International Dealer News IDN 141 February/March 2018

COMMENT: Pods for Bods? Nah, I think not! .......................................................................................... Page 4
GS Yuasa to make lithium ion batteries in Hungary ...................................................................................................................... Page 11
Bultaco appoints Stefano Chiozzotto as Regional Manager for Europe ................................................................. Page 14
BS Battery in Johann Zarco sponsorship deal .................................................................................................................................... Page 15
European Union new motorcycle
registrations -9.5 percent in 2017;
or were they up by +2.5 percent?
he Brussels based
international motorcycle
industry trade
association ACEM has
released provisional numbers
for 2017 new motorcycle
registrations in European Union
countries.
The data shows registrations of
913,445 internal combustion engine
motorcycles for the 12 months to
December 2017, which, compared to
the 1,009,678 registrations officially
recorded for 2016, would mean that
the past year saw a decline in the
region of -9.5 percent - the first decline
since the market bottomed out at
748,529 registrations in 2013 and
bringing an end to three consecutive
years of growth.
However, as is widely accepted, the
final quarter of 2016 (if not longer in
some markets) saw a rush to get
excess and unsold 2016 Euro 3
inventory pre-registered before the
midnight December 31st cut-off, after
which only Euro 4 compliant models
could be registered.
T
Research carried out by International
Dealer News suggests that this
affected at least 50,000 motorcycles,
probably more like 55,000 to 60,000,
with the figure possibly as high as
65,000 units.
These units mostly went on to be sold
by dealers in the first three or four
months of 2017 as zero mileage pre-
the post 2013
picture changes
radically
registered motorcycles. This means
that the 1,009,678 registrations figure
recorded for 2016 and the +13.3
percent growth that suggests was
overstated, and the figure for 2017
has consequentially been understated.
The figures show 803,122
registrations for a 7.3 percent growth
rate in 2014 as the anecdotal evidence
of an end to the fall in sales translated
into hard statistics for the first time.
The following year, 2015, that growth
trend was confirmed with 891,369
registrations recorded for a very
positive 11 percent growth rate.
However, against that trend, the 13.3
percent growth rate apparently
recorded for 2016, while great if it was
true and could be sustained, always
looked like a statistical error.
Although those Euro 3 units became
gradually less profitable as dealers got
further into the 2017 new year, with
them and their manufacturers having
to increasingly incentivise the units to
get them sold (free extended
warranties, improved insurance deals,
zero percent finance, accessory
packages etc), once sold, they
nonetheless represented a new unit
sale as far as the dealer and the buyer
were concerned and, of course,
artificially deflated the potential
demand for the new Euro 4 inventory.
It may well be that very little of that
Euro 3 carry-over inventory got sold at
list price and that most of them were
sold much closer to dealer costs.
FEB/MAR 2018
ISSUE #141
STATZONE 6-8
64-page
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