Honda on Full Swing to Take Hero MotoCorp Head-On : BikeAdvice |  |
- Honda on Full Swing to Take Hero MotoCorp Head-On
- Pulsar 135LS and Pulsar 220 Wins IMOTY 2011 Award in Indonesia
- TVS Apache RTR Hyper Edge Review by Manoj
| Honda on Full Swing to Take Hero MotoCorp Head-On Posted: 16 Dec 2011 04:40 AM PST
Original Source: Honda on Full Swing to Take Hero MotoCorp Head-On from BikeAdvice.in The month of November 2011 will never be forgotten in the history of Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI). Guess why? It was in this month that Honda was able to show a sales figure of around two lakh units which included both bikes as well as scooters. This is the highest figure shown HMSI, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Honda, Japan ever since the company marked its presence in the Indian soil. By accomplishing this major fete, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India replaced TVS Motors as the third highest manufacturer, with its former collaborator, Hero MotoCorp, and Bajaj Auto in the top two places.
By the beginning of next financial year, Honda's second production plant in the state of Rajastan would be in its production stage. The two plants in the state, which includes the presently operating one, will be able to raise the monthly output in terms of production to 2.5 lakh units. The company is also working on its third manufacturing facility in Karnataka will have an annual capacity of another 1.2 million units over years. From Honda's point of view, the company wants all its three manufacturing bases to be in a position to manufacture four million bikes and scooters every year by the year 2014-15. Industry sources suggest that there are probability of Honda opening two more plants in the western states of Gujarat and Maharashtra in order to cope up with the recent demand created for Honda products along all the segments across the length and breadth of the country Business Line had reported recently in one of its news article: 'According to industry grapevine, this is only the beginning of an aggressive journey for the company, which is determined to recover the top slot it ceded to the Hero group after the duo parted ways recently. Apparently, Honda is keen on setting up two more plants in the Western region (most probably Gujarat and Maharashtra) which will mirror the 1.2-million unit annual capacities of the other three units. If the script runs according to plan, it will have more than six million two-wheelers rolling out of its facilities by 2017.' HMSI has also declared that price is going to be a major factor to projects success for the company in the Indian market. It simply means that the company will take due care when it comes to the pricing front of its products here. This was very apparent when the Automobile major's global President & CEO, Mr. Takanobu Ito, said at a presentation on Honda’s strategy for the next decade. "Today, key competitors in those (emerging) markets are Chinese and Indian makers. In order for Honda to remain a market leader, it must not only maintain the high attractiveness and quality of products, but also further improve cost-competitiveness to match the low prices of these competitors," he said. Honda marked its presence into the Indian sub – continent with two joint ventures Viz with Hero and Kinetic Motors in the early 80's when the scene here was entirely different. The competition was intensely less for Honda at that point of time, which is not the case at present. Honda then broke up with Kinetic Motors a long time back and in order to regain its lost position in the gearless scooter segment, it came back with Honda's fully owned subsidiary – HMSI. The company has been very successful in dominating this segment to a greater extent. The story of Hero Honda has been History and everybody would obviously be knowing about it. Both the companies were greatly benefitted by this JV which went on for a very long time. An expert from automobile field had recently quoted "It can pull it off if it launches a better motorcycle than the top-selling Splendor at a lower price. This is the only way to wean the next generation of customers away."But, one has to agree and abide by the fact the Honda has got all capabilities to dominate and give the erstwhile ally a tough fight in order to obtain the 'Numero – Uno' tag for itself. On the contrary, Munjals led Hero group is equally capable at the forefront except that they don't have a global presence like their ex – Japanese counterpart. The newspaper also reported 'Clearly, scooters have been the greater success story, and Honda would be desperately looking for the big break in motorcycles, which will help shed the Activa – led image. It also makes greater business sense, since the market is still heavily loaded in favour of bikes, a fact that Bajaj Auto quickly grasped, which spurred its move to exit the scooter business completely.' The Hero MotoCorp is also working intensely day – in and day – out to boost the company's image in all frontiers. It has already expressed its plan of coming up with the fourth plant somewhere in the Southern part of the nation. This will aid the company in pulling its production capacity to a mindboggling figure of ten million units. (One crore units…wow!) Similarly, Bajaj Auto, the country's second largest producer of two wheelers will almost be doubling its production to ten million units (as in the case of HMC) over a period of next three to four years' time which is not too far at all. But, note that Bajaj Auto's production increase is to concentrate mostly on the Export markets where it visualizes a huge potential apart from concentrating the domestic market too. Hero MotoCorp also has plans to foray into few of African and Latin American markets in the next few years. While most of the foreign companies are on a temporary halt with the fear of a forthcoming recession in mind, Honda seems to give no damn about it. All that it currently works on is just with one thought in mind – No.1 position in the Indian market. Will HMSI succeed in its new mission set for it? Throw more light on this post by adding your valuable info. Leave your comments in the box below. Regards, Related posts: |
| Pulsar 135LS and Pulsar 220 Wins IMOTY 2011 Award in Indonesia Posted: 16 Dec 2011 01:33 AM PST
Original Source: Pulsar 135LS and Pulsar 220 Wins IMOTY 2011 Award in Indonesia from BikeAdvice.in Bajaj Auto and Pulsar fans have more reasons to celebrate the success of Pulsar brand. Indian bike enthusiasts are eagerly waiting for launch of next generation Pulsar series but the current Pulsar series is grabbing attention at international level. Bajaj Pulsar series has won two prestigious awards at Indonesian Motorcycle of the year (IMOTY) 2011 in the category of best sports bike for 125cc-150cc and 151cc to 250cc. This Indonesian Motorcycle of the year (IMOTY) award is similar to Indian Motorcycle of the year (IMOTY) award in India.
