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This is still the philosophy at Honda. Every CEO, starting with founder Soichiro Honda, has experience in the company's research & development division. https://www.historyoasis.com/post/honda-ceo-history I had an opportunity to go on a private tour of Pierer Group US Headquarters a few months ago. It was shortly after they announced the acquisition of MV Agusta. I was impressed by the racing culture and how they have vertically integrated (making so many of their own components). But at the time, I was also wondering "how do they afford to support so much racing?" I'm a huge fan of my two newer Husqvarnas, the 701 Enduro and the FE501S. When they bought Husqvarna in 2013, I thought they might have just bought if "for parts" but I was surprised to see that they made Husqvarna a premium brand (some components and price above the KTM equivalents). I see a lot more new Husqvarnas than KTMs. But the Huskys have KTM engines (along with Gas Gas), so it's all related somehow even if it's between "sister" subsidiary entities. Hopefully, this restructuring will be a wake-up call and they can regain their footing. There might be some good consumer deals out there if they get desperate for cash.

I bought my baby brother a 75 model CR125 w/2nd gear broken . Fixed it , added a DG up pipe , different swingarm , etc... After riding European dirt bikes , this thing looked like a toy ! Performance? if you have ever knocked the head off an oxygen bottle , this was the performance + you could ride it and steer it ! The CR125 came a year after the CR350 and the MX world was changed forever . Until Yamaha put a single shock suspension under a 250 YZ and put Pierre Karsmakers ( I can spell it w/o looking it up) as the first MX astronaut. Hmmm Roger DeCoster , the list can go on. You had to buy a new bike EVERY model year because what you were sitting on had just become obsolete !

That should be easy to find. I read this statistic some time ago : 70% of all lawyers on Earth live on the N American continent !

You know when I started my aviation career the managers were all people that worked their way up in the organisation, knew the detail of everything and when they got to management level they managed to avoid chaos and catastrophes. Then came along "professional manager" you know people with MBA's and business degrees and it all went to hell as they made short term decisions aimed at looking good on their resume. They often had a "throw the deck of cards into the air and see what lands" philosophy because then they could all get together in their MBA club and "crisis manage" the situation they had in fact created. It was truly pathetic to observe. My original managers managed to AVOID a crisis and the new ones managed to help create them so they could look like the guy that rides in and takes charge and "sorts it out". KTM is a classic example of modern management. Covid hits and the market goes on a buying spree and instead of pausing and thinking "this is a blip" lets make hay while the sun shines but not lose sight it's short term, no they react like a "blue sky thinking" muppet and go gang busters ramping up everything on a a short term "bubble" The Aussie wine industry did the same with the Chinese market. They all got on the Chinese gravy train as it pulled out of the station and neglected the other markets because the Chinese market was "going to last forever" but it didn't for political reasons and then they all fell on their arses and wanted the government to help bail them out. It's a very old story and if you want to see a classic version of it read "on a clear day you can see General motors" by John De Loreon. GM used to do similar to their smaller suppliers then swallow them up. I read that book 40 years ago and the lessons are still valid today. Phil

Good question, and quite possible. Your comparison with the "rise" of Japanese vehicles is very appropriate, I reckon. I see two factors that may well influence further developements, in my opinion. One the one hand is China's authoritarian government, effectively a dictatorship. If that government decides that their motorcycle industry needs to dominate the world, the will just shovel in resources until the goal is achieved. On the other hand is the slowing of economic growth that has been apparent in China for the last several years. The economy was able to grow very rapidly for a couple of decades, because the starting point was way behind the rest of the world. In the meantime, a lot of catching up has been done. It remains to be seen how much more growth potential is there, and how long the government can keep forcing things through without taking economic and finacial realities into consideration.

I have a "theory" on this sort of thing. The original manufacturer contracts to Chinese/Indian/south east Asian company to make X amount of product and they supply X amount of items then keep the production line rolling and make some for "mother" and sell them themselves. You know 10 for you and 1 for us. Either that or they don't discard the "seconds and out of spec items" and do the same. Zero proof of this just something "I feel in my water" so to speak. An educated person would refer to it as Intuition I think. Phil

Oh, yeah. I worked for GM in the good and bad old days. Bunkie Knudsen was the last "engineer" at the top. Once the bean counters came in it was all over. They never looked more than 90 days down the road..

