Bring On the Bikes, Baby!
There’s something intrinsically hilarious about National Day of Encouragement being a mere 24 hours away from National “Blame Someone Else” Day. We’ll be waiting with popcorn until November 24th before acting on Mercury being in the microwave – the presidential debate was all that and more – but until then, I personally still crave a good handful of newsie tidbits to keep the company I keep nice and curious.
We bet you’re in a similar boat, so without further ado, here’s our list of the freshest facts n’ fancies floating about the Powersports markets:
- Pierer Mobility’s cutting more jobs than we anticipated (here’s what to expect)
- Krämer: APX-350 MA Prototype Set to Stun for 2025
- Triumph’s also got an RS anticipated for a 2025 debut
- Kawasaki’s got some new details on their Versys 1100
- Honda’s filed a “CBR400R Four” – perhaps the answer to Kawasaki’s ZX-4R
Let’s get under the proverbial chassis and see what’s been provided for the second week of September, yeah? 🙂
Industry Insider: Pierer Mobility’s New Job Cuts
200 Employees to be Terminated
It ain’t pretty, but the rising and falling of our industry always guarantees a rise in debt for certain companies – and one of the organizations being hit rather hard as of late has been Pierer Mobility Group.
A reminder that Pierer Mobility is a holding company, not a parent company. While parent companies are known for having their own business operations alongside a controlling interest in their subsidiaries, a holding company simply holds the things and rakes in the dough. In short, all holding companies are parent companies, but not all parent companies are holding companies.
Pierer Mobility’s currently holding over 18 marque titles (via Pierer Mobility), including KTM Ag, WP AG, Husqvarna, and GasGas. The stunning boatload of brand responsibilities means that Pierer’s debt is faster to ebb, faster to flow and, as such, requires faster action.
In this case, we see that Pierer’s addressing its most recent spike in debt by making further job cuts.
According to Nye Davis’s findings on MCN, 200 Pierer-connected employees are set to lose their jobs before October (the end of Q3). This number joins the previous 373 jobs Pierer axed earlier in the year (via MCN), with the wage of every terminated employee going toward paying off Pierer’s debt of ~$1.6 billion USD (€1.469 billion for those of you across the pond).
To combat the debt spike, Pierer’s also reducing planned production by 25%, and migrating more manufacturing processes to India and China in order to get back on track for 2025.
Keep in mind, Pierer made the decision to increase their majority stake in MV Agusta at the end of Q1 of this year, with the group’s March press release confirming that KTM would take over industrial management of MV Agusta, so that’s also been tossed on the debt pile for this year.
As for Pierer’s perspective on our market, we have an excerpt from Davis’s contributions:
– Nye Davis, “KTM parent company Pierer Mobility announce further redundancies amidst 2024 sales slump” (MCN). |
What do you think? Will Pierer Mobility continue cutting jobs or will they let go of another brand like they did with FELT?
Krämer Motorcycles and the APX-350 MA
Prototype Set for 2025 Debut
There’s nothing I love better than a fresh prototype with two wheels and a general propensity for torquey misbehaving – and based on the recently-debut machine from Krämer Motorcycles, we’ve been given quite the circuit-happy troublemaker.
According to Powersports Business, the new APX lineup is Krämer’s “latest platform for purpose-built racing machines,” the the first bike in this lineup is a 350cc beauty they’ve called the “APX-350 MA.” Krämer’s built her for the MotoAmerica Talent Cup series, with further APX models – both track day and club racers – to debut in 2025.
Here’s a short feature list of what we know so far:
- 55hp
- 242-lb
- Mectronik MKE7 racing ECU
- Solo Engineering ECUMaster dash
- GPS-powered lap timer
- Steel-trellis chassis
- Adjustable steering head angle
- Triple clamp offset
- Priced at $22,495 MSRP
Naturally, the CEO of Krämer Motorcycles USA is just as excited to show this lineup to the world:
– Jensen Beeler, CEO, Krämer Motorcycles USA (Powersports Business). |
If you’re at the Circuit of the Americas round in Texas this coming weekend, you’ll be able to see this machine in a demonstration courtesy of test rider Finn Chapman – and if you’re thinking of riding the new prototype in the 2025 MotoAmerica Talent Cup season, don’t wait until November 2. Order deposits will need to be taken by the first of the month, “to guarantee delivery in time for the start of the… season.”
What do you think of the Krämer APX-350 MA?
Triumph’s Readying to Launch a Brand New Speed Twin 1200 RS
“GET READY. NEW TRIUMPH LAUNCHING SOON.”
We typically rely on the excellent sleuthing efforts of Dennis Chung (Motorcycle.com) and CycleWorld’s Ben Purvis when it comes to information about incubating bikes. This particular bit of news comes from neither source, and all I can say is that Triumph’s being an absolute tease.
