Bajaj Auto has produced over 2000-2500 units of the RE60 quadricycle in left-hand drive and right-hand drive configurations at the company’s Waluj plant hinting towards exports operations to commence soon. As reports suggests the quadricycles are going through the final stages of testing and validation before they are ready for exports. The two-wheeler manufacturer had been waiting for government approval to ply quadricycles on our roads for over two years, which was recently cleared, making RE60s Indian launch somewhere in the last quarter of this year, October mostly.
Bajaj is most likely to export the RE60 quadricycle before the Indian launch, as the company does not need local approval to exports these vehicles. The Indian launch however will be in the last quarter of this year as the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) has given the nod to quadricycles to ply on our roads after 1st October. While the markets where the RE60 will be sold is unknown, Bajaj had earlier shown interest in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nigeria and Peru as potential markets for retailing quadricycles in the future.
Apart from Bajaj, other manufacturers like Piaggio, Tata Motors and Mahindra have also shown interest in the all new segment and are most likely to launch their iterations soon after the RE60 goes on sale. The quadricycles will be registered as commercial vehicles and will also need separate permits from the regional transport offices to ply on roads. The RE60 is touted as the potential successor to the three-wheeled auto-rickshaws in the country.
The Bajaj RE60 quadricycle is a light weight four-wheeler that uses a monocoque body and is powered by a 216cc, 4-stroke, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled engine that uses triple-spark ignition technology and produces 20 BHP of power, paired to a 5-speed manual transmission. The RE60 returns a claimed fuel efficiency of 35 km/l, while emitting less than 60 g/km of CO2. The top speed of the quadricycle is limited to 70 km/hr. The RE60 will also come with alternate fuel options inclusive of LPG and CNG. The quadricycle is expected to come with a price tag of around Rs. 1.95 lakhs (ex-showroom) and will be a lot safer than three-wheeled rickshaws.
Source – Autocar Professional
