Of all the two-wheelers sold in April-June (Q1 FY2025), motorcycles comprised the biggest chunk at 3.19 million units, registering a 17 percent year-on-year (YoY) growth. Next were scooters, with sales of 1.66 million units, up 28 percent. Mopeds recorded 16 percent growth at 1,22,715 units.
The bulk of the motorcycle demand, as always, was in the commuter segment. In Q1, a total of 15,03,398 such fuel-sipping motorcycles were sold, up 12 percent YoY. The second in terms of volume is the 110-125cc executive bike segment, with 9,13,793 units, up 19.62 percent, followed by the 150-200cc segment with 3,34,207 units, up 21 percent.
The two other segments that saw six-figure sales are the 125-150cc category, which grew 64 percent to 1,74,934 units, and the 250-350cc segment. But sales of 250-350cc bikes slipped 3.5 percent YoY to 1,95,129 units.
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Market leader Hero MotoCorp remains in an unassailable position. It sold 1.39 million units to post a 13 percent growth. However, its market share in bikes slipped to 43.74 percent from 45.02 percent a year ago. The 97.2cc HF Deluxe, Splendor+ and Passion Plus account for the bulk of Hero MotoCorp’s sales at 11,94,641 units, up 12 percent. Together, they comprised 85 percent of its total dispatches in Q1.
In the 110-125cc category, the Passion XTEC, Super Splendor, Glamour and Xtreme 125R together clocked 1,81,723 units, up 19 percent. In the 125-150cc segment, the XPulse and Xtreme 160R models sold 15,137 units, down 3 percent. The company’s recent entry into the 350-500cc segment with the Harley-Davidson X440 and Mavrick 440 saw it sell 5,125 units.
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In Q1, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) posted the highest growth among all the manufacturers. The Japanese automaker sold 6,19,397 units to record a handsome 71 percent YoY growth. Consequently, its market share expanded to 19 percent from 13 percent a year ago.
The entry-level duo of the Shine 100 and CD110 Dream sold 1,09,732 units, up 106 percent. HMSI’s biggest gains continue to be in the 110-125cc segment: the Shine 125 sold 3,87,832 units, up 43 percent, and comprising 63 percent of its total bike sales. The 149cc Unicorn sold 51,491 units. HMSI also saw strong gains in the 150-200cc segment, with the CB200X and Hornet 2.0 selling 59,774 units, up 123 percent.
Bajaj Auto, India’s third-largest motorcycle seller, dispatched 5,38,643 units in Q1, just 3 percent more than it did a year ago. In the 100-110cc segment, its sales, at 1,25,423 units, were down 9 percent. Demand for its 125cc bikes fell 5.67 percent to 2,26,041 units. However, sales in the 125-150cc category rose 58 percent to 83,264 units. The 150-200cc category saw a marginal increase of 1.43 percent to 65,135 units. In 200-250cc, sales rose 22 percent to 26,085 units.
The company has done really well in the 350-500cc category. Its Dominar 400, Pulsar NS400Z and models under the Husqvarna, KTM and Triumph brands sold a total of 12,695 units, recording a 135 percent increase. This mixed bag kind of performance led to Bajaj Auto’s market share declining to 17 percent from 19 percent a year ago.
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TVS Motor dispatched 3,18,975 motorcycles in Q1, up 8 percent. In the entry-level segment, the trio of the 100cc Sport, the 110cc Star City Plus and Radeon sold 73,602 units, down 15 percent YoY. The Raider 125, which was TVS’ best-selling motorcycle in FY2024, sold 118,197 units, up 18 percent, and accounted for 37 percent of its total bike sales in Q1. The Apache models in the 150-200cc segment sold 1,20,588 units, up 11 percent. TVS also sold 5,652 Ronins and 936 units of the RR 310 and RTR 310.
Midsize motorcycle market leader Royal Enfield sold 2,04,686 bikes in April-June, down 1 percent. The 500-800cc sub-segment is the only one in which Royal Enfield registered growth. In the 250-350cc category, it sold 1,83,450 349cc motorcycles, a decline of 3 percent, giving it a market share of 94 percent in the segment. In the 350-500cc space, where it has the Scram 411 and the 452cc Himalayan, its sales fell 14 percent to 9,293 units.
The 650cc twins (Continental GT 650 and Interceptor 650), the Super Meteor 650 and Shotgun 650, all powered by the same 648cc engine, continue to see strong demand, and they stemmed Royal Enfield’s sales decline in Q1.
As per the latest industry wholesale data by SIAM, between April and June, the Chennai-based company sold 11,943 units, up 79 percent YoY and commanded 96 percent of the 500-800cc segment’s total dispatches of 12,408 units. You can read more about that here.
India Yamaha Motor, the last of the bike makers with six-digit plus sales, posted a 2 percent growth at 1,10,184 units. The company, which remains absent in the 110cc and 125cc segments, sold 40,178 units of the 149cc FZ series bikes, down 26 percent. There was strong demand, though, for the 155cc Yamaha MT-15 and R15 models, which sold 69,945 units, up 31 percent.
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How will demand shape up for the motorcycle and the overall two-wheeler industry in the months to come? The Union Budget 2024 proposals have a sharp focus on driving up income in rural India and should help further rev up demand for fuel-sipping commuter motorcycles. Meanwhile, the tweaks in personal income tax, which will result in enhanced remuneration for salaried employees, could also prove to be growth enhancers for bikes in the executive segment. Stay tuned for more updates.