[Cool_leo_guy]

A lot of people here are bashing Hero for not turning out performance oriented offerings and going on and on about Honda doing a great job.
IMO Hero is making what majority of buyers need which is fuel efficient commuter machines which take them from point A to point B everyday without fuss and also carry their grocery shopping, gas cylinder, milk cans, sacks filled with farm produce, wife and kids with occasional cousin thrown in between.
Sorry to rain on your performance parade but those fancy bikes you so lovingly mention cost a bomb to own and maintain and most enthusiasts on this forum ride their performance bikes very occasionally, mostly on weekends and a long ride once in a blue moon, while Hero's target customer is the person who rides his bike daily and uses it for all of his commuting and carrying needs as I have mentioned earlier. These people often ride their bikes anywhere from 30 to more than a 120 kms per day and keep riding them for years on end. For these biking millions it's not performance but economy and reliability matters more. Also they usually ride these bikes for a very long time and maintain and repair them rather than sell them. So a bike which has cheap spares and cheaper labour cost involved is a big draw for them along with availability of a mechanic at every corner of their route. This is the segment which buys Hero bikes and later graduates to Maruti Suzuki's budget offerings which again have same strengths as a Hero bike, which is economy and easy ownership.
As for Honda they only have one big seller which is their scooter in all its guises (quite like splendor I must add), add to it their 110 cc range and the scene gives a feel of deja vu. All the rest of their models are neither here nor there as far as total sales are concerned. Their premium offerings though excellent bikes in their own right add just a case of old wine in new bottle which brings us to a matter of directionlessness. Even globally they are at best rehashing their own older products or bringing out products like the much hyped 'blade which is too little too late.
So dear Brothers, Hero is not going away so soon and if their track record is to be believed then they will churn out models which will keep on meeting the mass requirements and keep the cash registers ringing, but I sincerely wish they up their game and bring a few VFM offerings in the performance segment, so that the likes of us budget wallahs may also get a taste of performance after close to six and a half lakh kilometers of biking.

[kiku007]

Post separation from Honda, did Hero Motors launch any vehicle or engine that's a sole Hero Motors effort?

[payeng]

Originally Posted by kiku007

Post separation from Honda, did Hero Motors launch any vehicle or engine that's a sole Hero Motors effort?

New Splendor (Ugly)
New Glamour (+the Fuel Injected Variant) and
New Maestro Edge & Duet Scooters

these models have got Solo (I still believe there could be some outsourced engine consultant here) Hero Developed Engines

Hero have got great Brand Acceptance (to the level of people Blindly going for these models) in the 100 cc range - Namely the Splendor, Passion and Deluxe series of motorcycles.. to the extent that the "Father" of these bikes, Honda can't seem to do anything with its 110 cc offerings - the CD Dream series of bikes (CD 110, CD Neo, CD Yuga, CD Livo).

It will be big challenge for Hero to see whether the same level of Brand Acceptance remains when it eventually replaces the Original Honda developed Engines with its Hero Developed engines.

This is the reason why Hero is "Slowly" replacing the original engines. Its a HIGH STAKE game for Hero as its entire existence depends on the Deluxe, Passion and Splendor brands. Eventually we should see the Original 100 cc Honda engines being replaced by the New Hero developed 110 cc engines. And that is what Hero will be focusing on totally.

The 150+ cc offerings contribute peanuts to its mammoth numbers.

And that's why Hero has prudently decided to focus its Full attention to its Deluxe, Passion and Splendor and Scooter brands.

[kiku007]

Not bad if they are capable of designing and producing an engine. I never throught they can��

[payeng]

Originally Posted by kiku007

Not bad if they are capable of designing and producing an engine. I never throught they can��

A newbie player like Mahindra can do it (develop its engines)

Hero is after all a HUGE Financial Behemoth, plus they can easily buy out some engine consultant.

