Thread: Game Changers
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Old 02-05-2020, 08:57 AM   #5
zero_dgz   zero_dgz is offline
 
Join Date: Jan 2020
Posts: 254
The next big thing will hopefully be turning out something, anything, with a motor larger than 229cc for the export market.


With China's mastery of the economy of scale they could be killing it with something along the lines of the various Hyosung bikes but cheaper. A lot of new riders, or indeed riders in general, would jump at the chance to own an "off brand" 300/400/450cc street bike at half the price of a Ninja 400. Or for dual sport, a cheap competitor to the CRF450L that doesn't cost $11,000 and require an oil change and valve adjustment every three feet. Or a clone of the DR400.


Think about it, every owner's question about the Hawk and similar street capable bikes is "how do I make it go faster?" Or, "how do I make it highway capable?" These bikes would stop being a niche item outside of Southeast Asia if they were reasonably highway capable out of the box.


That said, I think electric bikes are going to be the next big thing out of China. It's already happening. Reasonably powerful (enough for city use) bikes are already appearing there, but most/none of them are DOT approved and actually street legal in the US. I hear you can operate them in Canada, though.


 
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