INTRODUCTION

Today motorcycles are everywhere and there are lots of different classes or kinds of motorcycles as well. The first motorcycle ever assembled was built by the German inventors Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach in 1885 in Bad Cannstatt in Germany. They were actually focusing more on the motor that was installed to power the two-wheeled contraption and not so much on creating a new kind of vehicle, but the resulting impact on motorized travel would be tremendous. There were earlier versions of steam powered bicycles, but this was the first petroleum powered motorcycle.

Not long afterward in 1894 the very first production motorcycle went on sale as the Hildebrand & Wolfmüller motorcycle. It wasn’t long after that before several of the bicycle companies of that time got into the act and started selling versions of what were essentially motorized bicycles. However, as horsepower increased, the engines started to outgrow the bicycle frames that were used as their carriage.

The most popular motorcycle company before World War 1 was Indian motorcycle. After the war, Harley Davidson took over the number one spot until 1928 when Dampf Kraft Wagen (German: steam-driven car)(DWK) became the leading motorcycle manufacturer in the world. For a few years after World War 2 Birmingham Small Arms Company (BSA) took over as the largest motorcycle producer until 1955 when NSU Motor works who had started out as a knitting machine company in 1884 became the dominant manufacturer for the next couple of decades.

Then in the 1970s the Japanese companies Honda, Kawasaki, Yamaha, and Suzuki made their entrance into this field, changed the face of the industry, and quickly became the dominant motorcycle suppliers to the world from then on. Today, the big four motorcycle makers have penetrated practically every motorcycle market in the world, and they are highly regarded as makers of high quality motorcycle products.

In recent years some of the older motorcycle brands like the Indian have regained popularity with Harley Davidson being the most successful by far.

HISTORY OF INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA:

The Indian two wheeler industry made a small beginning in the early 50s when Automobile Product of India (API) started manufacturing scooters in the country. Until 1958, API and Enfield were the sole producers.

In 1948 Bajaj auto began trading in imported Vespa scooters and three wheelers. Finally, in 1960, it set up a shop to manufacture them in technical collaboration with Piaggio of Italy. The agreement expired in 1971. In the initial stages, Automobile products of India(API) dominated the scooter segment; Bajaj auto later overtook it. Although various government and private enterprise entered the fray for scooters, the only new player that has lasted till today is Lohia Machinery Limited( LML). Under the regulated regime, foreign companies were not allowed to operate in India. It was a complete seller market with the waiting period for getting a scooter from Bajaj Auto being as high as 12 years.

The motorcycles segment was no different, with only three manufacturers viz Enfield, Ideal Jawa and Escorts. While Enfield bullet was four-stroke bike, jawa and the Rajdoot were two-stroke bikes. Enfield 350cc bikes and Escorts 175cc bike initially dominated the motorcycle segment.

The two–stroke motorcycles are positioned as power bikes by making use of their high power delivery to cater the young generation. Four-stroke motorcycle is positioned as fuel-efficient and environment friendly vehicle.

The industry had a smooth ride in 50s, 60s and 70s when the government prohibited new entries and strictly controlled capacity expansion. The industry saw a sudden growth in the 80s. The entry of kinetic Honda in mid-eighties with a barometric scooter helped in providing ease of use to the scooter owners. This helped in inducing youngsters and working women, towards buying scooters, who were earlier, inclined towards moped purchasing. In the 90s, this trend was reversed with the introduction of scooterettes. In line with this, the scooter segment has consistently lost its part of the market share in the two-wheeler market.

In 1990, the entire automobile industry saw a drastic fall in demand. Barring hero Honda, all major products suffered from recession in FY93 and fy94. Hero Honda showed a marginal decline in 1992.

