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INTERMOT Round Up – Digesting What We Saw in Cologne

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The INTERMOT show is done and dusted, and we have had some time to chew on the models that we saw in Cologne, Germany…or didn’t see, as the case might be. The second largest trade show in the motorcycle industry, one can wonder though whether the INTERMOT show is the second most important.

Having two major shows on European soil, with INTERMOT coming every other year, creates a Sophie’s Choice for motorcycle manufacturers. EICMA might draw the crowds and the press, but it is also a maelstrom of new models, and it is easy for a bike’s launch and debut to be lost in the chaos.

To that vein, INTERMOT provides an opportunity for manufacturers to see the forest for the trees. It is less pressure, with most manufacturers choosing to debut more minor releases at the German show, but this makes it ripe for some surprises as well. For 2018, things were no different.

Indian’s Big Move

It is hard to call the Indian FTR1200 a surprise, especially when the American brand telegraphs the move for the better part of a year. But make no mistake, the FTR1200 street tracker is a big bike for the Indian Motorcycle company, and that means that it will be a big bike for the motorcycle industry.

The Indian FTR1200 marks a sea change for this historic American brand, and I won’t rehash what I have already said about this machine, how it rides, and what it means for the future for Indian. I repeat one important notion, however. Indian wants to be the next Honda, not the next Harley-Davidson.

I am still trying to understand the Indian FTR1200 as a sport bike, if that is even the right word, and that might be due to the fact that Indian is creating a new segment with this model. What I do understand though is that the FTR1200 will lead to other models, which will lead to new markets, which will lead to Indian being more than just an American cruiser brand of motorcycle.

The undisputed biggest launch of INTERMOT, Indian stole the show. Everyone I talked to in Cologne had an opinion of the new FTR1200 – not all of them flattering, mind you – though overall the reception was positive. Ultimately, this bike is going to sneak up on motorcycle enthusiasts, which perhaps makes all the fanfare in Germany worthwhile.

Welcome Back Suzuki

While the Indian FTR1200 may have stolen the show, it was Suzuki that drew the largest crowd to the booths. Everyone wanted to see the new Katana.

There is a little something for everyone with the Suzuki Katana. Older riders will remember the iconic motorcycle from the 1980s and onward, and new riders will be attracted to its modern lines.

The Suzuki Katana was in its swan song when I became a motorcyclist, and the outgoing models were more forgettable than their predecessors. But older and wiser now, I must say that I have enjoyed the restomod versions of the bike that I have seen at classic racing events. The odd face of the Katana is appealing, in a “what is old is new again” sort of way.

Disappointment was the word I heard most when leaving the Suzuki both though, as the bike shown was really just a Suzuki GSX-S1000F in Katana bodywork. A reality check needs to occur for those who were expecting more, however. The GSX-S1000F is of course really just a 2005 GSX-R1000 in sheeps clothing, and not really one of the Japanese brand’s better machines, at that.

But, when you think back to the history of the Katana, was it too not just a superbike in street guise? You could argue the Katana was one of the first streetfighters, long before the Europeans made a whole movement out of the stripped down superbike-hooligan-street thing.

For as underwhelmed as I am about the GSX-S1000F, it really wouldn’t take much from Suzuki to improve the model, changes that could easily come to the new Katana, when it debuts for the 2020 model year. I am cautiously optimistic about the new Suzuki Katana then.

The design is true to the original, and updated for modern tastes. The concept is authentic to the Katana’s past too. One last point, the price tag on this motorcycle is going to be killer, and I think bike reviewers will be impressed by how fun it will be to ride when it comes time for international press launches.

An attractive, unique, sport bike with strong bang-for-the-buck leanings…is this not the motorcycle we have been asking manufacturers to build? Ok then.

Minor Roles

If there is a critique of the INTERMOT show, it is what its role is inside the motorcycle industry, with mostly minor bikes debuting in Germany this year. INTERMOT plays second fiddle to EICMA, there is no arguing that point, but still there was a sense of wasted time amongst the assembled media on the dearth of notably new bikes on display.

Bold new graphics was the game played by more than a few brands, with maybe a few model updates sprinkled in for good measure. The home show for BMW Motorrad, the German brand has nine new motorcycles to show for the 2019 model year, but at INTERMOT, it chose only two show the R1250GS and R1250RT – two bikes it had already shown to the world virtually.

Making matters worse, BMW Motorrad chose to conduct its entire media unveil at INTERMOT in German. A 15-minute unveiling, that saw the crowd slowly dwindle because of the lack of translation.

Now, keep in mind that there is a certain amount of arrogance nationalism that comes with a German brand at a German trade show, but increasingly presenters at EICMA and INTERMOT have understood that they are at international events.

When I first started Asphalt & Rubber, you could count the number of American journalists at EICMA or INTERMOT on two fingers, and presentations were regularly only in the native tongue. Now, you can’t walk five feet without running into someone who has ventured across the pond, and English has become the de facto common language.

One of the bikes we had been looking forward to seeing, the Moto Guzzi V85 TT was a bust. The Italian brand’s presentation was conducted primarily in German, with a quick bit of English at the end advising where to get the press kit.

Hoping to hear at least some basic details about the V85 TT adventure-tourer, we were disappointed again when we opened up the Piaggio press materials. Moto Guzzi seems to hope that the riding experience with the V85 TT will set the tone for the machine, but instead the effect has seemed to be a lack of coverage and interest.

While brands like Triumph can get away with not talking about motorcycle specs for machines like the Bonneville, Moto Guzzi seems to still be behind the gun. Quoting only 80hp from the 850cc v-twin engine, attendees at INTERMOT were left to guess about the bike’s mass and capabilities…none of which were assumed to be flattering.

I am hoping to be proven wrong with the Moto Guzzi V85 TT, since it is such an intriguing machine from such a unique brand, but I am afraid that the model is going to be DOA by the time it finally arrives at dealerships.

The Long Wait, 2020

I too fear that the upcoming EICMA show might follow the disappointment set by INTERMOT this year, and be dead on arrival. The reason for this is simple, and it concerns the Euro5 homologation standards that start to affect new models in 2020.

Because of the strict emission standards that come with Euro5, manufacturers have quite the technical burden ahead of them if they want to meet the its requirements. This takes resources…resources normally allocated to new model development.

New motorcycle models will have to be Euro5 compliant by 2020, while existing models will be given another year on the Euro4 standard, before having to comply with Euro5 in 2021.

Most brands seems to be holding development on new bikes for next year, though a few intrepid souls are shooting for that extra year of development for 2021, releasing new models now.

This means that EICMA, like INTERMOT, thankfully won’t be devoid of new bikes, but I suspect that we won’t see too many actually new models at the Italian show. Instead, I see Milan being much like Cologne, with a handful of big debuts, and many, many model updates and refreshes.

A “development year” for the motorcycle industry, as my sports-ball friends would call it, the 2019 model year isn’t going to seem as robust as years past, and I will be curious to see how this affects sales, especially in Europe. The 2020 and 2021 model years however, I think we will be in for tornado of new models. Stay tuned.

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