Euro Gossip November 2007

Now we have had the final large European show at Milan, the new model announcements and launches are all over for this year, unless somebody has saved a big surprise for the UK show later this month. So as is now traditional with the November Euro Gossip column, a little self back patting and a case of 'I told you so' as we mention at least some of the new bikes that appeared here first as rumors throughout the year, along with all the latest two-wheeled bike news from Europe and around the world.

Austria

The long-awaited and oft-mentioned KTM RC8 Superbike is finally with us and ready to go as a production machine. First shown as a concept machine at the Tokyo show way back in 2003, the production bike has not been watered down in any way; in fact it has now become more extreme in some respects.

Styling wise it still looks as good as the original, but beneath the exterior now beats a new 1149 (1190) V-Twin pumping out 155 hp. A race ready 'R' version is rumored be under development, with an 1199cc motor so they can enter the World Superbike Championship! The steel trellis frame has been redesigned and now has a cast rear section to save weight, which they claim is well under 200kg (441 lbs) to keep it competitive with the opposition. Suspension is, as you might expect, from WP and braking comes courtesy of Brembo. No prices have been mentioned as yet, but according to sources it is likely to be cheaper than the Ducati 1098 which KTM see a its biggest rival.

France

 Voxan, France's only indigenous motorcycle manufacturer still in business, is likely to be going to the Paris Euronet at the end of this year in an effort to raise cash to finance expansion. Stock market floatation on the Marche Libre section of the French stock exchange should allow it to increase production from its current 58 units a month. This figure is spread across its six-bike line-up and will allow new models to be developed and join the range.

Voxan was originally founded in 1995 and lasted six years before financial insolvency closed its doors. French entrepreneur Didier Cazeaux, who is a major shareholder in a French yacht manufacturer by the name of Couach, then bought the company and re-launched it as Voxan SCCM in 2002. Despite all models using the same 996cc 72 degree V-Twin in various states of tune, the company has already sold more bikes in the first six months of this year than it did in 2006. The money generated will be invested in its plant at Issoire, just south of Clermont -Ferrand.

French tire manufacturer Michelin is, of course, hitting the headlines in the bike press across the world. This is because of all the alleged problems in MotoGP with its racing product failing to live up to expectations, including those of a certain Mr. Valentino Rossi. However, in the more mundane world of road bikes, it appears there is no real problem with demand or their reputation, so much so that they are reducing their car output and instead ramping up bike tire production to deal with it. The Spanish factory at Lasarte is swapping totally to bike tires, while a French car tire factory at Toul is being closed altogether, with 820 employees being offered jobs in their 15 other plants.

Germany

The return of the bi-annual German motorcycle show Intermot to Cologne from Munich last year was seen as a big success. So much so that plans are already well under way for the 2008 version which will take place on 8-12 of October 2008. Last year 1122 exhibitors from 36 countries showed their wares to 52,363 trade visitors from 114 different countries, not to mention the public who attended. (www.intermot-cologne.com)

It now seems that with the signing of the final contract that BMW are putting in its own managers in to run the recently acquired Husqvarna motorcycle brand. Although no figures have been released, it is estimated the Germans paid MV Agusta in the region of 20 - 30 million pounds ($40 - 60 million) for the mainly off-road company.

(Husqvarna made motorcycles in their native Sweden from 1903 until 1987 when the Italian firm Cagiva - now part of the MV group - bought them. The rights to the name are still licensed from the parent company who is still the world's largest manufacturers of lawn mowers and garden equipment.)

The bike company HQ will remain in the northern Italian province of Varese along with management and all other activities, including R&D. However, Rainer Thoma and Thomas Moser from the parent company BMW AG assume over responsibility for various functions within the (Swedish/Italian/German?) company on a day-to-day basis. BMW themselves, via their chief executive Norbert Reithofer, has stated that the company intends to boost sales from its current 100,000 motorcycle units to 150,000 within three to four years. No doubt the Husqvarna brand is included in these calculations.

