2007 - Harley-davidson Softail Deluxe on 2040-motos

Moto blog

Vespa goes back to the future

IT'S been a while coming, but the gorgeous Vespa 946 - EICMA 2012's Best of Show - has finally introduced something to the two-wheeled world that our four-wheeled counterparts have had for a while.  I call this 'reverse retro-futurism' - the art of borrowing lines from models past and imbuing them with a sleek sense of future direction (as opposed to retro-futurism, the pre-1960s design trend of depicting the technology of the future. The term 'decopunk' may come close, but feel free to tell me if there's a more exact term.) It's what the New Mini and the New Beetle (both 1997 and 2012 versions) have done so well, and so successfully: building an all-new model as a tribute to a classic, something that's modern yet already timeless, with a widely-appreciated, inclusive aesthetic (and here we eliminate the Plymouth PT Cruiser from the conversation). The biking world is great at retro, indeed thrives on it, but not so good at adding in a taste of the 21st century.

Harley-Davidson Denies Plans for Small-Displacement Model for India

India’s 13-million-unit-per-year motorcycle market is comprised of mostly small-displacement models, so it sounds odd at first when manufacturers such as Harley-Davidson and Triumph enter the market with their larger-displacment models. The question quickly arises as to whether they will stick with their existing big-bore models or introduce an all-new, small-capacity model for the Indian market. Manufacturers like the Big Four from Japan already produce smaller models for other markets so it’s a relatively easy task for them to introduce new models such as Honda‘s recently launched 109cc Dream Yuga.

US Motorcycle Sales First Half 2011 Results

The U.S. motorcycle industry saw a 4.6% decrease in year-on-year sales over the first six months of 2011, thanks mostly to a 17.3% drop in ATV sales. Motorcycle and scooter sales however saw a 1.7% bump in the first half .