ROAD NEWS
KIWIS FLOCK TO NO FRILLS MOTORCYCLES
T
he latest motorcycle industry sales figures
are out, and while the Yamaha Tenere 700
continues to sit at the top of the
registration figures thanks to strong predelivery
sales, there is a big surprise at the
top of the sales charts alongside it for August.
While overall numbers are down slightly
compared to last year – a combination of
Covid-19 heavily restricting sales in April
combatted by Yamaha’s strong Tenere 700
sales – with 4148 registrations to August 2020
compared to 4196, the top sellers once again
prove Kiwis are a shrewd lot with their money
favouring functional low-tech options
compared to the latest and greatest.
Perhaps the biggest sign of this is the second
best seller of the year to date behind the
Tenere 700 (itself a bike that goes against
the grain and features only the now mandated
ABS) with Suzuki’s venerable DR650SE taking
out top honours for August to slot into a strong
second place for the year.
In total, 102 examples of the soon to be
discontinued and much-loved DR650SE have
made it on to our roads this year, with 30 of
those bikes hitting the road in the last month
alone. This is likely a combination of “run out”
pricing dropping the price of entry for the
loveable old Suzook down to a very attainable
$8199, while many may also be due to riders
getting their hands on the model before it
leaves our dealerships for good next year
with the advent of new mandatory ABS laws.
In the big bike category, Harley-Davidson’s
street cred has kept it ahead of rivals Indian
Motorcycle with two models within the top 10
80 KIWI RIDER