MAR 2012 overdrive 31

New Outlander set for GenevaComprehensive update brings styling closer to its SUvs, reduces car styling influence on crossover

Mitsubishi will showcase the new Outlander at the Geneva Show which starts March 6. It will soon replace the existing

Outlander globally but in India expect that replacement to happen only early next year.

The exterior design cues on the new Outlander, based on the PX MIEV-II con-cept from the 2011 Tokyo Show, point to bigger brother Montero with its twin slats unlike the Evo inspired front end of the outgoing model. The interiors get steer-ing mounted controls, a high resolution instrument panel, three rows of seats and a powered tailgate. The new Outlander also

gets a host of safety features like forward collision mitigation system, adaptive cruise control and lane departure warning.

Mitsubishi are offering the SUV with two engines – a 2.0-litre in-line 4-cylinder SOHC MIVEC petrol and a 2.2-litre 4-cylinder turbocharged MIVEC diesel. The diesel is entirely a Mitsubishi design unlike the previous diesel which was sourced from PSA. That made it prohibitively expensive to bring to India which is why the Indian Outlander to date was offered only with a petrol engine. This new diesel claims to have emissions under 130 grams per km all thanks to its technologies like the MMC stop-start system. In addition the CVT the

Outlander is strapped with will be replaced by a 6-speed automatic.

Mitsubishi will be launching the new Outlander first in Russia and then in Europe, Japan, China and North America. Later this year, there will also be an EV-based Outlander which will have MMC’s plug-in hybrid technology. Mitsubishi are also likely to stop producing the car at their Dutch facility due to falling demand.

This is the only image of the car and more will follow soon as we get to Ge-neva. We expect the price to remain the same as the current car with the launch expected within two months of the car’s UK debut.

motoringnewsLogon to w w w.overdrive . in/newS/

news to share? Call us on +91 22 30245000 or Fax: +91 22 30034499

Email us at mailbox@overdrive.co.in

T e sTmercedes-benz sl350

overdrive MAR 2012118

Farewell Words sirish Chandran Photography Gaurav s Thombre

it won’t match the lofty standards set by the 911 on the previous pages, but the merc sl is very much an icon of our times

I heard god for the first time in an SL, and he was shouting. Loudly. Very loudly. So much so that the whole of Rajasthan woke up.

Picture the scene: the arrow straight roads around Jais-almer; a fleet of AMGs, the first batch to land on our shores;

C63, CLS63, S65, nothing in the fleet costing less than a crore of ru-pees; and the car I’d just taken the roof off of - the SL63 AMG. God’s own sound box. And boy did we exercise his vocal cords that day.

I described it as Moses shouting out the 11th commandment. It was the sound of thunder, except even more terrifying. If there was an ocean it would have parted; the desert sands picked up their skirts and scurried for the border. The border was on high alert.

For a petrol head the day you put your foot down in an SL63AMG - make your own thunder - is the day you’ve made your bones.

MAR 2012 overdrive 119

overdrive NOV 201192

Com pa rodzire vs etios vs manzavs verito

Words Halley prabhakar Photography Gaurav S Thombre

RebootedThe dzire sequel is back to meet its competition

overdrive MAR 201292

India is a land of rising aspirations and nowhere is it more evi-dent than in our two biggest purchases - our homes and cars. We dream big; we want more. A bigger apartment. A bigger car. So while we all start out with a little 1BHK (1HK if you’re in Mumbai!) and an equally little hatchback, we all aspire - and

upgrade as soon as our increments allow - to a larger apartment (at least a B in Mumbai) and a boot on our car.

Explains the Indian obsession with a traditional sedan, a three-box. Hatchbacks today are no longer pokey and cramped; they’re properly stylish, have excellent dynamics, are brilliantly engineered and most importantly are astonishingly good value. Yet we aspire to own a sedan. Doesn’t matter that they’re based on the same platform, have the same engines and are considerably more expensive - the boot tacked on spells one thing. Status.

Which brings us to the new Maruti Suzuki Dzire. It’s only 145mm longer than the hatchback, has the same engines, the same cabin, same everything except there’s a boot. And it is 10 per cent more expensive. Is it clever engineering or is somebody raking it in? Does it make sense as a sedan and more importantly does it meet the criteria of a do-it-all

work/weekend car? We find out by comparing it with the other entry level sedans - Toyota Etios, Tata Manza and Mahindra Verito.

Design anD engineering All four are radically different and look generations apart. Let’s start with the oldest - the Verito - that also looks the oldest. It’s a dated boxy design, originally sold under the Mahindra Renault banner as the Logan, a car that was developed as a cheap low cost car for emerg-ing markets - and looks it. After Mahindra took over the project they tried to add a modicum of style with roof rails (unheard of in this seg-ment), side cladding, chrome garnish, a rear spoiler and a new grille but the car’s boxy design is a mountain too big for Mahindra’s de-signers to crest. It has a lot to do with keeping costs in check for a car in this segment - for instance even the top end version doesn’t get alloy wheels - and there’s no hiding the fact that this is the same car that picks you up at the airport.

