TVS Motor rides into fuel efficiency war game

TVS Motor Company is the latest to have entered the high fuel efficiency two-wheeler arena. The Chennai-based manufacturer has announced the launch of the TVS Sport commuter bike with a high mileage of 95 kilometres per litre (kpl) under standard drive cycle conditions.

The earlier Sport model had a fuel efficiency of 87.7kpl, which means TVS’ engineering team has managed to reduce friction levels sizeably in the new DuraLife engine and in turn lesser stress on the engine, leading to more efficient fuel consumption. The company says refined ignition timing complements the overall low dry mass to provide improved mileage.

Along with mileage improvement, some new features have been introduced in the TVS Sport including an all-gear electric start, aluminium grab rail, chrome muffler guard and a sporty instrument cluster.

“Today’s consumers are looking for stylish, exciting, new and high quality products which offer good value. We have added new features and have tuned the engine such that it returns better fuel economy. The TVS Sport is a well-styled, feature-rich product which delivers high on both mileage and durability, making it one of the best value-for-money brands in its segment,” said K N Radhakrishnan, president and CEO, TVS Motor Company.

Bajaj Auto launched two new commuter bikes this year, both banking on high fuel efficiency. In March this year, the company rolled out the new Platina ES developed on a new platform. Powered by a new DTS-i engine, the new commuter bike is claimed to have delivered 96.9 kilometres per litre as tested by the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI). Then, it relaunched the CT100 model in an attempt to boost monthly sales volumes, has done the trick for the company at the lower end of the commuter motorcycle market. The CT100, a 99.27cc commuter motorcycle, is also the most affordable motorcycle from the Bajaj Auto stable.

Just about a month later, Hero MotoCorp announced that iCAT (International Centre for Automotive Technology) had certified its Splendor iSmart model for delivering a mileage of 102.50 kilometres per litre of petrol under ideal test conditions.

It is understood that the high-selling CT100 has eaten into volumes of the Hero Splendor. It is just this space which TVS Motor is targeting with the new Sport with its more mileage mantra.