I conic American motorcycle brand, Harley-Davidson will soon start to build bikes in India for domestic as well as the export market standing testament for the growing interest for high-end two-wheelers to in the country.
However, the company will only produce the HD Street 750 and Street 500 models of the bike here. The new announcement making India only the second country, outside the US to have a CKD (completely knocked down) after Brazil. In a statement, the company said that this would be the ‘first all-new-platform’ from the company in 14 years.
The new offerings from their stables will be part of their Dark Custom Lineup, they said.
The company will start to build the new models from the second quarter of 2014, it was reported.
The bikes were assembled in their CKD unit at Bawal (Haryana). Top officials said that parts will now be sourced from Indian vendors instead of CKD kits from the US.
Agencies reported that fuel tanks and fenders fabrication will also commence here.
The cult brand is hoping to clock close to 4000 units in the country from 2010-2013 (end), it was reported.
“We are excited about the potential of the Indian market and around the world, particularly in regards to the response we have had from young adults. We are going to utilise our plant in India to build the ‘Street’ models not only to cater to the market there but also export to Europe and South East Asia,” Matthew Levatich, Co President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the company was quoted as saying.
According to reports, they would start to export to European countries such as Spain, Italy and Portugal.
Currently, Harley Davidson offers a range of 11 models from each of its five families - Sportster, Dyna, Softail, V-Rod and Touring - in the Indian market.