While India's second largest motorcycle manufacturer Bajaj Auto believes that the 100 cc motorcycle has a bleak future in the country, Japanese major Suzuki feels otherwise.
After having denied plans for the entry-level 100 cc motorcycle segment, Suzuki Motorcycles India, a subsidiary of Suzuki Motor, is now giving its earlier strategy a re-think.
"Till now we had ruled out an entry into that segment. But the fact of the matter is that 100 cc still sells. We won't completely rule out that segment," Suzuki Motorcycle India Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Atul Gupta said. Gupta, however, said that nothing has been finalised yet. Suzuki had earlier categorically ruled out entering the big volume 100 cc segment and planned to focus on other segments of the motorcycle market. Suzuki Motorcycle India currently sells two motorcycles and one scooter - all in the 125 cc category.
The 100-cc segment (dominated by Hero Honda) is the biggest volume segment in the Indian motorcycle market. Despite declining numbers, the segment accounted for more than 70 per cent share of the 5.7-million motorcycles sold in the market in the last financial year (2007-08).
While Bajaj Auto and India Yamaha Motor have been insisting that consumers would eventually upgrade to the 125 cc segment, Hero Honda and Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India have decided to stick to the 100 cc volume market.
The country's third largest motorcycle manufacturer TVS Motors has also reiterated that the 100 cc is here to stay and the Star City remains its largest selling model. In fact, Bajaj Auto Managing Director Rajiv Bajaj has even attributed the slump in two-wheeler industry to the degrowth in the 100 cc.
During the first three months (April-June) of the current financial year, Hero Honda's sales in the 100 cc motorcycle segment grew 11 per cent year-on-year, while Bajaj Auto's sales fell 12 per cent. Suzuki Motorcycle, in its second innings in India after parting ways with TVS in 2001, is expanding its manufacturing capacity to 220,000 scooters and motorcycles by March from the current 175,000 units.
"By then, we would have invested Rs 5 billion in our India operations," Gupta said. The company has invested Rs 4 billion in India till date.
The investment would also include introducing new products in the country.
The company would launch another 125 cc motorcycle and the famed superbike Hayabusa (also called GSX 1300R) in India within this calendar year.
The 1340 cc Hayabusa is the fastest production motorcycle with a top speed of 397 km per hour.
The motorcycle is expected to be priced at Rs 1.1 million after the 105 per cent import duty.
While the superbike category is still largely a rarefied segment in India, the numbers are slowly increasing.
Suzuki's Japanese rival Yamaha was the first off the block when it unveiled the YZF-R1 and the MT01 last December. And in May, the italian marque Ducati announced the launch of five superbikes. The world's largest motorcycle maker Honda also plans to launch its superbike in this calendar year.
