UM Motorcycles has stopped production as there is a dispute in their JV with Lohia, no signs to revive the brand.
UM Motorcycles has a joint venture with Lohia Auto that was formed in 2014. The JV had set up a manufacturing plant in Kashipur, Uttarakhand with an annual capacity of 1,00,000 units. The production has now stopped and employees have been laid off. UM Motorcycles has completely stopped operations.
There is a dispute between UM and Lohia Auto. Dealers are not expecting the brand to revive anytime soon as there is no support from either of the partners. Most of the dealers have shut shop and very few are remaining that are servicing the bikes of existing customers.
Earlier this year we got some news that UM will be introducing new range of products during the festive season. However, the dealers say there is no positive sign and the company won’t restart production now.
According to Lohia Auto, there is no support from the UM side and they are in a big financial crisis in their home country. The dealers have invested around Rs. 1 crore to establish their dealership and it is a huge capital loss for the dealers.
Frequent product recalls and disputes have led to stopping the operations. The dealers have claimed that the Commando motorcycle was recalled frequently for faulty gear plate and fuel pump which was never rectified by the company.
It seems like the existing customers of UM Motorcycles and the dealers are having a tough time with this crisis. There is no positive sign on revival of production anytime soon.
UM Lohia JV
– There is a dispute in the joint venture
– The company has stopped production of bikes at their Kashipur plant
– Several dealers have shut their shop
Source – ETAuto.com
