Posts tagged "Motorcycle Industry"

Influencing Factors in the Motorcycle Market and Consumers Trends

Since motorcycles are notorious for being more dangerous than passenger cars, safety isn’t usually the number one criteria on a person’s list when they buy, repair, or build their own motorcycle. Rather, speed, comfort, fuel economy and style are a few more common criteria.

With fuel prices climbing higher and higher, more consumers are interested in motorcycles for their fuel economy. The size and shape of your bike will have a huge impact on its gas mileage though. For the highest number of miles per gallon, buy a smaller bike with an aerodynamic frame. College students and young adult with no children are probably the best candidates for motorcycle use. Many gas pumps are designed with cars rather than motorcycles in mind though. This can make re-fueling somewhat difficult. Motorcycle owners consider the inconvenience a low price to pay for the money they save on gas though.

The design and brand of motorcycle that you choose will largely depend on the way you plan to use it. For example, stunt bikes and dirt bikes are usually light-weight while touring bikes, which travel longer distances and higher speeds, are often heavier to support a larger engine. Geographic location also makes a difference. For example, in a Southeast Asian country, where lane splitting is a common practice, small motorcycles and scooters allow motorists to utilize the space between cars and move through congested traffic quickly.

Although many Japanese brands, like Honda, Suzuki, and Yamaha, dominate the motorcycle industry today, Harley-Davidson is still a popular motorcycle brand in America. Harleys are pretty much heavy weight motorcycles that have at least 750cc engines. They are usually designed for highway cruising and they are also very customized and showy. One of the big selling points for Harley-Davison is their American-made and historic quality, but many of the motorcycle parts are actually made in other countries. This outsourcing increases the quality and decreases the price of the parts.

Buying vs. Building

Buying a motorcycle facilitates immediate use and requires no mechanical expertise. And, if your new ride comes with a warranty, you can rest assured that everything will run smoothly or be covered for the first couple years. On the other hand, if you build your own bike, you can make your ride exactly the way you want it and you will always be able to make your own repairs. It can also be more affordable to build your own bike because consumers can buy custom Harley parts for less than wholesale price if they know where to shop.

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Find Some Motorcycle Sunglasses

Article by Clifford S. Magno

Motorcycle sunglasses almost became a thing of the past, with more and more states and international jurisdictions requiring motorcycle riders and passengers to wear helmets, which make it difficult to wear sunglasses comfortably. The motorcycle sunglasses industry, however, has adapted to the helmet trend. Many motorcycle sunglasses these days are held on by a wide stretch band to allow them to be worn under helmets.Why Wear Motorcycle sunglasses

You can’t ride a motorcycle without sunglasses. If you’re the driver, you’ll go blind from all the pressure of the wind on your eyes and from all the bugs that will fly into your face. You absolutely must have some sort of eye protection when you ride your bike.

Some helmets come with pull-down visors, but many riders can’t stand these. Besides, when they make a stop and take off their helmets, they still need protection against the bright sun. And all that says nothing about the fashion statement that motorcycle sunglasses make.Popular Brands of Motorcycle sunglasses

One of the most popular brands of motorcycle sunglass is Harley Davidson. Harley Davidson sunglasses combine style with comfort and protection. These glasses protect against

Motorcycle Noise

Motorcycles are growing in popularity, especially as the cost of gas increases. But with the growing use of motorcycles comes the growing concern of their noise.

Not all motorcycles are noisy and most new motorcycles are built with federally mandated noise control standards. When a motorcycle is noisy it is due to the rider’s modification to the muffler tailpipe or an aftermarket exhaust system that is not street legal. Such modified exhaust systems can be heard and felt over a wide distance, rattling windows and traveling through walls. In the end, millions of people are adversely affected by this noise.

So if the motorcycles are so noisy, why do riders modify them? Mostly it is due to the fact that riders feel their sound will make them more heard by other motorists, which in turn will keep them safer. But this may be more a myth than truth. The American Motorcycle Association discourages cyclists in modifying their exhaust systems and have gone so far to create a creed that reads:

• All motorcyclists should be sensitive to community standards and respect the rights of fellow citizens to enjoy a peaceful environment.

• Motorcyclists should not modify exhaust systems in a way that will increase sound to an offensive level.

• Organizers of motorcycle events should take steps through advertising, peer pressure and enforcement to make excessively loud motorcycles unwelcome.

• Motorcycle retailers should discourage the installation and use of excessively loud replacement exhaust systems.

• The motorcycle industry, including aftermarket suppliers of replacement exhaust systems, should adopt responsible product design and marketing policies aimed at limiting the cumulative impact of excessive motorcycle noise.

• Manufacturers producing motorcycles to appropriate federal standards should continue to educate their dealers and customers that louder exhaust systems do not necessarily improve the performance of a motorcycle.

• Law enforcement agencies should fairly and consistently enforce appropriate laws and ordinances against excessive vehicle noise.

• The motorcycle industry and the safety community should educate customers that excessive noise may be fatiguing to riders, making them less able to enjoy riding and less able to exercise good riding skills.

To help combat noise problems, The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets noise emissions standards for motorcycles. The standard for street-legal exhaust noise emissions is 80 dB(a). All motorcycles are required to display an EPA label on the chassis and exhaust pipe. The “label match-up” program was designed as regulatory measure for states and municipalities to control motorcycle noise.

Yet, the United States allow higher noise levels for motorcycles than in other regions and countries, notably Europe and Japan. In Australia, label match-up is also used in addition to annual inspections.

Affected residents are speaking up about the problem of motorcycle noise and lobbying their elected officials for better protection. There is increasing motorcycle restrictions on public lands, private roads and gated communities.

In California, police officers are forced to measure exhaust noise with a decibel meter using the dB(a) standard, which does not measure low frequency noise.

