Subaru Motorcycle?
December 5th, 2007 by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider"
Everyone keeps pointing out these stories about a Subaru motorcycle so I’ll put this up but I have zero information other than what everyone else is repeating. Yesterday, this photo was circulating everywhere and even the automotive websites covered it, must be because of the name.
A couple of weeks ago, Motorcycle News made mention of a supposedly upcoming motorcycle. It’s powered by a 50 horsepower 500cc water cooled single supplied by Fuji Heavy Industries, parent company of Subaru, and mounted in an aluminum frame made in China. The engine has been or is being used by Polaris.
The man behind the project is Kazuo Sasaki who previously tried to produce a Horex. Stories are calling this new bike a Subaru HS500sa. Just looking at these 2 photos I notice the swingarms are different, the frame looks different, even the front fairing, too, so is this close to final form, or not?
Would Subaru make a motorcycle? Who would sell it? If this comes to market I would think it would be badged under some other name, but who would that be? The photos look like this is a running bike but it may be some early prototype so we’ll just have to wait to see if this shows up somewhere. How about Wal-Mart?
Link: Motorcycle News
Posted in China, Motorcycle Business
| Top Of Page
18 Responses to “Subaru Motorcycle?”
Please read before commenting ...
This is a public forum, NO PROFANITY OR PERSONAL ATTACKS WILL BE TOLERATED! STAY ON TOPIC! All comments are filtered, if yours does not appear, do not resubmit, it has been held for review. Comments may be edited or removed by the moderator. Above all, keep the conversation civil! Thanks.
NOTICE: Comments may be delayed before display.
December 5th, 2007 at 12:00 pm
look at the front fairing on the blueish one closely. it seems to have some double imagery going on. if you can look past that it looks like the same fairing. the lower fairing and tail section look the same to me. hard to tel with the swing arm though since we’re seeing two different sides and the chain cuts thru the left side.
i’d like to know more about this.
December 5th, 2007 at 12:27 pm
mmmmmmmmmm….. supermono……
December 5th, 2007 at 12:57 pm
If Subaru makes a motorcycle, will it be all-wheel-drive?
December 5th, 2007 at 1:26 pm
Rumor has it Fuji makes the engine in the Hyosung TE450 quad and the RX450sm supermoto. If so, it is probably the same engine???
I like Subaru’s cars. Hard to imagine thier brand on a motorcycle but I welcome another hat in the ring!
December 5th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Big fan of Subaru here. If that savvy can make the trip into the M/C world it would be great.
Interesting link about Horex on the Sabaru link:
http://www.kozaru.us/horex/index.html
December 5th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
China is a huge motorcycle market, that is probably were this bike is going if it makes it into production. Subaru must be going after some of those 50 billion US dollars we send there every month.
December 5th, 2007 at 1:56 pm
I’d definitely consider a Subaru motorcycle. Give it AWD, and I’d definitely be in.
December 5th, 2007 at 2:09 pm
it looks funnily enough like a honda cbr frame..like with a later model 400rr bendy mainframe and the tri-arm swingarm bolted onto it. and i’ve been to websites that make eerily similar fairing kits for those bikes..
i think its fairly obviously a farce. who would really want a subaru motorbike when their car engines are loaded with so many issues? i don’t think people want a piston in their face wen they accidentally bounce off the rev limiter..
December 5th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Subaru (well, Fuji) used to make scooters. Maybe the name “Rabbit” rings a bell. Great little scooters.
http://www.fujirabbit.com/
-todd
December 5th, 2007 at 6:39 pm
Arent Subaru cars among the highest rating for new car reliability according to those JP Morgan surveys?
I really like my Subaru car and have had had ZERO issues with it. I understand the reliability problems relate to the turbocharged motors, particularly when they get older.
As for the bike? Yes please.
December 6th, 2007 at 10:29 am
Fuji heavy industies is not just Subaru. Fuji Heavy made many of the twin cylinder two stroke engines in earlier Polaris snowmobiles, and also makes many small industiral deisels and Fuji-Robin engines for others such as lawn and garden and generators…So is Polaris the possible outlet? I have no real knowledge…just stating rumors..
December 6th, 2007 at 11:06 am
I’d be more interested in it if it were a naked sport-standard instead of a sportsbike.
December 6th, 2007 at 3:37 pm
I’m with Phoebe. If it’s built as a naked/standard there would be less temptation to compare it to an R6. That very reason has been why sales of the GS500 has dropped after Suzuki put the fairing on it. For not much more money the higher spec, much-much faster GSXR600 looks nearly identical.
A 50HP 500 single “roadster” or half faired bike would be a big temptation for me.
-todd
December 7th, 2007 at 1:43 am
Not a good marketing exercise. The Buell Blast is not a bad bike and you can pick up like new ones, on the used market, all day, at $1500 or less a copy.
They need to go for the High MPG Urban Transport or the Dual Sport Adventure Touring niche. That’s where the market is heading.
How ’bout both? A 125cc, watercooled, FI, plastic bodied, Super Cub type tourer. A Then Came Bronson Redux, for all those retiring, boomer, geezers and geezettes. Something that will get 100 MPG and go all day, every day.
YeeHaw! They’ll never notice the depends under the leathers!
December 7th, 2007 at 9:22 pm
Suburu make great cars, very solid,very reliable and very well made. I have long thought that one of their robin type engines could be great in a bike, how about a diesel.
Also they make great boxer engines, maybe they could compete in the market on a different level with a boxer powered bike like another well known motorcycle maker who also make very well regarded sporting saloon cars.
I would definitely buy a Suburu bike although I still have issues with a lot of products made in China, even though we don’t have much choice nowadays.
December 10th, 2007 at 6:02 pm
“Rumor has it Fuji makes the engine in the Hyosung TE450 quad and the RX450sm supermoto. If so, it is probably the same engine???”
Why don’t more manufacturers use the 450’s from their off road lines in a small light and cheap street bike?
Besides the really physically small 250’s, there really aren’t any small or even midsize bikes these days. Probably not huge demand, but make it light and cheap and it will sell reasonably well.
December 23rd, 2007 at 3:41 am
Wow - that’s gonna confuse me. Do I sell my Outback or my KTM??
February 20th, 2008 at 7:12 pm
The bike is to be marketed by a chinese company who r now looking for dealers/importers, other versions of the bike may well be implemented subject to feedback from riders,
wat other versions would u like to see,
cafe racer
old brit single thumper,
scambler
commuter with extra mpg