[Octane_Power]

I have been thinking of posting this since quite some time. This is to do with the scarcity of vehicles which Honda 2 wheelers is feigning due to reasons best known to them.
Since 2 weeks my dad is researching about gearless scooters and has narrowed down to Activa. He has gone to few multi-brand(MB) dealers and two authorised sole Honda dealers.
I had also gone around for my Unicorn in the same way(MB dealers and Honda authorised dealer) and at that time and even now a thing which I noticed is; in fast selling models like Activa,Unicorn & Shine if you go to the authorised dealer they have a waiting period of 11,8 and some 7 months respectively but at the same time these models are readily available at MB dealers just at a premium of a few thousand rupees.(In case of Unicorn you need not shell out anything extra when buying from MB dealers)

Exempli Gratia - On-road Mumbai Activa costs Rs.58000 and the said auth. dealer gives a waiting period of 11 months and when he was asked "What if i need it urgent?" (the usual language for it :"On mein kitna?") the answer was 10k more. On the other hand, the MB dealer gives it for 61k.

I mean, you get whichever model you need, readily from MB dealers just in a week's time but that's not the case with auth. dealers.
Is it some marketing gimmick for earning extra money, or what is it ?

Just to broaden my point, today when I went to my Honda dealer to get my invoice, I was a little surprised to see the entire showroom empty, with just a few showroom people and no customers at all. When I asked her why so? I asked is there any shifting going on ? The lady said "Nai. bike nai aa rahi hain isliye" (No.there are no new vehicles coming to the showroom that's why").

-Bhargav

[hellmet]

I think Honda showrooms have always maintained a false sense of hyper demand. I agree that a lot of people love Hondas and their "reliability", but it is something the dealers are cashing in on by diverting vehicles allotted for queued customers to those who are willing to pay extra.

May I recommend your dad look at TVS Wego? Our family is a huge fan of TVS for generations (we've never had to replace a TVS) and I'm sure the Wego has better suspension than old school Activa which is known for awful performance on bad roads. You will also get your vehicle almost immediately.

[.anshuman]

I saw an advertisement in newspaper few days back where Honda claimed they have cut down the waiting period for Activa.

Why don't you look at other options from Suzuki, Hero and Yamaha?

[hellmet]

That's clever of Honda, they hit two birds with one advert. First, it's an advertisement for the Activa, obvious.

Second, by claiming to have a waiting list for its Activa it subtly tells the reader that their product is still in high demand today (even though being more than a decade old model). Now whether the demand is real or inflated doesn't matter, because once you've played with the reader's psychology, you're done, product sold.

[Octane_Power]

Originally Posted by hellmet

May I recommend your dad look at TVS Wego? Our family is a huge fan of TVS for generations (we've never had to replace a TVS) and I'm sure the Wego has better suspension than old school Activa which is known for awful performance on bad roads. You will also get your vehicle almost immediately.

Will have to give it a look then! Will definitely try the Wego.

Originally Posted by .anshuman

Why don't you look at other options from Suzuki, Hero and Yamaha?

Suzuki- I and dad both like the Access more but the problem is the service center which is too far from my place. Earlier the center was just 1.5 kms from my place but now they have shifted it 10 times far. Almost 16 kms. That's why ruled it out.

Hero- We had a look at Maestro. Service center also close.Looks good.Ticks all boxes. But, I ruled it out because of news which I read recently saying Hero is going to discontinue Impulse and Maestro. Should I reconsider it ? I may be wrong.

Yamaha- Ray is too flashy and looks not the likes of my dad.

But why such gimmicks by a company like Honda ?

-Bhargav

[prajwalkashyap]

Originally Posted by Octane_Power

Will have to give it a look then! Will definitely try the Wego.

Suzuki- I and dad both like the Access more but the problem is the service center which is too far from my place. Earlier the center was just 1.5 kms from my place but now they have shifted it 10 times far. Almost 16 kms. That's why ruled it out.

Hero- We had a look at Maestro. Service center also close.Looks good.Ticks all boxes. But, I ruled it out because of news which I read recently saying Hero is going to discontinue Impulse and Maestro. Should I reconsider it ? I may be wrong.

Yamaha- Ray is too flashy and looks not the likes of my dad.

But why such gimmicks by a company like Honda ?

-Bhargav

Maestro is essentially an Activa in a different guise. It has the same engine by Honda and is as reliable as a Honda. The plastics are a different story though. You could reconsider it since Hero discontinuing it is just a rumour.

Looks grow on you with time. Yamaha Ray and Wego are excellent products and Ray has the quality that Yamaha is so renowned for. You will be thankful of the quality in due course of time.

