January 18, 2014: Piaggio Vehicles, a 100 percent subsidiary of Piaggio & C Spa of Italy, is working hard to show its global strength and engineering capabilities and hint at the seriousness of its India-specific plans at the Auto Expo next month. With nearly twice the size of space at its disposal (as compared to Auto Expo 2012), the company has planned a big line-up of products ranging from brands such as Vespa scooters to other Italian marques -- Aprilia and Moto Guzzi.

According to reliable industry sources, while Piaggio does not plan to launch any Vespa scooter model at the expo, it does plan to officially launch the Vespa S model (powered by the existing 125cc engine currently used in LX125 and VX125 models) around the third or fourth week of February 2014. Meanwhile, it is yet to decide a suitable time to launch the much-awaited model, the stylish Vespa 946.

v However, besides these four models (LX125, VX125, Vespa S and 946),Piaggio Vehicles plans to display other international scooter models as well, which may also include the famous Vespa Primavera.

To showcase its capabilities and to promote its big bike brands in India, the company will display an interesting line-up of Aprilia and Moto Guzzi motorcycles. While the flagship Aprilia RSV4 (1000cc, V4) is confirmed, according to the source, the company will also display the Moto Guzzi California 1400 (1380cc, V-twin) along with the Bellagio (935cc, V-twin), which is also currently sold in India. Additionally, there will be a host of other internationally sold models from both the brands.

“2014 will be a much serious year for Piaggio’s big bike business in India and there will be some important announcements on the same at the expo. Also, there are plans to show an interesting line-up of global Vespa scooters, hinting at the legacy and the immense engineering capabilities of the company. Even the light commercial vehicle vertical will see some serious action at the upcoming event,” revealed an industry source to Autocar Professional on the condition of anonymity.

The company is known to sell the entire international range of these exotic bikes (Aprilia and Moto Guzzi) in India strictly on an order-basis. It is planning to boost the visibility of these two brands locally by not only expanding its existing network of two dealerships (Pune and Delhi NCR) later this year, but the firm is also seriously evaluating and working towards the possibility of setting up completely-knocked-down (CKD) operations for the bikes under these two brands.

“Piaggio sees a huge potential of starting CKD operations of Aprilia and Moto Guzzi bikes in India and there are apt steps being taken in that direction,” concluded the industry source.

AMIT PANDAY