The Jupiter, TVS Motor Co’s best-selling and also flagship scooter sold in 110cc and 125cc avatars, has just notched yet another sales milestone: 6 million units. Launched in India on September 16, 2013, the TVS Jupiter’s 60-lakh unit sales milestone has come up in 10 years and two months, with the last million units taking 16 months, the 5-million landmark having been surpassed in June 2022.
From launch a decade ago through till end-October 2023, the Jupiter has gone home to an estimated 60,87,695 buyers across India. TVS Motor Co has also exported 57,155 Jupiter scooters between FY2014 and FY2023.
This popular scooter’s best 12-month sales came in FY2018 when it sold 810,916 units, averaging monthly sales of 67,576 units. However, FY2024 just might be the Jupiter’s best fiscal yet – between April-October 2023, the Jupiter has clocked an estimated 492,991 units, averaging 70,427 units a month. With five months left for the ongoing fiscal to end and given the current momentum, the Jupiter could be riding towards a new big record.
The Jupiter gave a glimpse of its promising future soon after launch. On May 14, 2015, the scooter crossed the 500,000-unit sales mark. Thirty months on, on June 13, 2016, it crossed the million sales mark. On September 26, 2017, the 2-million sales mark was surpassed. The four-million milestone came up early in FY2021 and five million in June 2022. In celebration of the five-million sales milestone, on September 23, 2022, TVS launched the 110cc Jupiter Classic in the top-of-the-line spec with disc brakes, priced at Rs 85,866 (ex-showroom, Delhi).
The TVS Jupiter is the closest rival to India’s best-selling scooter, the Honda Activa, which recently surpassed the 30-million-unit sales milestone.
What has helped the Jupiter sustain itself as well as grow its market share is TVS regularly introducing variants and upgrades. Having seen its first 125cc scooter, the NTorq make strong market gains right from launch in February 2018 and sell over 200,000 units in FY2019, TVS introduced the Jupiter 125cc in October 2021. The feature-laden, bigger and more powerful Jupiter 125cc with industry-first features such as the largest under-seat storage, segment-leading longest seat, neo-masculine styling and high mileage has proved to be a growth driver for the brand, alongside the original 110cc model.
The past few months have seen new variants being introduced to capitalise on the festive season demand. In August 2023, TVS launched the Jupiter ZX Drum, priced at Rs 84,468 (ex-showroom Delhi). It has TVS’ Bluetooth-enabled SmartXonnect technology that allows riders to experience a host of connected features, including turn-by-turn navigation, voice assist and notification alerts. The scooter also comes with a built-in USB charger. The Jupiter ZX Drum continues to be powered by the air-cooled, 109.7cc, single-cylinder engine which develops maximum power of 7.8hp and 8.8 Nm of torque.
RIDING THE TECH TALK
On October 17, 2023, TVS rolled out the Jupiter 125 SmartXonnect at Rs 96,855 (ex-showroom, Delhi). Like the Ntorq XT, this scooter gets a TFT dash that enables you to connect your smartphone to it via Bluetooth. The Jupiter 125 is powered by an air-cooled, 124.8cc, single-cylinder engine which develops 8.2hp and 10.5 Nm torque.
Bluetooth-connected TFT digital cluster on the Jupiter 125 has a host of first-in-class connected features.
The digital dash delivers new features including real-time sporting match updates, alerts from food and shopping apps, news and weather updates and voice assistance. This is addition to the usual suite of connectivity which includes call, message alerts and turn-by-turn navigation.
With this latest iteration, the TVS Jupiter range stands expanded to seven variants – four of the 110cc variant and three 125cc – with prices ranging from Rs 73,240 through to Rs 89,648 (ex-showroom Delhi).
Of TVS’ estimated cumulative sales of 96,96,222 scooters from FY2014 till end-October 2023, the Jupiter accounts for 60,87,695 units or 63 percent.
JUPITER POWERS TVS SCOOTER MARKET SHARE TO 25%
Since its launch 10 years ago, the Jupiter has helped give TVS a strong position in India’s scooter market. Within a year of its launch, TVS’ scooter market share grew from 12.68% to 15.19% in FY2015 and 16.36% in FY2018, when the TVS NTorq was introduced in the penultimate month of that fiscal. Since then, the Jupiter-NTorq combine has accelerated TVS’ scooter market share to 25%, which is next only to market leader Honda which has 44 percent in the April-October 2023 period.
Proof of the Jupiter powering TVS’s scooter sales can be amply seen in the company’s sales numbers. Of the company’s cumulative sales of 96,96,222 scooters from FY2014 till end-October 2023, the Jupiter accounts for 60,87,695 units which makes for a contribution of 62.78 percent.
MAINTAINING THE TEMPO IN CURRENT FISCAL
A look at the SIAM wholesales numbers for 10 scooter OEMs in the first seven months of FY2024 reveals that of the top five OEMs with six-figure sales, TVS has registered 10% YoY growth, which gives it a market share of 24.88%, up from the 24% it had a year ago. Scooter market leader Honda remains unassailable with a 44% share albeit that has reduced from 48% in April-October 2022.
TVS has registered 10% YoY growth in its scooter sales in the first 7 months of FY2024. With 492,991 units, the Jupiter accounts for 57% of TVS sales.
The importance of scooters to TVS Motor Co’s overall market standing can be gleaned from the fact that of the total 18,58,778 two-wheelers, including motorcycles, the company has sold in the first seven months of FY2023, 859,961 scooters account for 46.26%, followed by motorcycles (722,748 units / 38.88% share) and mopeds (276,069 units / 14.85 % share).
With 492,991 Jupiters sold between April-October 2023, TVS Motor Co’s flagship accounts for the bulk of the company’s scooter sales – 57.32% – maintaining its numero uno status. The NTorq 125, with 203,568 units, has a 23.67% share in the first seven months of FY2024. Considering that the Jupiter has clocked its best-ever monthly sales of 91,823 units in a festive October, expect the strong growth trajectory to continue in the coming months.
ALSO READ:
Scooter sales hit 589,802 units in October, best in first 7 months of FY2024
Winners and losers in India’s bike and scooter market in first-half FY2024
Electric two-wheeler retails in first 10 months of 2023 surpass CY2022’s record sales