The Auto Expo 2010- Glamour Guns Cruise in With Raw Appeal

Machoism is in air as super bikes get ready to burn the rubber and speed up. Even though the bike market in India remains a predominantly low-pries, low-power phenomenon, the heavier power machines are increasingly finding buyers, despite their high prices — Rs 10 lakh and above.

Although volumes are limited — selling less than 1,000 units per year — super bikes are increasingly finding a place on Indian roads. While Honda and Yamaha are driving in some of their best-known products, Harley Davidson will launch its cruisers around April.

Auto Expo 2010 are showcasing some of these exciting speed machines — ranging from Suzuki’s 1340cc Hayabusa to Yamaha’s 1670cc MT01 to Honda’s CB1000R. These bikes are proving to be a big draw for the companies, which hope to derive benefit from the buzz around the super bikes, primarily in terms of branding exercise.

“Even though we are offering these power bikes, they are still not a business for us but more of a brand-showcase exercise,” said Shinji Aoyama, president of Honda’s subsidiary Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI).

HMSI, more famous in India as a scooter maker, appears to be adding muscle to its portfolio through the display of these bikes, which include the 1,000cc CBR1000RR Fireblade, an established icon of performance motorcycling that costs Rs 12.5 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). It is also showing the 1200cc VFR1200F, the company’s latest big gun, featuring the world’s first ‘dual clutch’ transmission. It promises a combination of sports and touring capabilities.

Honda launched the CBR1000RR Fireblade and CB1000R bikes in April last year, and managed to sell 50 units, including both the bikes. “The volumes will certainly go up, but slowly,” Aoyama said.

Pankaj Dubey, national business head for Yamaha’s India operations, said, the company sold most of the products to biking enthusiasts, who had good understanding of the products and bought them for their quality and power. Yamaha was among the first ones to launch super bikes in India and it’s displaying the latest version of 1000cc YZF-R1 and 1670cc MT01, costing Rs 12.5 lakh and Rs 10.5 lakh, respectively. Yamaha has also displayed its legendary flagship muscle bike 1679cc VMax, that was launched in September last year at a whopping price of Rs 20 lakh. “Despite its high cost, we got a phenomenal response to the bike and there were bookings for the model even before its launch,” Dubey said.

Suzuki has displayed the 1783cc Intruder, a modern cruiser that costs Rs 12.5 lakh. It is also showing its ultimate sports bike, the 1340cc Hayabusa, priced at Rs 12.5 lakh. And, iconic US bike maker Harley Davidson said it will bring 12 motorcycles from its portfolio to the Indian market, to be priced between Rs 6.95 lakh and Rs 34.95 lakh. “Bookings for Harley-Davidson motorcycles will open from April 2010,” company’s MD Anoop Prakash said.