That was what bmw auto group did. They created the 3 series for people what can actually afford those cars
Aprillia in rough waters
- Thread starter Chaos
- Start date
That was what bmw auto group did. They created the 3 series for people what can actually afford those cars
love all the exotic buying financial experts on here!
? that series existed before the uber-********* 6 and seven series.
MCN reports that Japanese bike sales are down 60,000 units this year in Japan, again. The reason is that 18-25 are simply not interested in motorcycles, racing is also at lowest attendance levels.
This is not a trend anyone in the industry wants to see:
Aprilia doesn't sell anything below 10 grand in Canada, and the Shiver is no big deal for 10 grand.
It's ok to sell $20K bikes, but the problem with Aprilia is that they relied only on that class.
The truth is, even from the 70-80s, these companies have never made big money, Ducati went broke more than once, as did Moto Guzzi. Aprilia made it big in small screamers for the European market. Laverda is gone, Benelli is now Chinese, Morini is gone.
People buy those bikes in a niche market.
Lots of finance experts have been scratching their heads as to why Ducati sold for as much as it did.
Triumph realizes that the spectrum of prices and bikes can buffer a company through bad times, which is why they are selling a 250 for 2014.
ok, let's hear why you think these companies are going broke.
I hear that! Though it's not just insurance - the cost of everything for cars has risen higher and higher. Gas, parts, you name it.
There is also some truth to kids just not caring. When you can't work on a car yourself, it removes some of that feeling of ownership. The only kids you see getting together to work on cars any more are the pseudo-racer Fast-and-Furious wannabe kids. The average kid cares way more about flashing around expensive electronics, especially phones!
Plus so many kids live in cities these days that cars just don't represent freedom they way they used to anymore. They represent paying a lot to sit stuck in traffic, which is pretty much the antithesis of freedom.
Way nicer than something like the econo 650's which all sell for over $8k and aren't exotic. Although the main reason I kept looking at Aprilia when I had one was for the ABS which Kawi now has on many more models. Still much more desirable bikes, IMO.
a point you made. Younger people are not into vehicles especially motorcycles as much as before and the older demographic has either been there done that or wants a cruiser. The outlier is that track days are more popular than ever so figure that one out
Shaman
Well-known member
Sandy ( @ Pro6 ) makes the joke at every track day that the average age of the riders is 70.
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matt220
Well-known member
I'd say it's more about the money, because I know so many people around my age who are die hard car/bike nuts but they just can't afford it.
Hell... I can barely afford to ride and I sure as hell cant afford to buy a brand new shiny fast bike since my insurance will be even more insane than it is now.
kruzuki
Well-known member
We have two 16 year old boys. They loooooove their laptops and iPhones. They love playing sports. They do not give a crap about motor vehicles and it seems very few of their friends do also.
My son is getting his G2 shortly. I just got an insurance quote- my insurance (I have a spotless record) will more than DOUBLE (close to $5K/year) even if he has taken a driver's ed course and is listed as an ocassional driver. This is insane. But I need to get him driving and building up a clean (I hope!) record. What young person can afford this?
No wonder young people have very little interest in bikes; it's a hobby that's out of their reach.
My son is getting his G2 shortly. I just got an insurance quote- my insurance (I have a spotless record) will more than DOUBLE (close to $5K/year) even if he has taken a driver's ed course and is listed as an ocassional driver. This is insane. But I need to get him driving and building up a clean (I hope!) record. What young person can afford this?
No wonder young people have very little interest in bikes; it's a hobby that's out of their reach.
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This.
Few people can afford anything "fun", and it's typically a frowned upon expense if someone does want to get something sporty or fun, let alone a motorcycle. I caught lots of flack from my family for trying to find a car that wasn't a total bore like a corolla. Insurance is extremely expensive, so many young people simply can't afford to be into cars/bikes - it has nothing to do with interest/excitement. Car costs are bad enough, but motorcycle are that much worse - they're an expensive purchase for something you can only use for half of a year. Insurance costs are really what kills everything, since you have to pay as much for insurance your first year as you do for the bike, and at this point you wouldn't even know if you liked it or not.
If people really want to make cars/bikes more interesting to young people, they need to work on the costs, not any sort of excitement/image/safety/whatever issue. It has nothing to do with "kids being into their electronics". It's just complete inaccessible.
Another reason so many people aren't caring about vehicles as much is that as soon as you change anything on them no one wants to insure them. Next to impossible to find insurance for modified vehicles unless you don't tell them which isn't entirely legal.
There are all kinds of affordable fun cars, IMO, though. Fun doesn't have to mean a 500 hp beast.
There are all kinds of affordable fun cars, IMO, though. Fun doesn't have to mean a 500 hp beast.
Roomie
Banned
5k is insane as occasional. I remember my dad put me on his at 16 and it was 400 a year and that's the mid nineties, not all that long ago. I know my bosses kid who now works with us. 22 years old, 2004 Audi a4 and he's excited his insurance dropped to 265 a month with a spotless record. These rates are totally unacceptable. He looked at a cbr 500 and couldn't insure it for less than 3800. I could just imagine what he'd get soaked for something like an Aprilia Something definitely needs to change.
Sent from my piss poor iPhone while sitting on my squidly gixxxxxxxxer sippin on kool aid
Sent from my piss poor iPhone while sitting on my squidly gixxxxxxxxer sippin on kool aid
Shaman
Well-known member
So here's a question: why is nobody - and as far as I can tell, I mean nobody - trying to do something about the cost of young drivers?
