Largest Honda two wheeler plant worldwide to be in India

Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) will invest Rs 920 crore rupees to add a fourth production line at its Vithalapur plant in Gujarat, the company said on Thursday. The move aims to meet rising demand in the world’s largest two-wheeler market.

1. Fourth production line to be added to Vithalapur plant
2. Aims to increase production to 7 million units by 2027

Honda’s plant expansion

The company recently celebrated its global milestone of producing 500 million two-wheelers.

HMSI currently operates four manufacturing facilities in India—Manesar, Haryana (38,000 units), Tapukara, Rajasthan (1.3 million units), Narasipura, Karnataka (2.5 million units), and Vithalapur, Gujarat (1.96 million units)—with a total capacity of 6.14 million units. The additional fourth line at the Vithalapur facility will add 650,000 units to its annual production capacity, increasing the plant’s total output to 2.61 million units. With this expansion, HMSI’s total production capacity across India will rise to approximately 7 million units by 2027. This new line will make it one of the largest two-wheeler manufacturing sites globally, HMSI said.

Meanwhile, Honda also has plans to set up a new plant dedicated for electric vehicles within the premises of its existing facility there, which is expected to be operational in 2028. The Japanese company is looking at India as an export base for global markets. The company has plans to launch at least one electric model every year globally.

HMSI’s CEO, Tsutsumu Otani, emphasized the investment’s role in supporting India’s growing market and expanding exports to over 62 countries, including Central and South America. The expansion will also create 1,800 jobs, supporting local economic growth. HMSI also celebrated its 25th year in India and a local milestone of 70 million two-wheelers produced. The company, known for its ICE vehicles reiterated its commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050 and zero traffic-related pollution for its motorcycles and cars globally by the same year.

Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India’s expansion

The company first established itself in India back in 1999

The expansion has to be seen in the context of HMSI’s stated ambition to replace Hero MotoCorp as India’s largest two-wheeler maker. Since their 2011 split, Hero has dominated motorcycle sales in India, particularly in rural markets with models like Splendor, while HMSI leads the scooter segment with Activa, holding over 60 percent market share.

HMSI, which is currently the second largest two-wheeler with a share of around 26 percent in the domestic market, has set its sight on becoming the number one player in India, outpacing Hero MotorCorp. The company has seen robust growth in volumes over the recent years with strong demand for scooters and 125-150cc motorcycles. Over the last couple of years, Honda has significantly reduced the volume gap with its erstwhile partner Hero MotorCorp.

In the domestic market here, Honda has aggressively grown its volume from 3.87 million units in 2020-21 to 5.33 million units in 2024-25. The automaker exported around 5 lakh units in the last financial year. For FY26 alone, the company is targeting 6.26 million units, up from 5.86 million in FY25, representing a 7 percent year-on-year increase. The company is aiming to grow its exports by double digits to 5.6 lakh units versus 5.05 lakh units it shipped in FY24, reinforcing India’s growing role as an export hub.

With inputs from KETAN THAKKAR

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