In Switzerland Harley-Davidson scooped 4th place in market share of new motorcycle registrations in 2016; they sold an impressive 3,032 units (down a little from 3,384 units sold 2015) in a market worth 26,391 motorcycles in total (27,319 in 2015). Yamaha is market leader there, with BMW second.
J&P Cycles has entered into an exclusive partnership with insurance provider GEICO. Riders can now receive personal insurance consultations from GEICO at J&P Cycles stores during Bike Week in Daytona Beach, Florida, and the Sturgis Rally in South Dakota. “Our customers are passionate about customizing their motorcycles. Coverage of accessories is critical, and we think GEICO does that best,” said Zach Parham, Vice President and general manager of J&P Cycles.
Harley-Davidson took top market share honors in road bike sales in Australia for 2016, selling 10,282 new bikes there for a leading segment share of 21.5 per cent.
Polaris has declared a 5 percent increase in the regular quarterly cash dividend, raising the pay-out to $0.58 per share. This increase represents the 22nd consecutive year of Polaris increasing its dividend effective with the 2017 first quarter dividend. CEO Scott Wine: “We have maintained a disciplined, consistent approach to returning cash to shareholders, and dividends remain one of the important ways we can deliver further value. This underscores our steady cash flow generation, and continued strong financial position.”
Though a small market (43,621 units sold in total in 2016), Harley-Davidson is in 5th place in market share terms in Austria among the “big boys”, having sold 1,142 motorcycle there last year, up from 992 in 2015). Indian was 11th in class, selling 82 units (44 in 2015).
Germany has approved a draft law allowing for autonomously driving cars to be active on German streets. Crucially, within the law, responsibility for mishaps continue to rest firmly in the hands of the driver, but allows for the driver to hand control of his or her vehicle to the vehicle’s own control system in certain situations and for certain periods of time. The law would require a form of ‘black box’, which would record all driving data and thereby be decisive in disputes over liability, should the autonomous driving technology fail.
A U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission report shows a continuing decline in the number of ATV deaths and injuries. The report finds a “statistically significant decreasing linear trend” in ATV related injuries for 2007-2015. For 2007 to 2012 reported ATV related fatalities declined by 31 percent, and ATV related fatalities involving children declined by 50 percent. Reporting for 2013 to 2015 is ongoing.
The second annual woman-led ADVWoman Rally will be held July 20-23, 2017 at Flying Heels Rodeo Arena in Granby, Colorado. Organized for women and families, the event will include a variety of self-guided rides, Geocache scavenger hunt, classroom training sessions as well as on-range adventure and dirt bike rider training. All the instructors will be women, but men are welcome too.
U.S. media giant Liberty Media has completed its planned take-over of Formula 1 racing in January for a reported $8bn. The broadcaster is proposing to add at least two more GP races to the schedule in the USA – at present the annual US GP is staged at the purpose-built Circuit of the Americas at Austin, Texas – also home to the US MotoGP.
Designed as a loyalty-generating complementary shop differentiator to boost pre-owned motorcycle sales, EFG Companies of Irving, Texas, is offering U.S. motorcycle dealers a “Million Mile Club” warranty promotion on powertrains on approved, carefully inspected, pre-owned motorcycles. Available on models current plus 10 years with less than 60,000 miles, 1,000,000 Mile Limited Powertrain Protection focuses on expensive powertrain components such as engine, transmission, primary drive and drive axle; available for 12/24/36 month coverage, and for new motorcycles. Additional component coverage and benefits such as roadside assistance also available.