Back in January, while attending the Progressive International Motorcycle Show in Cleveland, I spoke to Scott Colisimo about his company who told me he had just closed on the purchase of a building that would serve as their headquarters and parts distribution center and also allow Cleveland CycleWerks to begin assembly in the USA.
The building, a 60,000-square-foot factory on West 65th Street in Cleveland, has now been formally announced and should make a lot of potential customers, who might be less inclined to buy a motorcycle completely manufactured in China, feel a lot more enthusiastic as the assembly will now take place in the USA. As we noted a couple of years ago, when he tried to manufacture motorcycles in Cleveland, no one was interested, and China was his only option. Now, 9000 motorcycles later, he’s returning to his home town to a more positive reception.
Chris Warren, economic development director for the city of Cleveland, said the city is looking for a way to help Cleveland CycleWerks rehab its building. He called it an “exciting developmentâ€
Building motorcycles in China has made it possible for Scott to buy the vacant building in Cleveland and he’s already hired a full-time engineer and designer and plans to soon hire a small number of employees to assemble the motorcycles here at home. One step at a time. It’s hard to see how he could have done it any other way and that’s a lesson for everyone who would like to see more products manufactured here.
This is very good news for Cleveland CycleWerks and it’s also positive for the city of Cleveland. If the response is good, there’s no telling how far this could go.
Link: Crain’s Cleveland Business subscription required
Link: Cleveland CycleWerks
GuitarSlinger says
Sorry …. but I’m already being ‘ forced ‘ into buying way too many ” Made in China ” goods as it is ( electronics clothing etc ) to even consider purchasing a ‘ Made in China ‘ motorcycle ( or car for that matter ) regardless of the size or quality
Just this one mans opinion mind you … but there it is
Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider" says
Did you fully read this post and the earlier one linked in the article that explains how he tried to start building in Cleveland and no one was interested? If you did read them, I don’t understand what you’re saying.
Here’s an additional quote from the Crain’s Cleveland Business article:
I would love to see everything made in the USA to begin with, but when US businesses turn up their noses at someone trying to hire them, how does a guy like Scott get started? Scott decided to get the company going in the only way that worked, in China, and now he’s coming back to the USA establishing a distribution center and assembly plant. If things work out well he may be able to start manufacturing those parts here. How is that bad?
GuitarSlinger says
@ Paul Crowe;
I did read it , I do understand what you’re saying and to a limited extent can even somewhat sympathize with both CCW’s situation and your reasonable opinion stated here .
But nothing negates that ultimately , no matter what the reasons/circumstances , this still is in essence another ‘ Made in China ‘ product hitting what IMHO is an overly saturated market already brimming with ‘ Made in China ‘ from the computer i’m banging this out on to half the cloths on my back : contributing to a rapidly rising , already China biased trade imbalance .
Its not so much ‘ Made in America ‘ that I’m after as it is not having been made ( manufactured ) in China that I’m tiring of . Things having gotten to the point where I’m shocked to find a product that Isn’t ‘ Made in China ‘ So I say ;
Basta ! Enough already ! … and Not in my Garage !
Believe me Paul , I wish CCW well , but I won’t be considering or recommending their products anytime soon
Rob T says
Well if your a motorcycle rider, then that also eliminates, BMW, Harley, and I’m sure a few companies. All have parts made in China, then shipped for assembly here in the states.
Carolynne says
Perhaps thats a niche that needs to be filled in the US (or Canada) a fabricator of motorcycle parts for small manufacturers or hobbiests. There are other guys building thier own machines in NA, example Mule and AJ. so there is a demand. This story just highlights a business need. Anyone out there able to take it on?
Mean Monkey says
Congrats to Scott Colisimo and Cleveland CycleWerks.
If you want to make Cleveland into something great again, you have to make some ‘thing’. Small and large-scale manufacturing, (not casinos or tourism), will earn the average Cleveland Joe’s and Jane’s a decent wage. And long before Cleveland was the rock ‘n roll capital, it was a motorcycle town. The fabulous Cleveland Four and others were built here.
My personal cycle affaIr began when dad brought me home from MacDonald House Childrens Hospital after my birth in his ’48 flathead Hawg sidecar rig some 60 years ago.
