Pierer Mobility is once again spilling the beans on its holdings, releasing the 2019 sales results from the KTM and Husqvarna motorcycle brands.
To that end, the combined effort sees another sales record for the group, with 280,099 motorcycles sold last year. This marks a 7% gain over 2018.
This makes 2019 the ninth year in a row that the KTM Group of motorcycle brands has seen positive sales growth, which is not a claim that too many brands can lay their hands on.
An email just popped into our inbox giving us a hint at when we will see the Ducati Superleggera V4 superbike. The “Project 1708” machine has been teased a little bit by the Borgo Panigale, but the real news has been the slow leak of information about this exciting new motorcycle.
Built around the 998cc Desemosedici Stradale R engine found in the Panigale V4 R, the Superleggera V4 has carbon fiber frame, swingarm, bodywork, and wheels. This has allowed the Italians to cut 40 lbs from the the already very light Ducati Panigale V4 R, with the Ducati Superleggera V4 tipping the scales at a claimed 152 kg / 335 lbs (dry).
All of this is just “leaked” information about the extra-exclusive superbike from Ducati, but the Italians will officially be showing us the “Project 1708” bike on Thursday, February 6th – at 8am PST (5pm CET).
Episode 29 of the Brap Talk podcast is now out for your two-wheeled audio pleasure, and as always, it is packed with some interesting motorcycle discussions.
This show has a bit of racing commentary, as we discuss the 2020 Dakar Rally, which was still taking place at the time of recording, as well as the ongoing saga with Andrea Iannone’s doping problems.
We also give some discussion to the pricing for the Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP, which we now know will cost $28,500 in the United States.
Episode 127 of the Paddock Pass Podcast is out, and this one covers this weeks’ whirlwind round of news from the Yamaha MotoGP team and its rider lineup for the 2020 season and beyond.
For these topics, we have Steve English, Neil Morrison, and David Emmett on the mics, as the trio discusses the announcements that Yamaha has made, and what the ramifications are for the grand prix paddock.
The 2020 WorldSBK Championship has the promises to be one of the best in recent history, as there are more than a few contenders for the throne lining up on the grid this season.
Of course, there is five-time champion Jonathan Rea, who has been a juggernaut onboard the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR.
Rea will have the target on his back for 2020, that much is for certain, and the Kawasaki Racing Team has shown that they are well-honed operation, and certainly capable of adding metal to Rea’s trophy room.
Yamaha’s MotoGP program continues to dominate the headlines this week, first by signing Maverick Viñales to an astounding three-year contract, and then by booting Valentino Rossi from the factory team in order to make way for Fabio Quartararo.
Now, the Japanese motorcycle maker is making another big announcement, though this one has been brewing for a bit: Jorge Lorenzo will take on the role as Yamaha’s MotoGP test rider.
Bad news for fans of historic British motorcycle brands, as we get word from across the pond that Norton Motorcycles has gone into administration – a British form of bankruptcy.
Today starts with the bombshell news story that Fabio Quartararo has been signed to the Monster Yamaha MotoGP team, just a day after Maverick Viñales inked a three-year deal with the factory squad.
Combined, this news is a huge moment for the MotoGP paddock, as it signals the end of Valentino Rossi’s factory riding position, and possibly his motorcycle racing career.
To stymie that headline, Yamaha was sure to publish a second press release on Quartararo’s news, to explain that Yamaha and Rossi were taking time to evaluate their future together.
The yearly results for Harley-Davidson are out, and once again they paint a dark figure for the iconic American motorcycle brand, as its total worldwide sales collapsed like a dying star, with a decline of 4.3% to bring the company to a total of 218,273 units sold worldwide.
Things were worse in the domestic market, with Harley-Davidson’s sales in the USA showing a 5.2% drop (125,960 units) from 2018’s figures.
This leaves the Bar & Shield brand’s international sales down an even 3% (92,313 units) – for those doing the math.
Good news from the Bavarians, as BMW Motorrad reports that 2019 was the company’s best sales year…ever (again).
According to the German company’s tallies, BMW Motorrad sold 175,162 motorcycles and scooters last year, a bump of 5.8% over the figures from 2018 (165,566 units).
As expected, Germany remains the primary market for BMW Motorrad, with 26,292 units sold last year (up 10.4% from 2018). Crunching the math further, Germany accounts for roughly 15% of BMW’s two-wheeled sales.
The rest of Europe was strong for BMW Motorrad as well, with the European market up 7% overall for BMW – France (17,300 units), Italy (15,580 units), Spain (12,607 units) and the Great Britain/Ireland (9,611 units).
It seems Zero Motorcycles is gearing up to bring us another machine for the 2020 model year, as the electric vehicle company is teasing the release of its Zero SR/S.
Officially, the company isn’t saying more than a February 24th release date, but by connecting some obvious dots and a bit of inside information from our Bothan spies, we are pretty certain of what to expect in a month’s time.