The Manza in comparison is a modern design but not a very pro-portionate one, the booted Indica Vista is unnecessarily bulbous and though attention grabbing, it’s not for the right reasons. The unique

NOV 2011 overdrive 93MAR 2012 overdrive 93

colour options and chrome garnish work in its favour adding a spot of premiumness, allied to chrome surrounds for the fog lamps, front grille and window line.

The Etios isn’t the prettiest car around but is a bit more palatable. It’s a simple and traditional Toyota design, bordering on the boring. Though it too is based on a hatchback, the car is proportional and doesn’t look like a hatch with a boot stuck onto it. The top end ver-sion has a lot of chrome detailing while the nose sports the typical smiley Toyota grille, but the rest of the car looks very plain. And from the rear it looks far too much like the Verito. Toyota could have in-jected some flair into the design considering the car was designed from the ground up for India.

The new Dzire, by dint of its sub-four metre length, shouldn’t be but is by far the best looking car here. The boot integration is much better than in the previous generation car and does not appear to be an afterthought. Viewed from the rear - with the thick chrome gar-nish and Kizashi-inspired taillamps - it is actually good looking, so too from the rear three-quarter angle and it is only in profile that the short stubby boot looks awkward. The front nose is similar to the

Swift but has a stylish new bumper, revised front grille and the air dam is more angular and sports a wider smile. The changes to the front end make the already stylish nose of the Swift even more ap-pealing and eye-catching and then you step inside and are sold.

The Dzire’s cabin is a massive step up from its rivals and switch-ing to two-tone black-and-beige over the Swift’s all-black makes it look properly premium. It has been designed with genuine flair, is very well laid out, perceived quality is excellent and ergonomics are brilliant. It is one of the few cars in the country where the volume control knob is on the right of the unit making it easier for the driver to access. The stereo controls on the steering wheel are backlit so can be used easily at night. The front seats are wide, supportive, fabulous-ly comfortable and with height adjust (only car here to get it) delivers the best driving position. And in terms of equipment it shades every-thing else getting the afore mentioned integrated stereo with a clean and legible display, climate control, alloys, twin airbags and ABS. The dashboard feels nicer, is styled better and has more equipment than the City or Vento. Only thing it lacks is Bluetooth mobile phone con-nectivity. And space at the rear.

Dr i v e2012 Audi A4

overdrive MAR 2012106

Midlife makeover Words rishaad Mody

Audi’s big seller, the A4, gets a midlife refresh.

There’s nothing quite like a midlife face-lift. A nip here, a tuck there and suddenly you’re back to being the talk of the town. It’s a system that’s

worked wonders for celebs who refuse to raise the white flag against the merciless on-slaught of age. Audi happily subscribe to the same school of thought and put their bestselling A4 under the knife. Sure, the car’s lost its ‘old’ feel and is now pretty up to date, but is that enough?

Take the all new BMW 3 series, it’s exactly that - all new. And while Mer-cedes also gave their C-class a refresh they took it a step further with a new 7-speed auto that signifi-cantly improves drive-ability. So what changes does Audi bring to the table to compete with its two biggest rivals’ rather healthy spread?

The biggest changes are visual, with the car get-ting a new face. The earlier A4 was one of the first cars to use LEDs in the headlamps for a striking front end. Improving on that the new headlamps with their light scatter tech LEDs now throw an even beam of light as against the individual bursts of light from the old units. While the headlamps themselves are reminiscent of the new A5, the defining shape of the LED housing gives them quite a unique look. The grille gets tapered edges at the top like on the new A6 while nicely flared intakes add a bit of drama to an otherwise serious face. The side profile stays the same while the tail gets ever so slightly freshened tail lights with LED clusters.

On the inside the layout is largely the same but there’s now a new button layout for the MMI navigation system. The key fob and steering wheel have been redesigned as well.

Also, new aluminium and walnut trim op-tions are now available. Many might not even notice the changes but that’s a testa-ment to the fact that this was one of the best cabins in the category to start with.

It’s a similar story with the dynamics. The only changes to the chassis are the fine tuned the rear suspension control arm mounts and

shock absorbers. The big change though is the new electromechanical steer-ing that replaces the old hydraulic unit. Audi steer-ing set-ups never offered great feedback to begin with and this new system continues the lineage of precise yet slightly numb steering. Of course the advantage of going elec-tric is increased fuel efficiency(upto 18 percent higher) and lower CO2 output. Also new is the Drive Select system that now gets a new Efficiency mode in addition to the Comfort, Dynamic and Individual. As the name

suggests it sets up the engine, steering , trans-mission and suspension for optimum effi-ciency.

We drove both the 2.0-litre diesel and 1.8-litre petrol variants albeit with a six-speed manual box unlike the CVT Multitronic au-tomatic that India will most likely get. The 143PS diesel is a carry-over from the old car. However the 1.8TFSI petrol has been re-worked with a new turbo and higher boost ratings. Power climbs by 10PS to 170PS while torque goes up by a massive 70Nm to a total of 320Nm. And thanks to the wonders of modern engineering efficiency is now up by 11 per cent as well. Both cars were front wheel drive but torque steer was kept to a mini-mum by the electronic limited slip diff.

