Another "Fi" motorcycle bites the dust in India..
Somewhere in the beginning of the year, Honda (HMSI) removed the CBF Stunner 125 PGM-Fi from its official Indian website. Which probably means that owing to low demand for the model Honda decided to pull the plug of the Fuel Injected "PGM-Fi" variant of the CBF Stunner motorcycle.
P.S: No publication, Blog or Site seems to be picked up the news so far
Unlike markets like Indonesia where technology like Fuel Injection and Liquid Cooling are aspired even by the commuting consumers (even step thru models and automatic scooters in Indonesia have started to feature Fuel Injection and Liquid Cooling), the Indian consumer comparatively is largely ignorant about such tech and in most cases not willing to loosen his purse for some feature which does not add to the "aesthetic/flaunt" value of his purchase. A common Indian motorcyclist would rather pay Rs. 20,000 more for a full fairing rather than on tech like fuel injection.
Why "Fi" does not deliver the benefits proportional to its cost..??
Fuel Injection technology is costly, the main benefit of "Fi" is that it helps cut down on pollution drastically. The only tangible benefit of "Fi" is in one touch - hassle free starting of the engine no matter what the climatic conditions are. The power/performance, the fuel efficiency etc. of the engine is very similar to a one which would run on a carburetor.
Consumer is King
Most Honda "Fanboys" that I have known would say that Honda will never stop a particular model after launching it. But even Honda has bowed to the market realities and have followed Bajaj (Pulsar 220 DTS-Fi) and TVS (Apache RTR 160 Fi) and looks like have decided to remove the CBF Stunner 125 PGM-Fi from its Indian lineup.
With pollution norms getting stricter, there is no doubt that Fuel Injection is the technology of the future and one day even motorcycle makers might have to replace the carburetors with "Fi" tech (like in the UK). But till then the "Consumer will be King" and probably the manufacturer would have to find a way to justify the cost of adding "Fi" by probably adding a Full Fairing.
Sad but true.
Related Posts
- Carburetor Vs. Fuel Injection - Myths & Facts [Feb 2012]
- Ride Review: Honda CBF Stunner 125 PGM-Fi [Jan 2011]
- TVS Apache RTR 160 Fi Discontinued [May 2012]
Disclaimer:
This is to remind that the Views or Opinions in the blog are entirely mine unless explicitly stated. The Views and Opinions published in this blog should in no way be related to any other person or organization associated -- directly or indirectly -- with me.
7 Comments:
Its a welcome move from honda whether it was wrong or right and we are expecting a change from unicorn, shine, Yuga(shine II). They are lazy because of their brand name.
I think HONDA got fear for hero's IGNITOR
"I think HONDA got fear for hero's IGNITOR"
- this is the best comedy i ever heard in 2013!
Unfortunately, FI Was still not Synonimous with Great Mileage.
The way I see it. What do I get for paying 20K? cleaner emissions? May be by Bharat Stage 5 standards, will force motorcycle manufacturer to move to FI. Till then I don't see FI becoming common any time soon. I would rather pay 20K for an ABS than FI.
wat abt glamour fi from hero motocorp?
Well bro Payeng, i don't know the local reality in India, but in Indonesia, bikes with fuel injection are sold for just a fraction more expensive compared with their carbureted counterparts (the same models).
For example, Honda Spacy (called Dio first gen in other south east asia countries) with carburator costs Rp 12.6 million, while the PGM-FI version costs 12.95 million, just around 3 % more expensive. The fuel saving and added performance are there, especially in CVT matic scooters, you can get up to 20-30 % more mileage with injection engine rather than carbureted one.
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