Honda to leverage global 125cc engine for new Activa

The countdown for the commercial rollout of Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India’s (HMSI) Activa 125 has begun. The all-new scooter which will join the 110cc Activa was first revealed at the Auto Expo in February.

The 125cc Activa (codenamed K24A), and likely to be named Activa Plus, will be produced initially at HMSI’s Manesar plant in volumes of around 200,000 units annually starting Q1 of FY’15.

Bookings are expected to start in the first week of April. The new Activa 125 will be available in two variants – one with drum brakes at Rs 60,000 (on-road price) and another with
disc brakes and alloy wheels (Rs 65,000). The company also plans to roll it out from the new Narsapura facility in Karnataka, say sources in the know. Honda has already indicated that its upcoming Gujarat plant will be predominantly for scooters, going on stream with the 110cc Activa. 

GLOBAL POWER

The Activa 125 is believed to be powered by Honda’s global compact engine that has been specially designed for its next-generation scooters for emerging markets. Some simulation work has also been done at the Tech Centre in Manesar for the new model. The engine underwent a one- year testing in Japan, say sources.

With a readily available engine at its disposal for high-growth markets, HMSI did not need to invest further time developing one locally for India, thereby saving costs. Sources have also confirmed that the global engine will be produced in India to benefit from cost economies.

In September 2011, Honda Motor Company had announced the development of an engine for its next-generation 125cc scooters with an advanced idle-stop system for motorcycles. The engine has been developed for facilitating higher fuel economy of about 25 percent compared to conventional scooter engines with the same displacement. This liquid-cooled, 125cc, 4-stroke, single-cylinder engine incorporates a wide range of low-friction technologies while packing its lighter weight in a more compact body. It will power a range of 125cc scooters especially in emerging markets.

The same 125cc engine made its entry into Vietnam last March with Honda Vietnam Company launching the Lead 125, a liquid-cooled 125cc single-cylinder engine ‘eSP’ (enhanced Smart Power) with high fuel efficiency leveraging the low-friction technology.

Interestingly, the idle-stop system was also adopted to further improve fuel economy. Honda Vietnam is producing 200,000 units of the Lead 125 annually, both for the local market and export to Japan. After China, Thailand and India, Vietnam is the fourth Asian country to be a global production base for Honda. Production costs in these countries are significantly lower compared to Japan. Further, India is a strategic growth market for all Japanese OEMs.

HMSI is pushing fuel efficient models to inch it closer to its long-term goal of becoming the number one player by 2020 in India. What started with the rollout of Honda Eco Technology last year in its new Activa, Dio and Aviator scooter models will also be seen in its locally developed CX-01 concept bike.

When contacted, HMSI refused to confirm whether the 125cc engine in the soon-to-be-launched Activa 125 is the same global powerplant. But in January 2013, at the inauguration of HMSI’s  tech centre at Manesar, president and CEO Keita Muramatsu, when asked about Honda’s plans to bring the 125cc engine to India, had told Autocar Professional: “Globally Honda has many toys but it all depends on cost and which one will fit in the Indian market."