Royal Enfield in the news

[onlycw]

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/18/indias-legendary-royal-enfield-motorcycle-to-expand-production-to-uk

India's legendary Royal Enfield motorcycle to expand production to UK

Iconic Indian bike will open new factories in Chennai as well as in the United Kingdom

Scenes from the Motorcycle and Scooter show at the NEC in Birmingham.Engine of a Royal Enfield. Photograph: David Sillitoe/David Sillitoe

Agence France-Presse

Wednesday 18 February 2015 01.55 GMT

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Fresh from an endorsement by US president Barack Obama, India’s motorcycle manufacturer Royal Enfield announced it was speeding up expansion and production to meet booming demand for its British-origin bikes.

The company, based in southwestern India but rooted in British biking history, will spend five billion rupees ($80m) this year on building two factories as well as other expansion plans.

“Royal Enfield will be investing Rs 500 crore in 2015 towards product development, capex and other development areas,” chief executive Siddhartha Lal said in a statement posted on its website.

“With a view to become the leader in the global mid-sized motorcycling, Royal Enfield will build two new technology centers.”

The centres will be located in the southern Indian city of Chennai and the English county of Leicestershire and be completed by the second quarter of 2016 and the end of 2015 respectively.

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The Royal Enfield Bullet 500 Photograph: imagebroker / Alamy/Alamy

The US president gave the iconic bikes a nod of approval after he saw India’s Border Security Force officers perform daredevil stunts on their shiny Royal Enfields during a trip to New Delhi last month.

“I saw the Republic Day daredevils on Royal Enfield motorcycles,” Obama said during the visit, describing the stunts as a highlight of the military parade to mark India’s Republic Day.

“The secret service doesn’t let me ride motorcycles, especially not on my head,” he added with a smile at the audacious manoeuvres.

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Lal said Royal Enfield continued to grow at a “phenomenal pace” last year, selling 300,000 units and had plans to manufacture a total of 450,000 in 2015.

The manufacturer, owned by heavy vehicle and bus maker Eicher, also saw a record income of 30bn rupees ($482m) last year, the statement said.

Royal Enfield started life as a British company making single-cylinder engines that produce a distinctive “thump” sound more than 110 years ago, but it closed its last domestic factory in 1970.

Its Indian partner started making bikes under licence in 1955, and is today one of the oldest names in motorcycling.

In 2009 Royal Enfield launched a redesigned version of its classic retro-looking “Bullet” model, a move that saw sales take off.

[seedy]

News Flash Dated - (soon)

Honda to begin production of 500cc single motorcycle to compete for market domination with the Royal Enfield.

Edited February 18, 2015 by seedy

[seedy]

Seriously tho' - good news !!

[Familyonthemove]

Some unfinished business for the new UK Technology Centre - fix the oil leak.

To be fair - my Enfield Bullet Thunderbird that I ran in India didn't leak any oil and it was a very enjoyable bike to own.

And according to the BBC - Enfield India now sells more bikes globally than Harley.

I hope they get a local dealer in Thailand. 500 Classic for me.

[dave_boo]

Some unfinished business for the new UK Technology Centre - fix the oil leak.

To be fair - my Enfield Bullet Thunderbird that I ran in India didn't leak any oil and it was a very enjoyable bike to own.

And according to the BBC - Enfield India now sells more bikes globally than Harley.

I hope they get a local dealer in Thailand. 500 Classic for me.

Isn't the tax on the Enfield crazy expensive? Like 150% or more?

If they can do that, why not bring the baby Harley's over (500 & 750)?

[dave_boo]

News Flash Dated - (soon)

Honda to begin production of 500cc single motorcycle to compete for market domination with the Royal Enfield.

Or the SR400/500...

Honda just can't leave a market alone can they?

[ll2]

nice! so they will sell these bikes like made in UK same as Triumph and old brit makers and will get more ground and market share around the world.

good move but this will make the bikes more expensive of course.

and why not Thailand?!!!

[dave_boo]

nice! so they will sell these bikes like made in UK same as Triumph and old brit makers and will get more ground and market share around the world.

good move but this will make the bikes more expensive of course.

and why not Thailand?!!!

1 GBP = 96.21 INR

1 GBP = 50.32 THB

And then there's this:

[andrewrooney]

News Flash Dated - (soon)

Honda to begin production of 500cc single motorcycle to compete for market domination with the Royal Enfield.

Or the SR400/500...

Honda just can't leave a market alone can they?

If Honda (or any other reputable manufacturer) made an SR knockoff and priced it realistically I wouldn't complain

[AllanB]

News Flash Dated - (soon)

Honda to begin production of 500cc single motorcycle to compete for market domination with the Royal Enfield.

Or the SR400/500...

Honda just can't leave a market alone can they?

If Honda (or any other reputable manufacturer) made an SR knockoff and priced it realistically I wouldn't complain

I don't know about the Honda 500 single, but the SR400 is a tiny bike.

