About Sameer Contractor
Sameer ContractorConnect with this authorWith an unquenchable thirst for everything automotive, Sameer has always been the go to auto guy that his friends needed. So, it isnt exactly surprising that he chooses to do what he does. A Batman fanatic, Sameers wants to go roof-scaping on the Tumbler, while the Bat motorcycle is certainly on the cards and he plans to build one himself. An avid foodie, he has a road trip in order that will be taking him across the world in search for the best roads and the best cuisines. While his stress buster involves taking aimless motorcycle rides, do not get offended by his sarcasm.
Articles of Sameer Contractor
Upcoming Motorcycle & Scooter Launches In June 2020
June 2020 has some exciting two-wheeler launches lined up right from four new motorcycles joining the Triumph India range, to the all-new Royal Enfield Meteor 350 finally hitting the market. Here's a list of all the two-wheeler launches this month.
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Lewis Hamilton Leads The Charge In F1 To Speak About The Death Of George Floyd; Teams & Drivers Foll
The Formula 1 community has been largely silent about the death of African American George Floyd in a case of racial profiling. Reigning F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton recently took to his social media handle to talk about the issue and also call out his F1 colleagues who chose to stay silent during this time. Hamilton said he "stands alone" at this time, while his contemporaries refrain from conveying anything on the matter.
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2020 Kia Seltos Launched In India With 10 New Features; Prices Start At ₹ 9.89 Lakh
Kia Motors India has introduced the 2020 Seltos in the country that now comes with new features on the top variants of the compact SUV. The 2020 Kia Seltos is priced from ₹ 9.89 lakh, going up to ₹ 17.34 lakh (all prices, ex-showroom Delhi). The new model comes in with 10 new features that enhance the safety, convenience, connectivity and design of the SUV, according to the company. Furthermore, the automaker has added more equipment on the lower variants of the Seltos, adding to the value quotient of the model. Kia also announced that the company responding to market research and feedback, the Smartstream Petrol 1.4-litre T-GDi GTK and the GTX 7-speed DCT variants have now been discontinued from the line-up.
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A Tesla Model X Transported SpaceX Astronauts To The Shuttle On Launch Day
The Tesla Model X is the flagship SUV from Elon Musk's electric car company, and it recently became the transport van for the SpaceX astronauts that recently made their way up to the International Space Station (ISS) on the SpaceX Falcon 9 booster rocket. It was for the first time that NASA was sending its astronauts - Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley - into space with the help of a private aerospace company, nearly a decade since the last time the US Space agency did so on American soil. The moment then was iconic and quite the perfect launchpad (pun intended) to advertise the Tesla Model X.
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Royal Enfield Trademarks Sherpa & Hunter Nameplates
Royal Enfield is gearing up to introduce the BS6 editions of its motorcycles in the coming months, but the manufacturer is working all-new offerings that can be expected at the turn of the next decade. The Chennai-based manufacturer has trademarked the names - Sherpa and Hunter - hinting at the new motorcycles from Royal Enfield. A recent report suggested that RE is looking to expand its product line-up with entry-level models and the new nameplates could possibly be used for the same. That being said, it's not uncommon for manufacturers to register names for upcoming models without actually using them.
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2020 Suzuki Ignis Facelift Images Leaked
The Suzuki Ignis arrived globally in 2016 and the model has been pitched as a micro-SUV or a butch hatchback with a retro design language. The model was always aimed at young buyers and India got the Ignis in 2017 via the Nexa outlets. Now, Suzuki is readying a mild facelift for the retro hatchback globally, images of which have been leaked online ahead of the official reveal. The 2020 Suzuki Ignis gets cosmetic tweaks, according to the leaked images that aim to add a little more rugged appeal to the offering.
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Volkswagen Trademarks T-Sport, T-Go & T-Coupe Nameplates For Future Crossover Models
Volkswagen AG has already announced that the company plans to introduce 34 new offerings in 2020 and the carmaker will be focussing on crossovers and SUVs, keeping up with the industry trends. The German carmaker is lining up a number of products in this space and has trademarked a handful of names for new models. According to recent reports, Volkswagen has trademarked the names - T-Sport, T-Go and T-Coupe - at Germany's patent office, hinting at a number of compact crossovers from the manufacturer.
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Top 9 Premium Motorcycle Launches Of 2019
Here's a look at nine of the most exciting premium motorcycles of the year that managed to impress us in different ways, setting new garage goals.
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2020 Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza Facelift Spied Undisguised
The Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza facelift has been in the works for a while now and it seems the model is ready for a market debut by early next year. Leaked images of the Vitara Brezza facelift completely undisguised made their way online and give us our first detailed look at the exterior changes on the subcompact SUV. The offering looks largely the same but gets revised styling for a refreshed appearance, while there will be a petrol engine too in the line-up this time round.
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Kawasaki Ninja 300 BS4 Discontinued; BS6 Version In The Pipeline
Having recently introduced the BS6 versions of the Z900 and the Z650 motorcycles in the country, India Kawasaki Motor is silently discontinued the BS4 version of the Ninja 300. Dealers across the country have confirmed to carandbike that dispatches of the locally-assembled Kawasaki Ninja 300 BS4 motorcycle have been stopped from the company. However, the discontinuation is only temporary and the model will make its way back to the market in the BS6 guise by early next year.
