the fink
In lieu of…
Bikers Corner
Bike Torque – a series of chats
on the motorcycle world by
Gavin Foster
Most people who work in the automotive industry know all about
NAAMSA, but few who aren’t intimately involved with the Association
of Motorcycle Importers and Distributors have even heard of
AMiD. Current National Director Lachlan Harris took up his position
early in 2013, having a well-rounded background in the motor and
motorcycle industries – as a chartered accountant, he worked at
BMW South Africa’s car division for 12 years before being appointed
to run their motorcycle division from 2004 to 2009.
“AMiD was formed in the early ‘80s to get
a lobby together that would look after the
interests of the motorcycle importers,”
says Lachlan. “The car guys had
NAAMSA – a much bigger organisation –
but nobody looked after the bike people.
We monitor trends and get involved in
anything we can that will help advance
our industry, but also keep an eye on the
legislative side, provincial and national,
so we can speak with one voice when
things come up. AMiD has also hosted
the premier motorcycle expo in South
Africa for many years, and the next one is
happening at NASREC on the weekend
of 8 August. It works very well and gives
the industry an opportunity to showcase
new products and technology.”
AMiD has forged good ties with
government at various levels, and for
more than a decade was involved with
talks about government’s mooted plans
to ban the importation of two wheelers
that didn’t comply with international
safety and emission standards. “We were
against it in the beginning but were told
that it was going to happen, which it did
in December last year, and everybody
had time to prepare” he says. Last
year AMiD – unusually – got involved
in a stand-off between the importers
and Motorsport South Africa about the
extremely high - and rising - cost of
motorcycle racing.
“Motorsport was previously
a banned subject at AMiD
meetings because we had
no mandate to interfere in
marketing matters, which
is what motorsport is,” says Lachlan.
The importers – mainly the Japanese
big four, with European manufacturers
Triumph, BMW, MV Agusta and Aprilia
– stood together with Lachlan chairing
their meetings and eventually got their
way after threatening to withdraw from all
national championship circuit racing.
Back in 1981 South African motorcycle
and scooter sales peaked at around
80 000 units - in those days a $US cost
just R0.82 and motorcycles were generally
affordable. Ten years later the dollar
cost R2.76 and motorcycles were too
expensive for many, so South African bike
sales slumped by 80%.
During the boom years of the 60s, 70’s
and 80’s a large proportion of motorcycle
sales were made up of the 50cc buzz
bikes that inspired passion in people like
Kork Ballington, Jon Ekerold and Alan
North, setting them on the path to Grand
Prix glory. Then in the ‘80s the law was
changed to allow 16 year-old schoolkids
to ride 125cc machines, which had the
unintended consequences of destroying
the fertile schoolboy market. The 125cc
machines were too expensive and too
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july 2014
fast for most parents’ tastes, and the fact
that the law was also amended to allow
17 year olds to get car learner’s licences
didn’t help, so South Africa’s annual flood
of fresh young motorcycle enthusiasts
slowed to a trickle.
There’s been a mini-boom in scooter
sales over the last few years. Does AMiD
feel that this could help convert young
commuters to lifetime motorcyclists?
“We’re seeing more commercial
applications and we’re seeing some
people commuting on scooters, but the
numbers are nothing like we saw in the
50cc era thirty years ago,” says Lachlan.
“Total sales today – AMiD members,
non-AMiD members, and grey importers
bikes and scooters are about 36 000.
That’s why we need to take another look
at access to scooters and entry level
machines. In other countries people
who have drivers’ licences for cars
are automatically allowed to ride 50cc
mopeds and motor scooters up to 125cc,
while here we have to start right at the
beginning with a learner’s licence again.
We’re talking to government about this,
and obviously we’ll all have to take a look
at training and safety issues.”