There are numerous factors that discourage people from buying a new motorcycle at this time. We have a cost of living crisis caused by rising inflation and painful interest rates, all in the context of various crises worldwide.
And yet, few seem to have been discouraged from walking into a dealership and parting with their hard-earned money for a two-wheeled motorized transport. The Motorcycle Industry Association (MCIA) has just released its latest sales figures for 2023, with 102,361 motorcycles sold by the end of November, representing a decrease of only 0.7% compared to the same period in 2022. The decline increases slightly to two percent if we include tricycles and mopeds.
The segments that saw the highest growth include Competition (+7.4%), Naked (+6.9%), and Road Sport (+3.7%). On the other hand, the Modern Classic category saw a decrease of 7.7%, Scooter of 8.6%, and Touring of 11.8%.
In the month of November, the Adventure motorcycle segment was the clear winner in terms of growth, with a year-on-year variation of 8.6% to 1,078 units. The launch of the new BMW R1300 GS must have helped – about 10% of the total segment (108 sales) can be attributed to this motorcycle. However, it is surpassed by the best-selling model, the Yamaha NMAX 125, responsible for 431 sales.
