10 affordable upcoming bikes: Royal Enfield Scrambler to KTM 390 Adventure

Bike manufacturers in India are all set to bring in a slew of new bikes this year. With the new safety norms in place that mandate every motorcycle at or above 125 cc displacement to be equipped with ABS, 2019 was already deemed to be a busy year in terms of launches. Apart from updating their model range, bike manufacturers have also lined up many new bikes that will be launched this year. Here then are the 10 upcoming affordable bikes in India.

Yamaha MT-15

Starting the list with a bike that is closest to its launch, Yamaha will launch the MT-15 on the 15th of March. It is a streetfighter version of the R15 and will feature the same engine and mechanicals. It will rival the likes of TVS Apache 200 4V and Bajaj Pulsar NS200 among others in the segment. The MT-15 will be powered by a 155cc liquid cooled engine that produces 19.2 Bhp of power and 15 Nm of torque. The bike will be mated to a 6-speed gearbox and a slipper clutch. Dual channel ABS will also be standard fitment on the bike.

Hero XPulse 200

Hero in a way started the affordable adventure tourer segment in India with the Impulse. Now, the company plans to bring another bike on the same concept. Called the XPulse 200R, it will become the most affordable adventure tourer in the country upon its launch. The XPulse will be powered by a 200cc single-cylinder, air-cooled engine that will produce a maximum of 18 Bhp power and 17 Nm of torque. The engine will come mated to a five-speed gearbox. Expect Hero to price the bike around Rs. 1 lakh price mark, where it will have no direct competition whatsoever.

Royal Enfield Classic 500 Scrambler

That Royal Enfield was developing a Scrambler type motorcycle based on the Classic 500 in itself was pretty shocking news for all of us. However, it is true and the bike will be launched by mid-2019, though it could shift to end 2019 also. It will probably be powered by the Classic 500 engine only albeit in a different state of tune to justify its scrambler nature. From all the spy shots that have surfaced yet,  we can say that the bike will come with longer travel suspensions, a modified rear subframe along with other enhancements to justify its scrambler nature.

Jawa Perak

While Jawa launched two bikes on 15th of November last year, the Perak bobber is yet to be launched in the market. It will be the first affordable production Bobber themed bike in India and will be more powerful than the other two Jawa bikes. It gets powered by a big bore version of the 293cc motor, displacing 334cc. The bigger engine churns out 30 Bhp of power along with 31 Nm of torque. The engine will come mated to a 6-speed manual gearbox. Jawa would probably launch the Perak in the third quarter of 2019 at an ex-showroom price of Rs. 1.89 lakh.

KTM 390 Adventure

Among the most awaited bikes of the year, the KTM 390 Adventure was recently spotted testing in India. The bike was long rumoured to be in development and had been recently been spotted testing. KTM has a lot of experience in making adventure bikes globally and the company also competes in the Dakar rally championship, considered to be the toughest off road rally race. It will share most of the parts like engine among others with the 390 Duke and we expect the company to launch the bike by the third quarter of 2019.

Husqvarna Svartpilen 401

Husqvarna will make its India entry this year one of the first models to be launched by the company will be the Svartpilen. The Svartpilen is a relaxed, scrambler-styled motorcycle which has a wild design along with typical scrambler traits. The Svartpilen will be powered by the same 390 Duke engine as its other twin. The 373cc engine produces 44 Bhp of peak power along with 37 Nm of torque and comes mated to a 6 speed manual gearbox with slipper clutch.

Bajaj Dominar 400 Facelift

The 2019 Bajaj Dominar has been spotted several times now and has received quite a few cosmetic and mechanical upgrades. This includes a USD front fork instead of telescopic units and a DOHC configuration for the engine instead of a SOHC one found on the current model. The power output would probably see a jump too. The 373 cc engine currently produces 34.5 Bhp of power and 35 Nm of peak torque. Other changes on the 2019 Dominar will probably include a new engine bash plate, exhaust muffler and new colour options too. A slight bump in pricing is also expected.

Husqvarna Vitpilen 401

Compared to the Svartpilen, the Vitpilen is a retro, cafe racer styled bike with sporty riding position. However, it is a far cry from conventional cafe racers and features a radical design with fuses the DNA of a cafe racer with a lightweight naked performance bike. It gets powered by the same 373cc engine that does the duty on KTM 390 series bikes. The liquid cooled engine produces 44 Bhp of peak power along with 37 Nm of torque and gets four valve twin cam head, fuel injection and a slipper clutch. A 6 speed manual gearbox is standard.

Benelli Imperiale 400

 

 

Benelli will launch a Royal Enfield challenger this year in the form of the Imperiale 400. The retro-modern bike is built on a double-cradle, steel tubular frame and comes with a teardrop-shaped fuel tank with rubber grip to get that classic look. It also gets modern bits like split seats and digital screen in the instrument cluster. The Benelli Imperiale will be powered an air-cooled, single-cylinder, fuel-injected engine. The 373cc engine produces a maximum of 20.4 PS at 5,500 rpm and a peak of 28 Nm at 3,500 rpm. It gets a five-speed transmission.

UM motorcycles DSR

Ending the list with another adventure tourer, the UM Motorcycles DSR will be among the first models by the company in the planned second leg of their India policy. The affordable adventure bike category is growing quite hot in India which is evident by the presence of 3 bikes in this list only. The DSR will be powered by a 196cc, single-cylinder, air-cooled engine. The engine is carburetted and produces a maximum of 16 Bhp power along with 16 Nm of peak torque and comes mated to a six-speed transmission. The bike gets benefitted from its low weight of 148 kg which will make it better to handle during adventure runs.