Suzuki Motorcycle India, which currently holds a 4.49% market share in the scooter market in India, today launched its new Access 125. The company claims the Access has thus far sold 2 million units in the country.

According to Kenji Hirozawa, vice-president, sales and marketing, Suzuki Motorcycle India, the earlier version of the Access will continue to be sold based on demand. The new Access 125, which is priced at  Rs 53,8871 (ex-showroom Delhi) costs Rs 2,000 more but is claimed to deliver mileage of 64kpl, 20 percent higher than the current model. The new scooter will be produced at the company's Gurgaon facility in volumes of 200,000 units per annum. 

At present the plant has a production capacity of 700,000 units and utilises capacity of 400,000, of which 320,000 units are sold in the domestic market and 60,000 units are exported every year.

The new Access 125 is powered by a new engine based on Suzuki's SEP technology developed by Suzuki using its MotoGP racing experience. The new scooter comes with a rigid but lightweight frame aimed to deliver improved cornering performance, stability and mileage. It also gets an ‘easy start’ system that the company claims is a first for a two-wheeler in India.

Masayoshi Ho, the outgoing managing director, told Autocar Professional that Suzuki is targeting annual sales of one million units in India by 2020.  To achieve this, the company says many new scooters and bikes will be added to the product basket.

The Access125 currently sells around 13,500 units a month. With this new model and another new scooter – probably in the 125cc segment – slated to join the Suzuki stable soon, Suzuki plans to double its market share in scooters in 2 years. In motorcycles it holds a little less than 1 percent domestic market share.

In the April 2015-February 2016 period, Suzuki has sold a total of 292,630 two-wheelers in India, down 6.72% year on year. On the export front, it has shipped 56,349 units, accounting for 107% growth year on year.

Also read: Suzuki Access 125 to be exported to Sri Lanka and Nepal