India is the second largest manufacturer and producer of two-wheelers in the world. It stands next only to Japan and China in terms of the number of two-wheelers produced and domestic sales respectively.
This distinction was achieved due to variety of reasons like restrictive policy followed by the Government of India towards the passenger car industry, rising demand for personal transport, inefficiency in the public transportation system etc.
The Indian two-wheeler industry made a small beginning in the early 50s when Automobile Products 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.
In the initial stages, API dominated the scooter segment; Bajaj Auto later overtook it. Although various government and private enterprises entered the fray for scooters, the only new player that has lasted till today is 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 a 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-wheeler market was opened to foreign competition in the mid-80s. And the then market leaders - Escorts and Enfield - were caught unaware by the onslaught of the 100cc bikes of the four Indo-Japanese joint ventures. With the availability of fuel-efficient low power bikes, demand swelled, resulting in Hero Honda - then the only producer of four stroke bikes (100cc category), gaining a top slot.
The first Japanese motorcycles were introduced in the early eighties. TVS Suzuki and Hero Honda brought in the first two-stroke and four-stroke engine motorcycles respectively. In the 90s the major growth for motorcycle segment was brought in by Japanese motorcycles, which grew at a rate of nearly 25% CAGR (Compounded annual growth rate) in the last few years.
The entry of Kinetic Honda in mid-eighties with a variometric 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 purchases. 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 and almost there was a recession in the two-wheeler segment.
The reasons for recession in the sector were the incessant rise in fuel prices, high input costs and reduced purchasing power due to significant rise in general price level and credit crunch in consumer financing.
The total number of registered two-wheelers on road in India, as on March 31, 1998 was 27.9mn. The two-wheeler population has almost doubled in 1996 from a base of 12.6mn in 1990.
This distinction was achieved due to variety of reasons like restrictive policy followed by the Government of India towards the passenger car industry, rising demand for personal transport, inefficiency in the public transportation system etc.
The Indian two-wheeler industry made a small beginning in the early 50s when Automobile Products 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.
In the initial stages, API dominated the scooter segment; Bajaj Auto later overtook it. Although various government and private enterprises entered the fray for scooters, the only new player that has lasted till today is 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 a 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-wheeler market was opened to foreign competition in the mid-80s. And the then market leaders - Escorts and Enfield - were caught unaware by the onslaught of the 100cc bikes of the four Indo-Japanese joint ventures. With the availability of fuel-efficient low power bikes, demand swelled, resulting in Hero Honda - then the only producer of four stroke bikes (100cc category), gaining a top slot.
The first Japanese motorcycles were introduced in the early eighties. TVS Suzuki and Hero Honda brought in the first two-stroke and four-stroke engine motorcycles respectively. In the 90s the major growth for motorcycle segment was brought in by Japanese motorcycles, which grew at a rate of nearly 25% CAGR (Compounded annual growth rate) in the last few years.
The entry of Kinetic Honda in mid-eighties with a variometric 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 purchases. 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 and almost there was a recession in the two-wheeler segment.
The reasons for recession in the sector were the incessant rise in fuel prices, high input costs and reduced purchasing power due to significant rise in general price level and credit crunch in consumer financing.
The total number of registered two-wheelers on road in India, as on March 31, 1998 was 27.9mn. The two-wheeler population has almost doubled in 1996 from a base of 12.6mn in 1990.