Yamaha Motorcycle Manufacturing Corporation (YMMC) has a new president, with Bob Brown replacing Takahiro Imanishi. Bob began his career at YMMC in May 2019 as VP of Finance & Operations Support, becoming VP of Manufacturing and being a key figure at YMMC's largest U.S.-based manufacturing facility in Newnan, Georgia.
Having collapsed into bankruptcy liquidation in October 2024, the assets of failed Italian electric motorcycle manufacturer Energica have so far failed to find a buyer. At the auction at the Court in Medina a first-round base price of € 5.7m with a minimum bid of € 4.274m ended without bids on January 30, 2025. A second round with a reduced base price of € 4.275m, and minimum bid in the region of € 3.2m also ended without bids, on March 20, 2025. Expect a third round to be staged soon with an even further reduced asking price. The sale includes all unsold built and part-built bikes and parts inventory, equipment, tooling, Intellectual Property and much more besides.
Respected Hoya, Germany based importer and distributor Hermann Hartje AG has added the US made Maxima high-performance engine oils, lubricants and care products range. "By working with the most sought-after powersports vehicle motorcycle engine oil manufacturer in the United States we are significantly expanding and specialising our lubricant offering," stated Jens Engelking, head of MotoAuto at Hartje. Maxima offers the full spectrum of product for all applications and sectors but especially well known in USA in the off-road/MX market. Hartje already offers dealers significant brands in the dirt bike sector, including Galfer, UFO Plast, WRP and RK Chain. The best known Maxima products include its two-stroke oil and globally popular semi-synthetic blend oil Castor 927; www.hartje.de, www.maximausa.com
Italian performance exhaust system manufacturer SC-Project is the title sponsor of the 2025 MotoAmerica Twins Cup Series in the United States. A six race 2025 championship will be staged at select MotoAmerica road race weekends. The series started at Daytona at the beginning of March and will include races at the Barber Motorsports Park (Birmingham, Alabama) and the legendary WeatherTech Raceway at Laguna Seca, California before wrapping up at the New Jersey Motorsports Park in September; www.sc-project.com
Having bought Idaho based Timbersled in 2015, Indian Motorcycle Owner Polaris Industries has, effectively, closed the subsidiary. Timbersled snow bike production has already ended with kit production due to finish at the end of 2025. There will be no MY2026 offer.
Piaggio saw total FY2024 (the period to December 31, 2024) group-wide consolidated sales revenue fall by -14.3%, with global PTW unit sales down by a massive 17.5% at 359,000 units (down from 436,300 units in 2023) generating net sales of € 1,298.3m. Asia Pacific region sales were hit hardest (-38.8%) as a result in a sharp decline in demand for premium products in China and Thailand. Demand for the Aprilia RS 457 helped push sales revenue up in India by +10.7%. In the scooter segment, Piaggio says it recaptured the leadership of the European market with a 21.4% share; its share of the North American market reached 28.1%.
Founded in 2023, Dust Moto (Bend, OR) has unveiled an all-electric Dirt Bike that is claims is "redefining approachable performance on two wheels." On a mission to be the number one American moto brand globally - "with riding fun at its core" - its 'Hightail' is a 42 hp and 660 Nm of torque slimline sub-100 kg package. "The dirt bike delivers a radically simplified user experience, compact chassis, swappable 4.4 kWh battery pack, and whisper quiet drivetrain delivering peak riding enjoyment for more riders across more terrains." Pre-orders are being taken with a fully refundable $100 deposit. Development has been in partnership with Bloom, a Detroit-based manufacturing platform focused on electric vehicles.
The announcement last year that Honda, Mitsubishi and Nissan had arrived at the Memorandum of Understanding stage (MOU) in respect of a proposed merger came as a surprise to those outside the Japanese automotive industry. Well, just as much of a surprise was the February 2025 announcement that the three had fallen out of love and torn up those same plans. Honda says that "going forward, the three companies will collaborate within the framework of a strategic partnership aimed at the era of intelligence and electrified vehicles. This framework was established within the MOU signed on August 1 last year, striving to create new value and maximize the corporate value of each company." Okay then, remaining friends but not moving in together.
