Bajaj Pulsar 220 DTS-Fi wins Indian Motorcycle of the Year 2008 Award

The Bajaj Pulsar 220 DTS-Fi wins the IMOTY 2008 Award
Pic: Flickr

The Bajaj Pulsar 220 DTS-Fi – the biggest, sportiest motorcycle in the Pulsar range – has won the inaugural Indian Motorcycle of the Year (IMOTY) 2008 Award. The jury members for this award comprised of representatives from all the major automobile magazines from the country, who came together to give away this award.

‘The Pulsar 220 has well and truly redefined the performance biking space in the country. With its combination of technological innovation, head turning styling, brilliant dynamics and amazing value, the 220 well and truly walks home with the inaugural IMOTY award,’ said Sirish Chandran, Executive Editor, Overdrive magazine and chairperson, IMOTY 2008 jury.

Rane Engine Valve Ltd wins Volkswagen Group Award 2008

From left: Francisco J. Garcia Sanz, Member of the Board of Management (Procurement), Volkswagen AG, L Ganesh, Chairman, Rane Group, Prof. Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management, Volkswagen AG

Rane Engine Valve Ltd (REVL), the flagship company of the Rane Group, that produces engine valves and tappets, has won the prestigious ‘Volkswagen Group Award 2008’ for Rane Engine Valves’ achievement as one of their most important business partners. Volkswagen awarded 15 global suppliers with the award and REVL was the only Indian company to receive this honor.

Prof Dr Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft and Francisco. J Garcia Sanz, Board Member responsible for procurement of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft presented the award to L Ganesh, Chairman, Rane Group, at a function held recently in Ibiza, Spain.

Accepting the award, L Ganesh said, ‘REVL has been one of the leading exporters of auto components from India. We are very proud to be recognized as one of the 15 top vendors of Volkswagen worldwide. I believe this the first and only recognition of any Indian supplier. Earlier in 2003 it was the only non-German supplier to win an award from Deutz, Germany. The company is poised to grow significantly as a global supplier with such customer awards.’

The Volkswagen Group Award recognizes its suppliers who allow Volkswagen to deliver excellent value and quality to its customers. Moreover, this award recognizes REVL’s special entrepreneurial performance, reflected through its constant reliability and sustainable partnership with the Volkswagen Group.

REVL has been supplying Volkswagen Group factories since the mid-1990s. Moreover, REVL has been an integral part of the switchover from unit injector to common rail diesel technology, and has proven to be a competent and future-focused partner for Volkswagen in terms of competitiveness, technology and quality.

Maruti Suzuki finds favour with Reputation Institute, is ranked at no.4 worldwide

Maruti, ahead of BMW and Daimler AG in terms of having a better global reputation? Who would have thought it was possible...!

According to the ‘Global 200: The World's Best Corporate Reputations’ list compiled by the US-based Reputation Institute, Maruti Suzuki is ranked fourth amongst all carmakers worldwide. With a 'Global Pulse' score of 74.38, Maruti Suzuki has even left behind its parent company, Suzuki Motor Corp., which is ranked in 8th place, with a Global Pulse score of 70.44.

Among carmakers, the Reputation Institute’s 2008 list is headed by Toyota in 1st place, followed by Honda in second, and the China FAW Group Corporation in 3rd place. After Maruti Suzuki, BMW and Daimler AG are ranked in 5th and 6th places respectively, while Volkswagen lags behind in 10th place.

For more details, visit the Reputation Institute website here

RECC wins Frost & Sullivan award

Even as fuel prices look all set to keep rising, the Reva EV should do better in the years to come. If only this car were a bit more reasonably priced...

The Reva Electric Car Company (RECC) has won the 2008 Frost & Sullivan European Automotive Powertrain Company of the Year Award. The Bangalore-based RECC, which makes the Reva electric car (called the G-Wiz in some foreign markets), won the award for demonstrating excellence in sales volumes, superior market penetration and high levels of customer satisfaction within the electric vehicle (EV) industry.

Last year, about 360 Reva cars were sold in the UK, though the car did not do as well in India do its very high purchase price of more than Rs 3.5 lakh. ‘Technology leadership has enabled RECC to break the price-performance barrier and consistently develop and commercialise new mobility solutions,’ said Frost & Sullivan research analyst Anjan Kumar. ‘In 2007, RECC achieved milestones in terms of battery and electric motor technology,’ he says.

Research and development work on lithium-ion batteries took one step further when RECC successfully tested and evaluated these batteries for the Reva. The newly developed lithium ion batteries provide a driving range of more than 140km, compared to 60-80km provided by existing lead-acid battery packs.

Li-ion battery packs for the Reva are expected to be available later this year, and with the incorporation of a new AC electric motor, the Reva EV has more mid-range torque and better acceleration, leading to enhanced drivability.

‘RECC has demonstrated technology leadership in European markets with its ability to deliver an EV at a competitive price with sufficient performance for its intended purpose as a city commuter vehicle,’ says Anjan Hemanth Kumar.

Indian engineer wins automotive design award in Europe

Amrit Sharma has won an automotive design award for his work on the Ecosse ES1, an experimental high-speed motorcycle

Amrit Sharma, a PhD student of Indian origin, from the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the Imperial College London, has won a gold medal for automotive design at the Young European Arena of Research Awards.

The awards were announced at the Transport Research Arena conference in Slovenia last month, and Sharma won the award for his work on the Ecosse ES1, an experimental high-speed motorcycle. ‘I am extremely flattered to have taken home a gold medal. There were a lot of good entrants from across Europe and coming first out of a very strong field is an achievement,’ said Sharma.

Sharma worked on various mathematical models which show how air flowing over a bike can exert pressures on the vehicle, thus slowing it down and making it less efficient. New designs tested by Sharma’s model include rearranging the motorcycle’s front and rear suspension, moving the chain drive, and altering where the rider’s feet and upper body are located.

This creates an entirely new shape for the bike, which, according to tests, dramatically reduces the dragging effects of air flowing over the vehicle by approximately 50 percent, and helps increase its speed by 30 percent.