Out in the open the A4 felt refined on the smooth yet tight roads that snaked through

The 1.8TFSI haS a neW Turbo and hIgher booST ThaT

helpS produce aS much

Torque aS The 2.0TdI dIeSel

MAR 2012 overdrive 107

Maxi Mini Words Halley Prabhakar

Will a Mini Cooper with two more doors and a bigger boot still be a Mini. We drive the Countryman to find out

dr i v eMini CountryMan

overdrive MAR 2012128

What’s common between Stephane Peterhansel and Dani Sordo? Yes, they are both international rally

drivers. But what else? Well, Peterhansel had a commanding win in the grueling 2012 Dakar rally and Sordo finished an impressive second in this year’s first WRC round at Monte Carlo. But the commonality was the car they drove, a Mini.

Mini made a comeback to rallying almost 50 years after its first rally victory and these two drivers made it a memorable return. But

unlike the original rally car, a Mini Cooper S hatch, the new rally car is based on Mini’s first ever all-wheel drive model, the Mini Cooper Countryman. We got behind the wheel of this road going model to see what this (not so) Mini has to offer.

The Mini has grown, literally speaking, ever since it was first introduced. The original Mini was a cult car and the more modern one also has a ardent fan following keeping itself in the black.

The original Mini was a very small car, even smaller than the Tata Nano. The new Mini Cooper is now on par with most

current hatchbacks. The Countryman however is the largest Mini ever made. It is longer and wider but most importantly taller than the regular car.

The higher ground clearance and all-wheel drive in fact makes the Countryman more of a crossover. Though it’s an all-new design, one glance and you know it’s a Mini. It’s now large enough and imposing to stand out in a crowd.

The signature big frog eyes and inverted front grille has evolved from the standard Mini. It’s a very unique design and yet instantly brings to mind the characteristic

MAR 2012 overdrive 129

DR I V EVW TouaREG

oVERdRiVE MAR 201280

Road ‘reg Words & Photography Shubhabrata Marmar

Volkswagen introduces the new Touareg in india

Nagpur airport, 10am. After the hustle and hurry of India’s big metros, smaller town India, naturally, feels a little sleepier. The cabbies hustle less aggressively,

the cop tells the chaps badly parked in the airport to move it more gently. Passengers who are coming home move more languidly than the big city folks who handle their luggage carts as if they were land-bound aircraft, maneuvering deftly, swiftly and unflaggingly to their cabs and then hassling their drivers into getting to their hotels quickly.

Amidst this lot sits a trio of brown coloured Touaregs, gleaming softly in the watery morning light. Ooh, that’s not good. It’s forecasted to be an overcast, gloomy day and the cars are going to be hard to shoot. But then I slip into the driver’s seat and these random reflections recede revealing a plush, warm interior. It isn’t a startlingly new layout or anything - cover all the logos and you’d still know that the cabin came from the Volkswagen Group - it is instantly slotted mentally as a high-quality, well-made cabin. You note the floating question mark about the nearly white beige leather of the seats and how they will age, you glance past the big screen, sans navigation there isn’t much use for it really - music playing over Bluetooth off an iPad and the LCD readouts for the twin zone front aircon are readable enough for me to not worry about the screen for now.

Now we drive the new family-faced Touareg to a place about 90km away near the Tulia Gate of the Pench Wildlife Sanctuary, where an off-road course waits for us. That’s going to be new for me. I’ve driven the Touareg before, first at the Shanghai F1 track in V10 TDI form - massively (size), massively (torque), massively (body-roll-ey but devastating performance) impressive. Then a couple of years ago, I piloted one from Paris to the port town of Le Havre and back. And marveled at its composure on smooth Euro highways, as well how easy it proved to be to manage the size of the car on narrow two-lane B-roads with big trucks going the other way, just inches away from oncoming traffic.

MAR 2012 oVERdRiVE 81

Dr i v ePorsche 911

overdrive MAR 2012110

Icon reborn Words Sirish Chandran

it might not look it but the latest Porsche 911 is almost entirely new

It might not demand the sacrifice of the proverbial right limb, it might not even find itself on the list of ten most beautiful cars in the world but without doubt the 911 is the most

iconic and instantly recognisable shape in automotive history. Through nearly four decades since its debut in 1963, during which time the automotive world has whizzed past in a flurry of innovation, the 911 has stuck with the original (and has to be said, flawed) layout and classic Butzi Porsche-penned silhouette. A designer at the top of his game once told me that the easier it is for a child to pen the profile of a car the stronger the chances of it attaining legendary status. He was referring to the Beetle but in a roundabout way the 911 was also cut from the same cloth, and simi-larly takes three pencil strokes to scribble out the profile.

How do you update a bonafide classic then?

Update is too mild a word actually. Un-less you are a hardcore Porschephile your brain will hurt trying to pick out the differ-ences between this sixth-generation 991-series and the earlier 997-series. The stron-gest visual change are the slimmer and sharper LED taillamps but the new 911 is al-most 90 per cent new with the updates being the most significant since the fourth-generation 996 finally ditched air-cooling for water cooling.

