Aussie half-year report: up 2.6%

The Australian motorcycle market – ATV, off-road, road and scooter -- hit the skids in June, and is now just 2.6 percent ahead of where it was year to date in 2011. At the end of May, the market was 7.1 percent up on the same period in 2011.

In six months, 51,952 units have been sold in Australia, with road contributing 20,174 towards the total followed by off-road (15,594), ATV (10,951) and scooter (5233). All segments except for scooter are up in 2012, although is holding on by the skin of its teeth – up just 1.5 percent.

The top 10 manufacturers are Honda (11,788), Yamaha (8692), Suzuki (6105), Kawasaki (4612), Harley-Davidson (3643), KTM (2597), Polaris (1973), Triumph (1439), BMW (906) and Ducati (905). Of those, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Triumph and BMW have all dropped from their 2011 levels, while at the other end of the scale Ducati and KTM have vaulted up by 39 and 33.4 percent respectively.

And another manufacturer which is making giant strides is CF Moto, which just lies outside the top 10 on 903 sales – a 92.1 percent increase on 2011 primarily due to its ATV sales going gangbusters.

Honda leads sales in the ATV, road and scooter segments, with Yamaha the dominant brand in off-road.

MANUFACTURTER COMMENT

APRILIA AND MOTO GUZZI
John Sample Automotive, the Australian importer of Aprilia and Moto Guzzi motorcycles and scooters, has announced a strong first half year result for both brands.

JSA National Manager Kris Matich said: “Both Aprilia and Moto Guzzi have recorded very strong sales results for the first six months of 2012 compared with the same period in 2011 and well up on the market average.

“Aprilia road sales are up over 79 percent and Aprilia Scooters are also up over 29 percent, while Moto Guzzi continues its strong sales trends recording a 45 percent increase for the first six months of 2012.”

Matich put the sales success down to “having a great product range and an ever growing quality dealer network supporting the brands across Australia”.

CF MOTO
During the month of June, CFMoto again recorded superb retail results and continued its expansion within the Australian motorcycle market. According to results just released by ERG International, the CFMoto brand consisting of motorcycles, scooters and ATVs is celebrating a 92.1 percent increase in sales for the first half of 2012 against the same period last year.

“Impressively, CFMoto is now the 11th largest motorcycle brand in the country, just three solitary units behind ninth position,” said National Sales Manager, Alan Collins. “With the recent launch of the 650NK sports bike and V-Night 150cc commuter during June, and the upcoming release of the Rancher 800 UTV and Z8 sports side x side, we have some excellent incremental growth opportunities.

“However, our strongest growth will continue to come from our growing brand recognition, strong dealer network and a product that is demonstrating time and again that it is more than capable of standing the test of time.”

In addition to the growth CFMoto is recording in the market place, the range is also continuing grow.

New ATV models, namely the CFMoto X8 and Rancher 600i have been released to the Australian market over recent months, and in the month of June CFMoto excitingly expanded its motorcycle range adding two new models – the 650NK sports bike and V-Night 150cc commuter.

In the motorcycle sector, year to date CFMoto retails have already increased 50 percent in comparison to this time last year, and that is without the benefit of the two new models of which sales will commence to be reported to the industry in July.

To assist in continuing the retail momentum, customers who purchase a CFMoto motorcycle or scooter in the month of July will receive a FREE CFMoto Rider Jacket (valued at $299).

In addition to the growing CFMoto motorcycle range, CFMoto ATVs continue to be the fastest growing ATV brand in Australia! According to ERG results, CFMoto ATVs owned 5.3 percent of the national market during June, just shy of their first half 2012 share of 5.7 percent.

“It is pleasing to see the ATV market continuing to grow, and to see our growth continuing to outstrip that of the market,” Collins said. “Whilst our product is manufactured off-shore, we are locally owned and operated and have an excellent understanding of what is required in our local market and how to deliver that quality and reliability at a palatable price point.

“One of the unique points about CFMoto is that they are an export oriented manufacturer focused on Western markets, and as such are willing and able to tailor a product to suit our uniquely harsh conditions.”

For the month of July, CFMoto is offering a FREE CFMoto Start Up Kit valued at $599 with CFMoto ATV purchases. The kit includes practical parts and accessories that will make your CFMoto ATV experience even better!

DAELIM
Daelim motorcycles and scooters were relaunched in to the market by Australian owned company Mojo Motorcycles in early 2011. Since this relaunch, Daelim has continued to record month on month growth, according to results released by motorcycle industry speciality, ERG International.

