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Pulsar crosses 50 lakh sales mark

The country’s second largest two-wheeler maker Bajaj Auto today said its Pulsar model motorcycles have crossed 50 lakh units sales mark since its launch over 10 years ago.

“The (Pulsar) brand has crossed the landmark 5 million sales mark, while celebrating a decade of existence. Pulsar is the only brand in the performance segment which has crossed the 5 million mark in India,” Bajaj Auto Ltd (BAL) said in a statement.
The company had first introduced the Pulsar motorcycles in November 2001 in two engine capacities — 180 cc and 150 cc, which now has expanded to a portfolio starting from 135 cc light-sports model to 220 cc ‘street-fighter’ product and enjoys a market share of 44 per cent in the performance segment, BAL claimed.
“Not many brands in the Indian automobile space have crossed the 5 million mark. This holds true even for mass motorcycles. The Pulsar range has received many accolades over the years,” BAL President (Motorcycle Business) K Srinivas said.
The company had unveiled the Pulsar 200 NS early this year and it is hopeful of the model doing good in the market, he added.

On- and off-roader bike has a 798-cc parallel twin engine

BMW Motorrad, the two-wheeler division of German car manufacturers BMW, recently launched the BMW F650 GS in the country. This 798-cc parallel twin on- and off-roader promises 72 PS of peak power and 75 Nm of maximum torque and weighs about 200 kg. It comes with a 19-inch front wheel and a 17-inch rear one, with disc brakes at both ends. The engine has been mated with a six-speed transmission and the bike has a telescopic suspension at the front and an adjustable mono-shock at the rear. ABS is an optional feature, which can also be switched off.

The BMW F650GS has been priced at Rs 9.99 lakh (ex-showroom, New Delhi). With the competitors in this segment being priced lower than this, the price of this Beemer sure sounds rather steep, but then it is most likely to attract a different set of customers too.

Mahindra Two Wheelers registers 7% growth, riding high on the success of Duro DZ scooter

Mahindra Two Wheelers Ltd (MTWL), a part of the US $14.4 billion Mahindra Group, continued to build its presence in the two wheeler segment. The company’s scooter sales in April 2012 stood at 10191 units, a growth of 7% over last year. The newly introduced Mahindra Duro DZ continued to receive great customer response across the country.

“We are really encouraged by the enthusiastic customer response that the new Mahindra Duro DZ continues to receive across the nation. Our future growth momentum will be driven by a range of similarly exciting, new product launches over the next few months.” said Mr. Viren Popli, Senior V.P. Strategy and Market Development, Mahindra Two Wheelers.

The cumulative sales for the company have crossed a landmark figure of three lakh units, with both the Rodeo and Duro scooter brands having a franchise of more than one lakh consumers across the country. Mahindra 2 Wheelers’ powerful 125 cc scooters cater to a range of consumer segments. The Mahindra Rodeo with its very innovative, contemporary features is popular amongst young couples, while the Mahindra Duro DZ is positioned as a solid family scooter. The Flyte is the Indian woman’s two-wheeler of choice.

Honda CB Shine gets new clothes

HMSI is strengthening its market position in the 125cc motorcycle segment by unveiled the refreshed look of its popular CB Shine. The CB Shine now comes in 2 new colours – Force Silver Metallic and Monsoon Grey Metallic. CB Shine however will continue to be available in its existing colours – Black, Geny Grey Metallic and Rebel Red Metallic and now comes with new graphics on the fuel tank. In its refreshed avatar, the new CB Shine will soon be available in 3 variants: Spoke wheels with drum brakes (with tuff-up tube), Alloy wheels with drum brakes (with tubeless tyres) and Alloy wheels with Disc brakes (with tubeless tyres). The new look is bound to bring in the breed of bikers who are out for a sporty looking bike which gives good mileage and not to forget the all important front disc brake option.

Salman Khan becomes Suzuki brand ambassador

Suzuki Motorcycle India Private Limited (SMIPL) today announced Salman Khan as its first ever brand ambassador in India. The ‘Dabangg’ star with a massive fan-following will spearhead Suzuki’s above-the-line and below-the-line initiatives, and will be seen endorsing the new Hayate motorcycle soon.

Suzuki two-wheelers will be looking at associating with Salman Khan across the gamut of his projects, campaigns and initiatives. With the recent aggressive product launches that provides customers a choice in each segment, Suzuki two-wheelers has embarked on a journey of ramping up its presence and relationships across the country and market segments. For Suzuki two-wheelers, the iconic status of Salman Khan and his national, cross-market, cross-segment appeal combined well with the Company’s recently adopted brand theme of Apna Way of Life.

Mr. Atul Gupta, Vice President, Sales and Marketing, SMIPL, said, “We are delighted to have Mr Salman Khan associating with one of the world’s most iconic two-wheeler brands. We believe that Suzuki and Salman together will make an emotional connect with all sections of customers that Suzuki’s range of two-wheelers reaches out to. The association with Salman was driven by the imperative of quickly building a strong connection between the Suzuki two-wheeler brand and the different segments that our expanding range of products is addressing.”