If Ants’ and Jo’s three-month Tuk-Tuk adventure wasn’t enough for you, or you thought they needed more competition over a shorter distance, you might want to schedule time off work next August for the 2007 Indian Autorickshaw Challenge. Sounds a bit better organized and a bit more fun, though I think Ants and Jo could have blown away the competition.
Category: International
Kymco gears up for export market
The Taiwan Economic News reports that Kymco plans to export 10% more scooters and ATVs worldwide next year, about 290,000 units, including the world’s first 700cc scooter. Upscale products for more affluent markets will continue to be manufactured in Taiwan, while secondary markets will be served with products made in mainland China. 2sb prediction: by this time next year, KymcoUSA will be fighting a PR battle against cheaper illegally-imported Chinese-made Kymcos. Safety recall: 2006 Kymco Agility 50cc scooters were accidentally shipped without an engine kill switch. A voluntary recall is in effect, Kymco dealers can inspect and fix the scooters at no cost.
Aussie motor group speaks up for scooters
As Spring arrives in Australia, bringing along a U.S.-like scooter boom, The Age quotes the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce:
Scooter riders need safer travel routes, better sharing initiatives, better education for riders and drivers, better traffic management, better licensing and training laws as well as better infrastructure. Government policymakers and road planners are failing powered two-wheeled transport users. We need a system of designated `safe routes’ and better traffic management features to make road-sharing safer for scooter and motorcycle riders. It is time the growing army of scooter riders was heard and their concerns addressed.
Hear hear! We feel the same way in the U.S. (and we want parking!). Some Chicago scooterists are looking to join forces with ABATE, the next meeting is Wednesday, September 20. We’ll post more details soon.
živeli!
How many things are wrong (read: freaking sweet) in this picture? It’s from the Oldtimer-Grand Prix, held at the Vrsac airport in Serbia.
Kinetic, Ducati electrical units form joint venture
The Business Standard of India reports a joint venture has been formed by Kinetic Communication and Ducati Energia to manufacture “flywheel magnetos, CDI, ignition system, regulators and ECU for two and three-wheelers.” The venture will be called “Ducati Energia India,” and will be based in Pune. Kinetic is currently developing and manufacturing the former Italjet line of scooters. If only they could work Lucas into this deal, they’d pretty much dominate motorcycle electrics for a thousand years.
LML: Rhymes with “What the Hell?”
From HindustanTimes.com:
MEMBERS OF the All-India Central Council of Trade Union (AICCTU) have warned that the responsibility for any attempt of group self-immolation by the employees of the closed LML Limited would lie on the Chief Minister, Labour Ministry and owners of the LML Limited. The warning was issued in a letter written by AICCTU state president Hari Singh to the Chief Minister and Secretary, Labour Ministry. He said about 5,000 employees and their family members were in deep financial trouble due to the lockout declared by the LML Limited from March 7, 2006.
“Self-Immolation?” As in this? Is that properly translated? Are LML workers seriously threatining suicide-by-fire if the plant doesn’t reopen? I’m no expert in Indian culture or Indian business methods, but that sounds bad.
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LML in Daelim talks?
Moneycontrol India reports:
…Daelim, [LML’s] South Korean partner, might buy into the Lucknow-based company. Sources say talks between the two companies have been on for about four months now.
LML management had no comment.
Kinetic Blazes in India, U.S. waits
While you’re waiting for 2sb’s Genuine Blur review (3/4 finished! it’s epic!), The Hindu Business Line is drooling all over the Kinetic Blaze, the Indian version of the Italjet Millennium. Still no clues towards a U.S. importer, despite Kinetic’s claims the Velocifero would be here by the end of the year.
Around Australia
Australian scooterist Julio Languiller is a quarter of the way into his 15-day, 10,000-mile trip around Australia for at-risk and homeless Australian youth. Languilller holds world endurance records on Honda 50, 125, and 150cc scooters and is a veteran of many long-distance charity rides. The Cannonball Run starts in less than a month, their ride is less than a quarter the distance in two-thirds the time, but they’re mostly riding vintage scooters, not 600cc Honda Silverwings, so we’ll cut them some slack.
Merry-go-round (follow-up)
BBC reports that Crawley, West Sussex police are investigating the “Merry-go-round” video posted last week on YouTube, in which two presumably-teenaged girls were thrown from a playground merry-go-round spun with a scooter tire. Remind me not to post any rally videos on YouTube.
A real Roman holiday
We usually cringe when a Vespa story starts with a reference to Roman Holiday, but this travelogue, by a young journalist that saw Rome from the pillion seat of a Vespa, is aptly titled and worth a read.
Vespatude
Jonathan Pait’s blog, Vespatude, started about a year ago when he bought a Vespa on eBay. Surely he planned to write about his travels and adventures, but unfortunately he’s spent the year learning why you should never buy an Asian restoration on eBay. Currently, he’s trying to raise some money for a new engine (“Million Dollar Homepage”-style), if you’re in the market for a vintage scooter, throw a few bucks his way to thank him for saving you the trouble of finding out the hard way.
Gadabout town on a Swallow
Barry Hartnell of Wangaratta, Victoria, Australia shows off his motorcycle collection to the ABC, including his pride and joy, a Swa… sorry, Swall… snort! er, Swallow Gadabout, made by:
“…the people who went on to make Jaguar motor cars. (The Vespa) arrived in England and they didn’t have anything to counter it, so they quickly sat down and made this horrible little bike out of steam pipe and tin…”
A 1950 scooter book in Hartnell’s possession:
“…shows all the bikes from A to Z, and when it comes to the Swallow Gadabout, there are seven and a half pages of it’s virtues and how wonderful the bike is and further on in the book you get to “V” for Vespa and it simply says ‘small scooter made in Italy’.”
Great story, great quotes.
Blaze in Japan, Blasé in U.S.
After the initial (positive) response to the Kinetic Blaze in the Indian press, and reports in May that Kinetic’s version of the Italjet Velocifero would (“soon”) be coming (exclusively) to America, Kinetic has been pretty quiet. Now they’ve announced the Blaze is going to be exported to Japan, but still no official word on Velociferos or America, not to mention the one word we all want to hear: “Dragster.”
POCphil on the CF Moto V5
Our good friend Phil Waters of Pride of Cleveland Scooters (POC) sent us his impressions of a CF Moto/Baron V5, a 250cc automatic motorcycle, that came into his shop for service:
“First it’s a candy, then it’s a gum!”
This doesn’t seem to work as well with automatic motorcycles. What Honda did so well with the Hondamatic 30 years ago is being re-introduced by the Chinese, in a typically Chinese fashion.
The CF Moto V5 is currently being distributed by Big Jim’s Wholesale, who has recently taken on the more scooter-friendly name of TwinCityScooters.com.
We’ve been considering bringing them in as a line here at POC and talked to their reps at Indy. Their bikes had intrigued me, but I was skeptical about the quality.
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