Open season

Yamaha sets out to wow Indian enthusiasts with a slew of superbikes.

From standstill to say about 60 kph, the Yamaha YZF-R1 seems barely even alive. It's like the engine's off. Even heavy trucks seem to keep pace with this superbike on the Delhi-Jaipur highway. But not for long, soon the trucks will be a distant memory.

With its light weight, stupendous power output and gorgeously slinky looks, the R1 can't be anything else but Yamaha's flagship machine. Stay on the throttle and this near-300 kph capable missile begins to wake up.

At three-digit speeds, there is so much performance in reserve that sometimes you actually have to talk yourself into experiencing some of that potential. From idle in second or third, open the throttle gently but firmly and the world goes into an instant superfast rewind.

Numbers come up with ludicrous intensity on the clear digital dash, while the vanishing point is hurled right inside the helmet, coming to rest gleefully on the very tip of your nose. It's that fast. And we've more than half of the near-190 bhp peak power still left over to play with. Seriously impressive, eh?

But the fabulous R1 was just for starters. Yamaha Motor India decided to whet our appetites by whisking us off for a ride on not one or two, but seven superbikes.

The gleaming line-up of seven motorcycles included two YZF-R1s, one in gorgeous 50th Anniversary yellow, a menacing black YZF-R6, a catty-eyed red YZF-R6S, a tall TDM900, a gigantic FJR1300, a highly attractive Yamaha-blue XJR1300 naked, and the sole cruiser, a pale gold Drag Star 1100.

Yamaha said the purpose was simply to open the CBU door a crack by allowing us (and vicariously, you!) to get a feel for what superbikes are capable of, what they feel like on Indian roads and through our rather chaotic traffic and so forth.

From the start, they were clear that the R1 apart, none were anywhere close to India launch prospects, and were simply meant to allow us to experience different formats, styles, engine configurations and so forth.

Yamaha intend to launch the R1, the new 2008 model, with gold wheels, by-wire throttle and super-cool variable intake length gadgetry before the year is out.

The company is figuring out the warranty and service aspect of the launch as you read this. While the pricing is yet to be finalised, the manufacturer is confident that it will fall around the Rs 10 lakh mark "" that's the US MSRP multiplied by our rather inflated 110 per cent import duties, levies and charges.

Most of the motorcycle enthusiast community in India may not have the resources to actually purchase these bikes at such stratospheric prices, but that precisely is what makes dreams so important, so poignant and so worth living for, right? Here then is what we sampled over three days.

The two R6s were there purely because they are such exciting motorcycles to ride. With redlines set at sky-high near-15,000 rpm levels, 120-odd bhp of power on tap, these two are total maniacs.

The new R6 more so, thanks to its single-point fast-at-the-track focus. The R6S is actually a bit cheaper and I, for one, can actually imagine commuting happily aboard one. But as it stands, the 800cc or more rule (remember the mangoes for Harleys business?) makes the R6 and its ilk a very remote launch possibility.

Of the rest, not out-and-out sporty machinery, the XJR is extremely interesting. Its almost-100 bhp 1300cc inline-four is air-cooled, makes bags of torque and makes the XJR at once thrilling and chilled out to ride.

The upright riding position, easy manoeuvrability and legendary reliability make it a great India-ready motorcycle. This is the bike to commute on, really, and you could throw in more than a spot of relaxed (or speeded-up) touring.

The other two motorcycles, the TDM900 and the FJR1300 are less interesting to us directly, but perfectly capable machines on their own. The TDM is a road-biased adventure tourer of sorts, with a 90 bhp parallel twin engine that offers relaxed, torquey performance. It looks taller than it is, and the unstressed engine should take our conditions in its stride.

The FJR, with its potent 145 bhp inline-four, on the other hand, is a full-on sports tourer, which comes with factory optional luggage, a penchant for inhaling big miles and an electric-adjustable windscreen. Both are thrilling to ride, but need a sort of clear maturity on the riders part that we're not ready for yet, I think.

Missing from this line-up, come to think of it, are two big ones. The FZ1 (and its sibling, the half-faired FZ1 Fazer) has not been talked about, but would be my pick for an all-round Indian superbike.

The bike is based on the R1, has 150 bhp (to keep throttle wringers engaged for decades), looks superb in the 2007/08 guise and has won fans for its ability to go fast, feel good at slow speeds, and if really necessary, carry the groceries home without grumbling as well. I certainly would have loved some saddle time on one.

The other omission is the MT-01. This 1670cc V-twin powered "torque sportster" is all about high design and real-world riding. And this is the second motorcycle Yamaha intend to launch in India.

The launch could coincide with the R1, or come within a month or two. We were fortunate enough to snag an MT-01 for a ride, so for details on this motorcycle, do check out the October issue of Business Standard Motoring.

As you can imagine, launching these complex machines in India will be quite a task on the service front. Yamaha say they are working with hand-picked dealerships in the selected towns "" where the big bikes will be sold "" to train service personnel to handle the machines.

Yamaha aims to offer full warranty and service support, and being an official launch, the finance companies should help open the doors to many a dream.

And Yamaha isn't alone with big bike market ambitions either. Suzuki is working on its own CBU import programme, with the flagship GSX-R1000 (R1 competitor) and the famous GSX-R1300 Hayabusa likely to see a simultaneous launch by the end of this financial year.

Honda, too, are seriously working out how they will play the big motorcycle game and once more, their flagship tourer, the venerable (and gigantic) 1800cc Gold Wing and the supersports demon, the CBR1000RR Fireblade are the rumoured names.

Bajaj, who have so far denied any interest in the CBU game, are now rumoured to be in talks with Kawasaki and will eventually work out Team Green's CBU plan as well. While that rounds off the Big Four, KTM and Ducati are also reportedly interested in the Indian market, which has taken easily and abundantly to high-end luxury products and specialised leisure brands.

But the superbike programme is not without an ulterior motive. While per unit margins on these bikes could be high, low volumes come with the territory, at least for now.

Yamaha intends to use its international performance image in India "" using the superbikes as leverage "" to sell its new line of enthusiast oriented mass-products that should enter showrooms by early 2008.

Motorcycle sales have flagged in the lower segments, but premium segment sales have risen without a break, and more manufacturers are looking to enjoy the upper-end of the market. Many supercar makers also believe that Indians will be buying fairly exotic machinery within the next five years, and superbikes would be the natural extension of that trend.

Of course, to anyone who has been lucky enough to open the throttle on one of these machines, all of those intangibles are simply not important. The mindblowing performance is enough to justify all the dreaming that has gone on till now, and all the scrounging that is sure to follow.