Our regular readers might know about the Honda CBR650F making its way to India officially next year. First unveiled for the Indian market at 2014 Auto Expo, the CBR650F is the first big bike to be assembled in India. Now, the top honcho of Honda has claimed that it will consider assembling more big bikes depending on the performance of the CBR650F in the country.
Currently, Honda Motorcycles & Scooters India (HMSI) manufactures small capacity commuter motorcycles and scooters in India, which has made them the second biggest two-wheeler manufacturer. While the company already sells big displacement motorcycles like the CBR1000RR, CB1000R, VFR1200 in India, these bikes are quite expensive as they are completely-built-up (CBU) units. With growing sales in the affordable performance motorcycle segment, Honda has felt the need to have a motorcycle in that segment and that’s why the CBR650F will be sold in India via the completely-knocked-down (CKD) route. CKD units attract less taxation, which directly results in a competitive/affordable pricing.
"Manufacturing smaller bikes are completely different from assembling the high-end bikes with sophisticated technologies. So, the CBR650 is our first step to gain experience of assembling such a high-end bike in India. Once we do that and depending on the market demand we may consider assembling and selling more high performance bikes in India," said Keita Muramatsu, CEO and president, HMSI.
"India is still a predominantly commuter motorcycle market but we are also looking to tap the higher end, enthusiasts segment. Our aim is to make the high-end segment affordable by assembling in India," he added.
We are sure that Honda has learned its lesson from Kawasaki, Triumph and Harley-Davidson who have set up assembly and manufacturing (in case of the American) facilities in India to pursue growth in the Indian premium motorcycle segment. While we appreciate Honda’s call on assembling more big bikes, we would love to see Honda’s middleweight (CBR500R, CB500F and CB500X) range on the assembly line soon.
Source: Economictimes
