The motorcycle segment was one of the best-performing in the Indian automotive market in the first-month best-selling Bikes of 2021, with 9,16,365 units sold and a 5% year-on-year growth rate. Some brands and products continue to be popular buys due to their unique characteristics, and it’s no surprise that commuter motorcycles rule the roost here.
In January 2021, the top ten best-selling Bikes (7,62,145) account for 83 percent of all motorcycles sold. In the first ten months of FY2021, when total industry sales were 81,15,517, these best-sellers kept the same 83 percent ratio, at 67,56,308 units. Let’s look at them more closely:
No. 1 – Hero Splendor
January 2021: 2,25,382 units
April 2020-January 2021: 19,32,736
The Splendor is easily the world’s largest-selling motorcycle and two-wheeler, and Hero MotoCorp is its powerful number source. In January 2021, the company sold 2,25,382 units, bringing the company’s 10-month total in the current fiscal year to 19,32,736 units – just 67,264 short of the two-million mark.
One of the first two-wheelers that comply with the BS6 in India, the Splendor range consists of three models, Splendor Plus, Splendor iSmart and Super Splendor. With a starting price of Rs 59,600, Splendor Plus remains the cheapest. Starting at Rs 67,300 the Super Splendor is the most expensive. The iSmart Splendor costs Rs 67,100.
The Splendor is powered by a new engine, a one-cylinder, 113.2 cc fuel-injected unit that produces 9.1hp at 7500rpm and 9.89Nm at 5500rpm. India’s best-selling bike comes standard with a 240 mm front and 130 mm rear bucket brake, as well as Hero i3 start-stop technology.
What drives demand for the range Splendor is the rise in rural India that saw a good Kharif season. Demand for fuel-shipment commuter bikes will rise in the next few months, as farmers increase their transport activities.
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No. 2 – Hero HF Deluxe
January 2021: 1, 34, 860 units
April 2020-January 2021: 13, 90, 458 units
HF Deluxe was the second most sales motorcycle for a long time, and last month sold 134,860 units. Just one year ago the BS6 HF Deluxe was unveiled and the basic variant at Rs 55,925 was priced and the i3S variant at Rs 57,250 was priced (both prices, ex-showroom, Delhi).
Hero claimed the new engine is nine percent fuel-efficient, better performance and 6 percent more acceleration, with the upgraded HF Deluxe featuring a 100cc, single-cylinder fuel-injection engine that produces 7.94 hp and 8.05 Nm. Hero’s i3S features the new HF Deluxe (idle start-stop system).
No. 3 – Honda CB Shine
January 2021: 1,16,222 units
April 2020-January 2021: 7,54,288 units
This Honda shines on the sales front on two wheels. Normally in the fourth position, it has increased by 1 point with sales of 1, 16,222 units and by 18,642 units to the Bajaj Pulsar.
The CB Shine was one of the first motorcycles to receive BS6 treatment in India. The same 124,73cc air-cooled one-cylinder engine was upgraded to BS6-spec, which saw the power figure increasing from 10,31hp to 10,88hp. The BS6 CB Shine has a marginal power increase but features electronic fuel injection, which means that the throttle response is tight and smooth. A 5-speed drive is coupled with the engine.
No. 4 – Bajaj Pulsar
January 2021: 97,580 units
April 2020-January 2021: 7,78,525 units
The sporty Bajaj Pulsar range is ranked fourth, with 97,580 units sold in January and a total of 7,78,525 units sold in ten months. It is believed that sales would have been higher if not for the negative impact on production caused by the slowed supply chain for semiconductors, which has also impacted Bajaj Auto.
The sporty Pulsar family consists of nine variants: the Pulsar 125, the Pulsar 150, the 150 Neon, the 150 Twin Disc, the Pulsar 180, the Pulsar 220, the NS160, the NS200, and the RS200.
On February 23, the company launched the new 2021 Pulsar 180 with the lakh Rs 1.08 in order to charge Pulsar for its sales, extending the range for India’s most popular sports motorcycle entry-level brand. The 180-200cc motorcycle segment currently accounts for 20% of the sports bike segment, and the new Pulsar 180 is aimed at consumers seeking the best technology and performance sports cars.
