Auto Expo 2014: Hero unveils Hastur, iON and SimplEcity concepts

HASTUR

Hero Motocorp had the house full with representatives from every possible media house, at the global unveiling of three altogether new concepts and two variants from their existing range. Pawan Munjal, MD & CEO, Hero MotoCorp unveiled the Hastur street-fighter concept which comes with a 620-cc water cooled parallel-twin motor that is capable of 80 PS at 9,600 rpm. The bright yellow trellis chassis utilises the engine as a stress member for optimum mass centralisation. Hero claims to have used advanced technology to make the bike fuel efficient and low on emissions.

The twin projector headlamps, upside-down forks, massive disc (two up front and one in the rear) and sticky 17-inch Pirelli Diablo tyres add to the style and convenience. The concept’s design seems to be on the edgier side, if and when the Hastur come to production it has to be toned down to get better aesthetics and usability.

iON

Another concept shown today is the iON hydrogen-fuel cell vehicle, which is hero’s take on alternate fuel technology. Here the hydrogen-Fuel cell makes the centre structure, and features advanced Li-Air batteries (which uses oxygen from air instead of storing it in an oxidiser) and super-capacitors for smooth energy needs of braking and acceleration.

The big highlight of the bike were hubless wheels that are equipped with electric traction motors, which use magnetic levitation for zero friction. If need be, these can double up as brakes. Packed with technology, the iON comes with a touch screen controls, all-round sensors that inform the rider of the surrounding traffic flow, adaptive m-link suspension with magnetorheological damping and heads-up type information display integrated in the rider’s helmet. Sounds cool.

SimplEcity

The third concept is a lightweight electric bike for city use, weighing just 35 kg. The SimplEcity comes with a removeable battery which can be charged conveniently at home or office. Your smartphone can be mounted on and becomes the dashboard using the free SimplEcity app. It’s even got a ‘walk’ mode, where the e-bike rolls along effortlessly whenever needed.

Also on display were two unique concepts, the Splendor Pro Classic which was customised to give it a cafe racer like look and the Passion Pro TR which aims to be an on-off-road bike. Earlier last week Hero Motocorp had unveiled a slew of models including the 250-cc motorcycle HX250R, the RnT a turbo-charged direct ignition diesel concept, a hybrid scooter Leap, 110cc scooter dash and a new variant of Xtreme 150cc.