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Over the past few years, we have seen more and more 125cc scooters enter the market and that’s clearly the biggest indicator of where the competition lies in the Nepali scooter segment. Aprilia was quite late to the party when it entered with the SR 125, but its second offering in this segment, the Storm 125, has followed quickly. The Storm 125 is based on the SR range of scooters and it sits below the SR125 in the company’s line-up, making it the most affordable Aprilia in the country. However, beneath it all, it shares the same dimensions and specifications as the SR125. So, what makes it different? We find out…

Exterior

The Storm makes a rugged style statement, showing off similar design cues as the SR 125. But that’s where the similarity ends, as Aprilia has provided more sporty decals and 12-inch wider tyres to make the Storm stand out. Barring this, everything else remains the same. Even the analogue instrumentation is borrowed from the SR 125. The all-analogue instrument console does feel bland, especially when compared to its feature-rich rivals. Unlike the SR 125, the Aprilia Storm 125 gets two bright-coloured paint schemes—Matte Red and Matter Yellow.

Engine and Performance

The Storm shares its engine with the SR125, a 124.5cc, single-cylinder, 3-valve engine, with CVT transmission for twist-and-go convenience. It comes with a push-button starter. Power and torque figures are identical too: 9.52 bhp at 7,250 rpm and 9.9 Nm at 6,250 rpm. The Storm accelerates smoothly with good throttle response and a grunty note. Power delivery is prompt and there’s enough mid- and top-end pep as expected from an Aprilia. The Storm can achieve 80kph easily, and if pushed, can attain higher speeds without feeling overly stressed.

Ride and Handling

The Storm sits on a tubular steel frame with a conventional, non-adjustable telescopic fork at the front and a hydraulic shock absorber at the rear. The suspension setup fares reasonably well on our surfaces but feels rock hard in places. The 12-inch wheels of the Storm get dual-purpose 12-inch Vee Rubber tyres with 120/80 profile at the front and 130/80 at the rear that add a dose of ruggedness to the overall design. These tyres make it suitable for riding over broken surfaces.

The saddle height remains unchanged on the Storm 125. Riders of shorter stature may have difficulties putting their feet completely flat on the ground. The switches are crisp and easy to operate, and the palm grip is good. The scooter misses out on the front storage space, which is quite unexpected, as the under-seat storage space isn’t too big either, only enough to fit a half-face helmet. 

Just like the SR125, the Storm 125’s handling dynamics is excellent, too. Ride quality is good, even when riding with an adult pillion as the Storm feels light and stable. The scooter’s light handling is a boon in crowded city riding conditions like ours.

Braking duties for the 122 kg Storm come courtesy of a 150mm drum brake at the front and a 140mm drum at the rear. It gets a Combined Braking System (CBS) to comply with the latest safety norms. However, braking feels too soft and feeble and we missed the progressive feel at the levers.

Verdict

Essentially what we have is a scooter that is the same as the SR125, but a bit more practical. It’s fun to ride and offers everything you need to beat the traffic on your commute at a bargain price. And it is playful enough if you want to navigate the rural curves. At Rs 224,000, the Storm 125 is Aprilia’s most affordable offering in the country and should be popular amongst college-goers. However, on the features front, it does feel outdated. But rest assured, the Storm does what other scooters do, then leaves them in the dust when the going gets dirty.

The shift towards electric cars in Nepal has gotten a major boost in the form of the Kia Niro EV. Continental Trading Enterprises, the sole authorized distributor of Kia Motors in Nepal, has brought in the company’s latest all-electric crossover. Let’s talk numbers first. The Kia Niro EV comes with a massive 64 kWh battery paired to an electric motor that powers the front wheels. The battery on the Niro EV gives a range of 450 km which should get you from Kathmandu to Pokhara without any range anxiety. The car makes 200 BHP and 395 NM of instant torque which propels the Niro EV from 0-100 Km/h in 7.8 seconds, making it one of the fastest electric cars in the country. It comes at an introductory price of Rs. 66.90 lakhs, which is an absolute steal.

Designed at Kia’s design centers in California, the US, and Namyang, Korea, the Kia Niro EV looks just like the regular combustion Niro in the international market, with only a few differences. The Niro EV misses the signature “Tiger Nose” grille from Kia. Instead, the EV gets a closed front fascia with a hard plastic seal in the shape of the former Tiger Nose grille that features an integrated charging port, and a de-bossed Niro logo. Redesigned air intakes and new arrowhead-shaped LED daytime running lights to combine with blue trim highlights help it stand out further. The Niro EV sports a sleek, aerodynamic body with subtly sculptured surfaces.

