Honda India to Launch 100cc Bike by December 2009

Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) has chartered an aggressive growth path for itself in the fast-growing bike segment. The wholly-owned two-wheeler subsidiary of the Honda Motor Company, Japan plans to launch a 100cc bike by December and introduce five more models in three years with the objective of encashing on the growing opportunities in the bike market. 

Confirming the move, Naresh Kumar Rattan, operating head, Sales

 & Marketing, HMSI, said, “The bike segment is a good business for us and we would be focusing on it. We expect to grow in the bike space by 25% by next year.” He declined to reveal the details of the new models and the segments they would be considered. “We cannot speak about our upcoming products now.” 

HMSI is known for the Honda Activa, its gearless scooter and the intention now is to have a presence in the bike segment where it is a marginal player. The company presently offers three bikes — Unicorn, Shine and Stunner. HMSI has sold over five lakh bikes during the 2008-09 financial year which is up 40% from 2007-08. Overall, HMSI sold 10.7 lakh two-wheelers (bikes and scooters) during FY09. The company has now set itself a target to produce 12.5 lakh two wheelers for 2009-10. 

HMSI, recently, has entered the fun bike segment with the launch of the CBR 1000RR Fireblade and CB1000R models — these are at the higher end segment. These are in the Rs 9.5-12.5 lakh price range. The company also has plans to increase its dealership and branches. With the intention to grow in the bike segment, HMSI will be up against Hero Honda where Honda is a joint venture partner. 

Today, Hero Honda is the biggest player in the bike segment with a 40% market share. Though HMSI officials say their existing models and those in the pipeline are not in the same segment as that of Hero Honda’s, they will compete for the same customer. 

According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), two wheelers constitute three-fourths of the total number of vehicles sold in the domestic market. Hero Honda is the market leader and is followed by Bajaj and TVS in the domestic market. HMSI is one of the major players in the automatic gear scooter segment. HMSI, on Tuesday, launched a 110cc variant of Honda Activa for the Western market.

Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com