PS: I’d kinda like to see a mid-range v-twin (600-to-800cc) bike built here, Scott.
Mean Monkey says
Hey Paul,
Introduce Aniket Vardhan to Scott Colisimo.
Paul says
CCW should get the Ace and Hooligun out, and then either look into a bigger engine, or consider doing a bike/s that will take multiple engines.
I think there are many people out there who would take a Titled w/ VIN roller for $3000 to slap that spare Yamaha XS650, Triumph, HD, or thumper engine into.
mikesundrop says
So does this engine have anything in common with all those Scooter Depot or whatever Chinese bikes (“sport” bikes, choppers, bobbers, trikes) you see advertised everywhere? I went to the website out of curiosity and felt like I was gonna get a virus just looking around.
Nothing against China, the Chinese, or Chinese products – there’s just only so much you can do with a 250 air cooled single.
+1 on the VIN titled roller frames for builders.
Campisi says
“Nothing against China, the Chinese, or Chinese products – there’s just only so much you can do with a 250 air cooled single.”
That particular engine is a somewhat-modernized version of the Honda CG engine architecture, a very flexible engine that takes well to hot-rodding. Hell, there’s a company in Cleveland that’ll hop up the engine for you within CCW’s warranty; combine that with jets and a CCW exhaust kit and the Misfit will hit 112 MPH. That’s about fifteen MPH faster than my CBR250 has ever managed, and it’s more than fast and useful enough for my purposes.
Stan says
How about a 500cc v twin vincent style?
B50 Jim says
Ya gotta start somewhere. I understand why nobody was interested in a motorcycle startup company, after the spectacular failures we’ve seen regarding Indian and other, smaller companies. As much as I’d love to see an all-American motorcycle startup, Scott did the smartest thing he could in getting it going in China, then moving assembly stateside. With luck and good marketing he might make enough to develop his own engines — a 650 twin would be a reasonable goal — and start offering bikes with more and more U.S. sourced components, because mikesundrop has a point that the bikes have to look a lot better than the El-Cheapo toys on the floor at Pep Boys and Scooter Depot, or serious motorcycle buyers won’t touch them.
TomBow says
Has to start somewhere. It’s not the ideal solution, but it sure makes more jobs here than made/assembled in China. The only way you’re going to get American made is, 1: Make sure you happen to live in America, and 2: Make it yourself.
If you’re fed up with getting things from China, pull out the old chemistry/engineering/agriculture book and start mixing/making/growing everything for yourselves!
I’m working towards that myself. Because well, I can’t afford it no matter where it’s made so I’m making it all myself. 🙂
Mike Walsh says
This is the only way we are going to take this country back to full strength…..is by making something !
No one wants to roll up their sleeve’s, sweat, and get a few blisters. Instead we want to consult, service, and make a fortune from a website or by the strokes of a computer.
Best of luck to you CCW.
john says
I went to the CCW site to learn more about the engine. They say it is 250cc and based on the old Honda CG, with a few improvements. I don’t think Honda ever made a CG 250cc single cylinder engine. I like the fact that it is NOT an overhead cam engine and that it is NOT fuel injected. The old Honda CG bikes were only 5 speed. I hope CCW bikes have 6 speeds.
Campisi says
I’m not sure on this front, but I think it’s a bored version of the CG150 engine. My Daelim has a Korean-manufactured version of the CG150 engine (living in Korea for a while) and it’s pretty stumpy for what it is.
JOhndo says
Wish I could work for them. I just love the concept: original, affordable, simple (so most likely reliable) bikes. What more could one ask for…
john says
Funny, I was thinking the same thing.
I saw a pic of the Misfit model with a vintage style full race faring. I couldn’t find any mention of price for that option. But the Misfit without the full faring has MSRP of $3195. Its been a few years since I bought a motorcycle but that seemed a little high to me considering you are only getting a 229cc air cooled single with no overhead cams, one carburetor, and only 5 speeds.
