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Business News/ Industry / Manufacturing/  Superbikes at Auto Expo draw crowds, disappoint enthusiasts
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Superbikes at Auto Expo draw crowds, disappoint enthusiasts

Lack of fresh models, too much focus on cars did not go down well with motorcycle enthusiasts

Triumph unveiled its updated range of Bonneville motorcycles at Auto Expo 2016 on Thursday. Photo: PTIPremium
Triumph unveiled its updated range of Bonneville motorcycles at Auto Expo 2016 on Thursday. Photo: PTI

New Delhi: The unveiling and launch of superbikes on day two of Auto Expo 2016 set some hearts racing but the absence of Harley-Davidson India Pvt. Ltd, Royal Enfield, Bajaj Auto Ltd and its KTM range disappointed the purists.

Reaffirming their faith in the growth potential of high-end motorcycles in India, global motorcycle makers, including the local arms of Honda Motor Co., Yamaha Motor Co., Triumph, Benelli (which is present in India through a joint venture with the DSK Group) UM Motorcycles and BMW Motorrad unveiled and launched over a dozen new models for the Indian market.

While the big, mean machines did draw the crowds and gave photo-ops to selfie-obsessed visitors, hardcore motorcycle enthusiasts were not impressed.

“I feel it (the auto expo) is becoming a car-dominated show," said Gautam Lahiri, 37, a regular at auto shows. Another visitor, who declined to be identified, agreed. “Except for Honda CX02 Concept, there is nothing new to see. It’s a damp squib," this visitor said.

The rationale for not participating in the show found some resonance in what a top official of a company, which stayed away, said days before the expo: there are three reasons why one would participate in the show—if you are a foreign brand, which needs to create a brand awareness, if you have a technology you will like to show or you have a new product that has not been seen before. It’s wasteful to spend Rs10-15 crore in showing something which can easily be shown at dealerships, he pointed out. “It is way too expensive," he said.

For car companies, it still makes sense as they have deep pockets, he added.

Shirish Kulkarni, chairman, DSK Motowheels, said while for a new brand like Benelli it does make sense to participate in the show, “the cost of participation is too high".

He added that industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam) should work to bring down costs. While one can do little about the cost of creating the pavilions, as one doesn’t want to compromise on quality of the structure that gets created, the price cost per square metre is something that can be rationalized with mutual consensus.

Benelli unveiled four models including TNT 25, TNT 300, TNT 600i and TNT R.

Pankaj Dubey, managing director at Polaris India Pvt. Ltd too agreed that the costs are high but he is not complaining. “It makes sense for us to participate in the show as we have just entered the market," said Dubey.

Indian Motorcycle, part of the Polaris group, launched the Roadmaster tourer and showcased models including the Indian Chief, Dark Horse and Vintage. Priced at Rs23-35 lakh, the line-up competes with Harley-Davidson in India.

Dubey said he expects the superbike (those with engines above 500cc) market to see a compounded annual growth rate of 10% over the next decade. It will be fuelled by new launches and growing aspirations.

Bikers like Lahiri who frequent global auto shows are hopeful that future editions of the Auto Expo will reflect the maturity of the market.

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Published: 05 Feb 2016, 03:27 AM IST
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