100mm, that’s the big talking point. It’s the stretch in the wheelbase that fundamen-tally alters the 911’s traditionally short wheel-base (and subsequent driving characteris-tics? We will come to that later). Taking the driver’s hip point as a reference the front axle moves forward by 30mm, the rear moves back by 71mm and the windshield moves forward by 76mm. Compared to the previous 997 the engine remains in essen-tially the same place, it’s the rear axle that has moved back resulting in a more cab-

MAR 2012 overdrive 111

overdrive MAR 2012102

Race horse! Words Bertrand D’souza Photography Rakesh Chauhan

Ferrari brings the 458 italia to the BiC

F e at u R e

You can live a lifetime in a moment, it’s lines like that, that made the mushy Mills and Boon paperbacks a household name. It’s a line that reeks of dinner time soaps, Santa Barbara and saas bahu lingo. To me that line

is as fragile as toilet paper, rip one off and the roll rolls on. I would never have thought that line could associate itself with me. My life has been colourful, eventful and everyday brings with it something interesting. So a lifetime in a moment really meant nothing.

And yet jump out of a plane 30,000 feet above sea level and the phrase takes on new meaning. Or drive a Ferrari 458 Italia at a race track, not any old track but one that flows with such rapidity it can make people hurl in fright or sheer delight. That was my nirvana moment! I was at the Ferrari experience at the BIC with all the cars in the range involved and my editor ordered me to ‘go and cover it’. At first I was apprehensive about the whole experience, why me, I don’t

even like the brand though he does? The only sliver of respite would be the 458 Italia. I’ve driven the car before, it was the first Ferrari I drove and as an introduction to the brand it was impressive. Fortunately it would be like the only acquaintance you come across at a seminar you don’t want to be at, a welcome relief to see someone familiar.

As expected the Ferrari experience was beginning to taste like Mysore pak. The sweetmeat arranged in a elaborate display is always impressive but a pak does not last too long and never leaves you entirely satisfied. Quite similar to the first drive of the day in the very new FF. It’s an interesting car to look at because you have never ever seen any Ferrari look like this. The FF is a sort of a gene pool mix of an estate and a supercar and answers to the shooting brake classification. It’s a car that does a few firsts for Ferrari, chiefly it’s the first four-wheel drive powertrain for Ferrari. But traditional rear-wheel drive Ferraris have always been more exciting. One because

458 italia

overdrive MAR 2012102

MAR 2012 overdrive 103

they are lighter and on a more lighter note allow a lot more sideways action. The gist of the story anyways is that we did not drive the FF more than a couple of hundred metres leaving me terribly disappointed. But Sirish did, a lot more and in conditions you would never ever expect to see a Ferrari in. That story is in next month’s issue, read it and let it warm your toes.

So it’s back to the old acquaintance, the only face familiar and friendly in this lot, the 458 Italia. I last drove the 458 Italia a couple of years ago in Italy up the Raticossa and Futa pass close to Modena where the Ferrari factory dwells. The 458 was exhilarating but on public roads there are limits to exploring its abilities, at a racetrack however there are none. Never a better time and place then to get reacquainted with a car I consider one of the finest examples of a supercar. And what a fine example it is, the 458 Italia is the replacement to the F430 but as far as next of generation goes, the 458 Italia is

generations ahead. It almost makes the 430 feel like your grandfather. He might have been hip in his time but he’s now way past his prime.

Anyways, time to get back to driving the 458 on the BIC. Straight out of pit lane is a right hand corner that flows fast downhill, before rapidly climbing up left into a blind, very sharp right hander. The 458 Italia swings into it like a go kart, third gear and exhaust howling as the rev needle inches toward the red line. The left uphill climb is off camber and you can feel a slight tug as Newton’s laws try and force the 458 Italia into understeer. It is the most demanding section on the BIC because the corners flow rapidly into one another and you have to assume a braking and turn in point that is blind. In a race it isn’t a corner where sensational overtaking maneuvers will be executed. It is however a corner that will punish severely for any error in judgement. It’s a corner where any race driver can lose a lot of time if entry and exit aren’t inch

MAR 2012 overdrive 103

Dr i v esuzuki sWiFT sPORT

OveRdRive MAR 2012122

Evil twin Words ray Hutton

The swift sport is a much sportier version of india’s best handling hatch

Although it is one of Over-drive’s favourite cars, the Suzuki Swift is under-rated in europe. Suzuki is a rela-tively small player there and

the previous Swift, introduced in 2005, was its first mainstream car. it takes time for buy-ers and dealers to get up to speed. Which may explain Suzuki’s reluctance to change the style and market position when it intro-duced the new Swift last year; it judged that the formula was right and it should be con-tinued even with a new chassis platform.

it also realized that a car in the B-sector needs a performance version to get the atten-tion of driving enthusiasts. The last Swift Sport fitted that bill, a three-door with a 1.6-litre engine developing 123PS and some sporty bodywork appendages. Now there is a new Sport with more power (136PS) but better fuel economy but with renault Opel offering cars of this size with more than 200PS, it is classed as a ‘warm’ rather than hot hatch.

