Hero MotoCorp to Launch Leap Hybrid Scooter in 2015
Hero's HX250R sportsbike will reach Indian shores this November.heromotocorp.com

Hero Motocorp, India's largest two-wheeler manufacturer is reportedly getting ready to introduce its hybrid scooter Leap in India next year.

The Leap hybrid scooter which made its first appearance at the 2012 Auto expo will be launched in other international markets like the US and Europe before introducing in India. A new report of Autocar Professional, which has the information from it sources, says that the Hero's hybrid scooter Leap would make its Indian entry in February 2015. It would be manufactured at the company's Gurgaon facility and keeping the expectations low, Hero is currently looking at an annual production of 6,000 units.

"The Leap will be first launched in the global markets, mainly the western geographies and then brought to India," Pawan Munjal, MD and CEO said earlier as quoted by Autocar.

Leap, India's first hybrid scooter would pack a petrol engine and an electric motor, powered by lithium ion batteries under the skin. The battery can be charged using a wall outlet, in case of unavailability of the wall unit, the scooter can draw power from 124 cc petrol engine, which can generate 11bhp of power. According to the company, the scooter can attain a top speed of 100 km/h.

The company which plans to have 20 manufacturing capacity across the globe by the end of 2020 is likely to commence operations at its fourth plant at Neemrana in Rajasthan by the end of this month. In India, the company is also likely to roll out the updated 2014 Hero Karizma R and Karizma ZMR in coming months. Hero's the Dash 110 cc and Dare 125 cc automatic scooters are also in the offing.

The much awaited 2014 Karizma R and Karizma ZMR will draw its power from the same 223 cc, single pot, four-stroke, air-cooled engine. While the Karizma R engine is re-tuned to pump in a power of 19.2 PS and a peak torque of 19.35 Nm, the engine in Karizma ZMR will churn out 20 PS power and 19.35 Nm torque. The power boost in the 2014 Karizma R will also help the bike to accelerate from 0-60 km/h in 3.8 seconds.