Bajaj Auto will soon foray into the electric two-wheeler segment with its newly unveiled product, the Chetak electric scooter. During the presentation, Rajiv Bajaj, Managing Director of Bajaj Auto also dropped a few details about the company’s partnership with British marquee Triumph Motorcycles.
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Speaking on the stage, Rajiv Bajaj confirmed that the Made-in-India Bajaj-Triumph motorcycles will be exported to markets like the US, Europe and Japan. Bajaj said:
Last year we exported as much as 40% of our production. The 40% of our production was two million vehicles out of five million last year – motorcycles and three-wheelers included. This export was to over 70 countries, I believe close to 79 – ranging from the export of Pulsars, Dominars and the KTMs, and very soon we hope the Husqvarnas, and very soon into the future, the Triumphs to the markets of US, Europe and Japan.
While Bajaj Auto and Triumph Motorcycles have already announced their partnership plans, the two brands are yet to sign a formal pact. A report from August this year claimed that the two companies will sign a formal pact in the third quarter of FY2020 (i.e. October to December 2019). Regular readers would know that Bajaj and Triumph had announced their objective to build mid-capacity bikes almost two years ago.
To give you a recap, the upcoming Bajaj-Triumph products would be designed and developed by Triumph Motorcycles. Bajaj Auto would handle the manufacturing process in its Chakan facility near Pune. Similar to KTM products, the jointly developed products would carry competitive prices. The Anglo-Indian partnership will target its products in the 400-800 cc segment. This would put the upcoming motorcycles against the likes of Royal Enfield 650 Twins and Harley-Davidson Street series.
Bajaj Auto will also manufacture Husqvarna products, the Svartpilen 401 and the Vitpilen 401, at its Chakan plant. These motorcycles will be exported to all the markets globally. The Husqvarna duo will also arrive in the Indian market by early 2020.
Regular readers would remember that the Husqvarna 401 twins will share the 373.2cc single-cylinder, liquid-cooled engine with the KTM 390 Duke. The Swedish motorcycles will arrive with a Euro-V/BS-VI compliant motor. For reference, the engine on the 390 Duke, in BS-IV guise, pumps out 43.5 hp of max power and 35 Nm of peak torque.
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The Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 and the Vitpilen 401 are expected to retail at a more expensive price tag than the KTM 390 Duke. We expect their prices to hover in the INR 2.80-3.20 lakh (ex-showroom) range.