No. 5 – Hero Passion
January 2021: 43,162 units
April 2020-January 2021: 4,22,574 units
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The motorcycle stable of Hero MotoCorp has long-standing brands such as Passion, which are still sold on the local market. The Passion produces 9.15hp and 9.9Nm torque with an upgraded 113cc BS6 engine from Splendor iSmart.
In January 2021, during the first ten months of the fiscal year, this fuel-exiting commuter motorcycle sold 43,162 cars, and 4,22,574 cars respectively, compared to 26,905 cargo and 4,49,530 cargo units per year. Due to the COVID-19-induced sales loss, this can be described as a good example of Passion, which obviously does not soon go out of fashion.
No. 6 – Royal Enfield Classic 350
January 2021: 40,872 units
April 2020-January 2021: 2,93,421 units
Old can also be gold and this is evidenced by the Royal Enfield Classic 350. With sales of 40,872 units in January, the classic thumper has a return on demand (January 2020: 40,834). And this machine continues to be high on the chart of heavy metal aficionados with sales of 2, 93,421 units in the first ten months of the year 2021.
The Classic 350 in form of BS6 is supplied with a 19.8hp and 28Nm torque injection system. The new classic is around Rs 11,000 more expensive than in BS4 spec, as the prices begin at Rs 1,78,000.
The Classic 350 is the most popular motorcycle for Royal Enfield – the Classic 350 is 65 percent of the company’s total turnover of 4,48,151 motorcycles in April 2020-January 2021.
No. 7 – TVS Apache
January 2021: 28,456 units
April 2020-January 2021: 2,60,747 units
Apache flagship TVS Motor Co is in the seventh position with the premium bike brand Apache riding. The Apache range in January includes four models – Apache RTR 160, RTR 180, and RTR 160 4V clocked at 28,456 units – which is down slightly with August 2020 numbers.
On 12 October, Apache’s overall sales reached the worldwide 4-million unit mark. This premium brand was introduced in 2005 and takes 15 years to drive from zero to 40,00,000 units. Interestingly, in just two years, the last million or 10 lakh units were sold. On September 10, 2018, TVS Apache reached 3 million milestones.
No. 8 – Bajaj Platina
January 2021: 27,131 units
April 2020-January 2021: 3,36,396 units
The continued popularity of Hero commuter motorcycles has affected demand for the Bajaj Platina, which ranks eighth in the Top 10 rankings with 27,131 units sold. It has a count of 10 months at 3,36,396, down 64 percent from the figures for the past year.
At the beginning of July, he added to the Platina 100 range a new variant of the ES (Electric Start) Disk Brake that takes the total number of variants to three. The BS6 conforming 102cc, the single-cylinder motor with peak output values of 7.9hps and 8.34Nm is the power supply for the Platina 100. The engine is connected to an automatic 4-speed drive.
No. 9 – Honda Unicorn
January 2021: 25,799 units
April 2020-January 2021: 1,83,997 units
The Unicorn is the second Honda bike in this Top 10 list, with 25,799 units sold in 10 months and 1,83,997 sold in 10 months. Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India introduced the BS6 model exactly a year ago. The Unicorn was Honda’s first motorcycle in India, and this new model is based on the outgoing CB Unicorn, which is one of the manufacturer’s most famous models. The Unicorn 160’s 162.71cc single-cylinder engine powers the bike.
No. 10 – Hero Glamour
January 2021: 22,681 units
April 2020-January 2021: 4,03,166 units
Is the Hero Glamour losing its luster with shoppers, or are the lower numbers an aberration? It was once a regular at No. 5 or so, but it is now at the bottom. The bike sold 22,681 units in January (January 2020: 40,318) and 4,03,166 units in 10 months (April 2019-January 2020: 5,54,158), a 27 percent decrease year on year.
The Glamour faces stiff competition from famous motorcycles such as the Honda SP 125 and the Bajaj Pulsar 125, and it is clearly feeling the heat. While it has a similar displacement of 124.7cc, the single-cylinder engine powering the Glamour is new and comes with a 5-speed gearbox “as read and reported by www.autocarindia.com.”