The factors for the growth of motorcycles in India:

  • The Gross Domestic Product has grown to 8%
  • The average family income has increased
  • The finance have become easier to access
  • The reduction in taxes and duties
  • Introduction of international standards in India
  • The economic and fuel-efficient engines
  • The teenager and the youth using more and more motorcycles

Some of the major manufacturers of Motorcycles in India:

Bajaj Auto
Bajaj Avenger
Bajaj CT 100
Bajaj Discover
Bajaj Platina
Bajaj Pulsar DTSi
Bajaj Pulsar 200CC
Bajaj Wind 125
Sonic DTSi

Hero Honda
Hero Honda Achiever
Hero Honda CD Dawn
Hero Honda CD Deluxe
Hero Honda Glamour
Hero Honda Karizma
Hero Honda Passion Plus
Hero Honda Splendor
Hero Honda Splendor NXG
Hero Honda CBZ X-Treme

TVS
TVS Apache
TVS Centra
TVS Fiero
TVS Star City
TVS Victor

Royal Enfield
Bullet 350
Bullet 500
Bullet Electra
Bullet Machismo
Thunderbird

Yamaha
Yamaha Crux
Yamaha Enticer
Yamaha Gladiator
Yamaha Libero G5
Yamaha Alba 106

CURRENT SCENARIO

2007 has been relatively exciting year in the Indian motorcycle industry. Relatively because the predictions that manufacturer would be selling foreign motorcycles have not yet come true. May be because they are apprehensive or maybe too busy upgrading their products. May be 2008 will be the year of big imported bikes.

Nevertheless, 2007 has been exciting because the current crop of machines have evolved across all aspect. Take for instance the world famous splendor, which has been significant updated. Hero Honda has also been busy with the CBZ-xtreme and its macho-themed restyle, the Hunk. Baja’s biggest launch this year of course is the XCD with the styling and power of a 125cc at the price of a 100cc. It is engineered straight to get an edge on the entry level motorcycle segment. In the premier segment, Bajaj launched the Pulsar 200DTSi and also put the same 200cc engine in the Avenger. Their flagship, the 200DTD-Fi, finally made it to showroom floors as well. Another addition to the premium segment was the much awaited Royal Enfield Machismo 500.

But the place where the competition was really brewing was the 150 cc segment. Honda’s Unicorn received a not far behind in introducing the brilliant Apache RTR 160. TVS also unveiled some great motorcycles for the coming year, with funky looking Flame and electric Scooty. Speaking of which, kinetic and Suzuki have entered the scooter race with the Flyte and Access respectively, while the age on Honda’s Activa is now beginning to show.

BAJAJ AUTO - DISTINCTLY AHEAD

Bajaj Auto is a major Indianautomobile manufacturer. It is India's largest and the world's 4th largest two- and three-wheeler maker. It is based in Pune, Maharashtra, with plants in Akurdi and Chakan (near Pune),Waluj (near Aurangabad) and Pantnagar in Uttaranchal. Bajaj Auto makes and exports motor scooters, motorcycles and the auto rickshaw.

The Forbes Global 2000 list for the year 2005 ranked Bajaj Auto at 1946.

Over the last decade, the company has successfully changed its image from a scooter manufacturer to a two wheeler manufacturer. Its product range encompasses Scooterettes, Scooters and Motorcycles. Its real growth in numbers has come in the last four years after successful introduction of a few models in the motorcycle segment.

The company is headed by Rahul Bajaj who is worth more than US$1.5 billion.

Bajaj Auto came into existence on November 29, 1945 as M/s Bachraj Trading Corporation Private Limited. It started off by selling imported two- and three-wheelers in India. In 1959, it obtained license from the Government of India to manufacture two- and three-wheelers and it went public in 1960. In 1970, it rolled out its 100,000th vehicle. In 1977, it managed to produce and sell 100,000 vehicles in a single financial year. In 1985, it started producing at Waluj in Aurangabad. In 1986, it managed to produce and sell 500,000 vehicles in a single financial year. In 1995, it rolled out its ten millionth vehicles and produced and sold 1 million vehicles in a year.

Spinoffs and acquisitions

It has been reported that Bajaj is headed for a de-merger into two separate companies: Bajaj Auto and Bajaj Finance. It is expected that the sum of the parts created will be worth more than the current whole, as was the case in the de-merger of Reliance Industries.

