Honda looks to overtake Hero as two-wheel leader by 2015

Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India, the Indian arm of Japanese automobile major Honda Motor Co Ltd, said on Monday that it expects to emerge as the country's biggest two-wheeler manufacturer by 2015, over taking its erstwhile partner and current market leader Hero MotoCorp.

The company had earlier projected that it would become the market leader by 2020. It has now advanced its target by five years, calculating that the continuing slump in the industry would work to its advantage.

''The current market size in India is 1.4 crore (140 million). If it remains at the same levels, with no growth happening, we may be number one by 2015-16,'' Shinji Aoyama, chief operating officer motorcycle operations said during a press conference in New Delhi.

In aiming for more ambitious targets, the company clearly has calculated that the current slowdown in the Indian economy, and hence vehicle sales, will continue for some years to come. A revival won't help its cause given its limited capacity, as Aoyama said.

''Once growth happens, Hero and Bajaj have more capacity and room to produce in the present conditions,'' he said.

He indicated that Honda considers Bajaj a stronger player than Hero, despite the latter's current market leadership.