In the past few years, many options for large-capacity motorcycles have been made available to Indian consumers. However, the 500cc+ segment still remains a niche space in the motorcycle community as only limited volumes are sold on a monthly basis due to their premium pricing.
A total of 2,665 motorcycles with engine displacement above 500cc were sold by OEMs across India in December 2021. This translated to an 80 percent YoY growth when only 1,481 motorcycles from the same space were sold in the country during the same month the previous year.
Out of 2,665 units sold in this space, the 650cc Twins- Interceptor and Continental GT from Royal Enfield accounted for 2,301 units last month. The sales volume translated to a whopping market share of 86.34 percent and YoY growth of 76.59 percent.
During the same period in 2020, Royal Enfield sold 1,303 units of the 650cc Twins. These two motorcycles are the only models in this segment to be locally manufactured in India.
Rest of the motorcycles in the list witnessed double-digit or single-digit sales figures. Second and third spots were taken by Kawasaki Z900 and Triumph Tiger 900 with 34 units dispatched by each last month. The latest entrant in this list is Kawasaki Z650 RS which witnessed a volume of 31 units. The Japanese bikemaker was again trailed by Triumph, this time with the Street Triple recording a sales volume of 29 units last month.
The same trend for Kawasaki and Triumph continues again with the sixth and seventh spots occupied by Ninja 650 and Trident 660 respectively. Both motorcycles registered a monthly volume of 28 units and 26 units respectively. Harley Davidson broke into the list with Low Rider Special accounting for 21 units last month.
The iconic American quit independent operations in 2020 but continues to operate through retail outlets managed by Hero MotoCorp. Street Twin from Triumph witnessed a sales volume of 16 units. The same volume was registered by Kawasaki Ninja 1000. Only 12 units of Suzuki Hayabusa were sold last month. The same was the case with Triumph’s flagship model Rocket III.
| No | 500cc+ Motorcycles Sales | Dec-21 | Dec-20 | Growth % YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 650 Twin | 2,301 | 1,303 | 76.59 |
| 2 | Z900 | 34 | 29 | 17.24 |
| 3 | Tiger 900 | 34 | 5 | 580.00 |
| 4 | Z650RS | 31 | 0 | – |
| 5 | Street Triple | 29 | 28 | 3.57 |
| 6 | Ninja650 | 28 | 4 | 600.00 |
| 7 | Trident | 26 | 0 | – |
| 8 | Low Rider Special | 21 | 0 | – |
| 9 | Street Twin | 16 | 2 | 700.00 |
| 10 | Ninja1000 | 16 | 15 | 6.67 |
| 11 | Low Rider | 13 | 0 | – |
| 12 | Hayabusa | 12 | 0 | – |
| 13 | Rocket III | 12 | 5 | 140.00 |
| 14 | Vulcan S | 11 | 14 | -21.43 |
| 15 | Ninja ZX-10R | 10 | 0 | – |
| 16 | Sportster S | 9 | 0 | – |
| 17 | Speed Twin | 9 | 0 | – |
| 18 | 883 Iron | 8 | 0 | – |
| 19 | Fat Bob | 6 | 0 | – |
| 20 | Z650 | 5 | 2 | 150.00 |
| 21 | 1200 X-Forty Eight | 5 | 0 | – |
| 22 | Fat Boy 114 | 5 | 0 | – |
| 23 | Versys 1000 | 4 | 12 | -66.67 |
| 24 | Boneville Speedmaster | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| 25 | Versys 650 | 3 | 21 | -85.71 |
| 26 | DL650XA | 2 | 17 | -88.24 |
| 27 | Street Scrambler | 2 | 0 | – |
| 28 | Boneville T120 | 2 | 0 | – |
| 29 | Street Glide | 2 | 0 | – |
| 30 | CBR 650F | 1 | 0 | – |
| 31 | Boneville T100 | 1 | 15 | -93.33 |
| 32 | Pan America | 1 | 0 | – |
| 33 | Boneville Bobber | 1 | 0 | – |
| 34 | GL1800 | 1 | 0 | – |
| 35 | Low Rider S | 0 | 2 | -100.00 |
| 36 | W800 | 0 | 1 | -100.00 |
| 37 | 883 Iron | 0 | 1 | -100.00 |
| 38 | Forty Eight Special | 0 | 1 | -100.00 |
| – | Total | 2,665 | 1,481 | 79.95 |
Kawasaki models Vulcan S and Ninja ZX-10R recorded 11 units and 10 units respectively. Rest of the models accounted for single-digit sales volume in December 2021. Sportster S and Speed Twin registered a volume of 9 units each and were preceded by Iron 883 with 8 units sold last month. Models like Harley Davidson Low Rider S, Kawasaki W800 and Forty Eight Special did not register a volume of a single unit.