Bajaj Auto to ramp up V15 production to 1000 units a day

Bajaj Auto today officially started deliveries of its latest entrant in the commuter bike segment – the 150cc V15 – and with over 10,000 bookings in the bag, the two-wheeler manufacturer is planning to ramp up the production of the motorcycle to 1,000 units per day.

Speaking to Autocar Professional, Sumeet Narang, vice-president, marketing, Bajaj Auto, said: “Currently, we are still ramping up our daily production for the motorcycle and hope that we could make 1,000 bikes per day soon. For any new launch the first two  to three months are when you gauge the response from the market and build up supplies accordingly. So initially we would rather go a little slow so that we deliver a well-built product.”

Bajaj has started production of the V15 at its Pantnagar and Waluj plants and manufactured over 2,500 units of the motorcycle last month.

The Pune-based automaker had unveiled the V15 ahead of the Auto Expo 2016 in February and commenced bookings subsequently after formally launching the motorcycle at a price of Rs 61,832 (ex-showroom Maharashtra). The bike, which uses metal of the decommissioned INS Vikrant (India’s first aircraft carrier) in its construction, is powered by an air-cooled DTS-i 150cc two-valve, four-stroke motor. This engine develops 11.8bhp of power. That puts the V about 2bhp down on power compared to its 150cc siblings in the Discover family.

Commenting on the initial response for the motorcycle, Narang said that the current number of bookings is in line with the company’s estimates and the focus is to speed up deliveries now.

Despite the positive start for the V15, the fact that Bajaj Auto is unable to sell the new motorcycle in the national capital is likely to have some bearing on its overall sales.

Turning its emission eye on two-wheelers recently, the Delhi government has banned registrations of new two-wheelers which are not compliant with BS-IV norms. Bajaj V15, being a BS-III-compliant motorcycle, falls in the purview of this sudden ban.

“We haven’t heard anything from the transport authority in Delhi as of yet, we have sent our application to them but are awaiting the response. We can only wait in this matter. For an existing bike, the deadline is April 1, 2017 and we have got clearance from all other RTOs apart from Delhi,” said Narang while highlighting the prevailing uncertainty surrounding the ban. 

Across the country, BS-III norms are applicable on two-wheelers, while BS-III and BS-IV norms are applicable on passenger vehicles. From April 1, 2016, all new two-wheeler models need to comply with BS-IV norms. Existing models that are launched till March 31, 2016 need to upgrade to BS-IV by April 1, 2017. BS-IV norms were initially introduced in 13 cities in April 2010, which was further expanded to 50 more cities by March 2015, with the norms slated to be applicable across the country by April 2017.

Even as two-wheelers were exempted from the recent odd-even scheme in Delhi, the ban on registrations has come as a strong jolt for manufacturers, but what is even more worrying in the matter is the lack of policy clarity.

Also read: Bajaj Auto collaborates with Indian Navy for a month long ride across Maharashtra