Yamaha Motors president Takehiko Hasegawa says, "Yamaha has invested all its ingenuity and enthusiasm to come up with a product range that will enrich Indian motorbike users, especially in the large volume segment."

The Crux is aimed at meeting the emerging needs of customers in the 25-40 years age bracket. It is this age group that dominates the large volume segment. Confident of sales, Mr K Harada, marketing director of Yamaha Motor Escorts, says, "With our focussed marketing strategy, we are confident of acquiring a sizeable portion of the Indian motorcycle market over the next three years."

Priced at Rs 41,200 (ex-showroom) in Delhi, the Crux features a 7.6 bhp, 106 cc engine with a four-speed gear box. The 7.6 bhp Crux also comes with a one-year warranty on its engine. Available in three colours-turquoise blue, coral red and black gold-the Crux will be available in all 12 Yamaha outlets in Delhi.

In a bid to promote the Crux, Yamaha has flagged off a Crux Caravan from Delhi. The caravan comprises of two teams of five motorbikes each, which will traverse a distance of more than 10,000 km over the next 27 days before they meet in Chennai on December 29. The caravan, feel the Yamaha people, will provide to both dealers and customers a sense of the visibility and feel of CRUX.

Currently, Yamaha has two manufacturing units in Faridabad (Haryana) and Surajpur (Uttar Pradesh). The most prominent among its wide range of bikes are the RX-135, YBX125, YD125, Rajdoot and ACE.