So I looked up a kawasaki ninja250. 248cc, Full faring, 2 cylinder, water cooled, dual overhead cam, 6 speed, MSRP $4199
Assuming the full faring will add at least 300 bucks to the price of the Misfit, I’d have to say the Kawasaki is the better deal. I personally would rather have the Misfit for less money, but I think they need to lower the price a little bit to meet Kawasaki’s bang for the buck.
or…they need to find a way to boost displacement by 100-150cc while keeping the price where it currently is.
I really do like the Misfit though, especially with the full race faring. I DO NOT like that silly gas gauge they have on it, however. Delete that please. This bike should not have a gas gauge, IMO.
mark says
Disclaimer: I don’t live in the states. And CCW is not available in my part of the world. But I did own a Harley for a few years if its any conciliation 😉
Now, a few years back people said the same thing about Japanese cycles. Truth be told, CCW is the best you can hope for in terms of Made in the USA when it comes to affordable transportation.
Its like iPhone vs Galaxy Tab: Both aren’t Made in the USA, but the Apple product is at least owned and designed in the states. With proper taxation, the money could at least benefit Americans – though sadly it currently doesn’t.
Would you also boycott gasoline if the petrol is foreign made ? Regardless of how American is your 2 wheeler, using foreign-made oil from places such as, or even worse than, China, is just as bad, and really is worse, than letting them build your designs.
Maybe one day, electric engines will reduce the dependency on a single source of energy. And maybe, combined with nuclear energy and robotics, the western world will no longer depend on foreign fuel and cheap labor from dictatorships. But, until this miracles of technology happens, we need to live in the real world, where the likes of Apple and CCW are the best we can hope for.
TL;DR: At least in this production model it is possible to force the foreign powers to provide minimal rights to the workers and collect some revenue as well as provide SOME jobs for Americans.
OMMAG says
Interesting …
There is a longish story in this sort of veign that I’ll keep to myself for a while …..involves importing and duties.
Safe to say that the Chinese will sell anything to anyone …. others are not so happy to let them.
Good luck CCW
todd says
This is great news. I can’t think of any viable motorcycle manufacturer that hasn’t started out with something small and simple before becoming something big. Though I really am gun-ho about Motus, I think they are coming at this from a more risky direction. Can you help me name one successful motorcycle company that started out at the top of the range?
CCW has already sold 9,000 bikes. That’s awesome and I wish I was a part of that. I’d also love to be a part of Motus but I think they have a steeper hill to climb even if they didn’t start at the bottom of it.
-todd
Jason says
Im a huge fan of Scott’s drive and determination.. keep it up man..!!
Trent Reker says
what you don’t know is here: http://www.bikermetric.com/2012/03/interview-with-scott-colosimo-of.html
Hooligan says
I like the look of the Hooligan, my kinda bike.
Coming from a small country whose engineering once ruled the world, but is now a pimple on the back side of Europe. I do recognize how the loss of actually making stuff has destroyed our previously powerful industrial cities and the social problems that come from that.
But I have to be sanguine about the fact that my bikes frames were made in Italy and Thailand. Along with many other components, my totally Italian made Honda Hornet has a Ducati R&R. My Hinckley assembled Street Triple R has a ever wider collection of parts from Japan to Thailand to Italy to England.
As far as I see there is no problem with assembling from all over the world. It is just down to the quality of the bits. I am a big fan of the artisan engineer, the can do person. The traditional values. And deplore the loss of such people. But it is a global market if someone in Italy can make handlebars better, quicker and cheaper than in England you could also say it is a criticism of why we did not invest more to move on 50 years ago.
50 years ago Italian engineering was considered some of the best in the world. It still is.
I can see the image problem in the US of assembling Chinese sourced parts for Cleveland, but all kinds of ideas are possible, a Chinese featherbed frame that can take a Hyosung (Suzuki copy) V twin if that’s your, err particular fetish/problem.
As I said it’s all down to the quality. I wonder what the new Benelli a Yam R6 based naked roadster assembled in Hungary by Benelli’s Chinese owners and badged Keeway will be like – who knows?. Yamaha would benefit by getting their bikes made in Hungary given the current price of them! So we are in a time of change. But I am happy that you can still buy everything needed for a rebuild/build for old Triumph/Norton/BSA – produced by small firms somewhere or other.