[ll2]

nice! so they will sell these bikes like made in UK same as Triumph and old brit makers and will get more ground and market share around the world.

good move but this will make the bikes more expensive of course.

and why not Thailand?!!!

1 GBP = 96.21 INR

1 GBP = 50.32 THB

And then there's this:

yeah i know dave. but still i am sad we still cannot the the Enfields to Thailand:(

but if they build them in Thailand, they can sell the bikes with less custom duty to all Southeast Asian countries.

and Thai made products is better recognized in terms of quality than India made.

[seedy]

Stats for 2014

HD - 270K

Ducati - 45K

BMW - 123K

Honda - 76K (over 250cc for japanese bikes - first 3 quarters)

Suzuki - 54K

Kawasaki - 43K

Yamaha - 110K

http://www.webbikewo...-statistics.htm

[dave_boo]

Stats for 2014

HD - 270K

Ducati - 45K

BMW - 123K

Honda - 76K (over 250cc for japanese bikes - first 3 quarters)

Suzuki - 54K

Kawasaki - 43K

Yamaha - 110K

http://www.webbikewo...-statistics.htm

It seems like I'm always doing the numbers around here, so is anyone up to finding an average cost per unit? I.E., Harley's average unit price is XX,XXX USD and they sold 270K...would be interesting to plot the average price against the units sold and see where the global sweetspot is.

[seedy]

so is anyone up to finding an average cost per unit?

FYI - when I bought my FXDXT in 2002 profit on that bike for the dealer was aprox 40%

Is that figure still valid ? Got me.

[dave_boo]

so is anyone up to finding an average cost per unit?

FYI - when I bought my FXDXT in 2002 profit on that bike for the dealer was aprox 40%

Is that figure still valid ? Got me.

It's not that. But rather I'm sure there's a point where the average cost of the lineup guarantees x number of units to be moved. Priced higher and you won't sell as many due to affordability. Priced lower and you might move some more, but actual percentage of units drops as the brand is viewed as cheap. Of course there's the prestige brands (Ducati, MV Augusta, etc) that can command higher prices with not as much of a decline in sales.

[seedy]

It's not that. But rather I'm sure there's a point where the average cost of the lineup guarantees x number of units to be moved. Priced higher and you won't sell as many due to affordability. Priced lower and you might move some more, but actual percentage of units drops as the brand is viewed as cheap. Of course there's the prestige brands (Ducati, MV Augusta, etc) that can command higher prices with not as much of a decline in sales.

OK Gotcha

Explains why some brands not doing so well - thinking the Japanese, while KTM, BMW, Ducati experiencing record sales.

[DILLIGAD]

Other rumours are of an "Adventure" style bike probably called a Himalayan (as RE have registered that name) also of a 600cc single and a parallel twin both using a Harris frame.

Edited February 19, 2015 by DILLIGAD

[ll2]

It's not that. But rather I'm sure there's a point where the average cost of the lineup guarantees x number of units to be moved. Priced higher and you won't sell as many due to affordability. Priced lower and you might move some more, but actual percentage of units drops as the brand is viewed as cheap. Of course there's the prestige brands (Ducati, MV Augusta, etc) that can command higher prices with not as much of a decline in sales.

OK Gotcha

Explains why some brands not doing so well - thinking the Japanese, while KTM, BMW, Ducati experiencing record sales.

not doing so well? Honda produced 90 k bikes only in Japan. and yamaha 150 k bikes.

god knows how many they produced in Thailand, Brazil, India etc etc all over the world. honda probably again the biggest motorcycle manufacturer and seller on Earth most probably followed by a Japanese maker again.

Moreover, it is production numbers not sale. completely different as these companies might have stocks from before.

harleys overall is 240 k and bmw s 123 k is for all over the world sales.

[ll2]

Other rumour are of an "Adventure" style bike probably called a Himalayan (as RE have registered that name) also of a 600cc single and a parallel twin both using a Harris frame.

source or it is not true

just post the link here so we can see to man!

a 600 cc twin enfield sounds nice but i stick with a single 600 if they make one.

adventure version is a great idea!

go Enfield go. but come to Thailand too man!

[seedy]

I eagerly await posts from those who replied with their own listing of production number totals from each manufacturer world wide.

[ll2]

I eagerly await posts from those who replied with their own listing of production number totals from each manufacturer world wide.

all i know japanese sell a couple of million bikes a year in Thailand as an example.

[DILLIGAD]

I eagerly await posts from those who replied with their own listing of production number totals from each manufacturer world wide.

Maybe worthy of its own topic as it's not RE related?

Just a thought???

[dave_boo]

I eagerly await posts from those who replied with their own listing of production number totals from each manufacturer world wide.

Maybe worthy of its own topic as it's not RE related?

Just a thought???

Let's get this back on track than.

I always have problems getting straight information from Indians. For instance, this link claims they had over 1M units sold during FY 2014. Quite a bit more than what Forbes claimed. Perhaps Forbes was referring to a specific model? I count 14 models between 350cc and 535cc.

