Honda’s 250cc bike by Diwali

The much celebrated festival in India, Deepavali may witness a pompous launch of the 250cc bike by Honda Motorcycle. It would cost Rs1.5 lakh. The trial production is to begin in another three months and the bike will be the first of its kind from the company. On the sideline is the sneak of similar version from TVS. In the meantime, HMSI will offer the upgraded version of its 125cc Shine and the Unicorn(150cc) ( this will be the third upgradation in the period of 5 years).

HMSI has got in store another bike in the basic version- 110cc CB Twister– entering into the strong contingency of ranges from other bike makers like Hero Honda and Bajaj(Discover). By reviving the mass market, the company targets to sell 2.2 lakh units in FY2011; which in turn may increase the market share from the current 13% to 15%, said the company’s VP for marketing and sales. The cost of this Twister is Rs44870- Rs51150 and is the premium level in its segment but the company hopes to rely on the brand image. The dealers opine that the cost of Twist may see the swallowing of Shine in the market.

But HMSI sees the crunch and intends to widen the price gap by upgrading the Shine and Stunner. The sale of these bikes are Shine -25000 units and Stunner 10000 units per month. This indicates the full-capacity run of the company’s Manesar unit (capable of 15 lakh units) and a new plant may sprout soon. The company faced labor dispute during the festival month of 2009 but could achieve the sale of 1.25 million two wheelers. The company is pinning of more exports – 83000 by this year end – which may reach 1 lakh in the next year, said the official.

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