“As the Daelim brand is continuing to mature in the Australian market place, customers are beginning to understand the heritage behind the name and understand the enormity of Daelim’s global network,” says Daelim National Sales Manager, Alan Collins.

According to the latest ERG results, the Daelim brand has grown 240.6 percent year to date, in comparison to the year previously.

“As a relatively new brand our growth is an excellent achievement and only the beginning in our journey towards cementing the Daelim brand in Australia.”

Daelim offers a range of scooters from a 50cc to 125cc that offer comfortable, reliable commuting to Australian customers. In addition Daelim also has a 250cc motorcycle, the VJF 250 on the market.

A standout in the Daelim range is the unique designed Daelim B-Bone. The B-Bone features a powerful 125cc oil cooled engine, front and rear disc brakes and 12-inch alloy wheels, and a revolutionary naked design.

“The Daelim B-Bone has a distinctive design that has been made to stand out in the crowd,” Collins says. “Scooters are now an accessory and at Daelim we believe our models exude fantastic personality on the roads.

“While Daelim emphasises quality build, it is also another important feature that we make all our models lookers on the road. Each of our Daelim models exudes personality and that is what sets Daelim apart from the rest.”

Year to date, Daelim scooters have recorded fantastic growth within the Australian market place with sales increasing by 628.1 percent in comparison to the same time last year. With a range of stylish and sporty commuters, the Daelim scooter range year to date hold 4.5 percent of the entire Australian scooter market.

HONDA
Honda’s positive trends that commenced in January have continued through the entire first half of 2012 culminating in recording an inspiring 13 percent year on year growth according to the 2012 FCAI national sales report.

As the year clocks into its second half, Honda Motorcycles continue to lead the motorcycle market by recording growth across almost all product categories, retaining No. 1 market share and dominating the entry level market with the popular CBR250R.

Remaining untouchable at the top of the motorcycle sales ladder, the CBR250R is supported by other Honda models including newcomer CB125e and old favourites, CRF230F, CT110 and CRF50F allowing Honda to boast five models out of the top 10.

Overall, Honda recorded substantial growth in three of the four product categories with a 30.2 percent increase in road, 25 percent increase in scooter, 9.4 percent increase in ATV and no increase but a steady result recorded in off-road.

Honda topped many categories including supersport, ATV, trail, fun, naked and entry with many models remaining consistent performers. One such model is Honda’s TRX250TM which remains at the top of the ATV market and recorded more than double the volume compared to the competitors. The CBR1000RR which is celebrating 20 years in 2012 also remains steady at the top of the supersport category.

Tony Hinton, General Manager Honda Motorcycles is pleased with the 2012 results to date.

“The year has not all been smooth sailing for us, but to see such excellent results and an upward trend in the market is really positive,” he said.

Looking into the second half of 2012, Honda has more exciting new releases on the way. Anticipation is high for the all-new, dual purpose CRF250L which is due for release next month (Ed: August, 2012) and will offer riders a similar engine package to the CBR250R and a newly designed frame. Honda also has some very exciting models on the way that are yet to be announced.

TGB
June saw TGB Scooters post yet another solid result, boosting its share of the market for the first half of the year to 8.6 percent, a growth result in a market which has contracted by 13.6 percent.

As a world renowned scooter brand, TGB offers customers high quality products at excellent price points. The brand TGB is no stranger to the Australian market, with over 8000 scooters having been sold over the past 10 years.

The expansion of the 50cc range this year has assisted TGB to continually increase its market penetration, with the launch of the Bullet 50 and Bullet RS 50 to complement the existing 101S and Tapo 50 models giving TGB the strongest low-capacity range on the market.

“TGB is world-renowned for its quality and remain one of the very few manufacturers which has resisted the trend to manufacture off-shore. All TGB products are manufactured at the TGB factory in Taiwan,” said National Sales Manager, Alan Collins.

To continue the momentum with 50cc scooters, this month TGB is offering a fantastic special on the popular TGB 101S. A free jacket, helmet and top box will be given away free to every Australian customer that purchases a 101s in July and August, 2012.

“We are confident that the TGB 101S is the best 50cc scooter on the market- boasting a quality design, a zippy 50cc engine and is ideal for the daily commute.

“We understand more than ever Australians are looking for economic ways to get from A to B and we believe that TGB is the answer,” Collins says. “You do not need to compromise quality when purchasing a scooter and that is why more and more people are turning to TGB.”