If small is the big idea for cars, then bigger is better for bikes. At least that’s the Bajaj strategy. The company will launch a slew of big bikes over the next 6 months with partners KTM and Kawasaki. These will include Kawasaki's Ninja 250 and KTM's 690 duke and the RC8 super bike. To further cement its alliance with KTM, Bajaj has hiked its stake in the company from 14.5 % in November last year to 21%. This could be hiked even further.

Rudolf Knunz, Chairman - Supervisory Board, KTM said, “Bajaj has 21% stake in KTM, and we expect it to go above 25% and want Rajiv Bajaj on the supervisory board of KTM.

KTM and Bajaj plan to manufacture bikes on 2 platforms - 125 and 250 cc and may even develop scooters on that platform. Eventually KTM plans to use India as an export hub and may eventually even look at setting up a plant if the demand is more than 1 lakh units.

Stefan Pierer, CEO, KTM, said, “It’s not out of reach, depends on demand - if its a 100,000 units, Bajaj can manage but if its more then look at setting up plant.”

Meanwhile Bajaj's 25-year-old partner Kawasaki, will bring in their range of bikes including the Ninja 250, Sports Roadster, Ninja ZX-6R, Z1000 and the Vulcan Cruiser. These will be sold by Bajaj at their Probiking showrooms soon. In return, Bajaj will get assistance in technology and design development from Kawasaki for future products. Kawasaki will also tap into Bajaj's extensive supplier base for sourcing components. Kawasaki will provide the necessary service training and parts back-up to ensure the upkeep of such high performance bikes. To start with, the Ninja 250 model will be assembled at Bajaj's Chakan facility after being imported as CKDs from Kawasaki's Thailand plant. Bajaj has 10 Probiking showrooms in the country, with a presence in all major markets. The company plans to add 10 more showrooms by end of March 2008.