With increasing fuel cost, maybe this is what we need. 60/75cc, highly fuel efficient motorcycle(with retro styling :P) to commute from point A to point B. Hmmm, we may witness '70's all over again.

something like hero puch ... 65CC.... the only moped that i used to like very much.

Agreed. But what profits will Yamaha get out of this? Chiller money like 1000 or 1500 INR per bike? And will they be able to make a decent 60-70cc bike out of Alba 106? We're obviously talking a motorcycle and not moped, according to the article...


An Indian made R6 can earn them more than Rs. 50,000 profit per bike due to lower costs, which is serious money, and we're still a performance starved country, no matter what the fuel is priced at.

PS: No comments on this matter, but I made a very liberal estimation of costs and found that the R6 could well be produced within 3L INR. Add a decent profit margin to it and its still much below Daytona 675, while giving Yamaha huge profits/ unit.

what you are thinking is right, but sadly, manufacturers have a different opinion.
obviously yamaha does not only want to make profit, but want to be a major player based on number of units sold.

I don't think they would operate such low profit margin considering the other variable components like transportation etc. Wondering the quality of material will be used or even the actual cost of producing one.

India is a 'mileage starved' country. Only few people like us xbhpians are performance starved. If we look around we can find hell lot of 100/125cc bikes compared to 'performance bikes'.

I would go with Prince on this. Every manufacturer wants to get as many vehicles on the road as possible with their logo on it. In many places people blindly buy Splendor. That is because of this reason that there is a lot of Splendors on the road. They trust Hero Motocorp blindly. Yamaha wants to do the same. This increases their brand image and loyalty.

Also, such a low cost motorcycle will pose a lot of design and other constraints for which they will have to come up with innovative solutions. They might be up for the challenge for these two reasons although the second one does not translate to bottom line.

About profits , remember that post sale spare part also contributes a lot .
Morever by the time bike rolls out dollar could be 100 rs for all we know, making it a 50k bike.

Samarth, is there any official data that backs up the margins you talking about? I dont think the margins are such low, no matter how big or small the product is.

and dont think this 28,000 bike as a low performer but as a big commuting option for those rural and (urban) people who just want a 2 wheeler under them to spin around small town or village for their work and leisure. In Africa, the purpose of this bike would be 10 times more evident I am sure.

I guess they are doing it for marketing purpose. they have an image of making powerful but fuel hungry bikes. if you want to compete with likes of honda or bajaj who have duke 690/cbr400 or something at one end and discover or dream yuga at another, you need to appeal to broad range of customers. they are not ducati or harley that are hugely impractical but sell based on brands.

i am looking for a bike which can stretch a liter petrol to almost 100 km.s. with decent electricals, light and have long travel shox suitable for rural India. bring it soon Yamaha

although i am still waiting for yamaha to announce a 250cc which i guess is unlikely even in the next financial year but i guess they have no choice but to play volumes segment which majority of population (read c towns and villages) can afford in general..


I would still request Yamaha people to still consider giving the FZ a better engine.. this bike has a lot of potential only to be bogged down by the current engine capacity!!


Cheers,

There is a hell lot more of calculation to be made before one can say that.Have you ever checked the price of the bike elsewhere.Please Do. Its not the price that makes it expensive, but the duty on it. Considering the vendors Yamaha would have to setup, the import cost on critical parts like engine, frame,suspension, etc. and you say that they can produce a R6 under 3L and get a profit of Rs. 50,000 on it is simple out of the world for me.

The country you and me are still in a "Kitna deti hai" world. Very few people talk about performance.A "performance starved country" would never have the sky rocketing sales of Splendors, Discovers and Platinas or may be the word performance has a different meaning thats unknown to me.Lastly do you think the "performance starved country" is going to buy a desi R6 with critical parts made in India and please don't compare a Apple to a watermelon.

Yes this is "mileage starved country" and its not bad that Yamaha is looking to produce low cost bikes in order to increase their sales numbers, after all it profit seeking producer who is running its business to earn only.
And not only we should see that the bike would be low cost, we should also see that the various options the needy commuters have for whom earning for living is commuting and that too within their budgets.
Also I would not be shocked if Yamaha comes up with an idea of manufacturing R0.75 (R15/2) or FZ8 (FZ16/2), in order to increase their sales and getting consumers attraction towards them providing world class products (obviously in respect of final cost of product ), which will not only had the mileage problem solved to a certain extent but also the people for whom still R15/FZ-S is a dream can opt for such similar products which would be similar to our choice of R15/FZ-S over R1/R6/FZ1/FZ6 because we can't afford them at the present moment.
Guys just imagine a R0.75 with a top speed of around 75-80 km/ph with a mileage of almost 60 kmpl with dual headlamps,led tail lamp and the word R enacted defining the Yamaha Legacy around an on road cost of around 45-50k. It won't be that much bad I think so.