Why Honda Bravo?

taken from Honda Philippines Website (www.hondaph.com)

New Concept of Affordability Without Sacrificing High Quality

By closely observing Filipino riders’ penchant for modifying their motorcycle units, which many times occur as soon as the new unit rolls out of the dealership for the first time, Honda found that majority of users install a myriad of aftermarket parts readily available at very affordable prices in their dealer of choice.

Among the first to be replaced aside from the “stock” bolts and nuts (replaced by colorful ones) include the handle bar, the tires and rims, the muffler, the body stickers, the side mirrors…and yes you got it right—the side stand (replaced by colored or stainless-finish after market versions) and the rear grab (many times the rear grab comes off and is not replaced at all). The stock parts that were substituted with after market parts either are discarded or are put away in some obscure storage space at the riders’ homes only to be forgotten sooner than later.

And so Honda, after months of actual market observation and after asking hundreds of potential buyers and current users of motorcycles identified specific parts that are most commonly taken out of the stock motorcycle unit and used this market data to develop a motorcycle that give buyers the freedom to do as they please and install the side stand of their choice or take out the rear grab as they desire, aside of course from doing their fancy of modifying many other parts.

Honda then completely passed on the cost reduction benefits straight to the customer, thus allowing SRP (Suggested Retail Price) to fall to just P39,900 (SRP does not include freight and other incidental delivery charges). By achieving a lower SRP, the buyers will then enjoy commensurately lower down payment and more affordable monthly installment as well.

In contrast, had Honda retained stock parts that were commonly taken out during the user’s modification binge anyway, the cost of the Bravo would have escalated up to the price of the fully-equipped Wave100 (Drum-type) which is priced at P43,000---and naturally down payment and monthly installment all goes up as well, and what for since some of these parts are discarded anyway.

Engineers and marketing executives at Honda argued “why should we make the customer pay for a side stand or rear grab that he will replace or all-together remove very soon anyway. Better to price the Bravo at P39,900 and allow the buyer to purchase his side stand and other parts at very attractive prices in the aftermarket, at his own convenient time.”

With this strategy, the cost of the unwanted “stock parts” did not anymore add to the SRP and were not carried into the computation of the down payment and the monthly installment that the buyer has to pay when he acquires the unit on financing. Thus, with Honda’s new concept of affordability, the customer rides away in his new Honda Bravo with thousands of pesos in real cost savings (coming from unwanted stock parts and from the reduction in his down payment and recurring monthly installment payments).

And so even with its “easy-on-the-pocket” price, the Honda Bravo keeps all the unique features that make Honda motorcycles No. 1 in the market (such as Honda’s high quality and durability, class-leading 100cc fuel efficient engine, attractive design, comfortable suspension, U-box, Automatic Headlight On safety feature, among others).
www.hondaph.com/products.html

Age of Electric Start is At-hand

Honda likewise conducted countless controlled-environment and actual road endurance tests on the reliability of Honda’s electric start system. Such studies confirmed the unmatched reliability of Honda’s electric start system that is found on each and every Honda motorcycle unit including the Bravo. With such a reliable electric start system, the kick arm becomes a mere novelty that pretty much becomes irrelevant to the motorcycle user so long as he replaces his battery when its rated service-life comes to pass.

Thus in this age of electric start motorcycles, having the kick start could just be a mere novelty that adds an unnecessary premium on the “affordable motorcycle” unit’s selling price. The electric start system on Honda motorcycles now rival the reliability of those found on cars.