Benelli TNT 899, 1130 discontinued; no plans to bring back 600 GT and TNT 25 – Report
Benelli is preparing to bring new products to the Indian market to improve its sales performance in the premium motorcycle market. In an interview, Dante Bustos, Chief Marketing Officer, Benelli, and Vikas Jhabakh, Director, Mahavir Group spoke about the new products that the motorcycle brand will introduce in the Indian market.
Bustos and Jhabakh have confirmed that the two-wheeler brand has pulled the plug from some of its existing products that either did not comply with the emission norms or failed to deliver the expected sales performance.
This is what Jhabakh said about the changes planned in the line-up:
Due to the new emission norms, the TNT 899 and the 1130 are discontinued, as they aren’t BS IV compliant. We aren’t bringing back the 600 GT and TNT 25. We have a list of new bikes, new variants and new technology coming in, and we want to bring those straight away – for we don’t want to re-enter the market with old bikes.
By 2019, Benelli plans to introduce as many as 10 to 12 bikes. The upcoming motorcycles will include upgrades and new models across three segments – city riding, cruising and adventure riding.
In the same interview, Bustos confirmed that Benelli will launch the Imperiale 400 and 530 in the Indian market, products that will compete with the Royal Enfield Classic 350 and Royal Enfield Classic 500 respectively. Like Royal Enfield, Benelli will offer exclusive apparel to customers.
To address the need for adventure enthusiasts, Benelli will also introduce the 500cc, twin-cylinder powered Leoncino and TRK in India, by the end of this year. The twin-cylinder 500cc platform will come with two chassis, two models and four variants. These will be followed by their lower displacement variants next year.
Moreover, Benelli will also launch the facelifted 302 later this year. The next-gen 302 isn't very far, though, with the launch planned just a year from then.
Also read: Benelli Motobi 200 EVO (Bajaj Avenger 220 rival) launched in Indonesia
Jhabakh added that the company plans to get back into the market as soon as possible. Benelli will take the CKD route that should allow it to price products more competitively. The second phase of the plan is evaluating whether to go only for localisation of parts or local manufacturing.
[Source: AutoX.com]
