2010 Motorcycle Products - Our Predictions

With the crashing economy and rocketing cost of living, how will the motorcycle world fare in 2010?

We take a closer look at three key areas of the industry and what 2010 has in store…

Bike Purchases

Just last week, Motorcycle News reported on price increases across the board on new sportsbikes, including the popular Honda CBR600 and Yamaha YZF-R6.

Here’s what Two Wheel Centre’s managing director, Peter Scott, had to say about the year ahead:

“The bike world has been rocked by the economic downturn, and now because of the weak pound the new bike market is just becoming more and more expensive.

This means there will be a big increase in demand for second-hand bikes this year in the UK, and to make matters worse, the weak pound means people are travelling to the UK to buy these used bikes and export them, which will no doubt cause a shortage of quality used bikes in the UK.

So, my advice would be to buy a second hand bike sooner rather than later - decent ones will be like gold dust later this year.”

Helmets and Clothing

Paralleling this shift towards second hand motorcycles is the migration of buyers scouring high and low for the best deal on motorcycle clothing and accessories online.

There has been an increase in sales of mid-range helmets such as Caberg V2R and HJC IS-16, both £125.99, in comparison to the elite helmets like the new Shoei X-Spirit 2 at £580.00 and Shoei XR-1100 at £379.99. In fact, having noticed this trend, Shoei have dropped the price of their ‘entry level’ helmet, the Shoei Raid II, to be more attractive to the cost-conscious motorcyclists of 2010.

But safety will not be compromised…

However, though cutting back on cost might be a trend to look for in 2010, scrimping on safety will not.

New for 2010, the Hit Air YS high visibility airbag vest is already proving to be a favourite. Retailing at £299.99, these vests are by no means cheap. But the old adage ‘You can’t put a price on your head’ seemingly applies in this instance too, with the high vis airbag vest and the black Hit Air JV Vest being two of the top selling products of 2010 so far.

So it looks like 2010 may well be the year of second hand bikes and mid-range helmets, but quality and safety will still be priority to most bikers.