Easy Riders Official Emissions Certification Global Challenge Ricardo Celebrates 100 Years with an Ambitious Round-The-World Relay RQ Extract: Q4 2015
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Ricardo Motorcycle Conference 7.0 RicardoFeature heading Quarterly Review Q4 2015 Interview: John Fuerst Delphi’s vice president of powertrain engineering Real driving A focus on the latest in technology, innovation and sustainability emissions How on-road measurement can bring credibility to Easy riders official emissions certification Global challenge Ricardo celebrates 100 years with an ambitious round-the-world relay RQ extract: Q4 2015 Easy RideRs The cruiser motorcycle phenomenon has always been hard for non-US bike manufacturers to crack. Ricardo Motorcycle gives crucial insights into what makes a cruiser irresistible to the American enthusiast Cruiser motorcycles Cruiser motorcycles Penetrating the big-capacity cruiser motorcycle market is something that bike manufacturers from outside the United States have traditionally found very difficult to achieve. But now the team at Ricardo Motorcycle has the know-how to help develop cruisers which American leisure motorcyclists will find irresistible. Jesse Crosse reports. Several nations specialize in fine- considerable commercial opportunity handling sports bikes, other countries for global motorcycle manufacturers – have acknowledged expertise in rugged yet this is a market that has historically adventure bikes to tackle deserts and proven formidably difficult for outsiders trails; still more are masters in the art of to crack. making commuter mounts for traffic- For proof of how popular the cruiser clogged cities. But when it comes market is in the US, look no further than to heavyweight continent-crossing Sturgis, a small town located in Meade cruisers, laden with ornate equipment County, South Dakota. Sturgis is fairly and creature comforts, there is only one typical of its type, a mountain town and country with true credibility – the USA. ranch community sitting in the border The cruiser is uniquely American in lands between the Black Hills and the its origin – relaxed and comfortable, prairie. During most weeks of the year, with languorous power delivery and visitors driving through might find it oozing style. Its roots are set deep unremarkable. It has a population of in the heart of middle America and it just under 7000 and its fair share of represents a style of motorcycling stores, churches, restaurants and bars. that has endured from the 1930s to But in the first full week of August each this day. As such, it also represents a year, this small Midwestern community Easy 10 RQ • Q4 • 2015 RideRs RQ • Q4 • 2015 11 Cruiser motorcycles Cruiser motorcycles Penetrating the big-capacity cruiser motorcycle market is something that bike manufacturers from outside the United States have traditionally found very difficult to achieve. But now the team at Ricardo Motorcycle has the know-how to help develop cruisers which American leisure motorcyclists will find irresistible. Jesse Crosse reports. Several nations specialize in fine- considerable commercial opportunity handling sports bikes, other countries for global motorcycle manufacturers – have acknowledged expertise in rugged yet this is a market that has historically adventure bikes to tackle deserts and proven formidably difficult for outsiders trails; still more are masters in the art of to crack. making commuter mounts for traffic- For proof of how popular the cruiser clogged cities. But when it comes market is in the US, look no further than to heavyweight continent-crossing Sturgis, a small town located in Meade cruisers, laden with ornate equipment County, South Dakota. Sturgis is fairly and creature comforts, there is only one typical of its type, a mountain town and country with true credibility – the USA. ranch community sitting in the border The cruiser is uniquely American in lands between the Black Hills and the its origin – relaxed and comfortable, prairie. During most weeks of the year, with languorous power delivery and visitors driving through might find it oozing style. Its roots are set deep unremarkable. It has a population of in the heart of middle America and it just under 7000 and its fair share of represents a style of motorcycling stores, churches, restaurants and bars. that has endured from the 1930s to But in the first full week of August each this day. As such, it also represents a year, this small Midwestern community Easy 10 RQ • Q4 • 2015 RideRs RQ • Q4 • 2015 11 Cruiser motorcycles Cruiser motorcycles Ricardo Motorcycle Ricardo Motorcycle was formed in 2014 to build on the success of Ricardo’s existing motorcycle division with the acquisition of uK consultancy Vepro Ltd. the new business unit also includes a Memorandum of understanding with the Italian firm exnovo srl, taking the headcount of the group to nearly 130 people. with its unique skill set, Ricardo Motorcycle can offer the specialised expertise needed to handle full motorcycle design and development programmes. Vepro and Ricardo previously gained extensive experience in the us cruiser motorcycle market working together on iconic brands like excelsior Henderson, Victory Motorcycles, Harley-Davidson Motorcycles and Indian Motorcycles, since acquired by Polaris. these are some of the greatest names in cruiser motorcycles, names which actually defined the genre. undergoes a startling metamorphosis. focused – cruisers generally offer less on steeply banked wooden-boarded The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is the performance, reduced cornering ability, circuits and for a time became the biggest of its kind in the world and and inferior low-speed manoeuvrability. highest-paid professional athletes, is remarkable not least because in Above all others, the air-cooled drawing the largest crowds in America. 