The new BS-VI vehicles reinforce the company’s leadership in innovation and technology for providing superior solutions for last mile transportation
Piaggio Vehicles (P) Ltd. (PVPL), a 100% subsidiary of the Italian Piaggio Group and India’s leading manufacturer of small commercial vehicles, showcased its entire range of BS-VI products. Positioned as the ‘Performance Range’, both diesel and alternate fuel range was on display. The diesel range boasts of a completely new power pack with a 599 cc engine pumping out 7 kw power and 23.5 Nm torque. The engine along with a 5-speed gear box and new aluminium clutch considerably increases the load carrying capability and enables faster trip times. The upgraded cargo range comes with a larger cabin, providing better head room and space for the driver, thereby increasing his productivity.
The passenger range comes with new safety doors for commuters. The alternate fuel range has been fitted with one of the most refined drive-train available in the industry with a 230 cc, 3-valve hi-tech engine. “Customers can experience a super smooth, low-noise ride with improved driveability in urban settings,” a press release said. With this showcase, Piaggio Vehicles has one of the largest product ranges in last mile mobility in India for both cargo and passenger carrying applications. The cargo range is available in deck lengths of 5, 5.5 and 6 feet and in delivery van and high body options. The passenger range is available in small body, mid-body, wide body and extra-wide body configurations.
The range is also fuel-agnostic with products available in diesel, CNG, LPG and petrol. The company has also announced the prices of the BS-VI products with the diesel range having an ex-showroom price increase of Rs. 45,000 and the alternate fuel range Rs. 15,000 over equivalent BS-IV products.
Commenting on the development, PVPL Managing Director and CEO Diego Graffi said: “We are delighted to be the first three-wheeler Manufacturer in India to be completely BS-VI ready with our entire range of products. We had started our preparations for BS-VI norms well ahead of time and therefore today we are well-placed for the transition from BS IV to BS-VI.”
Speaking on the occasion, Saju Nair, Executive Vice President and Head of CV Business, PVPL, said: “The new BS-VI ‘Performance Range’ reinforces the company’s leadership in innovation and technology for providing superior solutions for last mile transportation. The ‘Power Max’ diesel range will enable our customers to earn more through better load carrying capability and faster turnaround time and at the same time our 42 months warranty and improved maintenance intervals significantly reduces the cost for the customer. Similarly, the ‘Smart’ AF range is a benchmark for superior pickup, NVH, and urban driveability. Combined with assurance of low maintenance through 36 months warranty and the unique ‘super saver’ free maintenance scheme, this is truly a smart choice for our customers.”
Also speaking on the occasion, Malind Kapur, Senior Vice President (Marketing, Product Marketing and Channel Management, CV Business), PVPL, said: “The early adoption of BS-VI range will help us maintain channel stocks much better and ensure they have a smooth transition before the deadline of April 1, 2020. In the diesel cargo segment we have always been a market leader and I am sure that our newly launched Power Max 599 cc BS-VI cargo vehicle will further strengthen our position.”
Piaggio Vehicles has a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant at Baramati in Maharashtra with an installed annual production capacity of over 3,00,000 three-wheelers and 80,000 four-wheelers. It is also self-reliant in some of the engine categories with the completion of its advanced engines plant on the same campus.
‘We would like to be fuel agnostic and offer what the customer wants’
On the sidelines of the launch, Rajesh Rajgor caught up with Saju Nair, EVP and Head of CV Business, PVPL, to know more about Piaggio’s new BS-VI range and the company’s stand on e-mobility.
Congratulations for your first-mover advantage in the three-wheeler-category for BS-VI. What are your expectations and plans for the new regime?
Yes, we are the first in the three-wheeler industry to get ARAI approvals. Our CNG variant was approved in October and diesel in November. Diesel was a challenge as nobody expected a single-cylinder diesel engine to get upgraded to BS-VI; which our engineers have got it done. We have the entire range now in BS-VI and have started phase wise introduction starting from last month. It gives us an opportunity to phase in and phase out the BS-VI and BS-IV; so that the channel stock is managed properly. We have one of the largest networks as far as the last mile transportation is concerned with 1100 touch points and 464 dealers and we will continue to grow with support of the partners and would want to be closer to the customers as much as possible.
In terms of expectation, yes, the transition is going to be challenging and now we need to get this introduced to customers, educate them as generally the CV customers, unlike the PV ones are looking for familiarity and not too many changes. We need to walk them through the change and hence we are conducting many training programs so that our channel partners and our mechanics are aware of the change in the eco-system. Like the engine now is 599 cc pumping out almost 9.4 hp and torque of 23.5 Nm. The change in drive train 4 speed to a 5-speed gearbox, with the clutch being more robust and bigger in size, improves the life significantly. So now the customer can have a better loading capability and also faster speed and better turnaround time improving customers earn ability by almost 20 per cent. All these are value addition for the price increase the customer will face during the transition.
This is certainly a leap of technology while also taking care of customers’ operational efficiency. How did Piaggio get here?
The Piaggio Group is technologically aware and innovative. The inputs that we got from our parent company have given pace to the work and helped in the transition. The work has been going on for the last 18-24 months as most of the fraternity got that same window and the entire industry has been preparing. Once the drivetrain was in place, rest of the things followed. Fundamentally we had to get two drivetrains, one for diesel and another for the alternative powertrain. All the variants were then made around it.
There were two levels that proved our improved operational efficiency; one was on computers, putting the mechanism through jigs and fixtures which simulates different road conditions and then there were real road conditions. We have performed testing for more than a 1,00,000 kms on various terrains with different load conditions. When we are going in for such a significant powertrain change, we need to take care of all the questions pertaining to the vehicle’s operational efficiency.
Your take on the growing acceptance of battery electric three-wheelers and Piaggio’s partnership with Sun Mobility?
The way we look at it is from a pollution perspective, BS-VI is the cleanest possible in diesel variants at the moment from the current technology. There is also space for various technologies which could provide solutions in different geographies with various fuel options just as multiple product platforms. So, we would like to be fuel agnostic and be capable to deliver the products to the customers irrespective of the application, the location, the fuel and infrastructure availability. Be it petrol, diesel, CNG, LPG or electric, every technology can co-exist.
We had showcased the Apé e-City, the first 3-wheeler with smart swappable batteries in December, developed in association with Sun Mobility, a leader in electric mobility battery technology. We believe electric will take some more time, as the eco-system is getting ready and everybody is getting used to setting-up the infrastructure. So, we believe as the market improves it will be a significant part of our portfolio in the next 4 to 5 years.