In November 2007, Bajaj Auto acquired 14.5% stake in KTM (Kraftfahrzeuge Trunkenpolz Mattighofen) Power Sports AG (holding company of KTM Sportmotocycles AG). The two

Companies have signed a cooperation deal, by which KTM will provide the know-how for joint development of the water-cooled 4 stroke 125 and 250 cc engines, and Bajaj will take over the distribution of KTM products in India and some other Southeast Asian nations. Bajaj Auto said, it is open to take a majority stake in KTM and is also looking at other takeover opportunities. On the 8th of January 2008, Managing Director Rajiv Bajaj confirmed the collaboration and announced Bajaj Auto's intention to gradually increase their stake in KTM to 25%.

FOLLOWIN IS THE PRODUCT LINE OF BAJAJ AUTOS:

Scooters

  • Bajaj Kristal DTSi

Motorcycles

  • Bajaj CT 100
  • Bajaj Platina
  • Bajaj Discover 110cc
  • Bajaj XCD 125 DTS-Si
  • Bajaj Discover DTS-i 135cc
  • Bajaj Pulsar 150 DTSi
  • Bajaj Pulsar 180 DTSi
  • Bajaj Pulsar 200 DTSi
  • Bajaj Pulsar 220 DTS-Fi
  • Bajaj Avenger

Upcoming Models

  • Bajaj Blade
  • Bajaj Sonic

Discontinued Models

  • Bajaj Sunny
  • Bajaj Chetak
  • Bajaj Cub
  • Bajaj Super
  • Bajaj Wave
  • Bajaj Legend
  • Bajaj Bravo
  • Kawasaki Eliminator
  • Bajaj Kawasaki Wind 125
  • Bajaj Kawasaki 4s Champion
  • Bajaj Kawasaki KB 100 RTZ
  • Bajaj Boxer
  • Bajaj Caliber
  • Bajaj Wind

Bajaj Pulsar 200 DTSi

Bajaj Auto, the pioneer in performance biking has further extended the portfolio with the launch of the new 200 cc ‘Pulsar’ DTS-i launched at New Delhi on 13th feb,2007.The latest offering has set new benchmarks in technology, performance, and styling to address the needs of a growing segment of pro-bikers.

The new Pulsar has many firsts to its credit. It comes equipped with an Oil cooler, which helps control engine oil temperatures at sustained high speeds and rpms, thus ensuring more stable engine oil viscosity. The 200cc DTS-i engine generates 18 Ps of raw pulsating power to provide riding excitement to performance hungry bikers. This makes the Pulsar 200 the sportiest and stylish powerhouse on two wheels to pace the Indian roads. It’s also the first bike in India to feature both front and rear tubeless tyres, which besides offering superior stability are safer than conventional tube types and in sync with the offerings abroad for similar applications. The rear tyre is the broadest in its category to ensure better road grip and stability.

The new digital console is an advanced version of the latest Pulsar family. Apart from the Digital Odometer, Digital Speedo Meter, Digital Fuel Gauge and two Digital Trip Meters, the console on the 200 cc Pulsar DTS-i has indicators for Air filter condition, Engine temperature, Battery voltage and Oil level, all of which contribute to enhancing rider info for trouble-free riding. Another first is the use of split seats for styling and comfort. The split grab rail perfectly complements the new rear chiseled looks. It is also the first Indian bike to have electric start as the sole means of engine cranking, dispensing with the kick lever.

This launch is in line with co strategy of enhancing product portfolio to offer riding excitement to pro-bikers. Entire focus and effort is to deliver outstanding technology and performance. The new Pulsar has now raised the bar in the motorcycle industry with superior technology and features such as the engine oil cooler, digital console etc.

BAJAJ is already market leader by far in the performance segment and Pulsar 200 DTS-i would further reinforce its position in this important segment. The bike joins the immensely popular 150 cc and the 180cc Pulsar DTS-i to extend the Pulsar DTS-i range across a range of price and performance points.

WHY TO BUY BAJAJ PULSAR 200 DTSi?

Contrary to popular opinion, the Pulsar 200 actually has more in common with the Pulsar 220 than with the Pulsar 150 and 180. Visually, of course, it resembles a Pulsar 180/150 with the extremely well-executed and noticeable tank extensions. However, look closer and almost everything under the bright work is actually near-220 spec. The 200cc pulsar engine is not fuel injected.

