Not all debuts are sure shot hits – ask Suzuki. When the Japanese manufacturer made its entry on its own almost a decade ago, it didn't have a start as good as expected. Except for the 125cc scooter Access, no other product from Suzuki in India could shake up the already established models in their respective segments.
And this continued for almost five years, till Suzuki launched the very promising 155cc motorcycle, the Gixxer in 2015. Considering the last flops which included all of its motorcycles, including its very first 150cc bike, the GS 150R, Suzuki naturally had high hopes attached with the Gixxer. And as expected, the Gixxer became the very first hit from Suzuki in the mass market segment. With this, Suzuki too started showing signs of becoming a settled player like its Japanese rivals in India, Honda and Yamaha by making the Gixxer here in India including the R&D and the manufacturing.
It was so good that the Indian leg of the Japanese brand, the Suzuki Motorcycles India Pvt. Ltd. (SMIPL), has now begun exporting it to its parent nation, Japan. This move happened just months after Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC) had imported the compact hatchback car, Baleno, from India to Japan.
The Gixxer is currently being exported to other countries like Latin America and surrounding areas. This new development only strengthens the belief on the efficiency and quality of manufacturing world class products by SMIPL. This showcase the company's expanding global role in being at the helm of superior technology and stringent quality standards being maintained.
Satoshi Uchida, Managing Director, SMIPL, said, “It is a very proud moment for all of us as we send off our Indian flagship motorcycle Gixxer to Japan”. He further added “Exporting the Gixxer to Japan would also mean showcasing the advanced technology and superior quality standards within the competitive price range that have been developed by SMIPL in India. We are confident that the Gixxer will be well accepted by Japanese consumer as well”.
The first consignment of around 720 units have been shipped on Wednesday and all the models will be available with Fuel Injection and rear disc brake variants. They will, however, not have the saree guard and the front number plate fixtures. Both Gixxer and Gixxer SF will be exported to Japan and will be offered in monotone as well as dual tone body colours.
On the Gixxer, Suzuki has retained the refined and powerful single cylinder, air cooled, 155cc engine from the standard version of the Gixxer that was launched in 2015. has introduced fuel injection system on this engine, which makes it the first mass-market fuel injected motorcycle from Suzuki in India. Though, there is no power bump or increase in numbers, as the fuel injected engine on the Gixxer continues to produce 15 bhp of power and 14 Nm of torque. However, as with other fuel injected engines, then powertrain here definitely feels more responsive in the entire rev range, with crisper throttle responses and better fuel economy over the carbureted version of the same. The mill is coupled to the same 5-speed gearbox of the Gixxer, with no changes to the gear ratios.
Suzuki claims that the Gixxer SF FI has been tested in the same wind tunnel in which its flagship motorcycles such as GSX 1000R and Hayabusa have been tested in the past. The front fairing is hugely effective at triple digit speeds, which has helped the Gixxer SF FI to attain a top speed of nearly 130 kmph, just like on the standard model of the same.
Voir en ligne : Economic Times