Bajaj Auto may revise prices of its bikes by January 2010
Rising input costs are now beginning to make a dent on two-wheeler companies. Bajaj Auto is now looking to raise the prices of its models by January 2010. While unveiling Pulsar LS in Hyderabad, Milind Bade, general manager of Bajaj Auto Ltd. said, “Manufacturers will have to take a call sooner rather than later. There are ways to address growing costs, including improving internal efficiencies and cutting cost through vendors. Most of these have been already exhausted and we may see some price hikes soon, he hinted.
The company has already told reporters that it is already working on Pulsar variants above 220cc and intends to launch it in the next 2-3 years. The new motorcycle, expected to be powered by a 400 or 500 cc liquid- cooled engine DTSi, is expected to be priced at least Rs. 1 lakh. Currently, the Pune-based company’s Pulsar portfolio includes the 150-cc, 180-cc and 220-cc version besides the 135-cc launched a couple of days back. Now, with the newly-launched Pulsar, the Pune-based company is aiming to sell one million Bajaj Pulsars a year by next year, up from about 45,000 bikes a month.
Rajiv Bajaj had earlier told reporters, “With the launch of the 135 cc Pulsar, the volumes are likely to go up to 85,000 Pulsar bikes a month, across variants. The company has a market share of about 35 per cent in motorcycles, of this 28 per cent is from sales in the country. With the launch of Bajaj Discover and Bajaj Pulsar new variant, we are poised to garner a bigger market share. Our objective is to become the largest motorcycle maker in the world out-pacing Honda, which now accounts for about 8 million motorcycles a year. With new bikes, backed by buoyancy in the market, last month we registered a growth of over 85 per cent,” Rajiv Bajaj told reporters while unveiling the model in New Delhi.
As part of its overseas plans, Bajaj Auto has confirmed that low-cost motorcycles, which are being manufactured in China and exported to various countries in Africa like Nigeria and Brazil. The company wants to make China the base for low-cost bikes motorcycles. Sold as a Boxer brand; it still retains the same body and engine specifications of the former Boxer, which has 100cc engine, 4-speed gear-box and patented technological features such as Spring-N-Spring suspension as well as the exhaust technology. The new Boxer, which is available in three colours of cocktail wine red, crescent blue and jet black, has a new attractive Boxer decal sported on the tank as well as BM 100 scripted on the side panel. The Boxer, which is imported from Bajaj Waluj Plant, Aurangabad, India, in form of completely knock down (CKD) kits, and is assembled at its state of art lines at Ikeja and Isolo, Lagos.
Rajiv Bajaj had earlier said manufacture of ultra low-cost bikes like Boxer is possible only in China, which is also playing host to other manufacturers that produce and sell in local as well as export markets. Bajaj has already exported well over 14,000 units of the bike and plans to ramp up production moving forward, as reported by Business Standard.
