Japanese automaker Suzuki has recently confirmed that its two-wheeler arm in India will focus on premium bikes and scooters in order to increase sales. Emerging reports indicate the company will showcase its premium scooter at the forthcoming Auto Expo 2018.
Suzuki Motorcycle India already has the Let's scooter in the 110cc segment and the well-established Access in the 125cc segment. Hence, the company will be foraying into the premium 150cc scooter segment with its new offering. The model will go up against the Vespa scooters and Aprilia SR 150 in India.
Details on this new scooter are sparse but a report in Autocar India claims the product will be exciting and quite different from what is available in the market.
Industry leaders like Hero MotoCorp, Honda, Bajaj and TVS are yet to foray into the slim 150cc scooter market of India. Suzuki plans to be an early bird here and establish itself with a compelling scooter.
After the unveiling, the 150cc scooter is expected to enter the market by the end of 2018. The company is expected to launch a sporty scooter. Suzuki had unveiled the new Swish scooter at the 2017 Tokyo Motor Show in October. The latest version of the Suzuki scooter comes with a sporty design, and hence this could be the model bound for India.
The new Swish gets an aggressively redesigned design complemented with more sharp panels. The cuts and creases are in line with Honda Dio or Yamaha Ray ZR, which will be appealing to younger customers.
It is expected to be powered by the 125cc mill currently doing duty in the Access. In that case, the single-cylinder engine will develop 8.5bhp and 10.2Nm of peak torque mated to a CVT automatic unit.