Heh he, I credit a CR125 motocrosser as being the bike that sorted me out..... Talk about a light switch, nothing till 7,500 then 20 hp all at once in 3000 rpm! Bloody thing only weighed a wee bit more than me at 80 something kilos too! Loved the thing! Cheers

With the awesome assistance of the folks in this site, I seem to have the bike sorted out. A working substitute fuel pump and new relays did the trick Thank you!!

Just an update, really, since I don't know anyone who thinks it's merely a conspiracy anymore. I ran across this thread on ADV rider, about fake fuses- there are a number of good videos about fuses and NGK spark plug fakes. Worthy. https://advrider.com/f/threads/fake-fuses-out-there-might-want-to-watch-it.1769493/

I had a Cousin who worked for US Customs in Detroit- she caught 3 rail boxcars full of counterfeit product, mostly Harley-Davidson. I can't find it in my saved sites, but I once ran across a Chinese website advertising- *advertising*- counterfeit OEM packaging. Boxes, printing, documentation, everything. And that was at least a decade ago.

I recently went to look at a V11 Sport I am interested in. I have seen it in the classifieds off and on for 2 years now, so it seems like it doesn't have many people interested in it. I would like your input on its condition if you would be so kind. I cut and pasted this post from another forum, so my apologies if you have seen it already. The guys there said this was the place to be for V11 knowledge. Thanks in advance. Beautiful color. Plastic tank. Any worries there? Motor has general oil sweats over it. I couldn't find the leak, If the mileage is to be believed, this is somewhat disappointing. What's up with the shaft tube? Is this normal? It seems a little, agricultural in fit and finish. That doesn't really turn me off if eveything is mechanically as it should be. Again, general oil sweating over the tube. No experience here. Lol, that brake light is the same Emgo unit I put on my XS650. It's a sign! Again with the sticky film on the final drive. I'm not sure if Guzzis have an incontinence issue, or the owner wasn't handy enough to fix the issue. Has some minor blemishes. To be expected after 20+ years. Must have been a stateside bike. Mileage is super low, if the speedo gears haven't already packed it in. Seems a bit fishy for the age of the bike.The forks have a sticker on them stating that the bike was modded to meet Transport Canada regs in 2013. The bike has some 4" bar risers installed. Ergos seemed really good. It started ok, after a few tries. Starter spins up a bit slowly. Nature of the beast? Sounds lovely, with the characteristic sideways tug when the throttle is blipped. No noises except the dry clutch rustle. Clutch action seemed quite light compared to my old XS with the heavy duty EBC springs, which did nothing to stop the slipping! If this is in decent shape, it would probably fulfill my desire for s simple, torquey, sporty/standardish twin, with a dollop of Italian flair to boot. It looks better in the ad than in person, but bikes usually do.At $4000 CAN, it's not a huge financial risk, but a time bomb bike is no good no matter what the price. That price has dropped $1k in the last week or so, as the seller would like to clear it out before winter (towing company). I was given a list of recent repairs carried out on the bike, which included new tires, a new fuel pump, new turn signals and 2 new solenoids. I'm wanting to love it, but a few red flags has me wondering. What does your Guzzi spidey senses tell you all?

I have this same bike, same color, slightly more mileage. $3k USD is more than fair. For less than another $1000, you could have new injectors, battery, tires, fluid/filters, etc. And that's if it even needs those items. Get it! Throw some soap on it, a little wax and you'll be riding with a grin for a long, long time! Plus, they are a motivated seller, make an offer.

Fake is just cheap junk . Always has been . O-ring kits , fuse kits , roll pins , cotter pins ., etc... Hey , there are counterfeit AC Delco , Motorcraft and Mopar parts all over eBay. You have to buy from local vendors and trust their sources .

I worked with him filming "ON ANY SUNDAY" and had the pleasure of riding with him at Bruce Browns Ranch ...Great guy! RIP https://www.cyclenews.com/2024/11/article/godspeed-malcolm-smith-1941-2024/

That's pretty sharp lookin' !

True docc. When the parent company fell on it's sword the Indian branch kept on keeping on. Phil

Two that have left us way too soon. What could have been.

