Motorcycle Industry in freefall

[ashman]

I think a SIGNIFICANT big blow to the motorcycle industry (far more so than the auto industry) is Electric bicycles and Electric motorcycles.

Kids nowdays start out with them, and stick with them. They also don't seem to have the same interest level in highway riding, so no need for road hogs, either.

And a lot more fires, here in Aus so many houses have burned down to the ground from charging these things and there are more deaths from 4 wheelers and quad bikes than 2 wheeler dirt bikes, well here anyway, roll overs are the biggest cause of death.
As for the motorcycle dealerships the cost of living has got out of control, people are spending less and the bigger dealerships are finding it hard if they only deal in one brand, Harley have brought in new models which are over priced and their quality is not as good with lots of problems that they won't admit.
The dealerships that sell different brands are doing well here, my Triumph dealership sell a lot they have 4 shops beside one another Triumph, RE, Honda, KTM, BMW, Harley as well a big accessory shop, they have shops like this all over my state of Queensland and can get major savings buying new old stock bikes and they have good deals on late model bikes as well good workshops for every brand they sell as well good service people well trained and all the good gear to do all major work.
Not all people can afford or need all the gadget and whistles that these big Harley models seem to be catering too, who needs a sound system that blares out louder than the bike and that big windscreen they look so ugly, might be great on long traveling but most owners only do short rides on the weekends.
I am happy with my old Norton and my 2016 Thruxton, look after them and they will see me out I have no intension to buying a new bike, the Thruxton was the last one for me and both bikes keep me amused and go where ever I want and I can still work on them without paying over priced workshop fees, and I very rarely buy parts, I have done all the upgrades I need and both bikes are very reliable all because I do all my own maintenance, my Norton is showing its age but it keeps a going.

Ashley

 

[MichaelB]

This didn't start yesterday. A local HD dealer which had been in business since the 50's closed it's doors in 2010. Just a small place with about a dozen bikes on display. HD MOCO wanted all dealers to have these mega dealerships. This was not feasible for Mills HD. Their property left them no room to expand. Supposedly they sold their rights to Hannum's HD who would open a dealership 10 miles down the road. Hannum's intended to open in an old car dealership. HD MOCO turned them down since the site didn't have access from both sides of the roadway. They, the MOCO created their own demise.

The MOCO banked on the market where the baby boomers were buying there product. From the mid 90's until mid 2000's. That's when all the Boomer's with loot, who wanted to be COOL bought a Harley. As it stands today, there are a lot of low milage Harleys around, ready for the next buyer. Why would you buy new when you could get something for a third of the price?

The Irony is. I don't care for the mega dealerships, whether it M/C's or autos.
I much prefer the smaller, more intimate shops.
It's becoming more obvious I am not the target buyer..

 

[johnm]

In NZ the dealerships in the smaller provincial and country towns are the ones that seem to have a more stable business model.

They make their money selling and servicing the side by side quads and farm bikes used by almost every farmer. The bigger tractors and trucks are too expensive and hard on the muddy fields compared to the big quads that seem to be able to do 90 % of the work.

Go into the workshop of my local dealer and they have about 5 lifts for the bike quads and one maybe two for bikes.

The showroom has a few street bikes but mostly off road and farm bikes.

Actually just visited the local shop down the road to get fork oil. Yamaha, Enfield and Can Am dealer.

He said the only bikes they sell a lot of are motocross bikes. Farm area so lots of off road riding. On the floor 75 % of the bikes were off road. No lights or road equipment.

Front yard is full of these. They clearly make their money from working farm vehicles.

 

[possm]

He said the only bikes they sell a lot of are motocross bikes. Farm area so lots of off road riding. On the floor 75 % of the bikes were off road. No lights or road equipment.

John in our country the biggest problem is the registration of motorcycles due to the ACC component, most guys I know put their bikes on hold from June to October, when you are not riding your bike you are not buying gloves jackets etc" so how else does a dealer keep hs doors open.

 

[johnm]

He said the only bikes they sell a lot of are motocross bikes. Farm area so lots of off road riding. On the floor 75 % of the bikes were off road. No lights or road equipment.

John in our country the biggest problem is the registration of motorcycles due to the ACC component, most guys I know put their bikes on hold from June to October, when you are not riding your bike you are not buying gloves jackets etc" so how else does a dealer keep hs doors open.

Very true. Modern bikes are very expensive to register for the road. Off road costs nothing.

Fortunately any bike over 40 years old is much cheaper. The only bike I register year round is my Commando. But that's not going to work for 95% of young people.

I actually went on a protest to parliament back in the 1970s about the ACC costs back then.

For the non New Zealanders ACC means no fault accident compensation. Pays for medical expenses and around 70 % loss of salery if you can't work. Introduced to stop most of the money going to lawyers for liability court cases.

Unfortunately it also means any normal average rider gets to pay the hospital costs of morons who ride like **** on bikes built like ****.

 

[Lineslinger]

KTM rescued by Indian motorcycle giant with a $900-million lifeline

How KTM was rescued by the world's third-largest motorcycle maker – and $900 million

Bajaj Auto, the world's third largest motorcycle manufacturer, has gone from a partner of KTM to taking over the Austrian brand altogether. That's thanks to a €800-million (US$905-million) shot in the arm from the Indian two-wheeler giant that will enable KTM to bring its production facilities…

newatlas.com

 

[seattle##gs]

They need to produce a low cost entry level motorcycle. And something that can be worked on by it's owner.

 

[nortonmargie]

They need to produce a low cost entry level motorcycle. And something that can be worked on by it's owner.

e. g. : A Royal Enfield.

 

[acotrel]

I had a motorcycle licence at age 18, and did not have car licence until I was 21. - I was 29 years old when I began racing motorcycles. The first time I raced, I chucked the bike up the road at about 90 MPH at the end of the front straight at Calder Raceway. My two sons aged 7 and 9, were standing there watching. I am glad that I have never had to watch them road racing motorcycles, The older one had a ZXR750 Kawasaki and took me for a ride on the back. There is a double curve in a local road, and he went through there at about 50 MPH. When we got home, he asked 'how was that, Dad'. I said 'very good Geoffrey'. I did not tell him how fast I had ridden through that double curve.
Some of my mates also raced motorcycles - they used to egg each other on. It is something I always avoided. I can ride faster than most other guys, but I never tell them that. If they race against me, they find out for themselves. Even then, I never do things too convincingly. I don't create hurdles for myself.

 

[acotrel]

'For the non New Zealanders ACC means no fault accident compensation. Pays for medical expenses and around 70 % loss of salery if you can't work. Introduced to stop most of the money going to lawyers for liability court cases.'

I did not know that. In Australia, lawyers advertise 'no win-no fee' and they take about one-half. But that half might be at the lawyers' discretion. I don't like riding motorcycles on public roads in Australia - to our drivers motorcycles pose no threat, so are invisible.
My wife is a pretty swish car driver - she approaches the backs of cars which are stopped at traffic lights, with full braking. What do you think happened when a beginner behind her was driving while watching her brake lights ?