Most of us have developed a personal grudge against the pandemic and rightly so! Several people have lost their lives while a major chunk of us are battling our own financial crisis. Even the petrolheads aren’t spared from its brunt as it has delayed many automotive launches. Back in 2017, Bajaj and triumph announced that they will be working together to develop motorcycles under the 200-700 cc segment. It was expected that the motorcycle will hit the showrooms in the 2020-2022 time frame.
But the pandemic has played a spoilsport yet again as the first motorcycle born out of the partnership between Bajaj Auto and Triumph Motorcycles could hit the showrooms towards the end of FY23, after a delay of six-nine months.
Official statement
Speaking to analysts, Rakesh Sharma, executive director, Bajaj Auto, said: “We are in the (product development) stage, where we have made prototypes, and these require physical presence to make corrections, if needed. This whole process takes time. The partnership got hit because of COVID.” It is safe to assume that the motorcycle has reached an advance stage in overall development and the process couldn’t be carried forward due to the travel restrictions imposed by the arrival of Delta variant. As a result, Triumph engineers couldn’t come to India and see and work on these prototypes as planned.
At the start of 2020, it was announced that the first motorcycle out of their partnership will hit the streets in 2022 and will displace anywhere between 250-350 cc. Bajaj won’t be launching the motorcycle under its own tag but will assist Triumph in manufacturing the motorcycle at their plant in Akurdi, Pune. That means the upcoming motorcycle will bear the tag of either Street, Bonneville or Tiger.
Also read: EXCLUSIVE! Here’s Your Clearest Look At The Upcoming Bajaj Pulsar 250F
Triumph has made it very clear that Bajaj will only manufacture Triumph motorcycles and there won’t be any Bajaj derivative based on the same platform. The bikes will be designed and developed by Triumph in the United Kingdom, while Bajaj will produce the bikes in India using its expertise in cost-effective manufacturing. Going by the current market trend, it is being assumed that the first motorcycle to take birth from this partnership is going to be a 250-350cc single-cylinder retro-styled machine to rival the supremacy of Royal Enfield. It has already been announced that the first motorcycle from this partnership will be priced under INR 2 lakh!