In a post published by @triumphuk on Instagram, we see a hint of a bike set to join Triumph’s Modern Classics range. The machine itself flashes by in a series of scenes so quickly that it’s hard to get a direct gander, but we’re with the rest of the viewers: It totally looks like a Speed Twin 1200 RS.
Here’s the caption from Triumph’s social media post:
|
GET READY. NEW TRIUMPH LAUNCHING SOON. Be among the first to experience Triumph’s newest edition to the Modern Classics range. Sign up by following the link in our story. #ForTheRide #TriumphMotorcycles |
If what we’re looking at is truly a new kind of Speed Twin RS, then the ear candy accompanying this video hints at a refreshed 1200cc parallel-twin engine; currently, a near-identical version sits in models like the Bonneville, boasting 79hp @ 6550rpm with 77.4lb-ft of torque available @ 3500rpm (via Triumph).
Other perks connected to this teaser trailer include the following:
- The end of the video shows a grey model, with Dan Sutherland at MCN suggesting that this could also mean an updated base model.
- Gold forks give the thought that Triumph will likely choose Öhlins power for this model, though Showa is another option of a similar hue.
- Per Sutherland, expect “more ground clearance, uprated brakes, and grippy tyres.”
What else do you think Triumph has in store for this new machine?
Fast Filings: Kawasaki’s Versys 1100 Could Mean a Ninja 1100/Z1100 Duo
Prepare for a 1,099cc, Inline-Four Family!
A series of updated filings from Sustralia show that Kawasaki is preparing to punt out a VERY nice, updated Versys 1100.
According to coverage from the incomparable Dennis Chung at Motorcycle.com, the image itself looks identical to Kawasaki’s current offering, barring a slight change in the paintjob and what could potentially be a “1100” marking.
Australia only has the “Sport,” or “S” offering, so that’s all that’s on this filing, along with acquiescence of a spike in power from 1,043cc to 1,099cc, giving the new machine 133hp @ 9,000rpm over the current model’s 118hp @ 9,000rpm. Chung also reminds us of the 1000 SE LT+, the 1000 SE, and the base model Versys 1000, all of which will more than likely sport a similar upgrade to 1100 once this first Sport model is revealed.
There’s more news, too, and it’s juicy.
Apparently, this particular Versys 1100 S has an engine number code that starts with the letters “ZXT.” This is a delineation typically used for a Ninja engine, not a Versys – and considering it’s in a Versys 1100, Chung believes that we might soon see a Ninja 1100 (as well as a Z1100), both of which will be using the same platform.
Here’s an excerpt from Chung’s findings, as well as a heads-up prediction on where he thinks these bikes will be debuted:
| “The Z900RS has been certified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board for 2025, but the more modern-looking Z900 has not appeared in data from either agency as a 2025 model. That could change at any moment, but at the moment, the absence of any evidence of a 2025 Kawasaki Z900 is very suspicious.
We expect Kawasaki will debut the Versys 1100 models as well as the Ninja 1100 (and perhaps a Z1100) at one of the major European shows, either EICMA in November or Intermot at its new date in December.” – Dennis Chung, “2025 Kawasaki Versys 1100 Confirmed with 1,099cc Engine” (Motrcycle.com) |
What do you think Kawasaki has in store for us for EICMA?
Fast Filings: Honda’s Trademarked a Bike to Beat the Ninja ZX-4R
CBR400R Four Filed August 27th
If you’re one of the many picking your jaw up off the floor at the debut of Kawasaki’s Ninja ZX-4R and ZX-4RR, then you’re in for a treat: It looks like Honda’s going to try competing with Kawi’s newest lean, green monsters!
Big Red is even going so far as to separate this new bike from their twin platform; with a “CBR400R Four,” there’s little to no chance that Honda will be pulling out their smaller single-cylinder (or larger v-twin platform) for this build, and we’re 100% here for it.
According to findings from Motorcycle.com, the name was acquired on August 27th, to be used in affiliation with “two-wheeled and three-wheeled automobiles and their parts and accessories, automobiles and their parts and accessories” categories.
While it’s intriguing that Honda could be working on a competitor to Kawaaki’s ZX-4R, the big concern lies in the fact that Honda’s been known to “neuter” their bikes for certain markets. The real question will be how riders can go about restoring full power to their machines after the debut of the thing.
Of course, we’re leaving a reminder that applications do not guarantee the machine in question; perhaps it’s enough, for now, to know that Honda’s got the funds to potentially publish a beauty of an answer to Team Green’s inline-four revver.
Until then, we twiddle thumbs and wait to see if any additional hints surface prior to EICMA prep.
Do you think Honda will give us a competitor to Kawasaki’s ZX-4R?