2015 it swelled the population of the V-twin became the favourite engine Wall of Death riders defied gravity town to 790,000 in just a couple of configuration for both pre-war and and the unthinkable, blasting around days. First held in 1938, the economic post-war American-built motorcycles; vertical cylindrical walls to the delight of benefit the Rally brings to the State even from the very early days, large spectators. annually is around $800 million. The capacity engines, some as large as 1300 Outside sport and shows, sheer magnitude of the event serves to cc (79 cu in), were not uncommon. motorcycles became extensions of the define something else too: the scale of It is this engine configuration which rider’s personality, both a character America’s love for the motorcycle and presents one of the biggest challenges, statement and a fashion statement the many different forms that takes. a challenge which Ricardo Motorcycle is at the same time. Post-war, cruisers especially well equipped to meet. served as raw material for returning Distinctive in every sense Understanding the cruiser’s GIs in search of cheaper modes of Cruisers are a distinctive breed, with heritage helps explain why it is so transport. The GIs kept wartime Harley- a feet-forward, back-upright riding tough for a foreign nameplate to take Davidson and Indian motorcycles position; they are focused on delivering on the US domestic manufacturers going as best they could, stripping off an easy, relaxed riding experience with at their own game. From the 1920s damaged or broken components and smooth shifting and lots of low-end onwards, motorcycle enthusiasts replacing only those that were really torque taking precedence over high customised, raced and performed needed. Pretty soon, a new stripped- power. Providing such an easy style stunts on motorcycles while other back style of bike evolved: known as the of riding is not without its drawbacks, riders just enjoyed them for transport bobber, this style saw key components “Cruisers are a distinctive breed, with a however, and in comparison with other and leisure. From around 1910 until like the frame, forks and engine remain feet-forward, back-upright riding position; more conventional motorcycles – the Great Depression in the 1930s, intact but the rest would be cut back, whether touring, sports or off-road ‘board trackers’ raced their bikes customised or removed altogether. they are focused on delivering an easy, From Bobber to Chopper relaxed riding experience with smooth In the 1960s the Chopper evolved, like shifting and lots of low-end torque taking the Bobber but with ‘chopped,’ modified frames and long, extended forks. A precedence over high power” vocabulary evolved around them too, like “sissy bars” for the high backrests or “ape hangers” for the impossibly tall the sturgis By the 1980s foreign manufacturers during that time an array of styles have sensitivity; we understand the minute and sculpted handlebars. The chopper Motorcycle Rally (left) had already identified the scale of the evolved. The type of customer has details that are important to buyers, is the biggest of its was immortalised in the film “Easy kind in the world and potential business. By the late 1990s evolved too, one of the latest being the and that’s important,” he says. One Rider” and became such an iconic style demonstrates the cruisers would account for 60 percent ‘weekend warrior’ – someone who may of Wright’s prime recommendations of motorcycle that manufacturers renaissance of the us of the US motorcycle market and the spend weekdays toiling in the office to European or Asian manufacturers motorcycle market. began producing their own, albeit less the multi-award trend has continued – yet for a new and who at weekends wants to escape developing a product for the US cruiser extreme, ready-to-ride versions. winning Indian scout motorcycle product to succeed, it has the rat race and take to the open road. market is to make use of American test Throughout the 1940s, 1950s motorcycle (above) a lot to live up to. Function is taken as a To that customer, the motorcycle is a riders during development, to be sure was the subject and 1960s the American motorcycle of a successful given in today’s hi-tech society, but an panacea for the stress of modern life, of achieving the right feel and riding evolved into an art form and one that is collaboration authentic heritage ‘look’, with desirable an extension of personality, a style icon experience in the finished result.