No real surprises from BMW though in terms of the new models with the large GS range getting a makeover to help it ward of the increasing competition from bikes like the Triumph Tiger and the new Moto Guzzi Stelvio. However, welcome to the new and oft referred (here) to F800GS that has really never been a secret, with even the BMW top brass admitting its existence during development. The finished model is clearly a different machine from a normal F800 fitted with longer travel suspension and knobby tires. Pictures clearly show the whole bike has been engineered from the ground up.

A new steel frame replaces the alloy frame of its siblings and the bottom of the engine appears to have new castings to mount it in that chassis and internally it has new camshafts for a wider spread of torque. It is designed to run on poor petrol to help those who wish to explore the worlds more remote places and two seat heights are offered as well for a greater appeal to all sizes of rider.

Joining this new GS model is also the new F650GS, which is, in fact, also an 800cc machine using a scaled down motor from the bike just mentioned. This replaces the old 650 single motor of the existing bike bearing this moniker. This 'smaller' bike is more road-orientated and has a lower specification like conventional telescopic forks as opposed to inverted items on the F800GS machine and, therefore, it will be a lot cheaper.

Italy

Ducati have, as predicted here, replaced the ageing Monster after 15 years. For next year, though, there will just be a new 696 entry-level version, while the existing larger bikes continue in much the same style and format, allowing customers time to adapt to the changes. Having learnt their lesson with the 999, Ducati are definitely playing safe with their most popular and profitable Monster range!

Perhaps one of the most notable changes is the new Hybrid chassis, which combines the now traditional trellis with a rear cast section that supports the seat which mates to the now very tapered rear of the petrol tank. This casting is part of an overall weight-saving exercise on the bike, which now features a massive cast swingarm. The 696 gets its power from the old 695 motor, but now with new cylinder heads taken from the 1100 Hypermotard along with a slipper clutch. Power is a claimed 80 hp, up 8 from the 695. The exhaust, as predicted here, now exits under the seat and with no 'Scrambler' appearing anywhere, maybe this is the bike I mentioned under development nearly a year ago!

Joining it under the spotlight is, of course, the new 848, rumored here but now a reality. Billed as their entry-level Superbike, it takes over the 749 mantle which lagged behind not only on the track, but also on the road in the sales figures. So enter a brand new 849cc motor with 134 hp, up some 30 hp and drawing on the knowledge and technology gained from the now hugely popular 1098 from which it takes its styling.

Talking of which, the homologation 1098R has now made its long awaited debut alongside its smaller sibling. Slotting in just under the 1200cc capacity limit for Twins in the World Superbike Championship rules, it now has an 1198cc engine nestling behind the distinctive bodywork giving 185 hp and an all-up weight of just 165kg (364 lbs). The works bikes will have over 200 hp, but will obviously not be as cheap as the showroom model which will be on offer around $40,000.

As predicted Moto Guzzi has weighed into the big trailie/adventure market, (dominated up to now by BMW) with their new Stelvio model. Under development for three years and appearing here for most of the last two, the bike has emerged as more road-based than an off-road, which MG see as more in tune with what their riders really want.

Mounted in the tubular steel chassis is the most modern version of the factories air-cooled V-Twin, the 1200cc four-valves-per-cylinder engine taken from the Griso, albeit slightly retuned. Inverted 50mm forks support the front end, while a single shock controls the shaftdrive rear. Brembo brakes provide the stopping power. Expect to see it at dealers by the end of this year with a price tag of around $16,000.

One surprise they managed to get away with was the launch of the V7 Classic. Aimed as an entry-level machine to the range, the 750 is based on the popular Breva 750 but with classic styling and is aimed at taking a few sales away from the Ducati Classic range or Triumph. Certainly the V7 was the first bike (40 years ago) to use a V-Twin motor and has a quite modern look despite it classic heritage. Expect to see the no frills model in the early part of 2008 with a similar price tag ($10,000) to the 750 Breva.

