Suzuki Gixxer 150cc Motorcycle Showcased, Launch In August

Suzuki Motorcycles India Limited wants a bigger share of the 150cc motorcycle segment, and what better way to get that than by launching a stylish and sporty bike? Say hello to the Suzuki Gixxer 150cc motorcycle. Suzuki’s previous offering in the segment, the Suzuki GS150R will continue to sell alongside the Gixxer, being the more conservative choice.
The company has revealed the bike at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo and below you can find all the details that have been released till now.
Updated on 27th May 2014

Suzuki Gixxer Specifications have been leaked before Indonesia launch of the motorcycle. You can check out more details here- Suzuki Gixxer Specifications Leaked.
Updated on 28th February 2014
We had earlier stated that the Suzuki Gixxer 150cc motorcycle will be launched in India in July 2014. But according to a new report on Indian Autos Blog.com, the bike will be launched in India in August 2014. We will keep you posted on the latest developments related to the bike. Keep following Car Blog India.
Updated on 7th February 2014
Price
To be announced at launch, in August 2014. We expect it to be priced at around INR Rs. 70,000.
We will watch the developments on the Suzuki Gixxer 150cc motorcycle and will keep you updated, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter for latest updates.

What’s New?

The Suzuki Gixxer 150cc will be the flagship bike of the company in the 150cc segment and thus is a bit more stylish, borrowing a lot of cues from it’s more powerful siblings. In all it is a fairly good looking bike, styling cues for the Suzuki Gixxer have been borrowed from bikes like the now discontinued SV650, and the B-King. At front you get a very minimal fascia, the headlamp is a slightly redesigned version of the one found on the GS150R. Move to the side and you notice the ‘Gixxer’ branding on the tank extension, the Suzuki logo on the tank and the company’s name on a grey plastic element, the bike is devoid of any other graphics. The short and stubby exhaust gives the bike a very sporty look though the chrome-plated end may not be to everybody’s taste, the exhaust design was seen for the first time on Suzuki bikes with the launch of the B-King. The alloy wheel design is pretty attractive, that combined with the chunky tryes give the bike a purposeful stance. The stacked seating is stylish, we cannot say if it comfortable till we get to ride the bike though. Move towards the rear and you will notice the exposed-drive chain, the nicely integrated grab handles and the minimalist brake light.
The instrument cluster is all digital, though a bit small for our liking. The handlebar and controls on it feel pretty well built, but these are all first impressions. The wide tank looks sporty and the knee recesses on it should aid in better control for the rider. The rider posture is a bit aggressive, with a low handlebar and slightly rear-set foot-pegs which would appeal to many buyers in this category. Check out more photos of the bike below.

Features

Suzuki has not revealed much about the bike, but here’s what we know:

    Electric and kick start on offer
    Disc brakes at front, drums at the rear
    100mm-section tyres at the front, 140-section tyres at the rear
    All digital instrument cluster

Performance and Handling

Suzuki will reveal more details about the Suzuki Gixxer 150cc motorcycle closer to the launch in July 2014, but here’s what we know. The bike will be powered by a 155cc, single-cylinder , air-cooled engine. Performance or economy features of the same have not been provided till now. Suzuki does mention though that the bike will be powerful and economical thanks to their proprietary SEP technology, SEP stands for ‘Suzuki Eco Performance’. There is no info about the transmission on the bike, but we expect that Suzuki will offer a 5-speed unit. Suspension duties are handles by telescopic forks at the front and mono shock at the rear, braking is handled by a disc at front and a drum at the rear. Power is fed via a chain to the rear tyre.

Competition

The bike will be positioned as a sporty offering and will compete against the likes of the Yamah FZ -S, the Honda CB Trigger and the Honda CB Unicorn Dazzler.

Cyclone Hudhud blasts India's east coast, at least three dead

Cyclone Hudhud blasted India's eastern seaboard on Sunday with gusts of up to 195 kilometres an hour (over 120 mph), uprooting trees, damaging buildings and killing at least three people despite a major evacuation effort.

The port city of Visakhapatnam, home to two million people and a major naval base, was hammered as the cyclone made landfall, unleashing the huge destructive force it had sucked up from the warm waters of the Bay of Bengal.

Upended trees and wreckage were strewn across Visakhapatnam, known to locals as Vizag. Most people heeded warnings to take refuge, but three who ventured out were killed, officials said.

The chief minister of Andhra Pradesh, the state that bore the brunt of Hudhud's onslaught, said the extent of damage would only become known after the storm abates.

"We are unable to ascertain the situation. Seventy percent of communication has totally collapsed ... this is the biggest calamity," N. Chandrababa Naidu told Headlines Today television.

"We are asking people not to come out of their houses," Naidu said, adding that damage assessment would start on Monday. "We are mobilising men and material immediately."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Naidu and promised "all possible assistance in relief and rescue operations", his central government said in a statement.

The low toll reported so far followed an operation to evacuate more than 150,000 people to minimise the risk to life from Hudhud - similar in size and power to cyclone Phailin that struck the area exactly a year ago.

After a lull as the eye of the storm passed over the city, winds regained massive potency. Forecasters warned Hudhud would blow strongly for several hours more, before wind speeds halve in the evening.

"Reverse windflow will be experienced by the city, which will again have a very great damage potential," L.S. Rathore, director-general of the state India Meteorological Department (IMD), told reporters in New Delhi.

The IMD forecast a storm surge of 1-2 metres above high tide that could result in flooding of low-lying coastal areas around Visakhapatnam, Vijayanagaram and Srikakulam.

TERRIFYING WIND

A Reuters reporter in Vizag said the storm had smashed his hotel's windows and flooded the ground floor. It was difficult even to open the door of his room, he said, as wind rushing through the corridors drove it shut again.

"I never imagined that a cyclone could be so dangerous and devastating," said one businessman who was staying in the hotel. "The noise it is making would terrify anyone."

An operations centre in state capital Hyderabad was inundated with calls from people seeking help, including 350 students stranded in a building with no food or water, said K. Hymavathi, a senior disaster management official.

Vizag port suspended operations on Saturday night, with its head saying that 17 ships which had been in the harbour were moving offshore where they would be less at risk from high seas.

The city airport was closed and train services suspended.

The IMD rated Hudhud as a very severe cyclonic storm that could pack gusts of 195 km/h and dump more than 24.5 cm (10 inches) of rain.

The cyclone was strong enough to have a "high humanitarian impact" on nearly 11 million people, the Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS), run by the United Nations and the European Commission, said.

The evacuation effort was comparable to one preceding Cyclone Phailin, credited with minimising fatalities to 53. When a huge storm hit the same area 15 years ago, 10,000 people died.

Hudhud was likely to batter a 200-300 km stretch of coastline before losing force as it moves inland, forecasters said.

According to the IMD, peak wind speeds will drop to 60 km/h by Monday afternoon. Hudhud is expected to continue to dump heavy rains in northern and northeastern India and, eventually, snow when it reaches the Himalayan mountains.