[PrasannaDhana]

As a veteran HeroHonda buyer (CD100, CD100SS, Passion, Karizma R(first gen), Karizma ZMR(first gen) ) I sincerely hope Hero motors does what Royal Enfield did in the last 10 years.

If they are not going to try to develop new products from scratch, they will be a big example of how even business giants can fail miserably if they don't adapt to market changes.

When I was a college going kid, HeroHonda showroom was sure among the showrooms to visit before finalising on a new bike. Today's youngsters visit all dealers except Hero motors.

Look at Royal Enfield, they don't make best bikes but they sure try (750cc twin being tested).

[car love]

The challenges that face Hero are indeed daunting but we must recognize the effort that is being put in by Mr Pawan Munjal and team to try a rescue. They are giving it their best efforts but only time will tell how it will play out. It is not as simple as it seems to the layman. They are tied down heavily by their previous arrangement with Honda in terms of technology, products etc. Breaking free for a giant organization like Hero is no walk in the park. The main problem is that they built their brand on the cheaper end of the market without any brand "pull" as such. People bought Hero hondas with their head and not their hearts. Going upmarket will never be easy for them. The word "Hero" sounds ridiculous to foreign ears and will never be viewed as premium outside the country. They have the financial muscle to buy Ducati as is being rumored but that may not work as the culture and philosophy are at polar opposites. Then again it could work if done properly; like how Tata (the maker of the crudest vehicles) successfully revived Jaguar. So IMO its very much a 50:50 game at this point.

[gopal.nishant89]

I have owned 3 bikes till date. Hero Honda Passion (bought in 2005 and still running like a charm except for the niggles due to age), Bujaj Discover 125 T (sold) and Hero Xtreme Sports (current bike). While going to buy Hero Xtreme Sports, I did my research across most of the 150 cc segment bikes from different manufacturers. I wouldnt say that i picked the best of the lot but there were 2 prominent reasons that I bought a Hero bike again:
1. Trust of having used the brand for such a long period of time.
2. Have experienced relatively low maintenance and issues with my Passion over the long ownership period.

That said, while i was doing my research online and visiting the showrooms, there was one thing that was starkly different in Hero as compared to other bike manufacturers like Yamaha, Honda and Bajaj.
1. Product Portfolio - Hero is cannibalizing each segment with so many bikes that it was not possible for their sales rep to convince users to select something outrightly. The engines used in Xtreme and Xtreme Sports are identical except for a minor power bump in the later. The same goes for Splendor, Passion, CD 100 and others in the 100cc segment. In comparison, other bike manufacturers had a lean product portfolio which helped the customers and the sales representative to filter out a customer based on his product segment and assist him with as much information as required on the specific product.

2. Pushing for stock clearance - Because there were so many bikes and stock lying around with the dealers, the dealers were more interested in pushing bikes to get rid of their old stock rather than guiding the customers to their best choice. I was offered a 16 month old Karizma for the same price as an Xtreme Sports which was the same month manufacture as my date of purchase. I didnt see this kind of a push at Bajaj, Honda or Yamaha.

That said, this trimming down is a very welcome move and i hope a move in the right direction for the dealers, sales representative and the customer above all. I will not say that this is going to bring back Hero in the game . For that to happen, they need to do many more changes, make meaningful innovation by listening to what people say and understanding what people want.

After all, the customer is the King and needs to have a competitive market with good quality and ample choice rather than good quality and confusing choices.

[JozfGT]

I wish Hero was as innovative as bajaj in improving their models rather than ruining them. If you look into the Bajaj Pulsar category itself , they have successfully made good improvements until recently. Pulsar fans are eager to know what Bajaj brings out for them everytime.
At the same time, hero owners appreciate the old models rather than the new ones. You can see this phenomena in all categories , especially the Splendor generation. I have heard a lot of people saying , "Old splendors have better build quality , more reliablity , smoother engine.."stuff like that.

PS: It's just my personal opinion and I have been using a hero honda karizma since 2007. No offense to Hero company or Hero fans. (if there are any)