Harley-Davidson, Indian and Polaris dealers have been ranked highest in a 2022 Pied Piper PSI Internet Lead Effectiveness Motorcycle/UTV Industry study measuring response to website customers - "despite inventory shortages and COVID-19, dealers who responded quickly by email, phone and text showed markedly stronger sales to web customers.
Harley has announced that Kjell Gruner and William (Bill) Cornog are to join the LiveWire board of directors on completion of the merger with AEA-Bridges Impact Corp. ("ABIC"), along with Dr. John Garcia (representing ABIC), Jochen Zeitz and H-D executives Gina Goetter (CFO), Edel O'Sullivan, CCO, and Bryan Niketh, SVP Motor Company Product and Operations. Gruner is CEO of Porsche Cars NA, served as Porsche CMO for a decade and as Director of Strategy Mercedes-Benz Cars for Daimler prior to that. Cornog is a Managing Partner of KKR Capstone.
Asphalt & Rubber has reported that Harley sold 2,500 Pan Americas in the USA in 2021.
The NHTSA in the United States has issued what it is referencing as "final rules" for fully autonomous vehicle manufactures. There is a big, fundamental change. The new "rules" roll back the requirement previously stipulated within SAE J3016 for Level 5 full-time autonomy to still have controls for human override. That requirement has now been eliminated, meaning that vehicle manufacturers are not compelled to equip fully autonomous vehicles with manual driving controls in order to meet crash standards. General Motors Co. and its self-driving technology unit Cruise petitioned the NHTSA for permission to build and deploy a self-driving vehicle without human controls such as steering wheels or brake pedals. The rules revise regulations that assume vehicles "will always have a driver's seat, a steering wheel and accompanying steering column, or just one front outboard passenger seating position," according to the NHTSA.
Following the resolution of the tariff disputes between the EU and USA, Web Bike World (citing Business Times) reports that a new US-UK Trade Deal (designed to "counter China's Unfair Trade Practices") will remove tariffs from H-D motorcycles and protect US/UK steel and aluminum.
The AMA is opposing a planned E15 waiver that would allow for summertime E15 gasoline sales and potentially weaken already inadequate labeling standards. "E15 has been shown to damage carbureted and fuel-injected motorcycles, reduce gas mileage and decrease shelf life of the gasoline," said AMA Director of Government Relations Michael Sayre.
With production at its Russian plant on hold, historic motorcycle and sidecar specialist IMZ-URAL has announced that it is to set up production at Petropavlovsk in Kazakhstan - some 400 miles southeast of its Irbit HQ.
Royal Enfield, a motorcycle manufacturer with a history dating back more than 120 years, has been named Presenting Sponsor of 2022 AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days for the second year running. AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer and 500 cc World Champ Kevin Schwantz has been handed Grand Marshal duties for this year.
Suzuki is to stop racing "temporarily," leaving the MotoGP grid at the end of the 2022 season, with no mention of motorcycles in a 'Mid-Term' management plan.
Mission Foods has continued its impressive spend on powersports race sponsorship, signing a three- year deal as the title sponsor of the AMA Flat Track Grand Championship. The 2022 AMA Flat Track Grand Championship (FTGC) will be staged at the Du Quoin State Fairgrounds in Du Quoin, Ill., July 7-13.
BMW reports "strong" Q1 Motorcycles Segment increases in deliveries and revenues. A total of 47,403 BMW motorcycles and scooters were delivered to customers - up +11.3% on the year-ago; revenues were +6.1% (€ 799/$842m). Segment EBIT totalled € 108m at a 13.5% margin.
Having signed with Tucker Powersports for domestic U.S. distribution, Erik Buell's FUELL e-bikes are to be sold to dealers in Canada by Velocity Distribution of St-Michel, QC.
Sources: AMD, IDN, FT, Reuters, PSB, MPN, BDN, MCN, AP, Bloomberg, MSNW, Electrek, electricmotorcycles.news, RideApart.com, Motor1.com, Cycle World, motorbikewriter.com