THE MOTORCYCLE MARKET, THOUGH SLUGGISH AS COMPARED TO THE PREVIOUS YEARS, STILL SAW 15 NEW TWO-WHEELERS BEING LAUNCHED IN THE MARKET

THE YEAR GONE BY DID NOT prove to be a good one for the two-wheeler industry growth-wise, but, at the same time, we witnessed the launch of a few good scooters and motorcycles. The scooter market, which was dying a decade ago, was revived with the launch of the Honda Activa and came alive with a flurry of launches starting with the iconic Vespa from Piaggio. Seeing the growth in the scooter market, performance motorcycle manufacturers, Yamaha, entered it with the Ray. Altogether five new scooters were launched in the country in 2012, which included the Hero Maestro, a revamped Honda Dio and the Suzuki Swish.

The motorcycle market, though sluggish as compared to the previous years, still saw 15 new two-wheelers being launched in the market. Honda entered the mass market with the Dream Yuga. It has been well received by the customers and is posting good numbers for HMSI. The most talked-about launch in 2012 was the 200 Duke and Pulsar 200 NS from the KTM-Bajaj stable. Both of them share the same bottom half of the engine, but are completely different in nature. The Pulsar 200 NS is a more rounded motorcycle whereas the KTM 200 Duke is more radical and aggressive.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish all are readers a happy New Year and safe riding from all of us at Bike India. Please do not drink and ride and please wear your protective riding gear without fail.