Someone at the launch was saying that it was a late entry by Yamaha in the entry-level performance segment with its R3, but is it really true? I don't think so.
The first thing that I noticed was how much nicer the Ford Figo Aspire looks in comparison to its competition - not just in overall physical design, but also exterior feel and fit-and-finish.
Yamaha and Honda have had their respective one-make motorsport series going for a while now, so to say Suzuki entered this area wouldn't be incorrect. But then, it's perhaps also good timing because Suzuki made its comeback to Moto GP as factory team this year. The Gixxer cup bikes will also flaunt the official racing livery of the Moto GP bikes.
The bike has undergone some major, and some not-so-major revisions compared to the Pulsar 200NS - the product which the RS200 is chiefly based on.
Yeah - so it's an effort at doing a glorified, high-riding i20. What I'd have liked to see instead is a glorified i20 with skirts and splitters, and 50 more horsepower with a revised steering geometry. What is it they say about wishes and horses and whatnot!
While Apple continues to be the most valuable company in the world, Lego - the family-run Danish toy company - has emerged as the most powerful brand, according to a Brand Finance study, overtaking Ferrari which occupied the top spot in last year's survey.
When the Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG 6x6 came about in 2013, it instantly became the talk of the town. Some forums even went to the extent of saying that Germans finally got a sense of humour! I'm not sure about that, but it did look like nothing else on the road.
It's the last day of 2014 and there's no better day to reflect upon the best motoring moments I experienced than today. The automotive market saw many products getting launched - from absolutely fantastic to spectacularly rubbish. There've been a few products that genuinely surprised me and that's exactly what I'm going to write about here.
The Bolt looks just like a grown-up Indica, and that's not exactly conducive for its perception value. Even when we were driving around town, no one really stopped to talk to us about this 'new' car from Tata, or gave it a second look.
These cars are still not of the 'hot-hatch' level. It's a good start, and things will (hopefully) only get better and more manufacturers (again, hopefully) will embrace this relatively small-volumes segment just to help build somewhat of an enthusiast culture in the mass segment of motoring here. Amen.
Toyota hasn't really been doing a great deal in the Indian market lately. The one-upon-a-time product, Qualis, set the ball rolling and the Innova has truly done well to keep the MPV numbers swelling - good job there. But what happened everywhere else?
At the recently concluded Paris Motor Show, Volkswagen's board member, Dr Heinz-Jakob Neusser, went on record to suggest that there will come a time - very soon at that - when having an SUV in every segment will be imperative.
The GLA is based on the A-Class hatchback - a car I already like very much. You'd agree that the A-Class is a very good looking product. If you don't, you perhaps have a house as lavish and stylish as a prison in Sierra Leone, and you should, at this point, stop reading this article any further because I think the GLA manages to look even better than the 'A' in its overall design.
Now, there's a 'new' Yeti - which, let's be honest, isn't really new. It's more like some caramel was added to an already impressive flan to make it more compelling. Facelift, then, would be the right word - a mild, and mostly cosmetic, one, at that.
There is a new entrant in the sub-4 metre segment and this time it is from the manufacturer who basically started the trend. Yes indeed, the Tata Zest is here and we've driven it. Here's our review!
Nissan's GT Academy is a very exciting and innovative concept that aims to help regular guys who're possessed by the racing bug in realizing their dream of making it big in the motorsport circus. It puts a simulation racer / gamer in the hot seat of a work's racing machine.
Now, just like Honda embraced the sub-4-metre sedan segment, it's working on a sub-compact SUV too. It was initially thought that the Vezel might be that product, and everyone went crazy talking about it because it looked extremely good stuff - superficially, at least.
The BMW 5 series has always left a smile on my face may it be the ordinary 520d or the M treatment receiving BMW M5. The Bavarian car manufacturer has been giving it the M treatment for 30 years now and this is cause enough for celebration.
The F-Type Coupe is a modern car but has an enjoyable analogue character to it. It has spine that many of the new-age sportscars have lost in favour of surgical precision. It likes a good laugh and will indulge you in silly, childlike behaviour.
Volkswagen's management is believed to have signed-off on a budget car for emerging markets after investing a long time and a hard-fought battle in order to meet the cost targets for the product.