Hooligan says
Sorry garbled the Keeway/Benelli bit it is badged a Benelli but made by Keeway. I think it would be more honest to call it a Keeway buty there is no value in that.
joe says
Its great to see a new company breaking into the market,and succeding.At least if the motorcycles are assembled in the US ,Cleavland Cycles will have quality control over the finished product.A major plus on thier part.I have worked on a lot of Chinese small engines and machinery,and I have to say, most problems were from bad fit and finish, plus lousy quality control at the factory.With a few modifications and a complete checkover, tightening of components,plus running and fettle before sale,the finished machines worked well and proved to be good value for money.A lot of Chinese factories ruined the reputation of thier products by lack of backup,parts and lousy assembly practices.If they learn from thier Koreans and Japanese conterparts quickly,they could have a bright future.
Dolf Peeters says
Let face it: China already owns us and over there they make all the stuff we need. Or buy, even if we do not need it. .”We” do advice, management and consulting. We do not make products anymore. We get old and might soon be forgotten.
A friend of mine swears his products are made in the same Chinese factory that produces the exhaust systems for HD. Triumphs are made in the Philipines. Honda’s come from Spain and Italy. The Ural factory is mainly owned by American private financers. And my mum came from Indonesia. I just love the Cleveland machines. They might save motorcyclism from extinction. Because they still generate the feeling of the Old World, the States and Europe.
Over here in Holland ridin’bikes is something for well stuffed baby boomers. The average age within the Goldwingclub over here is 60+. Elderly blokes that can hardly get their feet over the saddle buy huge BMW GS machines. Younsters do not buy bikes anymore. They are 2 expensive and definitively not cool. Interest in the needed drivers licence in falling like a rock.
Earning money here gets trickier, speed limits and new drivers license rules should kill biking. A nifty, affordable, not to fast bike might wake the youngsters hearts up. And over here we do not bother to much about China. They own the place already. Their restaurants are fine. And their motorcycle industry will be to I guess within the next 10 years.
Zippy says
Triumphs are made in Thailand, not the Phillipines.
Jay138 says
The CCW bikes have NOTHING in common with the typical “Chinese bikes” you see advertised all over. And as I seem to be the only person commenting who actually owns one, I would like to put in my say on how great the bike is and how much support I get from the company itself and the other CCW owners. I have a CCW tha Heist and it is the first bike I have owned and other than than the Honda Rebel at my BRC, the only bike I have ever ridden. I did alot of research before buying the bike and knew nothing of CCW before finding them on the web. I almost fell into the trap of buying a typical chinese bike from scooter depot but then read all the horor stories online. The only thing I knew was I didn’t want a cookie cutter bike and I wanted something small to start out on. Tha Heist was exactly what I was looking for. I emailed the distributor, P.I.T motors on a Saturday afternoon and 30 min later the V.P. of the company called me back. He answered all my questions and put me in touch with my local dealer. I also want to mention that I live in Southern California and alot of small comapny bikes out there cannot be driven legally out here but CCW did make sure they were CARB approved. Another reason I chose tha Heist was the type of engine it hs meant that a person like me who knows nothing about engines could learn and work on my own bike. With a V-twin or liquid cooled engine I would have to take it to a shop for everything. I have learned alot now and can do quite a bit of the maintenance myself,Which may not seem like a big deal to most but to those who knew me before its a huge deal cause I was clueless about anything mechanical. Cleveland Cyclewerks is a great company with a great product and I wish Scott ans his crew continued success.
Jeff says
CCW is at the perfect market point. I don’t see a need to “build a bigger engine”.
There are plenty of 600’s, 1000’s, 1200’s, 1400’s available. When you get to the “made in America” class of bike, there aren’t many options and NOBODY else is going after the sub-500cc class.
Sure, my dream garage would have an EBR1190RS (~$45,000) and a Motus MST-R (~$45,000). I’d beat my chest all day long, claim I ride a “real” ‘Merican bike, unlike those out-sourced Michigan assembled bikes by “the motor company”.
Foreign oil? Yup. We drink their milk shake. Once we finish theirs we’ll tap into our own.