So the Swift Sport won’t capture head-lines for record lap times at the Nurburgring

but it scores well in real-world driving. The most significant new componentl is the new six-speed gearbox. The old model had low gearing to achieve its lively performance and was annoyingly buzzy cruising at high speed on a motorway. The sixth gear allows a wider spread of ratios and a higher final drive, im-proving both refinement and fuel economy.

rather than turbocharging or otherwise upgrading the new 1.2-litre K12B engine in regular Swift, Suzuki chose to continue with the 1.6-litre M16A from the previous Sport. it is a louder engine than the 1.2, which seems appropriate for the car’s more lively charac-ter. The addition of a variable intake system as well as attention to the variable valve tim-ing has produced the 13PS power increase while meeting euro v exhaust emissions and achieving a combined cycle fuel consump-tion figure of 15.63kmpl.

We have praised the ride and handling of the lesser Swift but found the electrically-as-sisted steering vague and inconsistent when hurrying through bends. Pleasingly, this has been corrected for the Sport. Software

changes have given the steering more weight and feel off-centre, so the car can be placed in a corner with greater accuracy. it is a bit heavier to drive but we would recommend Suzuki to adopt this set-up for other Swifts.

The latest hot hatches are smooth-road cars, with stiff suspension honed on race cir-cuits. Suzuki is proud of developing the new Swift on normal european roads with less than perfect surfaces; they included a partic-ularly challenging route across the Yorkshire moors in the north of england.

To give the Sport sharper responses with-out losing decent ride quality, it increased spring rates front and rear, added rebound springs to the front struts, and adopted a new design of bushes mounting the rear torsion beam to improve lateral rigidity. 17-inch wheels wearing 195/45 tyres are standard for the Swift Sport as is eSP. disc brakes are fit-ted all round, ventilated at the front and solid at the rear.

Compared with the regular car, the Sport grips better and rolls less. A fast drive across twisting mountain roads in Spain suggested

MAR 2012 OveRdRive 123

Words Shubhabrata Marmar Photography Gaurav S Thombre

Brand ofbrothersThe 200NS is more than just the first all-new Pulsar in a decade. It’s the next generation of India’s top selling premium motorcycle, and it has an equi-displacement brother in the Duke 200

overDrIve MAR 201274

R i deBajaj PulSar 200NS

In the run up to the unveil and first ride of the Pulsar 200NS, a few questions were repeatedly posed. Namely, what did it share with the KTM Duke 200, what would hap-

pen to the current Pulsar line and how would Bajaj handle two motorcycles of sim-ilar displacements, power and brand per-ception being launched simultaneously.

I can tell you that I’ve got some of the an-swers. The simplest question to answer is the middle one so I’ll start there. Bajaj isn’t re-placing the current Pulsar with the new one. Borrowing a line almost straight out of Hero Honda (I think this was at the CD-Dawn launch), Rajiv Bajaj clarified that the two gen-

erations would co-exist. Falling sales of a specific model or two would show that cus-tomers were ready to move on to the new machinery and only then would production be stopped of said model(s). India doesn’t discontinue stuff, other manufacturers do this already and Bajaj is joining that band-wagon. I wish it was otherwise to be honest, but it makes economic sense. There’s no way to replace three models of a flagship line in a quick enough time frame for the sales and most crucially profits to not take a hit.

The first and the second questions share answers. Bajaj are a bit shy of saying this be-cause they say it can be misconstrued, but they intend to follow a platform approach to

MAR 2012 overDrIve 75

Words Shubhabrata Marmar

Thai messageThe Monster 795 is not only a more affordable Ducati, it’s a strategy shift for Borgo Panigale

overDrive MAR 201286

R i deDucaTi MonsTer 795

Watching the road curve and disappear behind a cave ridden moun-tain isn’t a time to lose focus. Not even if you

can remember a Discovery Channel special on the caves this mountain hides under its oddly oozy looking rock formations in full 1080p detail. But the Monster 795 is like that when you first meet it.

On the one hand, I have to deal with the odd emotions from having one of my favor-ite motorcycles donate its engine to this mo-torcycle, and that the chassis comes from a lower displacement sibling. And that while Ducati wants to keep the nature of the Mon-ster undiluted, this is an Asia-specific, more affordable Ducati. It’s the kind of Borgo Pani-gale motorcycle that has never before seen the light of day. And almost certainly leads a charge of more such hybrids.

But before I end up giving you the impres-sion that the Monster is a Splendor Bolognese, Ducati is clear that it might be affordable by Ducati standards but the company is the maker of premium, exclusive motorcycles.

The volumes will be bigger than ever before but in the global picture, this will still be ex-clusive rather than something everyone is wearing. What is left unsaid is what Ducati have managed with this motorcycle, to make the tangled network of Asian trade agree-ments and import tariffs less of a hurdle for prospective Ducati buyers all over the region.

The 795 back story is simple. The compa-ny’s four month old Thailand plant will as-semble the motorcycle from Bologna ex-ported kits and about 12 per cent of the motorcycle will be made locally to meet Thai legislations. This comprises small aggregates like the wiring harness and other electrical bits and the steel handlebar that actually comes from India. In Thailand, local sourc-ing by regulation allows manufacturers to look in the ASEAN region for vendors. The assembled bikes are then crated and export-ed to markets like ours, where they clear cus-toms at lower rates (the duty implication drops from 60 per cent to 20 per cent says Ducati Asia-Pacific CEO Mirko Bordiga, and a further 10 per cent cut is expected shortly). Which is how the price of this Ducati be-

came a lot more realistic at the Auto Expo with the price being announced at ` 6.99 lakh ex-showroom, which we still believe is a lakh too high, to be honest. The next morn-ing, Ducati announced a ̀ 1 lakh further drop in price as an invitation price, the tag for the first 300 795s.

