think Classic 350 Chrome Red) and headlight housing garnish. Adding more retro charm is an all-new front fender too. Rather, an all-new mud guard for the front fender brings an old-world charm of the yesteryears. Hat tip to automotive enthusiast Aditya Raja for sharing these exclusive spy shots.Mechanically similar to current modelThis new test mule is based on top-spec Supernova trim. Except for the new LED headlights, design changes and chrome additions are less likely to feature on Fireball and Stellar variants. Fuel tank is similar to the current model too. So, no 20L fuel tank like RE offered on the Thunderbird 350 and 500.Mechanically, the same 349cc J-series engine will power the MY2023 RE Meteor 350. Performance figures stand at 20.2 bhp of power at 6100 RPM and 27 Nm of torque at 4000 RPM, mated to the same 5-speed gearbox. The wire-spoke rim variant of Supernova trim along with new chrome additions will probably sell alongside existing variant with black engine bay and alloy wheel.2023 Royal Enfield Meteor 350While LED headlights will be part of the entire variant range. A small price hike could be associated with this update. Currently, Meteor 350 range costs Rs. 2.04 lakh for Fireball, Rs. 2.10 lakh for Stellar and Rs. 2.25 lakh for Supernova trims (all prices ex-sh). More