Honda launches superbike

Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) on Friday launched its international road-sport motorcycle ‘VFR1200F' in the fun bike segment. Priced at Rs. 17.50-lakh, the superbike comes with 1,237cc fuel-injected, liquid cooled engine and dual clutch transmission (DCT) technology.

“VFR1200F is a combination of sports and touring capabilities to premium Indian customers who are actively on a look out for brands that have a high fun quotient. This fun bike is manufactured at the Honda's most advanced facility and the mother plant of global motorcycles — the Kumamoto factory in Japan. VFR1200F is a concept driven by extensive customer needs,” HMSI President and CEO Shinji Aoyama told journalists here. He further said that the superbike would be on roads by the third week of next month. The company already sells two superbikes in India that are imported from parent Honda Motor Company, Japan.

“We have so far sold 88 units of superbikes in India and hope to sell 100 bikes this fiscal…There is growing demand for such high performance bikes in India,” Mr. Aoyama added. About the company's overall strategy, he said it would be launching new models and some variants in the market to improve its market share from the current level of 13 per cent. “We will be increasing our annual production capacity to 22-lakh vehicles after the opening of the Rs. 500-crore new plant in Rajasthan next year. All our models are doing well…and with new launches, we will make further inroads into one of world's fastest growing two-wheeler markets,” he added.