The motorcycle itself is a deceptively simple sounding piece of value engineering. If I were a dyed in the wool cynic, I’d say they slotted the 803cc engine, perfect to clear our norms with, in a cheaper frame from the 696 and bingo, we have a blistering seller. But it isn’t that simple. The 696 frame brought a few natural advan-tages like its smaller size and lower seat height, but Ducati also altered the peg position and raised the handlebar to create a Monster that’s a bit less committed in ergonomics terms. The logic is simple. Asian customers will ride these bikes mostly in town and they are generally of shorter stature.

To talk stature, if you look at the 796 and then at the 795, the differences you would clearly notice begin with the wheels and the swingarm. The three-spoke alloy wheels are locally sourced and wear Pirelli Angel tyres

Monsteron My

porchTurn to page no. 86

MAR 2012 overDrive 87

t e stmahindra xylo e9

overdrive MAR 201266

Xylo Myloto Words Ashok George Photography Gaurav s thombre

The xylo just got back from a visit to the dentist and we’re loving it

Remember that guy you met at a party who had really, really bad teeth. The first time you met him you thought to your-self, “Oh my good God!” Then

you kept seeing him at all the other parties and you got over his really bad teeth. Then after you met him a few more times you start-ed talking to him and found out he does a lot of charity work and is a great football player. The next time you saw him, you found out he has just had a complete makeover and his

teeth are now quite pleasant to look at. You even noticed his smile for the first time. This is exactly what has happened to the Xylo if you ask me. The first time I saw it I couldn’t stand it. But then I kept seeing more Xylos on the road and I got used to its toothy grin. Then I sat in one and was amazed at how comfort-able it was. And now the Xylo has had a com-plete revamp and it looks spectacular! Well in comparison at least.

We’ve always said how the Genio’s front was better looking than the Xylo and how

it seemed that your neighbourhood farmer had a better looking car than you in your Xylo. But now, the situation is back to how it rightfully needs to be. The all new Xylo gets a reworked front end with a new rectangular front grille in piano black finish. The bonnet is new too. Also adding a dash of class are the clear lens headlamps with the black inserts and some chrome detailing under the grille. The oval shape seems to be inspired from the previous generation Scorpio. The bumper gets a new front lip in a contrasting black

Dr i v e

Second chance Words Abhay verma Photography Gaurav S Thombre

The Premier Rio has a second go at the nascent compact SUV segment

Compact SUVs were one of the highlights of the 2012 Auto Expo. While Ford unveiled its compact global SUV, the EcoSport, Maruti showcased its

XA Alpha concept, and then there were the compact MPVs. This is a new niche in which manufacturers are now sensing serious po-tential, but guess which manufacturer was the first to tap into it? Premier Auto! Maker of the venerable Padmini but now almost out of business, the Rio was Premier’s attempt at making a comeback into the Indian market, but the chink in its armour was its BS III compliant diesel engine due to which it could not be sold in bigger cities. The Auto Expo had Premier launch the Rio Plus, which boasts of a BS IV compliant 1.2-litre petrol engine to solve the problem.

Apart from the engine change the Rio has also been given a styling update, giving it a

more contemporary look. Major changes have been made to the front, and the head-lamps are now modern looking curvy units, along with a new bumper with integrated fog lamps and a larger, purposeful grille. Add to this body-coloured bumpers, and side-clad-dings, mirror-mounted indicators, chunky 15-inch tyres and a rear wheel cover and the Rio looks a lot more youthful. Ground clearance is up by 5mm, and now stands at 200mm. Step inside and you notice the refreshed inte-riors, but the truth be told it is extremely dated and built very cheaply with poor quality. This might have been acceptable in the 80’s, not any more. However, the beige upholstery has given a sense of roominess to the cabin.

Ergonomics remain unchanged though, and the Rio is pretty cramped due to its nar-row track and wheelbase. The driver’s elbow tends hit the door pads on the right while the front passenger too needs to deal with the

same problem. The driver and passenger will constantly be hitting elbows and it is no bet-ter at the back where leg, knee, head and shoulder room are all at a premium. Hatch-backs today are considerably more spacious and comfortable.

Sitting under the hood is a 1.2-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine developed by AVL, Austria, but manufactured in China and as-sembled at Premier’s Pune plant. Engine re-finement could be better. The power and torque figures stand at 76.6PS at 5800rpm and 103.9Nm produced between 3500 and 4250rpm. The engine lacks punch though, and the Rio feels slow. It isn’t torquey either, so I had to downshift quite often when nego-tiating uphill sections. The gearbox is not impressive either, and shift quality and feel leave something to be desired. The Rio accel-erated to 100kmph in 18.9 seconds making it three seconds quicker than the Rio diesel.

PRemieR Rio PlUS

oVeRdRiVe MAR 201290

Dune & dusted Words Sirish Chandran Photography Sirish Chandran & Nitin Yadav

Dunes and Mahindras have been synonymous for ages;question is does the XUV500 carry any of that family DNA?

