BMW-TVS K03 confirmed with single-cylinder engine

The upcoming range of products from the TVS-BMW partnership will be 100% engineered by the German automaker while TVS will provide its skills to produce the bikes with first-class quality at cost effective prices.

The BMW-TVS partnership has been the most talked about automotive collaborations in recent times that has the entire industry keeping its tab on. The Indo-German alliance will reap in the form of new entry-level performance products that are currently under development and will be using the engineering expertise of BMW and the cost-effective manufacturing techniques of TVS in products set to be sold globally. In a recent interview, BMW CEO, Stephan Schaller elaborated on the new found alliance and also on what to expect from the upcoming entry-level performance motorcycles in the sub-500cc space.

The TVS-BMW collaboration was announced in 2013 and will see both the companies develop an all-new platform that the will churn out several new products (likely to be a street-fighter, super sport and adventure) in the next few years. Speaking on the upcoming range, Mr. Schaller stated that the products will be 100 percent engineered by BMW. The partnership has been strategized in such a way wherein TVS will be learning from the technical knowledge of the S1000RR maker while the Chennai-based automaker will be making use of its friendly cost base that BMW can benefit from globally.

Speaking further, Schaller said that TVS has high internal quality levels and it has enough reason to believe that the Indian automaker can provide first-class quality parts that will match the price at which that the company aims to retail the products. While the displacement on the engine is yet to be revealed, the BMW CEO did confirm that the powertrain will be a sub-500cc single-cylinder unit on the K03 (codename) motorcycle that will be revealed later this year. The company does not want to look into a twin-cylinder motor at present, but could be a possibility since the powertrain will be further developed over the next two years.

Furthermore, TVS too will launching its own set of models based on the newly developed platform while also sharing the engine. What does emerge as extremely positive is the fact that the products sold in high-priced markets as well as in developing markets will possess the same quality from both the manufacturers. Mr. Schaller also spoke on the clarity of the TVS-BMW partnership that has often been compared to the Bajaj-KTM alliance. Unlike the financial implications between KTM and Bajaj; BMW Motorrad and TVS do not have any financial inter-dependency and the concentration lies on building new products through mutual cooperation.

The TVS-BMW partnership has also made way for the latter’s fifth global facility that will be opened in India after Berlin, Thailand, China and Brazil. The products made at the upcoming plant will be carrying the BMW Motorrad badge and will be catering to the export markets as well. Given BMW’s highly impressive lineup of superbikes, the wait for the first product from the alliance only gets interesting on what could possibly be a game changer.