From the monthly archives:

June 2007

Former Confederate Employee Shot and Killed

by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider" on 6/29/2007

in Down Time, Motorcycle Business

Chris Roberts, a former motorcycle electrician employed by Confederate Motorcycles for over 5 years, was shot and killed on Father’s Day when he confronted a thief stealing his motorcycle. Chris had recently left the company to return to New Orleans after following Confederate in their post Katrina move to Birmingham. If you saw photos or [...]

{ 14 readers have commented so far, ... your thoughts? }

2008 Suzuki Hayabusa

by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider" on 6/28/2007

in Motorcycle Business

Suzuki brought out the new 2008 Suzuki Hayabusa and there is more displacement, 1340cc versus the old 1299cc. Like the new B-King, the rider can choose between engine settings, but the Hayabusa rider has a choice of three instead of the B-King’s two, there’s probably something labeled “light speed” on the Hayabusa.
A Hayabusa with more [...]

{ 85 readers have commented so far, ... your thoughts? }

2008 Suzuki B-King

by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider" on 6/28/2007

in Motorcycle Business, Motorcycle Design

After long speculation and years of waiting, the 2008 Suzuki B-King has finally been introduced. The styling is very close to the original concept motorcycle. Suzuki received so much interest and support for the design it was given the go ahead for production.
The engine is straight from the new Hayabusa and nowhere in the [...]

{ 48 readers have commented so far, ... your thoughts? }

Once again, as I was digging deep in The Kneeslider’s motorcycle research archives I came across something I never knew existed. The rather unconventional bike you see above was called the Dragwaye. It was designed by Clive Waye in the early 1960s, powered by a 1300cc supercharged VW engine and it was ridden by Dave [...]

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Motorcycle Recalls – Moto Guzzi

by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider" on 6/27/2007

in Motorcycle Recalls, Motorcycle Safety

The NHTSA has issued a couple of Moto Guzzi recalls you should be aware of. Not a lot of motorcycles involved but certainly worth noting if you are an owner.
Manufacturer: Moto Guzzi
Model Year: 2006, 2007
Models affected: Griso
NHTSA Campaign Number: 07V252000
Potential Units Affected: 232
Problem: On certain motorcycles, a fuel pump hose may swell and change dimensions, [...]

Why So Much Harley Davidson Merger Talk?

by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider" on 6/26/2007

in Motorcycle Business

Last week we had a story about rumors of Ducati getting all chummy with Harley Davidson, then the financial folks started whispering about Honda looking to buy the motor company. Now it appears those rumors have subsided and everyone is back to where they started. Harley stock rose then fell back. This is beginning to [...]

{ 8 readers have commented so far, ... your thoughts? }

The Machine by Fusion Motorcycles is For Sale

by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider" on 6/25/2007

in Motorcycle Builders, Motorcycle Design

Will Thibeault of Fusion Motorcycles tells me his custom “The Machine” is for sale. This bike has a clean look and an aluminum girder front end that I like a lot. I wrote about this bike a few months ago and pointed out a few features you might miss if you weren’t paying attention, like [...]

{ 9 readers have commented so far, ... your thoughts? }

What would you think of a 297 pound, single cylinder hand built motorcycle? What would you think if it was $20,000? Crazy? Desirable? Both? The Vun, built by Cafe Racers and Superbikes of Italy is, perhaps, all of those things but ordinary would never apply.
I had never heard of this small company or the [...]

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