In motion, the pulsar200 feels calm. It’s not a word we’d use to describe any of the other pulsars. The 200’s engine, for some reason, feels like it’s not doing all that much work and is happy to cruise along. Of the lot, the 200’s our pick for the best long distance touring motor. It isn’t slow, and it isn’t frenetic either. On the handling front, like the 220, the pulsar200 is an extremely stable, neutral feeling motorcycle. It isn’t an extremely quick steering motorcycle like say, a cbzx-Tremer or the RTR, and neither does it feel slightly slow steering like the pulsar 150 or 180. Stability and confidence are its hallmarks, and admirably, it retains this character even two-up. Ride quality and braking, similarly, are excellent. There is no doubt that the 200 is the best of the non injected pulsars. We’d go so far as to say that the minor price difference from (Rs6, 456) is small enough for you to seriously consider upping your budget and getting the 200 instead. If you look at it purely from a performance perspective, actually, the 220 suddenly seems overly expensive, the price difference being upward of Rs10, 000, while the performance levels most certainly aren’t that widely separated.

Perhaps the only thing against the 200 is the styling package. While the thicker tyres, the all-black power train and the tank extension do help the 200 standout from many angles, it is hard to distinguish it from a 150 or a 180. This is a common problem, actually, with the pulsar, and the 220 also suffers this from the rear-on angles.

SEGMENTATION,TARGETING AND POSITIONING:

Pulsar is one of my favorite brands both as a bike rider and as a marketer. This bike has virtually redefined biking in this country. Pulsar launched in 2001 is the market leader in the 150 cc + performance bike segment. More than that, this brand changed the fortune of Bajaj Auto Ltd.

Before the launch of Pulsar, Indian bike market was divided broadly into Economy, Executive and Premium Bikes. In 1999 Hero Honda created a new segment of 150 cc performance segment with its CBZ. But Pulsar came and gave a new life into the Performance segment. Although not a pioneer, Pulsar made the performance segment one of the fastest growing segment in the two wheeler market.

It was not only the bike's performance that triggered the brand becoming an icon; a major part of the success was due to the classic advertising campaign by O&M. According to agencyfaqs, the birth of the "Definitely Male " campaign is interesting. The creative honchos found the new product from Bajaj distinctly different. It was Bajaj's first bike without Kawasaki label. The new bike was an R&D and design marvel.Pulsar was designed by the renowned design house Tokyo R&D. O&M knew that the communication of this brand should also be different.Starting with lot of ideas, O&M stuck upon the Big Idea of India's He-Bike. Although lot of bike take the persona of Macho bikes it was more oriented towards being "sexy". The Big Idea was to position the bike as World's first bike endowed with a Sex ( Gender).Thus born the classic campaign of all times " Definitely Male". The campaign together with the design and performance catapulted the brand into stratospheric sales level.

Bajaj targeted the 18-24 with Pulsar but later found that the brand appealed to a much older audience. This helped Bajaj to change its target audience to 21-35 years.

Unlike its old ways of doing things, Bajaj did not rest with the laurels. It knew that Pulsar is the golden key to control the entire bike market. Hence Pulsar got undivided attention from the company. In 2003 another milestone event happened in the product lifecycle of the brand. Bajaj launched its new technology DTSI. DTSi stands for Digital Twin Spark Ignition which delivered more power and efficiency. The increased performance of the brand took Pulsar to greater heights. 2004 and 2005 saw some cosmetic changes in the brand which excited the customers and thus cementing Pulsar's position in the market.
Pulsar came in two variants : 180 cc and 150 cc where 180 cc excited the performance bikers, 150 cc was for the mileage conscious ones. The 150cc variant took lot of customers away from the executive segment to the performance segment.
The brand had its share of marketing flaws also. According to reports, Bajaj reassigns its media duties to two brands O&M and Leo Burnett, every six months.When DTSI was launched, the creative duty was assigned to Leo Burnett. Leo Burnett did a big mistake on the brand by changing the positioning of " Definitely Male" to "Digital Biking". Although the ads were successful in conveying the technological superiority of DTSI and making that acronym popular, it deleted the most successful tagline from the brand's elements.