HMSI sells 27 CBR 650Fs in July

Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) has already sold 27 units of the CBR650Fs in July 2015. The company had officially opened bookings for this flagship model on July 10, the day it had launched its new 110cc, 9bhp commuter motorcycle model Livo in Delhi. 

Talking to Autocar Professional on the sidelines of that event last month, YS Guleria, senior vice-president (sales and marketing), HMSI, had said: “We are looking at assembling 25-30 units of the CBR 650F before we launch the product next month (August 4 – Revfest). We are currently assembling one unit per shift per day. The bookings for this model will begin today (July 10).”

This not only points out that the company has secured sales of 27 units of this premium sports-cum-touring product, which comes with a price tag of close to Rs 761,000 (ex-showroom, Mumbai), within 20-21 days of July but also highlights the sharp market acumen of the HMSI management that had taken a call of assembling up to 30 units of this model until its launch.

The company assembled 29 units of the CBR 650F in July. With two weeks into August, Autocar Professional estimates that the company’s total sales of this model would stand in the range of 35-40 units, if not more already.

The Honda CBR 650F, which is also touted to be HMSI’s flagship product in India, is known to be retailed via shop-in-shop marketing and sales strategy that includes only 12 select showrooms under phase one besides the two existing Honda wing world showrooms located one each in Mumbai and Delhi.

These select showrooms are located across Pune and Ahmedabad (west zone), Chandigarh and Delhi (north zone), Bhubaneshwar and Kolkata (east zone), Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Cochin (south zone) and Lucknow and Indore (central zone).

The Honda CBR 650F is powered by an advanced liquid-cooled, in-line four-cylinder, 85bhp, 649cc engine, which becomes the third such powertrain to be sold in India that comes in a four-cylinder midsize displacement format. The other two four-cylinder engines in 600-800cc category sold in India are Benelli’s 84bhp, 600cc powertrain (that powers TNT600i and TNT600GT) and Kawasaki’s 113bhp, 806bhp engine that powers the Z800.

In line with the popular Make-in-India initiative, HMSI has smartly positioned the CBR 650F as ‘first of Honda’s premium make-in-India tourer motorcycles.’ Speaking at the Honda Revfest in Delhi on August 4, Keita Muramatsu, president and CEO, HMSI, had said: “The team at Honda has worked very hard to realise a dream of making a 16-valve, in-line four-cylinder motorcycle right here in India. The Made-in-India CBR650F opens a window of opportunity for us. We are ready for the next level and this is one moment we all are proud of.”

The local assembly of CBR650F, hence, marks an important step by HMSI in the direction of boosting the growing recognition of the midsized motorcycles in India.

It is to be noted that all the big four two wheeler manufacturers in India (Hero MotoCorp, HMSI, Bajaj Auto and TVS Moto Company – together accounted for 91 percent of two wheeler industry in FY2014-15) are now beginning to make a foray into the midsized motorcycle segment. Sales volume-wise while Bajaj Auto (via KTM models 2012 onwards) was the harbinger of this trend, the Japanese companies – HMSI (via CBR250R in 2011) and Kawasaki (via Ninja 250R through Bajaj Auto in 2009) have a big hand in the evolving market.

Also read: Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) recalls CBR 150R and CBR 250R for faulty starter relay switch