Honda Africa Twin: 2016 Bikesales BOTY
The adventure bike has come up trumps against in a crack field of finalists, which included the BMW S 1000 XR and Yamaha XSR900As the Australian climate and roads are made to fulfil a motorcycle enthusiast’s dream, and as motorcycle registrations continue to soar, it’s no mean feat the Honda Africa Twin has been crowned bikesales.com.au’s very first Bike of the Year.
The Bike of the Year award recognises excellence outright across 11 separate motorcycling categories, with the Africa Twin adventure machine judged to be the best ‘Adventure’ bike as well as taking out the top honours.
"The Africa Twin is a deserved winner of the inaugural bikesales.com.au Bike of the Year award," said bikesales.com.au editor Mark Fattore.
"The adventure bike market remains on a massive growth curve across the globe, so it was only a matter of time before Honda got serious again.”
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, motorcycle registrations in Australia showed the fastest growth of any type of vehicle from 2010 to 2015 increasing by 22 per cent. There are now over 800,000 motorcycles on Australian roads. This was one reason why bikesales.com.au created the award.
Mr Fattore also noted: "The Africa Twin is the end result of that new focus: a cleverly conceived and functional bike that is beautifully balanced, stable and nimble, particularly in an off-road setting.
"Adding to this, the dual clutch transmission version of the Africa Twin really is the pièce de résistance, and a great ally for the power characteristics of the one-litre parallel twin engine.”
Despite only going on sale locally in February, in the first nine months of 2016 the Africa Twin (also known as the CRF1000L) became the biggest selling bike in the 'Adventure Touring' category, 69 units ahead of its nearest competitor.
“Honda is really pleased that the Africa Twin has been awarded the bikesales.com.au "Bike of the Year,” said Peter Singleton, the General Manager of Honda Motorcycles.
“The Africa Twin was introduced in February this year and was an immediate hit with the market, it is particularly satisfying that we are attracting both past and new customers to our product and brand."
AFRICA TWIN LAUNCH IN NEW ZEALAND
Other category winners included BMW Motorrad's barnstorming S 1000 XR in the 'Adventure Sport' category, and the formidable Yamaha XSR900 in the 'Retro' category. Those two bikes were also shortlisted in the final Bike of the Year deliberations alongside the Africa Twin.
The bikes in all 11 categories must have been on sale by September 1, 2016, and met specific criteria to be included in the judging.
From there, the experts at bikesales.com.au determined the 11 category winners based on factors including excellence, innovation, performance and value for money.
The Africa Twin then received the ultimate prize, its virtues particularly based on its irresistible price point, packaging and hitting its target market.
The 11 winners in the 2016 bikesales.com.au Bike of the Year are:
| Category | Winner |
| Bikesales Bike of the Year | Honda Africa Twin |
| Supersport | Ducati 1299 Panigale |
| Cruiser | Victory Octane |
| Scooter | Piaggio Medley 150 |
| Naked | KTM 690 Duke |
| Touring | Indian Roadmaster |
| Sportstouring | Yamaha MT-09 Tracer |
| Adventure | Honda Africa Twin |
| Adventure Sport | BMW Motorrad S 1000 XR |
| Enduro | Sherco 300 SE-R |
| Motocross | Yamaha YZ450F |
| Retro | Yamaha XSR900 |
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