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New LML bikes to zoom on Indian roads in September

LML Limited's first motorcycle model, being produced in collaboration with Daelim Motor Corporation of South Korea, would hit the streets in September this year, a top company official said.

The bikes are in the final stages of development and the first of the four models of mobikes would roll out by September.

The four bikes are being produced by LML under a technical collaboration agreement with Daelim and the partners have no plans, for the present, to venture into equity sharing.

The motorycles would carry a price tag ranging between Rs 37,500 and Rs 45,000 ex-showroom (Delhi).

The bikes being produced under the Rs 500 million LML-Daelim motorcycle venture would be marketed under the LML-Daelim joint brand name. ''This is as part of the agreement we have with our Korean partner in the venture.'' The tie-up, he said, is purely technical.

The new motorcycles will be in the four-stroke category.

Some of the bikes would be fitted with standard electric start apart from disc brakes. They would all sport a five-speed gearbox. In the first phase, the company would be producing 10,000 units per month in a total capacity of 600,000 vehicles.

The company's foray into the motorcycle segment is a conscious decision to venture into the largest growing segment of the two-wheeler industry. ''In the scooter segment, we grew at a rate much above the industry. Besides, the management decided to become a two-wheeler company, not just a scooter company and this made us venture into bikes,'' the official said.

He further stated that the motorcycle venture is on schedule in spite of Piaggio SPA, which owns around 23 per cent stake in the company, stating that their consent was not sought for the project.

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