The annual Swedish Motorcycle Show MC Massan will be staged at Gothenburg on Sweden's west coast from January 24-26. Alternating with the capital Stockholm, the show is a broad based, all industry, mainstream powersports industry event that usually attracts over 50,000 visitors.
Harley unit sales in Australia through Q3 declined by -11.1% to 4,617 units for the first nine months of 2019. Its top selling model has been the FXBRS (635 units), followed by the XG500 (541) and FLFBS (335). The total market in Australia was down by -8.0% at 62,973 units for the period. Honda is market share leader with 23.1% of sales, followed by Yamaha (21%) and Kawasaki (10.6%). Indian Motorcycle sold 550 units, -11.6%, including 275 Scouts and 77 Chieftains.
Ducati is to stage its 11th biennial World Ducati Week at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli in Italy from July 17-19, 2020. In 2018 the event attracted 91,000 visitors (aka 'Ducatista') for three days of worship at the altar of all things Red.
A 1260 Pikes Peak became the 100,000th Multistrada built by Ducati in September - 16 years after the first Multistrada rolled off the assembly line. The buyer was Dave Hayward, a German 'Ducatista' who had ordered his Multistrada from the Düsseldorf dealership - it was presented to him by Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali in person.
Progressive International Motorcycle Shows (IMS) has announced the launch of "Next Steps," an extension of their Discover the Ride program which "serves the entire motorsports community by breaking down the industry's high barriers to entry." DtR introduced over 2,000 potential riders to the experience of motorcycling for the first time - "Next Steps represents an evolution of the program by helping new riders get trained. After receiving their motorcycle license, new riders can familiarize themselves with the world of motorcycling through NewTo2.com, an online platform within DtR dedicated to the continued education of the new generation of riders."
Delaware, USA based Global Market Insights, Inc., has stated that the "worldwide battery electric vehicles market was valued at US $150 billion in 2018 and will surpass US $425 billion by 2025 - an annual growth rate of 16% from 2019 to 2025."
In further signs of the global corporate re-alignment taking place as the automotive industry eyes an electric future, fierce rivals BMW Group and Daimler AG (Mercedes-Benz) have embarked on a long-term development cooperation for automated driving. The initial goal is to "develop technologies for driver assistance systems, highly automated driving on highways, and automated parking (all up to SAE Level 4)" with market launch in series production vehicles scheduled for 2024.
Swedish apparel specialist Jofama has sold its Halvarssons and Lindstrands brands. They have been designing "versatile riding apparel for motorbike riding: jackets, trousers, underwear, footwear, bags and gloves" for 70 years.
Zero Motorcycles, the world's leading manufacturer of full-sized all-electric motorcycles, has beaten off stiff competition to win the title of 'Motorcycle News (MCN) Electric Bike of the Year' in the UK. Judges called the SR/F "the genesis of a new generation of electric bikes", adding "it is a real-life road bike that works, not some long-promised unicorn." The SR/F features the new Zero Z-Force motor that delivers 190 Nm of torque and a top speed of 124 mph from a 14.4 kWh battery.
Harley-Davidson is the latest Powered Two-Wheeler (PTW) manufacturer to join BMW, Ducati, Kawasaki, Kymco, Suzuki, Triumph and Yamaha as a participant in the MCIA SECURED anti-theft initiative in the UK. The scheme gives motorcycle buyers important information about standard fit security items by allowing them to make accurate comparisons between models of interest. Every Harley model has been given a four-star rating.
Sources: AMD, IDN, FT, Reuters, PSB, MPN, B&B, BDN, MCN, AP, Bloomberg, MSNW, Electrek
