TVS Motor Co said it has produced 1 lakh bikes under its tie-up with the local unit of German automaker BMW in India.
In July 2018, TVS Motor Co and BMW launched two BMW models — the naked style BMW G310R and BMW G310GS, priced around the Rs 3 lakh mark. This was the result of five years of research and development under a 2013 agreement to jointly produce sub-500cc motorbikes for the global market.
The first two years saw slightly lower sales for the models, as the G310R was priced around Rs 3 lakhs plus levies.
The price was reduced last year to Rs 2.6 lakhs for G310R, which also made it a more attractive proposition.
TVS Motor Co also leveraged the platform to build a self-branded motorbike known as Apache RR 310, which also comes with the 310cc engine. Despite being branded as TVS, the bike costs almost the same as the BMW GS310R, at around Rs 2.6 lakhs prior to levies.
The two models are today sold in 120 countries.
The Chennai-based Indian company said the partnership has been beneficial for both companies and helped both learn new things.
“Our partnership has been truly exceptional for creating aspirational products made for the global market. We are proud to be a part of this journey and look forward to continuing the partnership with BMW Motorrad,” it said.
The bikes have, by far, been the most successful for any western motorcycle brand, with the exception of KTM, which was launched in India after Bajaj Auto became a major stakeholder through a bail-out of the struggling European bike maker.
BMW said said the bikes continue to enjoy “unrivaled popularity”.
Indian motorcycle manufacturers such as Hero, Bajaj and TVS, have become the most successful in the world in the commuter and mid segments due to their extreme focus on keeping the costs down, while not compromising on quality.