Japanese two wheeler giant Yamaha is developing a motorcycle that is said to be the world's cheapest bike. Priced at approximately Rs. 28,000, it would be fit for the title of the Nano of the motorcycle segment. The company is aiming to launch the bike in the price sensitive emerging markets of India and Africa. This under-development motorcycle will be manufactured by Yamaha in India, which is fast emerging as the favourite of many companies for export operations.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD), Yamaha India, Hiroyuki Suzuki, said, “Our product benchmark right now (on cost) is the YBR 110 and Crux, but we would like to develop a bike in the low-cost segment for markets like Africa.” He further said, “The target is to make a bike that will cost $500 (about Rs. 27,500). I think such a bike will have a lot of demand in Africa as well as in India.”
It was just a week ago that the Japanese two wheeler company's top competitor Honda launched its cheapest-ever bike, Dream Yuga that is priced at Rs. 44,642 in the domestic market. At that time, the latter said that it will work on even cheaper models, though it stayed away from the segment below Rs. 30,000. The 110 cc Crux, which is priced at Rs. 38,365 and sold in the markets of India and China, is currently the cheapest offering in the portfolio of Yamaha.
The upcoming bike from the Yamaha will invariably be the cheapest in the country. Its price tag will be way below that of the other entry-level bikes like Hero MotoCorp’s long time best sellers Splendor and Passion, Bajaj Auto's Platina and TVS's Star City. The cheapest bike that is being offered in the country at present comes from market leader Hero MotoCorp's stables - CD Dawn, which is priced at Rs. 36,300.