[DILLIGAD]

Other rumour are of an "Adventure" style bike probably called a Himalayan (as RE have registered that name) also of a 600cc single and a parallel twin both using a Harris frame.

source or it is not true

just post the link here so we can see to man!

a 600 cc twin enfield sounds nice but i stick with a single 600 if they make one.

adventure version is a great idea!

go Enfield go. but come to Thailand too man!

http://www.visordown.com/motorcycle-news-new-bikes/royal-enfield-parallel-twin-coming-next-year/26302.html#ixzz3SC8kTnug

[Anthony5]

I eagerly await posts from those who replied with their own listing of production number totals from each manufacturer world wide.

How about this one.

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/01/25/5-of-the-worlds-best-selling-motorcycle-brands-do.aspx

Ducati, which can be viewed as a luxury brand in the motorcycle world, also has luxury-type sales numbers. In 2012, Ducati sold around 44,000 two-wheelers.

BMW's Motorrad division sold a whopping 117,100 bikes in 2012, of which 106,400 were BMWs and 10,700 were Husqvarnas.

America's favorite cruiser comes in at second place with 249,849 bikes sold around the world in 2012

And the winner is ...

Honda's motorcycle division sold nearly 15.5 million motorcycles in 2012, of which 13.2 million came from Japan and other Asian countries. In North America the company also dominates, with 153,000 bikes sold,

http://www.topspeed.com/motorcycles/motorcycle-news/yamaha-reports-increased-net-profit-in-2014-even-as-sales-number-drops-slightly-ar167704.html

Japanese motorcycle company Yamaha has reported an increase in sales by 5.3 percent on the strength of increased sales in developed markets. According to data released by the company, Yamaha’s overall sales for 2014 actually declined by 3.4 percent from 5.65 million bikes to just 5.39 million this year. So how did the company increase its sales revenue?

[dave_boo]

I eagerly await posts from those who replied with their own listing of production number totals from each manufacturer world wide.

How about this one.

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/01/25/5-of-the-worlds-best-selling-motorcycle-brands-do.aspx

Ducati, which can be viewed as a luxury brand in the motorcycle world, also has luxury-type sales numbers. In 2012, Ducati sold around 44,000 two-wheelers.

BMW's Motorrad division sold a whopping 117,100 bikes in 2012, of which 106,400 were BMWs and 10,700 were Husqvarnas.

America's favorite cruiser comes in at second place with 249,849 bikes sold around the world in 2012

And the winner is ...

Honda's motorcycle division sold nearly 15.5 million motorcycles in 2012, of which 13.2 million came from Japan and other Asian countries. In North America the company also dominates, with 153,000 bikes sold,

http://www.topspeed.com/motorcycles/motorcycle-news/yamaha-reports-increased-net-profit-in-2014-even-as-sales-number-drops-slightly-ar167704.html

Japanese motorcycle company Yamaha has reported an increase in sales by 5.3 percent on the strength of increased sales in developed markets. According to data released by the company, Yamaha’s overall sales for 2014 actually declined by 3.4 percent from 5.65 million bikes to just 5.39 million this year. So how did the company increase its sales revenue?

A shift of manufacturing location? Selling more of the higher profit bikes (think scooters)? Could be a combination of reasons.

[BradinAsia]

Some unfinished business for the new UK Technology Centre - fix the oil leak.

To be fair - my Enfield Bullet Thunderbird that I ran in India didn't leak any oil and it was a very enjoyable bike to own.

And according to the BBC - Enfield India now sells more bikes globally than Harley.

I hope they get a local dealer in Thailand. 500 Classic for me.

It's rather amazing that the oil leak problem persisted during 60 years of UK production

(1910-1970), but now with production in India evidently the problem is solved.

As with many British motorcycles, it was a beautiful machine, but too many flaws.

Edited February 20, 2015 by BradinAsia

[geetee]

No oil leak usually means she needs more oil

[Willy Eckerslike]

My Two Enfields I have in India....One Petrol and one diesel

[fxe1200]

There were recent efforts to import RE into Thailand, but I heard rumours, that RE was ask to pay 3 million THB for the Homologation of one model (not unit) only, not counting import taxes and such. I could image, that either Honda, or one or more of the other big players on the market in Thailand, would not be very fond of another competitor and made there moves with the DMV way ahead.

I received this letter from India back in October 31st 2014:

Hi Mr Walter,

Thanks for your mail to us, We don’t have authorised associations with the site you are mentioning, Please note the following ;

1) At present we don’t have any authorised dealers appointed in Thailand.

2) We don’t see possibility of our bikes being sold authorised way in Thailand in few weeks.

3) We don’t have bikes made to pass the Thailand Homologation norms .

4) We are searching and looking to appoint distributors and dealers in Thailand and if any party is interested, they can contact [email protected] , [email protected] and [email protected] .

5) We are happy to note that customers are interested in our bikes and we will surely reach them once we appoint any authorised network in Thailand.

Once we appoint any Thailand network- we will inform it officially on our website. Please do refer our website www.royalenfield.com for more details on our authorised network globally.

Have a good day ahead.

Best Regards,

Manoj