Pulsar 135 LS got the best sports bike award in 125cc-150cc category while Bajaj Pulsar 220 got best sports bike award in 151cc-250cc category. Pulsar 135 LS was chosen from the finalist list which also had Honda CBR150R and Yamaha Byson (Yamaha FZ in India). Pulsar 220cc was chosen from the finalist list which also had Honda CBR250R, Minerva Migelli 250, Yamaha ScorpioZ (225cc). Tandju Rizal as PR & Marketing Manager of PT Bajaj Auto Indonesia expressed his satisfaction and said “This award proves that the motor Bajaj Pulsar motorcycle increasingly accepted and become the primary choice of Indonesian society. The form is sporty, stylish, lightweight, easy to drive, fuel efficient and competitive prices, making the Pulsar 135 LS and Pulsar 220 DTS-i was able to attract the hearts of the people of Indonesia. He also said that this is gift for Bajaj Auto's Indonesian subsidiary which is celebrating its fifth anniversary this year. These two awards reflect Pulsar domination in International market. The award is special and prestigious because Indonesia is considered as most competitive and technology oriented market in Asian region. Indonesia is a third largest two wheeler market in the world after China and India and it is majorly ruled by Japanese manufacturer. Currently Bajaj Auto and TVS Motors are only two Indian manufacturers which are present in Indonesian two wheeler market. - Mahavir Kothari Share on FacebookRelated posts: |
| TVS Apache RTR Hyper Edge Review by Manoj Posted: 15 Dec 2011 07:58 PM PST
Original Source: TVS Apache RTR Hyper Edge Review by Manoj from BikeAdvice.in I had purchased my Apache RTR Hyper Edge in November, 2010 just a month after its actual launch in the market. It has taken 2 days of waiting period being from Chennai. Prior to this, I have done a lot of homework on different machines (bikes) to decide up on RTR of course. Initial days during this research (what I call), I was having different feelings on different bikes. And I don't mind to say that every bike is different and has got its own pluses & minuses.
You need to prioritize on what features your heart responds before going for any bike in that case. My heart was always on to the throttle response & pickup and you know that RTR is the best in these segments. Of course you need to check up on other things such as mileage, torque, pickup, maintenance, reliability, service etc before freezing. The above mentioned factors matched up well with the RTR. New graphics were added advantages to the bike and finally I have opted for it. Experience with the MonsterIt has been more than a year since RTR Hyper Edge has entered my family and I still remember my first ride with my Hyper Edge. Prior to this I have ridden & owned bikes of other manufacturers but let me say this RTR is 'real a monster'. The throttle response and pick up are the ever rejoicing experiences and frankly speaking for anyone new to this bike needs to manage in its first gear and it has taken a week for me to adjust to its initial pickup. Now coming in to the technical aspects of it, being a mechanical engineer I will include certain rare facts about it in the trailing sentences. Manufacturer promised mileage is 48kmpl and you know it is calculated / calibrated by keeping ideal conditions of road, load, wind, margin for design etc while proposing the mileage. So, forget about what the manufacturer has promised. In the span of its purchase to first service, my Hyper Edge was delivering at 43-48kmpl (driven in speeds not exceeding 50 kmpl) and let me remind this span of first 500 kms is very crucial for any machine for that matter to get adjusted to the conditions like ambient, riding etc. After the first service the mileage has varied to a lower figure (never less than 38kmpl till now) as you can rip apart the monster and I think one buys such bike to rip and not for the mileage. If mileage is your priority please shift to splendors or ct 100 s. 38Kmpl is pretty decent in this segment when you are actually raping the bike. Manufacturer specifies a top speed of 116- 120 kmph and actually it delivers a little more than that i.e 121 – 123 kmph when ridden single and 110 – 115kmph when ridden with pillion passenger (depends on load i.e weight of persons, drag due to wind etc). Stability wise RTR is good in normal dry conditions and because of TVS tires; the stability is less in wet or rainy conditions. People normally associate RTR producing vibes at speeds between 60kmph & 80kmph. I too encounter vibes but not complying with speeds but with RPM i.e from 4500 rpm to 5000rpm especially in 4th gear and after that it is normal. What so ever the reason may be, it does not bother me much as other bikes of this segment produce vibes or resistance after 80kmph and for that matter RTR crosses 100kmph with ease & roar, thanks to its engine. Service is another issue which is very important for any bike. RTR has to be serviced for every 3000km and you will notice by yourself that your RTR has reached service period as the vibrations increase (4500 rpm range), chain loosens up etc. Literally saying you will feel a little bit uneasy riding without being service. These are common for any bike of course. But mileage of the RTR will never drastically decrease as the machine can take the beating even without servicing for another 1000 to 1500 km or so. The rear suspension of RTR is a bit hard when compared to other bikes such as FZ s etc but can be adjusted depending on the road conditions (no mechanic required) as there exists a provision for 4 level adjustments. The braking is also a bit hard and has no issue with the braking effectiveness. I have once (rainy day) encountered a road mishap and thanks to its brakes, I escaped with no injuries. The bike's wind guard or visor was broken and the side indicator was damaged and the replacement with repair costed me just around Rs 600/-. ConclusionIf your heart beats for throttle response, pick up just go for RTR and unleash your racing DNA. Specifications
For any other details, I can be reached by manojnamadhu@yahoo.co.in - Manoj Share on FacebookRelated posts: |
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