American Motorcycle Dealer AMD 244 November 2019 | Page 16

Cardo Rental Availability at BRIEFS Select Hertz Ride Locations NEWS The cause of a fire at an Indian Motorcycle dealership is under investigation, with the owner reporting that damage to the bikes alone could exceed $1 million. Bison Thunder Motorcycle in St. Michael had extensive interior damage from the fire. Owner Doug Kauth reports that there were no injuries in the Sept. 25 fire. The dealership re- opened in an adjacent building ten days after the fire. The dealership also owns Bison Thunder Motorcycle, St. Paul. Norton Motorcycles' founder Stuart Garner has appointed "prominent law firm and corporate adviser Fieldfisher to sound out potential investors". It is said that Garner is looking for GBP £5m to buy parts to fulfil a £26m order book. Previously Norton has relied on Garner's own financial resources. BDN reports that the company's most recent annual accounts to March 2018 show a 20% revenue increase to £6.7m, turning a loss of £201,842 in the preceding year into a £33,701 pre-tax profit. Harley was in 6th place in Germany in market share terms for the eight months to August 2019, having sold 8,753 units in 2019 so far for a 9.07% market share, one of five manufacturers within 1.4% of each other behind runaway market leader BMW, but well ahead of Suzuki, Ducati, Triumph and Husqvarna. Their top seller YTD had been the Street Bob (1,008 units sold) - the 18th most popular motorcycle in Germany - with the Sport Glide XL 1200X, Breakout 114 and Sport Glide Special also registering in Germany's Top 50 YTD sellers. KTM Industries AG, which is changing the name of its corporate parent company to Pierer Mobility AG, has signed a manufacturing joint venture partnership with Spanish trials bike specialist Gas Gas owner Black Toro Capital (BTC). The plan is for new models to be developed alongside the existing Trials and Enduro models, with production to be continued at the existing Gas Gas and Torrot electric vehicle facility near Girona in north east Spain (Catalonia). It is intended that Gas Gas branded models will be added alongside KTM and Husqvarna models in dealerships. 16 Cardo Systems has announced that motorcyclists renting bikes from select Hertz Ride outlets can now stay connected with Cardo's PACKTALK line-up. Allowing greater connection to their riding group, mobile device, GPS and music, Hertz Ride service will provide customers with the option to add Cardo's PACKTALK BOLD or PACKTALK SLIM units to their two-wheeled vehicle rentals. The PACKTALK products are powered by Cardo's industry-leading Dynamic Mesh Communication (DMC) technology, which allows riders to remain seamlessly connected with up to 15 riders for an enhanced group riding experience. With Cardo's natural voice-command, activating the device no longer requires a specific action such as push-to-talk, so riders can keep their hands on the bars at all times. Riders can simply say "Hey Cardo" with the desired action to the always-on system, and it reacts instantaneously. Plus, riders will experience sound by JBL, which is said to deliver a superior audio experience to motorcyclists and sets a new standard in audio quality for helmet communications systems. "For many people, especially renters, riding a motorcycle is all about the experience. With the addition of our industry-leading PACKTALK line-up to Hertz's offering, we will be able to enhance that experience for these riders," said Jonathan Yanai, Cardo's VP Global Sales. "We are excited to continue our work with Hertz by not only offering this opportunity to U.S. riders, but to continue to expand our partnership to provide world-class experiences around the globe." The partnership between Cardo Systems and Hertz Ride, which was announced in June of 2018, initially saw Cardo units in select locations around Europe. Debuting in Spain, France and Italy to great success, the program has continued to expand, with select U.S. Hertz Ride locations now also making Cardo's PALKTALK line-up available. Going forward, Cardo and Hertz will look to continue expanding to more Hertz Ride locations. www.cardosystems.com Canadian Motorcycle Manufacturer Havoc's new 140 hp 'Voodoo' Havoc Motorcycles (Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada) has launched a new model - the 1960s styled 127 ci, 140 hp 'Voodoo' "Performance Supercruiser" for the company's 2020 model year. Sporting a 2.081 liter (127 ci) V- twin producing 140 hp and 140 ft lbs torque, Havoc says "its power-to-weight ratio approaches superbike territory." The retro-themed design with a hidden shock frame, springer front end, thick spoke wheels, sprung solo saddle and high tracker pipe combined with "modern technology where it counts," such as dual 4-piston front brake calipers on floating rotors, LED illumination and full digital instrumentation made by Dakota Digital. Describing it as being "back-to- basics with modern technology and tons of power," the power gets to the ground via a double belt drive dry clutch system and a 200/50R-18 Metzeler ME888. The front gets a 21 x 3.5 dual disc wheel with a 120/70-21 Metzeler. AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - NOVEMBER 2019 Additional performance features include a single-fire ignition and dedicated coil per cylinder. The pre-production model shown here has gloss black accents over satin black powder-coat applied to the frame, springer fork, wheels, exhaust and handlebars. However, the bike will also be available with a "Show Chrome Package," with all of the same components in chrome at no additional charge. "Our philosophy is that customers should be able to personalize their motorcycle at the time of order," says Havoc's Jarrod Wiener. "We also operate one of Canada's largest online stores for customizing American V-twin motorcycles, so our most popular performance enhancements are already designed right into the bike. A customer can further personalize the metal finish options to their own preference at the time of order for no extra charge. "We're doing a limited production run of the 127 Voodoo for 2020 - it's a true production custom". Pre-order pricing is USD$22,500 or CAD$29,995. A $5,000 deposit secures the bike, which will be shipped to a Havoc Motorcycles Dealer or Authorized Service Center across Canada and the US for delivery in the Spring. www.havoc-motorcycles.com