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BRIEFS
Polaris says sales of its roadster style Slingshot reverse three-wheel trike doubled in the USA between May and September this year , with Q3 up by mid-50 percent . Slingshot features Polaris ' first ever four-cylinder engine and AutoDrive transmission .
Indian conglomerate Mahindra ' s ' Classic Legends ' retro brand division says it sold over 50,000 Jawa branded motorcycles in India in the 12 months to October 2020 . Add to that , Brexit permitting , the company is developing BSA badged internal combustion engine and electric bike models at its Banbury , Oxfordshire UK Technical Center for 2021 assembly from mostly UK made components at a factory in Coventry - the spiritual home of the motorcycle industry in the UK , if not the world .
BRP forecast EPS as likely up in the range of + 31 to + 37 % for the twelve months to January 2021 when reporting better than expected results for the three and nine-month period to the end of October 2020 . Q3 revenues were +$ 31.1m /+ 1.9 % at $ 1.674bn . North American ( NA ) powersports vehicle unit retail sales were + 16 %, with gross profit +$ 45.0m /+ 10.2 % at $ 486.9m . Revenues were - $ 299.0m / -6.7 % at $ 4,137.8m for the nine-month period , with NA vehicle sales + 23 %.
In Europe overall , the ' Big Five ' markets ( Italy , France , Germany , Spain , UK ) account for approx . 80 % of all new motorcycle sales . Brussels based motorcycle industry trade association ACEM puts ' Big Five ' new motorcycle registrations for the period January to September at 694,606 units ( -4.18 % - down from 724,917 for 2019 ), indicating healthy market recovery across Europe prior to the second wave of COVID-19 fully affecting sales and general economic activity throughout Europe . Extrapolating , that would make the whole of Europe worth some 868,000 units for the period ( compared to 906,000 in 2019 ). In electric motorcycle terms , the same ' Big Five ' markets were worth some 13,897 new electric motorcycle registrations for the first nine months of 2020 . However , other markets such as the Netherlands , Belgium , Sweden and elsewhere are also among the biggest players in the E-space .
Vance & Hines and H-D to Race in Different Directions
In what has to be fall-out from CEO Jochen Zeitz ' Project ' Rewire ', the hugely successful Harley-Davidson and Vance & Hines ' 20-year race partnership is to end , with both businesses taking new paths to checkered flag glory . It is not known what , if any , role the recent success of the Latus Motors H-D race team ' s AFT success may have played in Harley ' s decision to reposition its race efforts - the Gladstone , Oregon dealership delivered Harley its first ' new era ' AFT Championship title when James Rispoli won the riders ' and manufacturers ' Production Twins Championship on the XG750R at Daytona on the final weekend of the rebuilt 2020 AFT series . Vance & Hines has stated that with Harley choosing not to field factory racing teams in American Flat Track ( AFT ) or NHRA drag racing in 2021 , it will be redeploying its racing development team " towards creating high performance products for a variety of vehicles , brands and race series in both two and fourwheel segments . " We thank Harley-Davidson for being a partner with Vance & Hines for 20 years . Together , in AFT and NHRA , we have celebrated 116 wins and 11 championships ," said founder Terry Vance . " Harley- Davidson has been one of the best partners we ' ve ever had ." The company has said that the Indy Operations Team will be refocused on performance products for two and four-wheel vehicles and will be redeployed under the name Vance & Hines Racing Development Center ( RDC ). " Vance & Hines will continue its racing tradition in 2021 with sponsored riders in a variety of racing series ." In addition , Vance & Hines will remain the sole licensee , manufacturer and seller of Harley- Davidson XG750R Production Twins motorcycles and Harley- Davidson XG750R Super Twins motorcycles . This racing variant of the Harley-Davidson Street 750 was the motorcycle with which Rispoli and Latus Motors won the AFT Production Twins championship in 2020 . The Production Twins bike is being manufactured and shipped to Harley-Davidson dealers at this time . " Vance & Hines is having its best year in over a decade . We ' re strong and we have a strategy that drives our growth and expansion in our current markets and in new ventures ," said Mike Kennedy , President and CEO . " While we loved our time running the factory race teams for Harley-Davidson , we couldn ' t be more excited about the future ." Vance & Hines has been contracted to run factory race teams for a range of companies during its 41-year history including Suzuki , Yamaha and Ducati . The partnership with Harley-Davidson was focused on drag racing and flat track racing . Meanwhile , in what is an interesting move and one in-line with what is known so far about the firm ' s future intentions in terms of supporting " stronger and better dealers ," Harley-Davidson has said that it will " refocus racing efforts on dealers ' competitive programs " with support in AFT SuperTwins , Production Twins and NHRA Pro Stock Competition . In doing so it says it is " harkening back to the foundations of the company ' s competitive spirit by refocusing on building within the brand and celebrating the heritage of grassroots flat track racing by offering support to its entire dealer network through the development of contingency programs ." " Harley-Davidson ' s heritage is rich with racing lore and legacy , and throughout our brand ' s history , Harley-Davidson dealers have been the cornerstone of our racing programs ," said Jon Bekefy , General Manager of Brand Marketing . " We are excited to continue to support the XG750R racing motorcycle and NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle efforts through our dealers ." The company went on to say that " as it leans into a more grassroots approach , Harley-Davidson would like to thank the Vance & Hines organization , the riders , team members , and every individual involved with the Screamin ' Eagle / Vance & Hines NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle and American Flat Track ( AFT ) team efforts for their passion , commitment and expertise for over a decade of winning competition and championship titles . " Over the past 18 seasons , the Screamin ' Eagle / Vance & Hines NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle team has been wildly successful , generating 107 wins and ten championships , proving to be one of the most successful programs in the history of the sport . " Additionally , Vance & Hines has been instrumental in ushering a new era of flat track competition with the development of the Harley- Davidson XG750R SuperTwins and
Production Twins motorcycles and earning a championship in AFT Production Twins for the 2020 season . Vance & Hines will continue to manufacture and support the sale of XG750R SuperTwins and Production Twins bikes to qualified teams . " In a return to the foundations of Harley-Davidson ' s racing efforts , the company will refocus efforts by offering support to dealer racing programs in 2021 , including the development of contingency programs for AFT . To kick off , Harley- Davidson is already committed to supporting Latus Motors Harley- Davidson as they campaign their XG750R in the AFT SuperTwins series ." www . vanceandhines . com www . harley-davidson . com www . latus-hd . com
10 AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - JANUARY 2021 www . AMDchampionship . com