Yamaha has revealed an all-new engine technology – christened Blue Core – for the India market, introducing it in two new FZ series bikes – FZ Version 2.0 and FZ-S Version 2.0 priced at Rs 76,250 and Rs 78,250 respectively (ex-showroom Delhi).
30 Jun 2014 | 23809 Views | By Shobha Mathur
Yamaha has revealed an all-new engine technology – christened Blue Core – for the India market, introducing it in two new FZ series bikes – FZ Version 2.0 and FZ-S Version 2.0 priced at Rs 76,250 and Rs 78,250 respectively (ex-showroom Delhi). Both get the new air-cooled, 149cc, four-stroke, SOHC ...
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Yamaha has revealed an all-new engine technology – christened Blue Core – for the India market, introducing it in two new FZ series bikes – FZ Version 2.0 and FZ-S Version 2.0 priced at Rs 76,250 and Rs 78,250 respectively (ex-showroom Delhi). Both get the new air-cooled, 149cc, four-stroke, SOHC single-cylinder, fuel injected engine on a lightweight frame.
What’s new is Yamaha’s new-generation Blue Core said to deliver higher acceleration, better fuel efficiency, reduced power losses and which is also eco-friendly. It is learnt that Yamaha’s Indian R&D centre has customised Yamaha Japan’s Blue Core tech, which is claimed to offer 14 percent improved fuel economy over the existing FZ series bikes and is compliant with BS-IV emission norms.
Yamaha’s move to introduce its indigenised Blue Core tech is reminiscent of Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India’s (HMSI) Honda Eco Technology (HET) introduced a few years ago and now available across both its bike and scooter range. HET is claimed to improve fuel efficiency by 11 percent in Honda scooters and enables improved combustion, significantly reduced friction and optimised transmission.
“Blue Core technology will be leveraged on all upcoming new models including scooters by the company. Blue Core is a development ideal for new-generation engines that take riding enjoyment, fuel efficiency and environmental performance to levels that have never been reached before,” said Masaki Asano, MD, Yamaha Motor India Sales, at the launch in New Delhi today.
The bike maker claims the new FZ 2.0 series are the lightest bikes in the 150cc segment. Around 3.5kg has been reduced with 1.7kg shaved off in the frame and in the engine.
India Yamaha Motor is targeting riders in the 18-30 age group, both first-time entry buyers and office goers. As per a Yamaha survey in 2013, India with the world's largest motorcycle market has a total annual demand of more than 14 million units, of which 150-180cc sports motorcycles comprise around 10 percent. The FZ16 series, which Yamaha introduced in India in 2008, has sold a total of 770,000 till end-May 2014. This series of bikes is also exported to Central and South America.
New Chennai plant coming up
Meanwhile, India Yamaha Motor’s all-new plant in Chennai, which is currently under construction, will go on stream in November this year, according to Hiroyuki Suzuki, MD and CEO. “The Chennai factory is progressing smoothly and will have a production capacity of 1.8 million units. Along with our first production unit at Surajpur, it will take up IYM’s total production capacity to 2.8 million units annually,” he said. The 1.8 million unit capacity is expected to be reached by 2018 but initially the plant will begin production with a capacity of 50,000 units.
The company’s Faridabad plant produces machined parts like gears, crankshafts and undertakes clutch assembly for both domestic use and for exports.
On the sales front, Hiroyuki Suzuki commented that the company has posted 32 percent growth between January to May 2014 and expects to maintain its growth momentum through the year. Scooters are contributing substantially to this growth and thanks to growing sales of the Ray, the Ray Z and the Alpha, Yamaha currently has a market share of 6 percent in India. “The sales and market share of scooters will continue to increase,” said Suzuki. Overall, bikes and scooters put together, India Yamaha Motor’s market share has grown from 4 percent in 2008 to 18 percent in 2014.
Currently scooters contribute about 45 percent its total product portfolio with bikes providing 55 percent but Roy Kurian, VP (marketing and sales), said with the fast-growing demand for scooters the equation is likely to become 50:50.
At present, Tier 1 and 2 cities account for 70 percent of the company’s sales in India with 30 percent coming from Yamaha Bike Corners (YBC) in rural markets. In a bid to strengthen its distribution network and sales, there are plans to expand the existing 1,300 including YBC to 1,600 by the year end.
The sales target for calendar year 2014 is 600,000 units from the domestic market compared to 2013’s 447,000 sales. Exports will contribute another 200,000-230,000 units, taking up the total to 850,000 units.
The existing FZ series bikes currently average sales of 18,000 units a month. According to Kurian, the new FZ version 2.0 models are likely to notch sales of 24,000 units per month.