In profile, the slim character line, tapered rear windows and sturdy sill line help to emphasize and elongate the car’s sleek profile, while allowing greater room for the muscular wheel arches. The Niro EV rides on new 17-inch aluminium alloy wheels with a diamond-cut two-tone finish, housing Kia’s regenerative braking system. At the back, redesigned rear bumpers feature similar blue trim highlights to those found at the front of the car. A bold LED rear light design gives the Niro EV the same distinct and recognizable rear light signature as its Hybrid and Plug-in Hybrid siblings.

Inside, the cabin combines a modern design with generous space and technologies that complement its zero-emissions powertrain. The interior is differentiated from other Niro models with a range of new features and design elements. The design of the center console represents the biggest change for the Niro EV, with the all-electric powertrain negating the need for a traditional gear stick and gear linkage. The physical transmission has therefore been replaced with a new ‘shift-by-wire’ rotator dial drive selector.

The drive selector dial sits on its own highly-ergonomic panel which extends out from the base of the central arm-rest. In addition to the rotator dial, this new panel also houses buttons for the electronic parking brake, heated and ventilated seats, heated steering wheel, drive mode selector, parking sensors, and the Niro’s braking ‘Auto Hold’ function. The new panel requires no bulky transmission tunnels, enabling Kia’s designers to create a larger storage area at the base of the center console.

The 7.0-inch touchscreen HMI (human-machine interface) at the center of the dashboard offers a series of features specific to Kia’s new electric vehicle. The colour-LCD driver instrument cluster—also 7.0-inches wide—shows driving and battery charge information on-the-move. A lamp is integrated into the top of the dashboard, with a light displaying whether the battery pack is recharging or fully charged when plugged in.

The Kia Niro EV crossover is one of the most practical EVs in the country. Standing at 1,805 mm wide and 1,560 mm tall, it ensures maximum head and shoulder room throughout the cabin. At 4,375 mm in length, it offers more cargo space (451 liters), and the boot features a dedicated storage area beneath its floor, providing ample space for owners to store the charging cable. The Niro EV comes with a 2,700 mm wheelbase that ensures all occupants enjoy generous legroom, while space and a sense of roominess are boosted by its crossover design.

Matching the next-generation nature of its powertrain, the Niro EV offers drivers a range of Kia’s Advanced Driver Assistance Systems, supporting motorists in a range of driving conditions to mitigate the risk of collisions. The car is equipped, as standard, with Kia Vehicle Stability Management (VSM) for maximum stability under braking and cornering. If VSM detects loss of traction, it uses the car’s Electronic Stability Control (ESC) system and the electric motor-driven power steering to help the driver retain control.

Figures:

Battery Pack: 64 kWH

Range: 450 kilometers

Power: 200 BHP

Torque: 395 Nm

0-100km/h: 7.8 seconds

Price: Rs 6,690,000

Vehicle Stability Management (VSM)

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

‘Auto Hold’ function

7.0-inch touchscreen HMI (human-machine interface)

LED daytime running lights

You have to hand it to Skoda: in a sea of cars covered in dull shades of grey, this Rapid stands out with a striking shade of blue. Comple­menting the blue is generous use of black: black ORVMs, 16 inches black alloys... Even the casings for the projector headlamps are black. Right off the bat the Rapid Onyx oozes a sporty vibe.

Over on the side, the immedi­ate attention grabber are the black alloys... These 16-inchers come with a set of wider 195mm rubber compared to the 185 on the regular Rapid. This not only makes the car look beefier but also increases the body’s distance from the ground, now at 170mm, which is embarking right on the SUV territory.

Things are a bit too simple on the back however. The Rapid fea­tures a keyhole on the bootlid which sticks out like a sore thumb which is redundant; the car already has a boot unlock integrated and also a boot opener latch fitted to the driv­er’s door.

Also, I would have loved to see a small black lip spoiler to further accentuate the blue and black vibe but alas, it is what it is. Over­all, I quite love the look of this car, frankly because it is so blue and unique.

Interior

Skoda has gone the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” route with the Rapid Onyx’s interior. Desiring blue accents would only be nitpicking on what is otherwise an amazing cabin, which gets a premium beige treatment with great fit and finish. The driver’s seat sports proper padding and adjustment, and the steering wheel comes with tilt and telescopic adjustments which means getting into a comfortable driving position is easy. Out on the back seat, you get a comfy bench with double headrests. There’s a huge footwell under the front seats where the rear passengers can stretch their legs. Add in a third passenger and they might struggle during long jour­neys thanks to the massive trans­mission tunnel that eats into the middle seat.

