Honda record 35 million production milestone in India

In just 17 years after setting shop in India, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India has produced more than 35 million two-wheelers.

It’s no secret that the Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) has been rocking the sales charts in recent times. With sales of more than half a million units every month, they are inching towards becoming the largest two-wheeler manufacturer in the country. While they have had smaller achievements to flaunt frequently, the company has a huge milestone to celebrate today. The Manesar-based firm has produced 35 million two-wheelers since they first started production in India in 2001. Interestingly, the first model to roll out from the factory then was the Activa, and today too, the 35 millionth model produced is the fourth-gen Activa.

Speaking about the milestone, Yadvinder Singh Guleria, Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd., said, ‘Since the very start in 2001, Honda 2Wheelers India has led with its challenging spirit. Our first model, a scooter (Activa) activated the slowing scooter market with its advanced features and fresh design and is now leading India’s scooterisation as No. 1 selling two-wheeler of India. Delighting 35 million customers with 24 products, Honda two-wheelers are now reaching closer to them through a network of over 5,700 authorised touch-points. India’s Love for Honda’s two-wheelers is Growing, and we are set to meet the future expectations of our customers.’

With production commencing in 2001, it took HMSI 11 years to cross the 10 million mark in India. After the split from Hero in 2012, Honda says they could capitalise on customer demand and add the other 25 million units to the tally in less than six years. The company started off with a production capacity of just 55,000 units and gradually expanded it to an annual production of 16.5 lakh units by 2011. The Japanese bike maker then established three more plants in less than 7 years, increasing the production capacity to 6.4 million.

Honda produced 14.8 million units globally from April 2017 to December 2017. HMSI contributed nearly 31 percent of this number making India the biggest market for Honda globally. Credit where credit’s due, a good percentage of the sales numbers are courtesy of the Activa and the CB Shine.