?Japan sells 63 cruisers to four ADV/SM bikes in the US?

Why does the big four from Japan sell 63 cruisers to four adventure/sm bikes in the USA that are at least twins over 600cc? Honda has 9 lines of the VTX/Shadow/Rebel plus the DN-01 (cruiser scooter cross). Yamaha
sells 25 V Star/Royal Star/Road Star/ Etc... Stars. Suzuki sells 15 styles of the Bouelvard, and Kawasaki sells 13 styles of the Vulcan. In the Adventure/SM class Suzuki sells three models of the V-Strom and Kawasaki sells the Versys If you want to call it an adventure bike. On the other hand
KTM, Aprilia, BMW, Buell, Ducati, Triumph, plus a few others all sell Adventure or Supermotos in the US. Isn't buying A cruiser from Japan kind of like buying A Buell or BMW to go roadracing on?

Because that's what people buy.

I don't quite understand your line of thinking...

Isn't the Honda CB 750 considered a classic bike to use for choppers and bobbers ever since it was introduced back in '69 (40 years ago!)?
Didn't Buell exclusively build racing bikes first and then built road bikes long before they ever built a Ulysses touring machine?

To answer your question you should look at the Dealer News article from February which outlines the market share of brands and motorcycle types for 2008. KTM, Aprillia, BMW, Buell, Ducati and Triumph account for less than 8% of the motorbikes sold in the US. People in the US obviously buy cruisers because they want them. There are, as you note, plenty of stable and long lasting companies offering non-cruiser bikes, but people just don't want many of those bikes at the moment. BMW certainly has the maufacturing capability to start cranking them out if they didn't want to stay niche. Or, consider that today's magazines are basically ways to generate ad revenue. I can go into any Walmart in America and buy the latest issue of "Metric Cruiser". Its viable because people buy copies which support the investment companies make in ads. Is there even a dual sport or adventure touring magazine in publication?

It's all their fault:





When really people should have been paying attention to this dude:




Dammit !

The regional differences in bikes sales amaze me; in the US istr about 25% of all sales being cruisers, in the UK that market slab would be sports bikes.

The all-rounders do better on mainland Europe.

Is it simply a matter of topography and climate?

I would like to see A beefy Honda XR type of bike with an RC51 engine in it and good suspension for 10K. Maybe in the next fifteen years all the kids who are on the state of the art sport bikes will demand well built comfortable bikes and we will see good crossover bikes between sport bikes and dirt bikes, instead of choppers and scooters. I guess the good thing about it is it keeps KTM etc.. here. Rant rant rant

I suspect they'll probably want the same well built and comfortable machines that the majority of 35-50 years olds look for today. That means more cruisers and more scooters (both of which are built to better standards of fit and finish than ever before) instead of less. Cruisers and scooters have more or less kept up with the technological handling and electronic advances of sport bikes (albeit in different directions).

Today's scooters are the most likely to evolve into the kind of "crossover" machines you seem to yearn for. 'Standard' bikes have pretty much disappeared into sport and touring niches while dirt bikes have become way more dirty and gnarly than the enduro's of yore. The few 'standards' left are cruiser-like (Harley Sportser), sport bike-like (Suzuki Bandit, Gladius or SV650) or retro designs destined for niche sales (Ural, Royal Enfield, Triumph Bonnieville/Scrambler, Suzuki TU250). Honda's DN-01 is way overpriced for the US market, but its technology is probably going to eventually be de rigueur. Notice that they made it a standard instead of cruiser or sport bike. Or consider that in 2008 BMW sold only twice as many bikes across its entire American line than Can-Am sold of its Spyder. Obviously the Spyder filled a sporty niche that Harley or goldwing trikes hadn't yet filled.

I spent the last couple of weeks seriously shopping for a bike. Looking for a "standard" was not an easy task. They were there alright, hidden among row upon row of cruisers were the two choices from Suzuki, both Bandits. The offerings from Honda were NIL. All cruisers. Harley clones. Yes they are. V twins, low seats......who started that....Harley.
I'm not old enough for a cruiser.
I'm too short for a KTM. Or a big BMW.
I had three, maybe four real choices. Pretty sad. Couldn't even LOOK at a CBR1000 from Honda....they only go to the big city dealers. Car dealers.
I'd love to shop in Europe.

How short are you? I ride a 950 SM, I'm 5'8" and have a 30" inseam. As long as you can get one foot down you're good to go.

Don't even get me started

Are manufacturers classified by their volume of sales?

The Japanese dual-sports need steel tanks, but some Euro's get by with plastic. I think we'd see more Euro only/international bikes if Japan and the Euros were on the same footing.

I can see some virtues of the cruiser type, though most have limited appeal to me. I'll have to assume that the companies are making what sells, so we'll have to live with what we've got. But, I could see a more standard-like cruiser, with a long flat seat, a more upright riding position, a V-twin with hydraulic lifters and a shaft or belt drive, fuel injection, a 5-gallon tank, decent ground clearance for the twisties, and somehow keep the weight down. Something like a road version of the HD XR750 comes to mind.

Cruisers have 50% of the market in the USA. Sportbikes and touring bikes about 20% each. Dual sports are about 6% and standards about 3%.

Fixed

Lot of interesting comments here. Generally speaking, world wide, cruiser sales are off, some figures say as high as 12%, though it's much less for the US (I think we're still awaiting last quarter numbers). That may have something to do with that showroom full of cruisers, BTW. And, when you say you're not old enough for a cruiser... I'm just turning 58 and drive a K1200R because I want to chill-out from sport bikes. So, bike type choice may not be an age related issue, as much as a prior riding experience, issue. If that is the case, it will be interesting to see where the current generation of sport bike riders go as they age. "Dual purpose" bikes and scooters have made huge gains, but both are likely related to the state of the economy. Nevertheless, where are all those dual-purpose riders going -- to cruisers? Maybe someone has seen this figure, but I would love to know how many Harley riders chose that bike as their first ride.

How about Buell Lightning or HD XR1200?

Lowest common denominator. Witness NASCAR.

True, but dont forget Hollywood, O.C.C., Jessie James, etc. Life immitating art and all that plays a big part as well.

Free country.

What you speak of has a name: