Triumphrat

horsey

I love my Triumph,but if BMW came out with a cool R90-R75/6 retro, I would be beating the doors down to buy one. I can recall Yvon Duhamel dominating on the R90 in the early 70's when I went to the races at Laguna Seca.That was the R1 of the day and is still a great looking bike.
Of course I would still keep my Bonneville.

steve betts

[QUOTE=rmak;2427344] "What Would Steve McQueen Do"

When in any doubt, this is always the question I ask myself...

sayonora

I think the whole retro thing is a phase. Like 10 years ago people were throwing away all the 70's honda and kawa and whatnot's, but look at them today, a good cb 750f k1 or Z900 will go 10 grand! Right now the 60's are the period that is the hippest, with cafe racers starting to get more desired, but alas, I think in about 10 years it wont be hip to have a retro anymore, it'll just be another motorcycle, like there are people with ugly 80s motorcycles (which are getting increasingly handsome at the moment)

Cerberith

Interesting point about the cars - here in the UK we have lots of new Beetles and a few of the Mustangs etc make it over here but in general the UK car market is a lot less 'retro' styled.

I guess my everyday car is very retro though as it has looks that haven't changed much since the 1950s ...

Irishguy

My buddy, Dan, has one of the Honda CB700SC Nighthawk S models from the 1980's and in my mind it may be 80's retro, but it was an instant classic. One of the more handsome vehicles to come out of the 1980's...

Odysseus

It seems to me that our tastes are formed fairly early in life - in our teens or earlier, into our early 20s - whether it's bikes, music, cars, or countless other things. We carry those tastes into later life, and if they happen to require money in order to indulge them, some of us can do that once we get into our 30s, 40s or later, so we create a "retro" market. I'm totally convinced that the Triumphs made in the 1960s are the most beautiful bikes ever made, which is why I have the modern equivalent, but I know that that view is influenced hugely by the fact that they are what I lusted after when I was a kid.

Fifteen or twenty years ago you could buy a good '60s Bonnie in the UK for a couple of thousand quid, but then my age group started to sniff around them and the price went through the roof. A few years later, early '70s Japanese bikes suddenly started taking off (CB750, Z1, etc.), because the young kids who lusted after them were by now middle-aged and with a bit of spare cash. And so it goes on.

These days, Bonneville-style bikes are referred to as having "classic" styling, but I think there was quite a bit of to-ing and fro-ing before people settled on that description. In fact, in the UK, at least for calculating sales, they used to be lumped in with cruisers, which really offended a lot of us. I think over time, the popularity of those "classic"-style bikes will fade, as they start to look more and more antiquated as each new generation gets older, and those of us who lusted after them die off. But "retro" has got a lot of steam in, because the idea of what retro means is constantly changing as middle-aged blokes move into the market looking for something that reminds them of their teenage bike lust. But for the same reason, it will always be a niche market, because I don't think it will ever be the predominant market for young 20-something bikers.

And there are two other points to bear in mind. Firstly, an air-cooled engine with a spine frame means a manufacturer has to produce an entirely separate bike from its mainstream products. There is very little sharing of parts, which increases the expense and risk to the producer considerably. Secondly, emissions regulations may well kill off air-cooled bikes for good in the not too distant future, and if that happens, the answer to whether such bikes are the future of motorcycles will be a very unambiguous "no".

__________________
Oddball (Kelly's Heroes): Man, I only ride 'em - I don't know what makes 'em work.

gkgeiger

I do believe that retros are becoming more popular, and I plan on having a Bonnie soon. I do think though that my Honda NC700X is the real future of motorcycling. It's very light feeling, handle very sporty, has a great engine and gets over 70mpg.

__________________
Gene

mr1bienvenu

Just in case you think motorcycle builder REALLY care about the USA and what we want, take a look at who buys MOST of motorcycles in this world. The dark blue in the pie is motorcycles.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...lions_2002.png

tonupdave

I was not knocking modern bikes just the so called Designe most manufacturers follow the same path so it was nice to see retro....modern but looking good....When I pull up sombody allways say lovely bike the other day an old lady even......you have the VW Beetle...the Mini...Fiat500 all good sellers though not all practical so tha must say something....And even the 911

prior

I think its a case that anything that was good will become a classic. Honda Hurricanes, first generation Fireblades, Suzuki RGVs, are fetching big money now. If any one of the Japanese big 4 produced a replica 80s liveried sports bike it would sell like hot cakes.