Motus merged threadfest

[Lannis]

I just noticed that it is the MST-R as in the even more expensive one!

Best of all, it would actually look good with a Russell Day-Long seat!

Lannis

[oldbike54]

 Wow , 542 posts about a motorbike that doesn't really exist in the real world 

  Dusty

[Lannis]

Wow , 542 posts about a motorbike that doesn't really exist in the real world 

  Dusty

I suppose it's possible that the recent picture of the Motus at the bike gathering is a photo-shopped hoax.   Don't know why you'd assume that, though?

Lannis

[blackcat]

Wow , 542 posts about a motorbike that doesn't really exist in the real world 

  Dusty

Demo rides at our local dealer and both Leafman and myself test rode one. Great bikes, I'd buy one in a minute if the price was a bit more reasonable. Test rode this one:

[oldbike54]

I suppose it's possible that the recent picture of the Motus at the bike gathering is a photo-shopped hoax.   Don't know why you'd assume that, though?

Lannis

 Yeah , and there were a few of those Excelsior Henderson Hanlon brothers things that showed up at MC gatherings also .




 

Demo rides at our local dealer and both Leafman and myself test rode one. Great bikes, I'd buy one in a minute if the price was a bit more reasonable. Test rode this one:

 Uh , how long have we been doing this dance ?

 Get back to me when these things are available at a dealership for a price that any sane person would pay 
Really , I hope MOTUS makes it , would be cool to see a more or less American made sport touring bike , but it seems these guys have misread the market and are trying to reinvent the wheel .

  Dusty

[Lannis]

Yeah , and there were a few of those Excelsior Henderson Hanlon brothers things that showed up at MC gatherings also .




 
 Uh , how long have we been doing this dance ?

 Get back to me when these things are available at a dealership for a price that any sane person would pay 
Really , I hope MOTUS makes it , would be cool to see a more or less American made sport touring bike , but it seems these guys have misread the market and are trying to reinvent the wheel .

  Dusty

The Excelsior Henderson comparison is fair enough.  Time will tell, so at some point there won't be a debate.   There might be 100 of them sold and then the whole thing dies and 100 guys are left with orphan collector items ... or maybe not.

You can't waffle out by saying that "a sane person won't pay the price", though.   Nominally sane people pay $30 grand every day for top-of-the-line, fully-equipped BMW and Harleys.  For that matter, people who are not gibbering idiots pay $60K for giant pickup trucks in which to commute to work.  YOU might not, but that just means it's not your thing, not that it's nobody's thing and therefore "doesn't exist" ....

Lannis

[oldbike54]

The Excelsior Henderson comparison is fair enough.  Time will tell, so at some point there won't be a debate.   There might be 100 of them sold and then the whole thing dies and 100 guys are left with orphan collector items ... or maybe not.

You can't waffle out by saying that "a sane person won't pay the price", though.   Nominally sane people pay $30 grand every day for top-of-the-line, fully-equipped BMW and Harleys.  For that matter, people who are not gibbering idiots pay $60K for giant pickup trucks in which to commute to work.  YOU might not, but that just means it's not your thing, not that it's nobody's thing ....

Lannis

 Just kidding about the "sane" thing , like being a bit crazy isn't a prerequisite around here  Still , there is no real world evidence that MOTUS is ever going to be a viable MC manufacturer . Haven't we been reading about this for more than 5 years ?

  Dusty

[kirby1923]

I have recently read in a newspaper that the average price out the door for an F-150 Ford pickup is about $45 grand. (maybe it was a 250??)
If the average guy can find financing for that with maybe 60 months term then an average rider could probably swing a Motus no?

Its really the only modern sport touring two wheeler I have seen that interests me..not that I would buy one but I hope its a success.

mike 

[oldbike54]

I have recently read in a newspaper that the average price out the door for an F-150 Ford pickup is about $45 grand. (maybe it was a 250??)
If the average guy can find financing for that with maybe 60 months term then an average rider could probably swing a Motus no?

Its really the only modern sport touring two wheeler I have seen that interests me..not that I would buy one but I hope its a success.

mike

 "Not that I would buy one" . There in lies the problem , even folks who can pay cash aren't interested . The sport touring market isn't all that large , and BMW , Triumph , Honda , Yamaha , even little old Moto Guzzi  build incredible bikes in the $15K - $28K range that compete in this category .

  Dusty

[tiger_one]

You forgot KTM.    :Beating_A_Dead_Hors e_by_liviu

[canuguzzi]

At the prices mentioned, there is no business model that makes Motus a viable company for any length of time, not with a one model line or even with diveratives.

There might be a good market retrofitting the engines into a Toyota Priius.

My guess is that they are shopping to see if they can be a Munch type maker and turn out a few every once in a while. There are lots of engines out there at least equal to what this brings to the table, they are being made by the tens of thousands.

They stick half a Chevy engine into a bike and didn't stop to think about anyone who drives Ford's? Might as well try to sell a Harley to a Gold Wing rider and have better luck.

[Lannis]

They stick half a Chevy engine into a bike and didn't stop to think about anyone who drives Ford's? Might as well try to sell a Harley to a Gold Wing rider and have better luck.

Do people still pay attention to the "Ford vs Chevy" thing?   It used to be a huge deal when race cars were really derived from showroom cars, and people proudly wore their Dodge/Ford/Plymouth/Chevy colors and followed their stars and bought the cars.

Nowadays, the race cars are just generic, standardized race cars, no relation to anything you can buy, and the cars on the road all look and act the same.   

Hard to believe there's still anyone left, even in deepest NASCAR country, that would turn their nose up at a Motus because the engine was "derived" from an old Chevy design, and not a Mopar?   But maybe there is.