F e at u r eROYAL ESCAPE

OVERDRiVE MAR 2012134

Conventional wisdom has it that SUV owners don’t really care about four-wheel-drive; give them a hulking great beast that terrifies the mud off every other car and they will be

pleased as punch. Yet 25 per cent of all XUV bookings have been for the all-wheel-drive version, not an insignificant number considering it is a one lakh rupee option available only on the top end variant which in itself is a lakh of rupees more than the base variant XUV. Clearly there’s a Great Escape on most Mahindra owners’ agenda; matters not that unlike the Thar, Bolero or Scorpio the XUV neither has that near-indestructible ladder frame chassis nor proper four-wheel-drive with low-ratio.

So here it is. The all-wheel-drive XUV500, perched on top of a dune, next to the all mighty Thar, an ineptly driven Scorpio stuck just out of sight. Makes it rather good, doesn’t it?

But let’s back the XUV up for a minute and start at the start, the porch of the Laxmi Niwas Palace in Bikaner, 30 four-wheel-drives being shepherded in haste so that we make Pokhran for lunch. Now the number one rule in my book on off-roading is numbers - strength in numbers - and with seven Thars, five Boleros, 18 Scorpios and four heavy duty winches there’s enough muscle to tow the XUV out of any situation I can dig myself into. And I plan to get stuck. Properly. Rule number two: the only way to properly test a four-wheel-drives’ limits is to sink it to its axles in sand/mud/water.

And so we steer course for the sands which, even though we are in Rajasthan, are a long, long way away. 350 kilometres to be precise, at Sam (which in itself is 50 kilometres from Jaisalmer). And immediately one thing’s apparent - I’m in a Rolls-Royce. The XUV is unlike anything else Mahindra makes, the ride is well resolved, the handling doesn’t give you the heebbie-jeebies, it is comfortable, it is fast, it stops when you want it to and - most important considering this is a working holiday - my wife who is used to a VW Passat isn’t grumbling. There are stupid irritants for sure, in particular the buzzer that goes mad - and drives me mad - each and every time the speedo crosses 150kmph (which it does with relative ease) but on the whole the XUV is impressive enough for everybody on the Royal Escape to turn green with envy.

The Royal Escape then. For the ridiculously affordable sum of 60,000 bucks Mahindra’s newly formed Adventure wing will hand you the keys to a Thar, Scorpio or Bolero - all with proper low-ratio 4WD - and take you on a dune-bashing, palace-hopping, 2000 km safari across Rajasthan. With former motoring journo (and one of India’s finest) Bijoy Kumar at the helm of Mahindra Adventure and Raj Kapoor and his crack team at

MAR 2012 OVERDRiVE 135

Fishy Adventure Words & Photography Ashok George

Tata’s Venture seats seven people, so we took five people and some fishing gear along

F e At u r egone Fishing

I’m sitting by the riverside, fishing rod in hand, gazing anxiously to see if any unsuspecting fish has made the mistake of nibbling on the piece of atta that I was using as

bait. Once. Twice. The third time I was on my feet ready to strike. I pull up on the rod and start reeling in my catch as the hapless fish tries to break away from my line. I can feel it struggling but I keep reeling it in. I finally see my catch break the surface of the water. I proudly reel it in and triumphantly look at my trophy. All four inches of it. Suddenly I’m surprised that there is nobody else celebrating in my triumph. I distinctly remember arriving with four other people – Alan, Halley, Rishaad and Alan’s uncle Terry. I turn around and realise that while I was busy reeling in my prize catch, Alan was busy reeling in his catch of the day. Only, his fish was almost six times the size of mine. I quickly mumble something along the lines of the only thing bigger being his fish and walk away to the Venture and sulk. When we decided to go on a fishing trip

to Islampur in the new Tata Venture, I had dreamt of catching fish the size of Moby Dick’s left fin, not of being outdone by my colleague who it turns out was quite the ace at fishing.

We had been planning to go fishing for a while and the seven-seater Venture arrived right on cue. Yup, the Venture might not look like it but, it seats seven fully grown adults with relative ease (it also comes with optional five- or eight-seater layouts). I say relative, because the third row is a bit of a squeeze for most people. Only the left passenger can stretch out, since he is not inhibited by a seat in front of him. But since the last row was used by us primarily for our fishing gear, we had nothing to worry about except for soiling the interiors.

The interiors of the Venture have an upmarket to feel to it. Seriously. The materi-als are the best from among Tata’s small-car parts bin with the interiors swathed in beige. The seats, well actually, the seating however is rather odd. The front seats are mounted directly on top of the suspension

struts and that brings memories of my uncle’s Maruti Omni rushing back. The Omni, by the way is Maruti’s third highest selling model, which should explain why Tata wants a piece of this pie. The seating in the Venture is almost truck like – high up with the steering wheel at a very horizontal angle. The truck-like quality is there in the ride too, which is quite harsh. However, the bone jarring-ness of the Venture’s com-mercial vehicle sibling – Super Ace, has thankfully not made it to the Venture. The Venture carries forward the family genes in the way it looks as well. The front is almost the same as the Super Ace but with the chrome bits adding some flair to it. From the sides the vehicle is quite plain to look at with the wrap around treatment given to the windows lending some character to it. The rear is typically Tata with the signature tall tail lamps, which by the way stopped working half way to Islampur.