Once they realize they are running out, the price will go up, double…triple… who knows. But you won’t be riding a 1000cc motorcycle anymore. You’ll have the same budget for fuel as before, but you’ll only afford half of it. You’ll either drive less, or get a smaller engine.
As the only American small bike vendor grows, quality will improve… not size of the engine. Start small, stay small… just better.
As for the EBR1190RS… they are only making 100 bikes.
As for the Motus MST-R… it will be a decade before they sell 9000 bikes.
Would I buy/drive a CCW? Sure… I’d love to get one… but I’m 6’4″ and 250lbs. But if I had one, I’d teach everyone I knew how to ride on it.
Paul says
Surprised no one mentioned Highland Custom Motorcycles. They make their own engines and will fit them to a custom built street tracker for $12,500.
All made in the USA.
Zippy says
Wow, I just checked, Orlando has a dealer! We do not even have a Honda or Suzuki dealer in Orlando. You have to go to the extreme west end or Orange county or the next county over.
Tom says
Start importing from the country that has the most complete, efficient infrastructure for your product. Establish your distribution and sales channels and develop your market. Build your branding. If and when justified, set up a local final assembly factory to put together knock-down kits. As the local market warrants, slowly transfer fabrication of parts and subassemblies.
This has been Honda’s recipe for success and world domination since the late 1950s.
Tom says
CCw is getting started in the motorcycle business by build a modified version of a Honda engine.
S&S got started by building a modified version of a Harley-Davidson engine. Yamaha got started by building a modified version of a DKW engine. BMW got started by building a modified version of a Douglas engine. Harley got started by building a modified version of a DeDion engine. You gotta start somewhere.
cycledave says
If history repeats itself like it always has before, 50 years from now a Chinese bike might be highly sought after for quality. Remember that about in the late 50’s to early 60’s many people scoffed at the fact of owning a Japanese motorcycle
JR says
How quickly we forget… You’re absolutely right, and the crappy brands will fall apart and the good ones will come through and survival of the fittest strikes again. I love the idea of CCW and think that coming up from the bottom is so much better of a plan then coming down from the top.
JSH says
It is a bit disingenuous to say no one in the US will support a small volume motorcycle manufacturer. Confederate and Modus show that suppliers are willing if the manufacturer is willing to pay. The finished product won’t sell for $3200 though.
China is a different story. There are hundreds of Chinese motorcycle manufacturers making millions of 50-250cc motorcycles every year. The Chinese parts bin for the type of bike CCW’s is making is huge. Take an engine for one supplier, wheels from another, etc. The key is that the tooling and volume are already there so asking to buy 200 pieces is not a problem, they just add it to the next production run.
mARK says
I’d get into manufacturing just to help this guy o.0
Josh says
Indeed. Made in the USA and really cool. Also 4x the price of a CCW bike.
marc says
do what u have to do to get the idea up and running, some times u have to compromise your princaples to get done what needs to be done.
Scotduke says
They are neat looking bikes and the prices for them don’t seem unreasonable at all. I hope this business kicks off. Further down the line a 500 v-twin based on the 250 single might be good. The middleweight bike market has been largely overlooked by mainstream manufacturers in recent years and the choice of machines has been fairly limited and a bit uninspiring – the Kawasaki and Honda 500 parallel twins are worthy enough but a bit boring. These Cleveland designs are pretty good and stylish.
FXRocket says
Congrats to Scott!!!! I think we as a motorcycle community should support people like him.
David Duarte says
I love the look of the bikes (other than the Heist chopper), and would love to put one in my garage. A big concern for me is the dealer network (or lack thereof). I’d also like to see one with just a bit bigger displacement engine; maybe a 350 or 400, or even 500 ccs. That would be perfect for my commute. I wish CCW the best, and I hope they come to Connecticut (or somewhere in CT in the Hartford area). Apparently, there is a shop in Plainville (Ride One Motorcycle, LLC) that is a dealer according to CCW’s website, but in looking on Ride One’s website, all they have is the chopper model, which I have zero interest in. The Misfit and the Ace are both very cool, and are at a low enough price point that I could probably get my wife to sign off on, but they have to be available locally, and so far, I don’t see them here.