The commuter segment in India is where the competition between two-wheeler manufacturers
is the most intense, and Yamaha was lagging behind the likes of Bajaj and Honda. Due to
poor sales of the Yamaha Crux, the company decided to discontinue the model, which meant
that they had no offering in the 100-110cc segment. Until now.
The company has launched the Saluto RX at Rs 46,400 (ex-showroom, Delhi) to fill that gap and according to Yamaha, it gives a mileage of 82 km/l. It is also one of the few bikes, like the Honda CB Hornet 160, that have a BS-IV compliant engine.
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The new Saluto is powered by an air-cooled 4-stroke SOHC that puts out 7.5 horsepower and
8.5 Nm of torque and comes connected to a 4-speed transmission. It relatively light
at around 98 kg and will be offered in four colour options. The matte
black finish variant definitely caught our attention.
Yamaha’s attempt at making the Saluto look sporty is evident with the vinyl and the 10-spoke aluminium alloy wheels, although the instrument cluster is completely analog and does not feel very modern.
Two-wheeler manufacturers in India give a lot of importance to the commuter segment, however, Yamaha is arriving late to the party. On being asked why, they said that they were following a top-down strategy and had hence started with focusing on the higher capacity segment with the likes of Yamaha R1 and the Yamaha R3, and have eventually made their way to the commuter segment.
In terms of styling, the Saluto has smooth flowing lines and does not attempt to look edgy or muscular from any angle. The blacked out rims along with a black gloss finish on the fuel tank also add to the overall design of the bike.
Interestingly, the company decided to go with the ‘RX’ tag that refers to the iconic two-stroke offerings that the company once sold in India. While this may get the RX lovers excited, the company has cleared that it is not the successor to that bike and simply borrows the name tag.
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