You get plenty of storage space throughout the cabin including a large glove box that is illuminated for fiddling through your things at night. Apart from that you also get a sizeable boot that will help haul a week’s worth of family luggage. Talking equipment, the Rapid Onyx comes with a fully automatic air conditioning and a touch screen infotainment system that looks sharp and is fluent to use. Overall, the Rapid Onyx doesn’t shy away from the regular Rapid when comparing interiors, but with the most-needed upgrades.

Performance

You immediately notice two things, which also happen to be the changes the Onyx brings from the regular Rapid. First up, the increased ground clearance. The Rapid Onyx sits higher now and while you will barely feel it on the tarmac you will definitely feel it on rougher roads as the Rapid Onyx goes through a rough patch like a walk in the park. Anoth­er change the Rapid Onyx brings is the inclusion of wider tires, and boy you feel it. Not only do the wider tires help you drive over potholes and bumps easily, these 195s grip the tarmac and don’t let go, resulting in better traction and increased corner­ing speeds.

Apart from this the engine in the Rapid Onyx is exactly the same as you get on other Rapids: a 1.6 liter petrol mated to a 5-speed manual transmission that outputs to 104 Bhp and 153 Nm of peak torque. The power builds up gradually and you can feel the refinement in the engine when shifting up or down with fluid­ity. The Rapid Onyx remains plant­ed and stable on the highways and Twisties but don’t expect the car to hit triple digits without really work­ing the gears. The Rapid Onyx will give you its best performance in the urban confines while battling smooth tarmac and almost off-road conditions of any developing city.

Verdict

The Skoda Rapid Onyx feels like a Skoda Rapid that is made specifically for the roads of Nepal. You’ve got the striking color, you’ve got the premi­um interior, you’ve got a reliable engine, and to that mix the Rapid Onyx brings higher ground clear­ance and wider tires which elevates the ease of driving. All this makes the Skoda Rapid Onyx more than just a blue car. It is a complete package... More complete than the regular Rap­id ever was O

One Plus 7 has been in the shadows of the high end ‘Pro’ flagship ever since its launch. But it is important to know that it exists. One Plus 7 carries forward the same design element from last year’s 6T. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that the two look almost identical. But there’s more than what meets the eye.

For starters, the 7 comes with all new Snapdragon 855 processor which is leading the flagship market right now. So you will see a performance upgrade from the 6T. Second and most importantly, in cameras, this year OnePlus has gone for the 48 MP imx586 sensor, which is better than last year’s.

The company has increas­ingly focused on software rather than hardware improvements on the cam­era, following Google’s exam­ple. While the Pro variant gets a triple camera setup the 7 gets only two rear cameras. The cameras aren’t the best in the market, but you can expect the results to improve as OnePlus rolls out software updates.

Compared to the 7 Pro, this one is shorter, narrower, thin­ner, and significantly lighter. So if you’re not a big fan of big screens, you can totally con­sider the 7. The phone comes with a standard 20 watt Quick Charger, the same they had for the 6T, for a superior charging performance

The phone has a 3,700 mAH battery. Bundled with the 855 processor and clutter free Oxygen OS, it delivers a solid battery backup, beating the likes of the higher end 7 Pro. If you want a great phone for a good price, go for the OnePlus 7.

                                                                                                OnePlus 7

One Plus 7 Pro is the flashier and more exclusive of the new One Plus models. For a variety of reasons, but most importantly, it’s finally above budget territory. So we will look at the phone as a flagship phone and not the “flagship killer” name the com­pany has garnered for these phones.

The new phone comes with an edge to edge screen. In other words, they have removed the notches. So where did the camera go? Inside the screen. Yes, the OnePlus 7 Pro sports a pop up selfie camera that hides under the screen during normal use. Fear not, the camera is quick to retract if you drop your phone and extremely dura­ble while at it. Next, it sports a 90 HZ display. What does that mean? The screen is significantly smoother than all other screens out there. The stan­dard flagship refresh rate is 60 HZ so you can already tell it’s a significant increase. And the notchless display combined with the 90 HZ refresh rate makes the OnePlus 7 a fantastic front design. And did I tell you the edges are curved now?

In the processor department, the OnePlus 7 Pro gets the same treat­ment as the 7. But the phone gets one more camera than the stan­dard OnePlus 7. The camera quality should be comparable between the two devices.

7 pro, however, sports the 30 watt Warp Charge technology which delivers blazing fast charging per­formance. The battery also stands strong at 4,000 mAh but because of the 90 HZ display, battery perfor­mance lags that of the 7.

Even with the asking price of roughly Rs 88,000, the phone still lacks features like wireless charging, an official IP rating, among others.