2020 wasn’t just about pandemics and lockdowns, it also brought with it the newer and stringent emission standards. For those of you who may not know, the Supreme Court ruled out a few years back that manufacturers had to update all their vehicles to meet the BS-VI emission norms before April 2020. Vehicles that were not approved to meet the same would not be allowed to registered come April 2020.
Therefore, many manufacturers updated their products as per the court rules. However, some products were left behind, and hence, were discontinued from the Indian market. While most manufacturers have already brought back their products in BS-VI form, there are many still left that are in the pipeline. After all, India being the biggest motorcycle market, has a lot of two-wheelers on sale.
So, while 2020 is soon coming to an end – and we’re hoping for this pandemic to come to an end with it too – here’s a list of some of the bikes that are coming to the Indian market in early 2020.
1. Honda CB650R
The CB650R is, of course, the bigger sibling of the CB300R. It was first unveiled at the 2018 EICMA in Milan, Italy.Since it is a sibling of the CB300R, which, by the way, won our ‘Best of 2019’ award, the CB650R, too, brings in the Neo-Sports Café design language, now to the 650cc segment. Expect it by January 2021, at a price of around ₹7.5 lakhs.
2. Ducati XDiavel
The XDiavel is a low-speed cruiser, unlike the standard Diavel. The XDiavel gets the same macho and low sprung look with some added design cues over the Diavel. Some of the design differences here include footpegs that are pushed forward, the handlebar that is swept back for a cruiser seating position, and so on. When it was on sale previously in the Indian market, the Ducati XDiavel can be had in two variants – Standard and S, the S variant gives more luxury for that extra money, more premium looking alloy wheels, different seat and a gloss black paint is used to differentiate the S from the Standard. Expect it to arrive by March 2021, for a small price premium over the former model.
3. Ducati Panigale V4
The Panigale V4 used to be the Italian automaker’s Supersport offering for the Indian market. The 2020 V4 will keep the same stunning design of the erstwhile model, which was designed with keeping elegance, technology and muscularity in mind. The design is pure Italian with twin LED DRLs on top of the twin headlights, a translucent front frame, double layer fairing, diamond tank and a sleek tail guard. The bike comes loaded with electronics to aid the rider to extract the best lap time. It was powered by a 1,103cc four-cylinder liquid-cooled engine that churns out 211bhp of power and 124Nm of torque. Expect it to make a comeback around the same time as the XDiavel.
4. BMW R Nine T Scrambler
The R Nine T Scrambler is a part of the Heritage line-up from the German maker. The R Nine T Scrambler boasts an authentic scrambler look with a classic round headlamp and high positioned dual silencers on the left. The Scrambler is as purposeful as any tourer reason being the handlebar placed close to the rider and lowered footpegs offering an upright riding position. It, too, is expected to arrive back here in March 2021.
5. Kawasaki Ninja H2 SX
The Kawasaki Ninja H2 SX was one of the fastest supercharged sport touring bikes from the Japanese automaker. The H2 SX is based on the bigger H2 in terms of design, as it, too, gets a mono LED headlamp at the front sitting below the windscreen. The bike is a comfortable tourer thanks to its relaxed riding position and a comfortable pillion seat. It was powered by a 998cc four-cylinder liquid-cooled engine, which churns out 194 horsepower and 137.3Nm of peak torque. We expect the H2 SX to make a comeback around mid-March next year.