Moto Morini too now seems to be looking at the big trailie market with the launch of their Granpasso 1200. This is the third new bike to join the model range of the reborn company and uses many of the components from its siblings. Repackaged to offer adventure styling, it is based on their MM3 prototype we mentioned last year. Many of the components used are common to the other models including of course the 1187cc 90-degree V-Twin motor. Expect the bike to cost around $17,000 when it appears in dealers in 2008.

Cagiva has managed to get the Mito 125 though the very restrictive Euro III emission tests without having to resort to a four-stroke motor. Thanks to an electronically controlled Dell'Orto carburetor kinked to an ECU, the bike has made it into its eighteenth year of production.

Minor styling changes mean that the SP525 (to reflect the old GP bike's styling, which it mirrors) model is just as desirable as it always has been for the learner legal brigade in Europe. Prices in 2008 should be similar to the current model at $7,500.

United Kingdom

Megelli is a new European brand offering a range of bikes to include Supermoto, naked and sports bikes. All bikes will share the same trellis frame and use a variety of 50cc and 125cc motors from established Taiwanese firm Sym. The bikes have been designed using European (read UK) designers and UK engineering, but will be using Far East production facilities to keep costs down and make them a viable alternative in the small bike market.

We have highlighted numerous times the increasing court cases in China regarding Chinese bikes that are blatant copies of others, mainly Japanese machines. Last month we brought you news of some court decisions and also the diplomatic wrangles that are now going on betwee China and Japan. However, this month we bring you news of a recent court case in the UK where an importer has been fined heavily for selling a Chinese-built counterfeit Yamaha Virago as the real thing. Not only was the firm fined, but they also had machines confiscated and also had to pay prosecution costs to the Trading Standards who used criminal law to investigate the matter. The unfortunate buyer was also compensated.

No doubt similar stories will start filtering through from other countries as well in the near future!

Recently released figures from the Isle of Man government, shows that the Centennial celebrations of the TT races brought into the island a staggering £48 million pounds over the TT fortnight. The same release estimates that each one of the 60,000 visitors spent on average £800 while they were there. No doubt 48 million very good reasons they are now heavily promoting the 2008 event!

Rest of the World

Argentina

Not a country that normally features in this column, but apparently there is a predicted rise in bike sales of 43% which is not to be ignored by anybody in the business of selling bikes of any capacity. So Japanese giant Yamaha is building a new plant in Buenos Aires to assemble CKD motorcycle kits to try and take advantage of this rising trend. It is hoped that they will be able to sell 6,000 units in 2008 and continue to increase these numbers as overall sales grow towards a predicted one million bikes in 2012. Needless to say they are up against many cheap Chinese and Indian imports, just as in any other country in the world!

Australia

Apparently new bike sales are set to hit a record high in Australia too after the fist nine months figures showed an increase of 10% compared to 2006. If the trend continues, it will be the fifth year in a row that they have risen with a healthy rise of 20% for the pure road bike sector included in the overall figure.

India

Normally we are reporting on new factories, new collaborations with major manufacturers from other countries and so on. However, it would now appear that the financial problems that are hitting sales in the general consumer markets around the world are now affecting bike sales of our cousins in India. The Indian domestic market, which incidentally is the second biggest in the world, is now being affected by a credit squeeze after interest rates have hit a five-year high.

Take the family owned and run Bajaj firm, the second largest player who you may remember we put in the frame for trying to purchase Triumph Motorcycles. Well, after the eighth monthly fall, this time 23% in their sales figures, this is looking less likely as you might imagine. The number three player in their market, TVS, dropped 29% in the published September figures as well. Hero Honda, the market leader, actually showed an increase of 4.3%, but this buck in the trend was due mainly to a subsidized point of sale marketing plan!

These figures may give some credence to a rumor circulating in the car world that Bajaj is set to become a car manufacturer. It seems that Franco-Japanese firm Renault-Nissan wants them to produce a cheap car costing around £1500 ($3,000) for them and for it to be launched in 2010. Watch this space.


Tell us what you think about this article in the MotorcycleUSA Forum.