We had left Pune early in the morning and it took us around four hours to drive the 200 odd kilometres to Islampur. Islam-

oVerdriVe MAR 2012142

F e at u r ebrio and bhangra

The surreal serenity at the golden Temple versus the chest thumping bhangra. Punjab has two sides which also reflects in their food. We explore with the honda brio

Words Joseph Koraith Photography Joseph Koraith and abhay Verma

It’s 6 am. The bare feet are freezing, almost numb. But we obediently move forward. We must be about 1000 people. But no one’s talking to each other. That’s the power of the Golden Temple in Amritsar. This is one side of Punjab.

It’s wedding season in Punjab. Every other restaurant, hotel or resort is vibrantly lit up and there’s brightly dressed people, the loud music and of course the adrenaline-pump-ing bhangra. The beat of which makes you dance involun-tarily. (When some of us dance it does seem like we’re doing it involuntarily). This facet of the Punjabi culture is as loud in character as it can get. This is the other side.

This is the duality of Punjab. The trance-like tranquillity of the Golden Temple versus the loud bhangra. And this is also reflected in their food. You have the bone-tearing non-vegetarian cuisine versus the serene vegetarian version. And both are lip-smacking good. Abhay and I can now speak with authority because we drove the Honda Brio from Chandigarh to Amritsar sampling every food article that was on offer along the way.

Our food journey started with the chole kulche from a hand cart in Panchkula from where we were to pick up the Brio. Boiled chole (grams) is mixed with spices, chopped onions and chillies and served with kulcha (bread). The fresh, hot kulcha and the spicy chutney stirred up the appetite and we headed to a dhaba which we found just around the cor-ner. It was a ‘quick’ meal consisting of chicken masala, aloo parathas, naans, potatoes, rice, dal makhni, raita and two lassis. While the lassi didn’t live up to the expectation, the dal makhni made me soften my stance as a pure non-vegetarian.

By this time the kind people at the Honda dealership in Panchkula, Harmony Honda, had the Brio ready for us, handed over as soon as the customer test drives for that day were completed. We thanked them for accommodating us and left for Amritsar. This was around 5 in the evening and by the time we reached Amritsar it was almost midnight – bad roads and even worse traffic being the culprit.

But this 240km drive, which took us almost seven hours, was the longest we had spent in the Brio and helped us ap-preciate the car from the inside. Despite being a small car,

Dual core

overdrive MAR 2012138

overdrive MAR 2012146

Mile muncher Words Harriet Riddley

With the summer months rapidly coming to an end in the UK, Harriet ridley made the most of the lingering heat to ride 2011’s Moto Guzzi’s Norge GT 8v

There’s nothing quite like setting off on a cross-continent biking adventure, sun blazing, pan-niers packed and heart filled with the thrill of not knowing

what lies ahead. In my youth any bike would do – I’d

mostly go on long touring holidays on my most unsuitable Yamaha YZF-R6! But I’m wiser now and given the choice, I’d opt for a motorcycle tailored for this task – such as Moto Guzzi’s 2011 Norge GT 8V. Now that’s what I call touring bliss!

The bike is huge with vast expanses of fairing to protect the rider from the elements, a torque-laden 1200cc engine, a big fat comfy seat, a large tank to keep fuel stops to a minimum and enough hard pannier space to transport my entire summer wardrobe. Plus it has the famous Moto Guzzi badge that’s bound to turn some envious heads.

The Norge has been revamped for 2011 and although it doesn’t look much different to the previous version, it’s practically an all-new machine. Well, 80 per cent of it is at least.

First up is the engine. The old four-valve is replaced with an all-new eight-valve motor, the same as fitted to Moto Guzzi’s latest Stelvio adventure bike. As well as bringing the engine up to date with emissions regulations, torque is up a fantastic 20 per cent, with more power too, although sadly a chunk of it is sapped by the substantial 257kg claimed dry weight of this Guzzi, so that it actually feels less lively than on the lighter Stelvio.

The new engine is perfect for touring; it’s a lot smoother than the old one, with no obtrusive vibrations and excellent drive from

R i de MoTo GUzzi NorGe GT

motorsportF1 NEWS MOTOGP WRC INDIAN

The 2012 Dakar saw two Frenchmen walking away with top honours

French cut Words Abhay Verma

When Sirish got back from the Dakar Rally last year, he wouldn’t stop telling us tales. Every day we would be hearing about his experiences as he traversed the South American continent and we were always all ears. He was after all ‘the chosen one’ who had witnessed the Dakar live.

Something all of us at OVERDRIVE have always wanted to do. The Dakar is without doubt one of the world’s most arduous, formidable and revered motor-

sport events. And despite its perils, the number of people wanting to be a part of this rally-raid either as competitors or spectators is only increasing with each passing year.

The 2012 Dakar was the 33rd edition of this rally-raid, and for the fourth time the Dakar was organised in the challenging deserts of South America. Covering about 9000km from start to finish, this year’s Dakar had 443 vehicles in the fray for the championship.

The Dakar is without doubt one of the world’s most arduous, formidable and revered motorsport events

MAR 2012 overDrive 167