[visordown.com] - New bike might actually be a boat anchor

[Ninjette Newsbot]

The Bajaj V150

NORMALLY bike firms go to lengths to show how light and high tech their new models are but Indian market leader Bajaj is about to launch a machine that is proudly claimed to be made from recycled steel.

The metal in question comes from a former British aircraft carrier, HMS Hercules, built during WW2 but never put into service. It was laid up for more than a decade and then sold to India where it was finally commissioned in 1961 as INS Vikrant, suitably re-equipped for jets.

Vikrant went on to become a legendary member of the Indian navy, playing a key role in the Indo-Pakistan naval war of 1971 and remaining in service until 1997.

After a spell as a museum it was broken up in 2015, and that’s what brings us to Bajaj’s new model, named the V, which is set to be launched on 1st February.

The firm has used recycled metal from the Vikrant to create the new 150cc machine, which from the look of the firm’s teaser video is fairly standard Indian market fare. Only shown in close-ups and silhouette, it’s a twin-shock naked with an air-cooled single, which stands out mainly for the fact that, to use the words from the inscription on the bike itself, it’s ‘made with the invincible metal of INS Vikrant.’

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