Ah, 2 strokes. I cut my teeth (and my lips on my teeth) on a Yamaha MX360 flat track racer, later a Bultaco Astro 250. I was much happier later on a Honda XL350 4 stroke. More to do with my talent than horsepower. I had a '75 Kawasaki 500 triple. Matched ports, expansion chambers, K&N shocks, dual discs. I rode the wheels off it. Rewarded me with a broken collarbone at about 40mph. Replaced the 500 engine with a 750 and found on the first ride why the 750 frame was much longer. Insanity. I rode it maybe 300 miles and sold it to someone I didn't know who couldn't live without it. Never saw it or him again so he may have got his wish. Watching the old 500GP riders lament the 2 stroke days...I get it. Though they never disparage the new bikes or the riders on them, you can tell that they know in their hearts these kids couldn't keep up on those old bikes. Or what racing could be like with light 200hp electronically controlled 2-strokes.

"Dino" . . . an attempt to "re-brand" Ferrari? Certainly. Successful? No doubt, desirable, after all these years. And twenty years of "Dino", so maybe a success (?) These new age Chinese and Indian branding attempts are not all successful. Or desirable. Royal Enfield has proved to be an exception, yet they have not "re-branded", but stayed true to the brand.

Otherwise, like something out of Through the Looking Glass : Attorneys are eventually going to own everything and rule the world. If you don't like the way things are going , hire China . . .

One of our main competitor exported its production line to China. I don't know if this is still the case, but at the time, if you wanted to produce in China, you had to share the technology. A few years later, in Africa, we responded to a call for tender, and we were surprised to learn that a Chinese company was also tendering for the work. Basically proposing the tools of our main competitor. They had only partially altered the names of the tools, so the customer would recognize them for what they could do. They ended up getting the contract, because as the customer pointed out, they were so cheap compared to the traditional companies, that there were not even a big debate. However, the technology they had copied was not applicable in all situations. So we had to bail them out a few times. I had a chance to speak to their lead guy. They were paid peanuts... but their salary still made them king of their land. The major drawback, is that by manufacturing outside of your frontier, you lose the know how. For a long time, maybe still now, the design teams were located in Europe while the manufacturing would take place in China. It seems that now they have gained enough experience to do their own design. The auto makers in Europe, where EVs are being pushed full speed, can't keep up with the Chinese car makers, mainly because the Chinese have secured all the rare metals that are currently required to make the batteries. So just about the complete world have to purchase batteries to the Chinese as it stands. There are new battery types being studied, that would require less of those rare metals, but until they can take over, I am guessing some car makers may go down under.

Having ridden & owned both, Japanese & Italian motorcycles, it boils down to character. Guzzi’s IMO look great and rumble and emit soul every time you ride. My dad bought a 2018 Kawasaki Z900RS in metallic Candy tone Brown/Orange, it sparkled in the sun light. Was set up for torque so only 110HP, making it a very street-able rider. The stainless 4-1 exhaust, wheels, and overall fit and finish was excellent. He traded at the KY Guzzi rally w Carl (Gateway) for a brand new Blue 23 V7 Special. Also beautiful, oozing w Guzzi character that he doesn’t ride due to the transmission, full of um…character, I.e. clunky 1st to 2nd upshifts, which must have been assembled on a Friday. I would own both bikes and be happy, even dad’s V7 with transmission issues, but I think the guy in the video likes the distinctly smooth running, Japanese made, um… character-less Z900RS.

Nice video... you mentioned in your title that he "picked the wrong brand" and I assume you mean he missed Moto Guzzi. But just after 5:00 in the video he says "...or my Moto Guzzi Griso which, of course, I love as well - for the same reasons as the Kawasaki." Then he reveals that he loves riding his 400cc Husaberg close to the limit, and admires his friends' 650 and 350 Royal Enfields and how much fun they are. I had a lovely 150 romp on the Stelvio today. Brought back a half case of wine from Doffo in Temecula and about 40 pounds of oranges, grapefruit, and avocado. I rather like the big 1200cc lump in that bike and ability to carry loads of stuff and a passenger, even at extra-legal speeds (aka the flow of traffic). In no way did it make me miss any of my past BMWs (R100CS, K75s, R1100RT). I did wave to a few BMWs today, but the most memorable wave was to the rider of a red Moto Guzzi V85. You got me thinking back to the 1980s... I was on a 1985 Yamaha FJ1100. That was the fastest damn thing I had ever ridden at the time. I went back to look up the specs. It had *only* 125 horsepower. Maybe memories change things, but those must have been some buff ponies.