Hero MotoCorp, or Hero bikes India, which was formerly known as Hero Honda, is considered to be the most popular motorcycle manufacturer in the country. To meet the intense demand, the company has four globally benchmarked manufacturing facilities, two of which are located in Gurugram and Dharuhera (both in Haryana). The third manufacturing plant is based at Haridwar, Uttarakhand and the latest addition has been the state-of-the-art Hero Garden Factory in Neemrana, Rajasthan.
In 1984, Hero Cycles began its operations as a joint venture with Honda Motors of Japan. When Honda exit the joint venture in 2010, the Hero Group bought the shares owned by Honda. Hero MotoCorp approved a proposal to merge the investment arm of its parent – Hero Investment Pvt. Ltd. with the manufacturer 18 months after its split from Hero Honda.
After the extensive popularity of the CD-100, Hero Honda enjoyed an immensely successful run with models like the CBZ, launched in 1998 and the Hero Honda Passion, launched in 2001. 2001 was also the year when the company achieved a coveted position of being the largest two-wheeler manufacturing company in India and the world, in terms of unit volume sales in a calendar year. Later, in 2003, Hero two wheelers came out with yet another game changer, Karizma, tagged as one of the first semi-faired bikes in the country, which gave a new outlook to the sporty 200cc motorcycle segment.
When the Hero Group announced the termination of its 26-year-old joint venture with Honda Motor Corporation in 2010, the Hero Group bought 26 per cent stake of Honda in JV Hero Honda. Exporting was not possible during the joint venture, until the split. Hero had to depend on Honda for the technology in Hero all bikes and motorcycles.
With a new moniker and a refreshed image, the company launched new, refreshed versions of the Glamour, Glamour FI, CBZ Xtreme and the Karizma in 2011. Hero bike prices in India (as of 2018) start at Rs. 42,800 for the HF Deluxe and go up to Rs. 95,000 for the Xtreme 200 R.
The Hero latest bikes India comprises the Splendor Plus, Splendor Pro, Splendor iSmart, Passion Pro, Passion X PRO, Super Splendor, Glamour, Achiever, Karizma ZMR, Pleasure, Maestro Edge, Duet, HF Dawn, HF Deluxe, HF Deluxe Eco, Xtreme Sports and the Xtreme 200 R which form the company’s 2018 product line-up.