TVS Motors, India’s only moped maker, July sales fall 19.2 pct

Sales of mopeds from the only manufacturer in the country — TVS Motors — has witnessed a decline since March 2017 on a year-on-year basis leading to the sharpest fall in July when it declined by a huge 19.20% to 60,589 units. During the April-June quarter of FY18, moped sales declined by 10.91% at 193,493 units against 217,201 units in the same period a year ago. However, in FY17, total domestic sales of mopeds at 890,367 units was higher than that of scooters which was at 826,291 units. According to Abdul Majeed, Partner PwC, consumers’ preferences are changing from mopeds to other two-wheelers. “More options are available to them in the scooter segment in the `40,000-50,000 range with 53 kmpl to 67 kmpl mileage,” he added.

In the scooter segment, TVS Scooty Sneak and Honda Activa are the top picks. Majeed pointed out that scooters score over mopeds since they are considered as family vehicles by customers. Most of the moped demand in the country comes from villages and Tier-III towns. It is easy to ride, solidly built and known for its mileage of 67 kmpl-plus. At R31,348 ex-showroom, TVS XL-100 mopeds are the cheapest two-wheelers on sale in India. But it seems that the preference is shifting towards scooters because of their overall utility.

TVS Motors sold 674,567 units of two-wheelers during April-June FY18 in the domestic market, up by 10.30% against 611,590 units sold in the same time frame last year. Of this, sale of mopeds stood at 193,493 units, motorcycles at 231,997 units, and scooters 249,077 units.

TVS Motors’ declined to comment to an email query seeking to know the reasons for decline in sales of mopeds.

TVS Motor Company