Wego is an excellent desi product. Fantastic rideability and extremely ergonomic handling, your dad will have lots of fun riding it around. Its a highly competitive scooter and is worth considering. Just trying putting the centre stand and you'll fall for it straight away.

Let us know your test ride results and what you feel. I feel that one should not eliminate vehicles just based on looks. Looks can grow on you over time, but good-looking bad products can get on your nerves.

Prajwal

[RajeshK]

I think the so called scarcity is only for Mumbai... please correct me if I am wrong. When I purchased my Aviator 4 months back, all the dealers in Bangalore had many Activas, Deos, Aviators in their stock. There were little shortage in white colour for Activa. I got my vehicle within 2 working days(to complete the RTO formality)

[aargee]

Here in Chennai you can own an Activa in maximum of 7 days, which is for sure the case with JSP & Didar Honda, I'm not qualified to comment the scenario with Mumbai.

I too have come across the news that HMSI has greatly reduced the waiting period of Activa especially after opening their third plant in KA.

From your post I think it's some kind of local game played between dealers & MB showrooms, which I'm sure can happen as HMSI is all concerned more with numbers than customers, especially when it comes to their models like Yuga, Activa, Twister, Shine etc

Which dealer did you approach? Can you approach one of the dealers mentioned in CBR 250R's FAQ (post #4) in Mumbai?

[Octane_Power]

Originally Posted by RajeshK

I think the so called scarcity is only for Mumbai... please correct me if I am wrong. When I purchased my Aviator 4 months back, all the dealers in Bangalore had many Activas, Deos, Aviators in their stock. There were little shortage in white colour for Activa. I got my vehicle within 2 working days(to complete the RTO formality)

The waiting period is just for Activa,Unicorn and Shine(which are the fore runners in sales).
Aviator, Dio, Dazzler and Twister are readily available.

-Bhargav

[MaxTorque]

Probably Honda dealers may be acting smart. There are plenty of other options as mentioned above. By the way Honda is about to open their third plant in Bangalore. Once they start production there, the waiting list may come down further..!

[ghodlur]

The shortage/demand thing is the smoke created by Honda and modtly by their dealers just to keep the customers interested and on the hooks. I remember my buying process way back in April 2010 when I had planned to book the Activa, I was told there would be a waiting period of 6 months. However a couple of hard hitting mails on Honda website and subsequent calls from the regional office, I was ensured of a delivery within a month. And all the time the new Honda dealer in Thane also played the same tune of long waiting periods, the reason for which given was the trouble in Honda Gurgaon plant (which was the case in 2008/9 but the reason continued till 2010).

For all those smitten by Honda Activa, I would say there are better choices in the market and they should be thought of.

[MetalBuff]

Originally Posted by ghodlur

The shortage/demand thing is the smoke created by Honda and modtly by their dealers just to keep the customers interested and on the hooks. I remember my buying process way back in April 2010 when I had planned to book the Activa, I was told there would be a waiting period of 6 months. However a couple of hard hitting mails on Honda website and subsequent calls from the regional office, I was ensured of a delivery within a month. And all the time the new Honda dealer in Thane also played the same tune of long waiting periods, the reason for which given was the trouble in Honda Gurgaon plant (which was the case in 2008/9 but the reason continued till 2010).

For all those smitten by Honda Activa, I would say there are better choices in the market and they should be thought of.

Exactly my experience. I placed a booking for the Activa in Feb 10 and got delivery only in Nov 10. In short, after the quoted 6month waiting period and a lot of hot-word exchanges with the dealer. As heard from many people, this issue exists only in Mimbai.

This is similar to the kinds when Bajaj Super was launched and the waiting period ran into 1-1.5 years, that people used to pay black upfront to curtail the waiting and lay their hands on their brand new scoot (got to know all this from dad after we went through the Activa ordeal)

And honestly, the Activa is nothing too great to talk home about.

-Shivang Gandotra

[Vishal.R]

At Pune, Activa is readily available.

I visited Yash Honda, Solapur highway, Hadapsar last Saturday (16/02/13) only.

According to sales person, delivery within 7 days including registration.

[subbarao]

Hi,

Why we have to get 10-12 year old school scooter for the premium of 10k!? for the lesser price we have our indian make TVS WEGO on the hand, on 16th i had really good experiance with sales & service, it is not like "Don't care attitude of Honda/suzuki S&S' ,about the WEGO...you should ride to get touch of smooth comfortable experiance of well balanced scooter.

for detialed info..
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorb...er-thread.html

[vikred]

Even I was under the impression that Honda two-wheelers have a 2-3 month waiting period until a colleague of mine got his Activa from an authorised dealer within a week. This is in Hyderabad. You might as well want to try with other dealers in your city!