Upcoming Entry Level Performance Bikes in India in 2014

Entry level performance bikes are the current market trend around the world. Bikes with an engine displacement between 200-500cc come in this category. Major brands offering bikes in the segment are KTM, Honda, Kawasaki, Yamaha, Suzuki, Royal Enfield, Hyosung etc. All these companies are doing well with their bikes in the respective segment, specially KTM is ruling the Europian Market riding on Duke 200 and 390. A large share around 65 percent of the Indian two-wheeler market has been occupied by the 100-125cc commuters. However, the share of these 200-500cc bike is also not so small in the world's largest two-wheeler market, and now it increasing further. Right now, we have KTM Duke 200 and 390, Kawasaki Ninja 300, Honda CBR250R, Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500, Bullet 500 and Classic 500, Hyosung GT250R etc. which are doing quite well in their respective segments. Taking an inspiration from all these successful bikes, many other auto giants are gearing up to hit the Indian shores.

Below listed are the bikes likely to be launched in 200-500cc segment-

1) Royal Enfield Continental GT: Continental GT - a Cafe Racer is not a new concept, it started in early 60s and the very first Royal Enfield Continental GT was launched in 1965 with a 250cc engine. The bike was awarded with 'Britains Fastest 250' in 1964. And now the Continental GT has been re-launched with an advanced 535cc engine in London at £ 5,200 (5.2 lakh INR) and is ready to launch in India soon. The bike has been expected to launch by the end of 2013 with a price tag below Rs. 2.5 lakh in India.

2) Hyosung GV250: Hyosung GV250 or say Aquila is an entry level cruiser from this South Korean company. The bike has been inspired by its elder sibling, Hyosung GV650 (Aquila Pro), which is already available in the Indian market. The bike looks classy and has the potential to fulful the demand of affordable cruisers in India, if launched at the price tag of under Rs. 2 lacs. You can expect the launch of Hyosung GV250 by the end of this year.

3) Mahindra Mojo: Mahindra Mojo is a roadster developed in Italy, which uses a 292cc, liquid cooled engine. The bike was announced in early 2010 and said to be launched in 2011. It was also showcased in the 2012 Auto Expo, However, it has not been launched yet. The bike has been spied testing many times, which shows that the company is trying to have more local content, so to launch it at a competitive price. The bike is expected to launch by early 2014 at Rs. 1.8 lakh in India.

4) KTM RC250R and RC390R: KTM is the top two-wheeler manufacturer of the European market. And after the unbeatable performance of Duke 200 and 390, KTM is planing two entry level bikes in its RC series with its Indian partner Bajaj Auto. One is KTM RC390R, which is based on Duke 390 and already has been unveiled by KTM for the ADAC Junior Cup one make championship. The second one in the Series is KTM RC250R, which will be unveiled in the upcoming EICMA motor show. KTM is developing a new 250cc power mill for the bike. Both the bikes have been confirmed by the company and expected to be launched by the mid of 2014. KTM RC250R is expected to be priced around Rs. 1.6 lakh, while the price of KTM RC390R is Expected to be at Rs. 2.5 lakh.

5) Bajaj Pulsar 375: Bajaj is planning to launch a bigger 375cc version of its most popular sport series Pulsar. However, not any picture or specification has been unveiled by the company. According to rumors, the bike will be launched as a full faired racing machine in 2014 and to be priced around Rs. 2 lakh.

6) Hero MotoCorp Karizma ZMR250: According to latest updates by Hero MotoCorp, the company has developed 3 new engines of 100cc, 110cc and 250cc displacements. The 250cc engine will be used in the 2014 Karizma ZMR. Recently, the bike was spied testing in India. However, the company has not announced about the bike, it is expected to be launched by the end of 2014 at a price of Rs. 1.5 lakh.

7) Suzuki GW250 aka Inzuma 250: Suzuki is planning to launch its Inzuma 250 in India for a long time. However, the bike has not been launched till now. It is a 250cc entry level naked machine from the company. A couple of month ago, the company has also unveiled a semi faired version of the bike named GW250S at the 15th Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition, China. Both of these bikes are expected to launch by the early 2014 in a price range of Rs. 1.8-2.5 lakh in India.

8) Yamaha YZF R25: After the successful entry of above 200cc bikes in India, Yamaha is feeling the need of a powerful YZF R above R15. So they are planning to add a 250cc bike in YZF series, which will be tagged YZF R25. The bike's fairing will be inspired by YZF R6 and expected to be launched by the end of 2014 at a price around Rs 1.7 lakh.

9) Harley Davidson 500cc Cruiser: Harley Davidson has officially announced that they are developing a 500cc cruiser, specially for India. They said that the bike is in advance stage of its development and going through testing. It has been designed according to the Indian commuters without changing the H D trends. Name of the bike has not been announced yet, however, it has been expected to be launched by the late 2014 with a price tag of around Rs. 4 lakh.

10) Honda CBR400R: CBR is the most popular racing sport series of the Japanese auto giant and they are doing well with their CBR250R in India. They also have other higher variants of CBR series including the CBR1000RR in India and now they want to fill the gap with their CBR400R by the mid of 2014. The bike uses a 399cc parallel twin engine to deliver maximum power of 46 PS and a peak torque of 37Nm. Expected price of the bike is Rs. 3-3.5 lakh.

11) Kawasaki Ninja 250R: Recently, during the launch of Ninja ZX-10R and ZX-14R in India, Kawasaki announced to re-launch a localized updated version of their Ninja 250R in India. They will manufacture the bike with their local partner, Bajaj Auto and it is expected to be launched by the end of 2014 at a price of Rs. 2.4 lakh.

12) TVS Apache RTR 250: TVS Apache 250 is one of the most anticipated vehicles, for which we all have been waiting, though no official confirmation has been given on its launch. And ever since TVS collaborated with the BMW Motorrad to develop bikes between 200-500cc, rumours started coming out that the first launch through the TVS-BMW alliance will be the TVS Apache RTR 250.

This huge list of upcoming 200-500cc bikes in India shows that the 2014 will be the year of performance bikes. And the enthusiastic riders are going to experience these amazing rides very soon.