The news about Honda to sell its 26% stake in Hero Honda has become talk of the town in Indian two wheeler industries. According to sources close to this deal said that Munjal family led by Brijmohanlal Munjal will buy the 26% stake from Honda. The news, broken first by ET newspaper’s business channel. As per current market valuation Honda’s 26% stake is valued at over Rs.9,000 Crores. Hero Honda joint venture was formed in 1984 between Indian Hero group and Japanese Honda. It is one of the most successful joint venture in the world.

According to sources there are series of off market transactions will take place to buy the stake. Munjal family has formed SPV (Special Purpose vehicle) to buy the stake. They will first buy the stake through SPV and later on pledge this share to the bank to avail finance. The private equity option is also there. Honda will sell its stake at discounted price than current price. Read the rest of this entry

Very recently Yamaha launched the SZ based on the existing FZ’s 153cc engine, which they initially unveiled during the Auto Expo held at New Delhi earlier in the year. Contrary to the target audience of FZ, SZ targets the entry level 150cc crowd, premium 125/135cc crowd and youngsters who want an uber cool looking bike at an affordable price.

To keep a tab on costs, Hero Honda puts the same engine under different clothes adding a few stickers here and there, Bajaj installs different engines on similar looking clothes, Yamaha did the good thing of redesigning the skin of this bike afresh which makes it look a very fresh entry in the market. We take a quick look to analyze what exactly does the bike has to offer. Read the rest of this entry

And if you though they are reasonably high, Petrol prices are set to get another hike ‘soon’. According to The Hindu, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry is considering another rise in petrol prices. Though, the increase might not be significantly high but anything in the quantum of Rs 1-2 is being considered. The ministry would decide upon the same after the monsoon session of Parliament in the first week of September.

The average crude oil prices are around 81$ per barrel and if they do not soften in due coarse of time, the quantum of increase might increase to a bigger number. This further creates a big concern to the middle class and an uproar is expected in the Parliament in case this decision is announced.

- Saad Khan

Dear BikeAdvice Readers, Here we are with another hot contest. All you have to do is write a review of the bike that you own and send it to bikeadvice.in@gmail.com . We will publish the articles/reviews in the blog and the article with the maximum number of comments will take home this cool toy bike!

Rules of the contest:

• Your review should be minimum 500 words in length.
• Your review should include at least 1 photo.
• The content should be unique (no where else published online)
• It should help other’s make a buying decision… so include the pros and cons too!

The contest ends on September 30th and the winner will be announced on October 5th. We will send this toy bike to you via courier. All the best!

- Deepak

In typical Hero Honda ‘ishtyle’, India’s largest manufacturer has revamped their 125cc offering, Super Splendor with brand new and refreshed graphics along with a few cosmetic upgrades. Super Splendor is one of the very few models from the company which did not click in the market to the tune Hero Honda would have liked probably.

Ever since its launch, Super Splendor has been a very moderate performer majorly attributed to the USP-less demeanor it possesses. To try and spell a new round of fresh air without wasting much money and resources, Hero Honda has done what it does regularly with fair conviction! Read the rest of this entry

Bajaj has tried almost every permutation and combination with the Discover brand with engine sizes ranging from 94cc, 112cc, 125cc, 135cc and now the entry in the 150cc segment. With sales hovering over 1 lakh units per month, current Discover stable, comprising of Discover 100 in the 100cc segment and Discover 150 in the entry level 150cc segment, seems to be the most settled and has also earned the distinction of being the second largest selling brand in India only after Hero Honda’s Splendor which sells nearly 2 lakh units per month.

The major contributor to the complete sales tally is, obviously, the smaller 100cc variant of the bike but the 150cc sibling is also making its presence felt, more after a pan India presence now, with monthly sales of over 20,000 units per month. So, does the Discover 150 packs in enough juice to become one of the most successful entry level 150cc bikes in the country especially after the competition tightening its grips. Let’s take a ride to yield out the truth. Read the rest of this entry

Hero Honda: Hero Honda total sales grew merely by 2.28% in august 2010 compare to august 2009 due to very high base effect. Total sales stood at 4,24,617 units in August 2010 compared to 4,15,137 units in August 2009. Pleasure has contributed more than 27,000 units.

This is the fourth consecutive month where company has recorded more than four lakhs dispatch. According to company officials the growth will maintain this trajectory in the coming months. The company also said that sales may grow at lower pace in second half of the year due to higher interest rates. Notably the company has installed capacity of 5.6 million units per annum with 3 manufacturing plants and it has goal of selling 5 million units in current fiscal up 8.7% from last year. The company is also looking for setting up 4th manufacturing plant. Read the rest of this entry