Hero MotoCorp is steadily walking away from its dependence on Honda technology.
The Hero Maestro has been discontinued from the Indian market. The list of automatic scooters sold by Hero MotoCorp now includes Hero Duet, Hero Maestro Edge and Hero Pleasure. The Maestro has been silently removed from Hero’s official website.
The Hero Maestro is powered by a Honda sourced 109 cc air cooled mill which is coupled to a CVT unit. The engine is capable of producing 8.2 PS of maximum power and 9.10 Nm of peak torque. The Maestro was pretty much of a rebadged Honda Activa which is the country’s largest-selling automatic scooter.
Hero, now has just the Hero Pleasure with Honda lineage in its scooter market which utilises the 102 cc mill found in the first generation Activa. Both the Hero Maestro Edge and Hero Duet use an indigenously developed 110.9 cc mill.
While the Hero Maestro had been dropping volumes, the Maestro Edge has been gaining numbers. In fact, it sold more than a lakh units within 6 months of its launch. Hero MotoCorp had also showcased a 125 cc scooter at the 2014 Auto Expo called as the Hero Dare but have been silent about its launch timeframe.
Hero MotoCorp is also expected to focus its attention on its motorcycles line up and drop all other models which have Honda sourced technology.