Lucky for us, we won't have to do the "He said, She said, Is Not, Is Too" thing for too long.   Time will tell.

Lannis

[blackcat]

 Get back to me when these things are available at a dealership for a price that any sane person would pay 

  Dusty

Two people were going to buy the bike a few days after the demo rides. Unfortunately the dealer wasn't quite forthcoming on some information, left a bad taste in the buyers mouths and they walked away from the sales.

[bpreynolds]

Similar fugly front fairings.  Who wore it better?  Motus or...

[steven c]

Motus interview.
http://rideapart.com/articles/interview-lee-conn-president-co-founder-motus

[oldbike54]

Two people were going to buy the bike a few days after the demo rides. Unfortunately the dealer wasn't quite forthcoming on some information, left a bad taste in the buyers mouths and they walked away from the sales.

 What info , price , warranty , delivery time ? Like I said , not really available .

  Dusty

[Lannis]

 What info , price , warranty , delivery time ? Like I said , not really available .

  Dusty

Is too.  Is not!  Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not!

Wait, which one was I?   

[oldbike54]

Is too.  Is not!  Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not! Is too.  Is not!

Wait, which one was I?

 Now I'm confused 

  Dusty

[rdbandkab]

Who designed the rear end on that red Motus above???  Yikes!

[canuguzzi]

Similar fugly front fairings.  Who wore it better?  Motus or...

Motus Interruptus.

[krglorioso]

Now I'm confused 

  Dusty

Finally; he admits it.   

Ralph

[kirb]

Motus is as viable as Confederate...where one of the founders came from. Motus has a very good design ideal- parts people want (seat, suspenders, brakes, adjustable bars, etc) at a premium price. They are currently filling orders of pre-sale bikes. None on the showroom floors as they are all sold out for awhile.

Some are going to have to come to terms with not being in the Motus demographic. People have a hard time with this for some reason. It's not for everyone and that is part of the point.

I love the Henderson comparison that keeps coming up. EH was venture capitalists all the way who burnt through a pile of investor money before they could get any sales volume. Motus hasn't asked for a single investor dollar. They are not building a 10k bikes per year plant. They are not rushing a non-tested product to market with the big boys as the target. They are not at all like the Hanlons. They sell specialized sport touring rigs in a market they feel is lacking any kind of representation. EH is like Motus only because the product has two wheels.

You can also send Lee (founder) a question directly, and he answers. Usually the same day.

[bpreynolds]

Always thought everyone already knew 

  Dusty

We did.  Geez.  Now can we please get back on the topic of discussing this very expensive, very ugly motorcycle?

[Lannis]

We did.  Geez.  Now can we please get back on the topic of discussing this very expensive, very ugly motorcycle?

Me personal, I like the looks of it; and it's the style of motorcycle that I imagine myself riding on.   

Very expensive?   No doubt, but people have spent a lot more on motorcycles that I don't even give a second glance as they go down the road or as I walk by them in a parking lot .....

Lannis

[rocker59]

Looks nice, to me.  I saw a blue one in Cripple Creek Colorado, back in June.  Looked good going down the road.

With the kind of power these things make, I think I'd want ABS/TC.

These bikes fill the void left by the Ducati ST4S.  Same type of well-heeled customer.

I'm anxious to see how they do on the LD circuit.

[oldbike54]

 KIRB , the EH comparison isn't about business practice , more the reality of bringing a new motorcycle company to maturity . Bloor spent 100,000,000 English pounds of his own money to revive the Triumph name , don't think MOTUS has that kind of money . I do wish them well , but the sport touring market isn't really underrepresented , there just hasn't been a huge demand for those types of bikes .


  How is that Bipper ?

   Dusty

 
   


 
 

[bpreynolds]

KIRB , the EH comparison isn't about business practice , more the reality of bringing a new motorcycle company to maturity . Bloor spent 100,000,000 English pounds of his own money to revive the Triumph name , don't think MOTUS has that kind of money . I do wish them well , but the sport touring market isn't really underrepresented , there just hasn't been a huge demand for those types of bikes .
How is that Bipper ?
   Dusty

Measured, thoughtful, relevant.  Dusty for mayor, I say.

[oldbike54]

Measured, thoughtful, relevant.  Dusty for mayor, I say.

 Oh , nobody wants that , not even me .

  Dusty

[rocker59]

  the sport touring market isn't really underrepresented , there just hasn't been a huge demand for those types of bikes .

Yeah.  The sport-touring segment is being diminished by the road-oriented ADVbike category.

More upright ergos for the old farts who still like to sport-tour.

BMW's new R1000XR being the latest shot across the bow of "traditional" sport-touring motorcycles.

Even Ducati killed the ST line in favor of the more road-going version of the Multistrada with Testastretta engine.

[kirb]

KIRB , the EH comparison isn't about business practice , more the reality of bringing a new motorcycle company to maturity . Bloor spent 100,000,000 English pounds of his own money to revive the Triumph name , don't think MOTUS has that kind of money . I do wish them well , but the sport touring market isn't really underrepresented , there just hasn't been a huge demand for those types of bikes .

Motus hit at the right time- engineering firms were in a slump and used Motus to keep the engineers fed. They selected to have EVERYTHING outsourced but assembly. This saved a ton in required capital for a plant. Getting all of this to mesh does take time and caused delays. They have 50 state legal bikes and are getting them to happy customers.

The sport touring segment doesn't have a bunch of demand...for the big guys. Motus only needs 200-300 per year (their numbers) to meet the sales goals. Motus was online marketing like crazy prior  to bikes going out. Now they are focused on specific events and making bikes. I'd call them a success so far.