Hero MotoCorp unveils Mavrick 440 roadster, gears up for Feb rollout

Niranjan Gupta CEO (L) and Pawan Munjal (R) Executive Chairman Hero MotoCorp launching the Mavrick 440

Nearly two weeks after christening its maiden premium offering, the Mavrick 440, Hero MotoCorp has unveiled the bike at its Global Centre of Innovation and Technology (CIT), Jaipur. This latest motorcycle, which is based on the same platform which underpins the Harley-Davidson X440 released last year, will be available in Hero's flagship showrooms, including 'Premia', which also sells the Karizma XMR and Xpulse.

While the bookings for the Mavrick 440 will start in February, the deliveries will kick off in April.

“In the (middleweight bike) market, there are offerings which are Classic and traditional roadster (segments). What we have created is a modern roadster. We know that there is a class of customers, who are huge in numbers and growing,” Niranjan Gupta, chief executive officer of Hero MotoCorp, told reporters on the sidelines of the event.

He also claimed that as per the company's internal research, there is a new section of customers which, despite looking for comfort, is also looking for a “modern roadster” and Maverick is meeting that requirement.

Hero MotoCorp and Harley-Davidson had earlier collaborated to jointly develop middleweight bikes, starting with a shared platform for X440 and Mavrick 440. Both the premium bikes will be rolled out from Hero MotoCorp’s Neemrana facility in Rajasthan.

Also Read: Harley Davidson X440, co-developed by Hero Motocorp, launched in India at starting price of Rs 2.29 lakh

Estimated to be priced in the range of Rs 2,10,000-2,20,000 (ex-showroom), the roadster will be available in three variants - base, mid and top. Once launched, it will be taking on, apart from H-D X440, KTM 390 Duke, Honda CB 350, Royal Enfield Bullet, Classic 350, Triumph Scrambler, Speed 400 and more.

“In the premium (segment), the pricing hasn’t been and will not be the first port of call or the strategy to sell. We are powering our products with features based on the customers’ requirement and the confidence that we got from the (Harley) X440 and Karizma (XMR), actually tells us that Maverick also will be a hue success,'' added Gupta.

Just like the Harley Davidson X440, the new bike by Hero will be powered by a 440cc air-cooled, single-cylinder, BSVI and E20-compliant engine that is mated with a 6-speed gearbox. The engine generates a power output of 27 bhp at 6,000 rpm and a maximum torque of 36 NM at 4,000 rpm.

Hero MotoCorp has already garnered orders of 25,000 units of X440 since its launch and has added another 5,000 units to the orderbook. In order to meet the demand of both the 440cc models, the New Delhi -based company stated that it is enhancing the production of both the models from 6,000 units currently to 10,000 units per month by March’24.

Gupta affirmed that he doesn’t foresee any kind cannibalistion between the models. In his view, “If you look at the two bikes, one is a Classic legacy heritage and comes from a Harley brand roadster, which is for the people who want to stick to those kinds.  But there are a lot of youngsters who want a modern roadster. As the customers dont have much choice, we see this (Mavrick) disrupt the whole category, which itself is very large.”

As per auto industry data, motorbikes in the 250-500cc market accounted for roughly 770,000 units during FY 2023 with Royal Enfield commanding a lion’s share of 93 percent. Gupta anticipates the entire segment to grow to 10,00,000 units per annum in the next couple of years.

Hero MotoCorp also launched the Xtreme 125R priced at Rs. 95,000 for IBS variant and Rs. 99,500 for ABS trim (ex-showroom Delhi).