Dada - I don't mind Indian brands taking steps to globalize their products, making them more competitive.
It is simply the political hoopla about "Mera Bharat ka Product Sab se Mahaan" BS by bhakts that I have a beef with. Claiming that third-rate Indian products are better than that made by anyone globally.
Don't mis-represent. Be rational. Call a spade a spade.
I don't expect the same quality from a RE product which should be sold at half the price of a Honda. Trying to tell us lies (like that Dark guy) that RE quality is better than a Honda is laughable. That rubs us the wrong way.
Like that Punjabi gentleman who called RE a poor man's Harley, and rightly so. RE has a long way to go in the quality arena. Especially when it stops dead in the middle of a highway without notice.
Half the Motorcycles sold in Bangladesh are Bajaj. The price/quality equation is right for middle and lower middle class. They respect the Bangladesh market by assembling it locally in Bangladesh using Bangladeshi workers. Soon the govt. will tighten tariff further and ask them to source components locally.
Bajaj knows if they have to survive in our market they can't jump on the Sanghi bandwagon, they have to make themselves a local brand liked by locals.
The best change is disruptive change, something that shakes up the status quo.
Producing a product like Bullet that sold for 45 years straight - at the rate of a few hundreds a month, is no longer possible.
Here is my take, given that other than one particular terror apologist on this forum, i don't think anyone has ever referred to me as a bhakt.
Royal Enfield, with Siddhartha Lal, at it's helm has completely transformed the brand. So much so I will not hesitate in saying Eicher motors as it stands today is absolutely the top brand that Indian industry has produced in the last 2-3 decades. (disclosure I am quite significantly invested in the stock) Royal enfield doesn't compete with Small displacement bikes in India and it doesn't compete with large displacement bikes in India or abroad either. But in it's own segment it completely destroys everyone else in Indian market, while its global presence caters to niche middle weight displacement retro affordable package.
650Twins:
Its presence in the Indian market is referred to as premium mid displacement where it clobbers the import competition with its 650 twins. Take Kawasaki's W800 twin retro model, for example. It creams it at its price point as well as performance/cost, while when it comes to triumph Street twin, it costs almost half but it's performance on is significant enough to for a buyer to think twice. For EU and US markets 650 twins serve as low cost british twin, for people who always wanted a BSA A65 or a norton ss but without the wrench work that comes along with it.
Himalayan:
At the global scene, Himalayan competes with entry level adv bikes, especially as female friendly option, check out itchy boots channels who travelled across Aisa and europe on the himalayan, or Revzilla comparison of Himalayan vs the CSC adv bike, where the himalayan still came out on top despite being underpowered. And the Himalayan has had enough of sale for an upgraded himalayan 650 in the offering.
500 Classic:
500 Classic was discontinued in the year 2020; it's only selling point was it's old school for the people who like WWII singles. Same reason people still buy the Urals. And there is a small section who are very much tied to the idea of the single cylinder classic bike, especially in britain (and Spain for some reason). It has always drawn flak for being underpowered, but for some people the same underpowered nature makes it a very approachable bike, and there is the curiosity factor for the bike. Guys from Knox made a video, watch it and you would realise the why this biked survived for the years it has in the global market.
350 Classic:
The reason why 500 classic survived in the EU and US is kind of the same reason why 350 classic survived in India. 350 classic has it's own cult following, Bullet people are Bullet people. (I am not one of them).
Meteor:
This basically is the updated version of the what RE sold as the Thunderbird, a low cost crusier for the Indian market, it's well engineered and the market has enough potential that other player are gunning for the same segment ( jawa perak - Mahindra, Honda CB350, Benneli 400 etc) It has the potential to be an entry level cruiser in EU markets as an entry level, but I doubt it will have remarkable sales there, it is a predominantly Indian market offering.
Un named - 650 Cruiser is in the works for both International and Indian domestic market. It will directly compete with what remains for Street 500 and Street 750 HD, Rebel 300 and 500 and other entry level cruisers on price point.
And then there are 5 additional motorcycles that are rumored to join the stable, A 250 CC small ADV bike for Indian markets, a 650 classic variant to replace the 500 classic gap, a 650 ADV Himalayan for the global markets. The way I see it, RE is trying to become a Low-cost triumph type of brand with a dedicated domestic and global portfolio.
They will not compete with Japanese bikes, or British bikes across the board, but will create niches in the existing markets where they will expand in global markets. Domestic markets are different where they currently dominate their particular segment and will continue to do so for atleast the next 10 years for sure.
I bought a GT650 because it's probably the first global auto product from India that interested me.
www.harris-performance.com