Citations are often challenged in court because the meters must be certified and calibrated for its readings to be used as evidence. In addition, police officers must be properly trained to use the expensive equipment. The result is that fewer riders are cited for noise violations.

Another enforcement measure is called ‘plainly audible standard’ that allows an officer to determine noise levels. In New York City, noise offenders can be cited if the motorcycle exhaust noise is plainly audible at 200 feet.

Because the problem has not been completely solved, residents of communities who have a larger than normal amount of motorcycle traffic are making efforts to help sound proof their homes. But in the meantime, maybe as motorcycle usage increases so will conscientiousness.

More Custom Motorcycles Articles

One Tip to Buy Cheap Motorcycle Parts

Whatever the standards are set for motorcycle industry, a desire to get CHEAP motorcycle parts never change. Motorcyclists (not all but most of them) want to get them cheap. So, they hunt for different sources to fulfill their desire. There are plethora of articles and blogs available online that are written on the same topic and their number is always increasing because this topic never gets old. So, what is the one useful tip that is more influential in this regard than others?

As a matter of fact, I do believe that not all experiences can be generalized so what I think is not necessarily meant to be equally useful for you as well. However, I’m just sharing it with you for adding to your options. The first thing to know about buying cheap motorcycle parts is considering maximum options and then to rely on one that is best for you. Whenever I have to buy some of motorcycle accessories, I buy them online. Before placing my order online, I like to have a look at the forums and discussion boards either by searching topics matching with what I’m looking for or to by typing a new topic explaining my requirements and also welcoming comments from others.

A discussion board or forum is a good place to know about a motorcycle accessory. Sometimes, you get more information from there than your expectations and comments there clear you more about the motorcycle parts you wanted to buy. It’s good to go to some experts’ discussion forum to have an expert opinion as this will remove your doubts and you will save yourself from potential risks involved in this ‘cheap’ motorcycle parts shopping.

Buying at a cheap price is good but that needs some homework and these discussion forums/boards provide you full opportunities to discuss all pros and cons involved in this shopping.

Most of the motorcyclists want their motorcycles perform better so they buy custom parts on the basis of performance. For these motorcyclists, looks and other points come after this performance factor. A low price motorcycle muffler with bad performance will be rejected by most of the motorcyclists.

After performance, price is the factor that matters to lot many motorcyclists. A better performance at unaffordable price will be rejected by most of the motorcyclists. Take the example of Harley Davidson customized accessories. They’re better in performance but higher in prices as well. Performance at affordable prices is what most of the motorcyclists look for.

Motorcycle Noise

Article by Mark Rustad

Motorcycles are growing in popularity, especially as the cost of gas increases. But with the growing use of motorcycles comes the growing concern of their noise.

Not all motorcycles are noisy and most new motorcycles are built with federally mandated noise control standards. When a motorcycle is noisy it is due to the rider’s modification to the muffler tailpipe or an aftermarket exhaust system that is not street legal. Such modified exhaust systems can be heard and felt over a wide distance, rattling windows and traveling through walls. In the end, millions of people are adversely affected by this noise.

So if the motorcycles are so noisy, why do riders modify them? Mostly it is due to the fact that riders feel their sound will make them more heard by other motorists, which in turn will keep them safer. But this may be more a myth than truth. The American Motorcycle Association discourages cyclists in modifying their exhaust systems and have gone so far to create a creed that reads:

• All motorcyclists should be sensitive to community standards and respect the rights of fellow citizens to enjoy a peaceful environment.• Motorcyclists should not modify exhaust systems in a way that will increase sound to an offensive level.• Organizers of motorcycle events should take steps through advertising, peer pressure and enforcement to make excessively loud motorcycles unwelcome.• Motorcycle retailers should discourage the installation and use of excessively loud replacement exhaust systems.• The motorcycle industry, including aftermarket suppliers of replacement exhaust systems, should adopt responsible product design and marketing policies aimed at limiting the cumulative impact of excessive motorcycle noise.• Manufacturers producing motorcycles to appropriate federal standards should continue to educate their dealers and customers that louder exhaust systems do not necessarily improve the performance of a motorcycle.• Law enforcement agencies should fairly and consistently enforce appropriate laws and ordinances against excessive vehicle noise.• The motorcycle industry and the safety community should educate customers that excessive noise may be fatiguing to riders, making them less able to enjoy riding and less able to exercise good riding skills.

To help combat noise problems, The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets noise emissions standards for motorcycles. The standard for street-legal exhaust noise emissions is 80 dB(a). All motorcycles are required to display an EPA label on the chassis and exhaust pipe. The “label match-up” program was designed as regulatory measure for states and municipalities to control motorcycle noise.

Yet, the United States allow higher noise levels for motorcycles than in other regions and countries, notably Europe and Japan. In Australia, label match-up is also used in addition to annual inspections.

Affected residents are speaking up about the problem of motorcycle noise and lobbying their elected officials for better protection. There is increasing motorcycle restrictions on public lands, private roads and gated communities.

In California, police officers are forced to measure exhaust noise with a decibel meter using the dB(a) standard, which does not measure low frequency noise.

Citations are often challenged in court because the meters must be certified and calibrated for its readings to be used as evidence. In addition, police officers must be properly trained to use the expensive equipment. The result is that fewer riders are cited for noise violations.

Another enforcement measure is called ‘plainly audible standard’ that allows an officer to determine noise levels. In New York City, noise offenders can be cited if the motorcycle exhaust noise is plainly audible at 200 feet.

Because the problem has not been completely solved, residents of communities who have a larger than normal amount of motorcycle traffic are making efforts to help sound proof their homes. But in the meantime, maybe as motorcycle usage increases so will conscientiousness.

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