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2020 Kawasaki Z650 BS6 Launched In India; Prices Start At Rs. 6.25 Lakh
India Kawasaki Motor has announced the launch of the Z650 BS6 version in the country. The 2020 Kawasaki Z650 BS6 is priced between Rs. 6.25 lakh and Rs. 6.50 lakh, which makes it about Rs. 56,000 more expensive than the BS4 version that retailed at Rs. 5.69 lakh (all prices, ex-showroom India). The Z650 is the second model in the company's line-up to get BS6 compliance after the Z900, and the updated models will start arriving by January next year. In addition, the updated Kawasaki Z650 gets subtle feature upgrades, while continuing to use the same mechanicals.
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Tata Motors And Prakriti E-Mobility Sign MoU To Deploy 500 Tigor EVs In Delhi
Tata Motors has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Prakriti E-Mobility Private Limited and as part of the same, the company will be deploying 500 Tigor EVs in New Delhi. Prakriti E-Mobility is a taxi service founded by Nimish Trivedi, Vikas Bansal and Rajeev Tiwari, which operates in Delhi-NCR and runs via the app-based platform Evera. The automaker is expected to handover the first batch of the 160 Tata Tigor EVs by January 2020.
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NPCI Announces Fastag Recharge Option Through BHIM UPI
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has announced that vehicle owners will now have the option of Fastag recharge via BHIM UPI among other recharge options. Any smartphone with BHIM UPI enabled app will allow vehicle owners to recharge their Fastags on the go and avoid long queues at the toll plazas. The National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) program has been designed to meet the needs of the Indian market and is accessible across toll plaza pan India. The toll payment solution includes clearinghouse services for settlement and dispute management.
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Okinawa To Introduce Oki100 Electric Motorcycle In Q1 Of 2020
Gurugram-based Okinawa Autotech commenced operations three years ago with electric scooters and the manufacturer will now enter the electric motorcycle space as well, as early as next year. Jeetender Sharma, Co-founder and MD - Okinawa has confirmed the development to carandbike in a recent interaction, and the manufacturer will bring the Oki100 electric motorcycle in the first quarter of 2020. The model will be a 125 cc equivalent and will take on the Revolt RV400, the only electric offering of its kind in this space.
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2020 Kawasaki Z900 BS6 Launched In India; Prices Start From Rs. 8.5 Lakh
India Kawasaki Motor has introduced its first BS6 compliant offering with the launch of the 2020 Z900. The 2020 Kawasaki Z900 is priced between Rs. 8.50 lakh and Rs. 9 lakh (all-prices, ex-showroom) and is Euro5 compliant, according to the company. That's a steep increase in pricing compared to the BS4 model that retailed at Rs. 7.69 lakh. With the high price tag though, the 2020 Z900 now gets a host of electronics while retaining the same power and torque figures on the naked in-four cylinder motorcycle. The bike locks horns against the Triumph Street Triple S, Suzuki GSX-S750 and the KTM 790 Duke.
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Yamaha To Exit Commuter Segment By April 2020
Yamaha Motor India has a new strategy in place for the Indian market that will see the two-wheeler maker exit the entry-level commuter segment by April 2020. Ravinder Singh, Senior VP - Strategy & Planning, Yamaha Motor India, confirmed the development on the sidelines of the Fascino 125 FI launch in Chennai and iterated that the firm now plans to concentrate on the premium commuter segment and above. This move will see the company discontinue the Yamaha Fascino and Ray-ZR 110 cc scooters as well as the Saluto 125 and Saluto RX 110 commuter motorcycles. In fact, the brand is liquidating stocks of all these models as it approaches the March 31, 2020, deadline for meeting BS6 emission norms.
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Top 9 Mass Market Two-Wheeler Launches Of 2019
2019 has been an interesting year for the Indian auto sector. While it was far from the upswing in terms of sales growth, it also saw manufacturers bring some very likeable products to the market. Despite the overall slowdown in the auto industry, good products proved that they would sell irrespective of what the market conditions are. With the year coming to a close, carandbike decided to look back at the top nine two-wheeler launches of the year in the mass market space that managed to leave a mark.
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Kia Seltos Electric Being Developed For Asian Markets
Kia Motors entered India with the Seltos compact SUV and the model has hit the jackpot with over 80,000 bookings since launch. The carmaker has its hands full with the strong domestic and export demand for the SUV and the model has helped Kia establish itself as the fifth-largest auto manufacturer in India. However, the Seltos still has a lot to offer it seems and the model will soon have an electric derivative. According to a recent report, the Kia Seltos Electric is currently under development and will make its way to the market in 2020.
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Auto Industry Reacts To Delhi EV Policy
The Delhi government released the latest draft of the Delhi Electric Vehicle Policy 2019 earlier this week and the policy promises a number of subsidies, incentives, and support for the EV industry to grow in the national capital. The government says that the draft has been prepared after taking into considerations suggestions from different stakeholders and offers subsidies across electric two, three and four-wheelers, along with support for developing the necessary charging infrastructure. The policy aims to bring 25 per cent of the total number of new vehicle registrations to 'Electric Only' by 2025. In addition, the road tax and registration for EVs will be waived off for the early adopters as part of the policy. Given the promising Delhi EV Policy, the auto industry seeing it as a big push for the EV sector to grow. Here's how the industry reacted to the new policy.
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Honda Activa 125 & SP 125 BS6 Sales Cross 60,000 Mark
Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India has announced that the company's BS6 two-wheeler dispatches have crossed the 60,000 mark. The Japanese manufacturer recently introduced its first two BS6 compliant models - the Honda Activa 125 and the Honda SP 125 - in the country, both catering to the mass market segment. The Activa and the SP 125 are popular sellers for the brand and the BS6 versions seem to be continuing the sales momentum despite the higher price tag. Honda further stated that the company has been seeing an overwhelming demand from all regions for its BS6 models.
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