SIAM Sales April 2024: Battle Of The Sub-500cc Supersports - Aprilia RS 457, Yamaha R3 & Kawasaki Ninja 500

The 300-500cc supersport segment has seen a number of new bikes entering the two-wheeler market in the last few months. And among them, the Aprilia RS 457 was the best performer in the month of April 2024, with a total of 231 units sold according to the latest SIAM (Society of Indian Automotive Manufacturers) sales data. 

Compared to that, just  34 units of the Yamaha R3 and 17 units of the Kawasaki Ninja 500 were sold last month. The Aprilia RS 457 and the Yamaha R3 were launched in December 2023 and the Kawasaki Ninja 500 was launched in February 2024. The Aprilia’s higher sales figures of the RS 457 aren’t surprising because at a price tag of Rs 4,10,000 (ex-showroom Maharashtra), the bike is priced quite competitively and offers good value.

The Yamaha R3 is Rs 54,900 more expensive than the RS 457 despite having a smaller capacity engine andlesser features. The Ninja 500 is Rs 1,14,000 more expensive than the Aprilia RS 457. One important thing to note here is that the R3 and the Ninja 500 are available in India as CBU (Completely Built-Up) units, while the RS 457 is manufactured in Aprilia’s plant in Baramati, Maharashtra. 

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The other major player in this segment is the KTM RC 390. However, KTM does not release individual sales figures of all the bikes in its lineup but rather cumulative sales figures according to their engine capacities. So, for the month of April 2024, KTM sold 633 units of bikes in the 350-500cc category, which includes the KTM 390 Duke, KTM RC 390 and the KTM 390 Adventure. Out of these three bikes, we think the 390 Duke must have outsold the other two bikes because its latest-gen model has the more powerful engine (unlike the other two, which still have the older engine) and being a streetfighter, is more versatile to use on a daily basis.