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Another comeback name for Honda in USA ( not available in Europe ), the new Honda Motocompacto is an e-Scooter that " redefines personal urban mobility as a sleek , simple and uniquely foldable allelectric take on early ’ 80s Honda Motocompo . Priced at under $ 1,000 it is designed as a “ first and last mile ” solution for the new realities of urban mobility with a zero-emissions range of up to 12 miles . The ultra-compact design becomes its own lightweight , compact and stackable carrying case . It is said to charge in just 3.5 hours with on-board charger that uses a common 110V outlet .
Grassroots authenticity at its best , the 16th annual Glemseck 101 in Germany attracted some 40,000 visitors over its three days ( September 1-3 ) this year . The event has always been about more than just the motorcycles , but some 150 bikes duked it out on the 1 / 8 strip on the former ' Solitude ' racetrack outside Stuttgart including , for the first time , Scooters .
The National Motorcycle Museum at Anamosa , Iowa , has closed permanently . Founded by John and Jill Parham ( of J & P Cycles fame ) the museum continued in business for some years after John ' s death , but Jill Parham took the tough decision earlier this year to close the museum after 22 years and auction most of the collection .
Motor Bike Expo - Billed as " more than an exhibition ," the annual MBE ' Verona ' Show will be staged again at the northern Italian city on January 19-21 , 2024 ; www . Motorbikeexpo . it
Harley is recalling certain 2023 X350 RA motorcycles due to a possible fuel sensor leak - dealers will replace the fuel sensor gasket .
In the United States , Zero Motorcycles has announced permanently reduced MSRPs of up to $ 4,500 less for certain models on all 2022 and 2023 motorcycles .
Riding the Husqvarna FX 450 , Dalton Shirey clinched the AMA ' s 2023 Hare & Hound Championship , successfully defending his Pro Class title , garnering a third-career Hare & Hound crown . In other news , Max Ruml is the 2023 AMA Speedway National Champion , for the second time in his career , after missing the 2022 title by a single point to Broc Nicol .
Norton Pensions Fraud Saga Still Ongoing
A British newspaper has reported that Members of the UK Parliament are to launch an inquiry into the pension fraud prosecution of former Norton Motorcycles owner Stuart Garner . The inquiry will seek to establish if the prosecution of Garner was influenced by the prior support that he had received from local , regional and national government officials and business agencies - including multi-millionaire former British Finance Minister George Osborne . The Guardian newspaper reports that MPs will ask UK pension regulators about how the £ 10m scam was investigated . Financial regulators are to be summoned to parliament to explain how they prosecuted a fraud case that has not led to anyone serving prison time . During the period of his ownership , Garner and his iteration of Norton received a series of publicly funded grants and business incentives , along with tributes from the likes of George Osborne . Garner even
Royal Enfield might be making tracks into the 21st century with models like the soon-to-be-revamped Himalayan and Scram , and even working on an electric bike for the future , but the company ' s ' day job ' is its heritage and that ' s where the new Bullet 350 is aimed . Built around the Euro 5-compliant ' J- series ' engine that first appeared in the Meteor 350 in 2020 , the Bullet 350 combines Royal Enfield ' s heritage with the sort of attractive pricing that the brand has become known for , all while intentionally avoiding any sort of gimmicks or over-the-top technology . That J-series engine is a 349 cc , aircooled SOHC single that puts out 20.2 hp at 6,100 rpm and 19.9lb-ft of torque at 4,000 rpm , making for leisurely progress but avoiding the need to thrash it . Driving through a five-speed gearbox with an old school heel-and-toe rocker shifter , that engine ' s design is rooted in the past , with two valves per cylinder and a long 85.8 mm stroke combined with a small 72 mm bore . It ' s a recipe for low-rev torque rather than out-and-out performance , but one that should also make for a reliable , under-stressed
Former Norton owner Stuart Garner ( left ) seen with then UK Finance Minister George Osborn on a visit to the Donington Park Norton HQ in July 2015 .
managed to use Norton ' s brand to secure himself a cameo role in the 2015 Bond film Spectre and traveled with a government trade mission to China on Theresa May ' s jet when she was UK Premier . Garner received an eight-month suspended prison sentence in 2022 , with the judge saying that the former gamekeeper turned businessman would probably have been locked up if the Pensions Regulator , which was prosecuting the case , had alleged dishonesty - which , controversially , it did not do . New findings include
engine that ' s simple and easy to maintain . There ' s also some remarkable fuel economy on display , with 2.63 l / 100 km ( 107 mpg ), possible to give a range of nearly 500 km ( 310 miles ) from the 13-litre tank . It ' s bolted to a traditional steel spine frame with 41 mm forks and twin rear shocks , offering little in the way of adjustability beyond six stages of preload at the back to accommodate different loads . A single 300 disc and two-pot front caliper do most of the braking , assisted by a 270 mm rotor and single-piston caliper at the back . ABS is standard , as required by law in allegations Garner forged the signatures of business partners in order to allow him to more easily raise Norton funds ; tapped sources of public money after making seemingly inaccurate claims to government bodies ; oversaw a business where motorbikes returned to Norton for servicing were stripped of parts - which were then used to build bikes needed for new orders ; owned an additional ( fireworks ) business where about £ 1m of assets appear to have been transferred from Norton just prior to the company being placed into administration in early 2022 . Another UK Pensions oversight body , the Pensions Ombudsman - which is separate from the Pensions Regulator - ruled that Garner had indeed acted " dishonestly ." Norton was acquired out of administration by Indian conglomerate TVS in April 2020 and has since begun marketing new bikes as a separate business from the one owned by Garner .
Royal Enfield Bullet 350 By Ben Purvis
Europe . The Bullet ' s thickly-padded seat might not look as good as the Classic 350 ' s single-seat unit , but it offers an extra dose of practicality that ' s a key part of the bike ' s appeal and its 805 mm height is within reach to most riders . Concessions to 21st-century technology are limited to a small LCD display inside the analog speedo and a standard-fit USB socket on the bars to charge phones or power a sat-nav , a level of simplicity that ' s likely to be appealing to most Bullet customers rather than seen as a downside of the bike .
24 AFTERMARKET MOTO DESIGN - NOVEMBER 2023 www . AMDmag . com