MPN, May 2014

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Plusw Selling Wheels/Tiresw Sportbike Helmet Previeww Destination Dealership:

Mojotownw Choosing a DMS

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2 May 2014 | Motorcycle & Powersports News

Contents

Volume 40 Number 5MotorcyclePowersportsNews.com

EDITORIAL

Editor – Brendan [email protected]

Editor-at-Large – Robin [email protected]

Managing Editor – Greg [email protected]

Columnists & Contributors

Eric AndersonSteve Dodds IISteve JonesC.R. GittereCJ PedlerMargie SiegalJim WoodruffDenise KoethCyclepedia Press

ART

Graphic Designer – Kelly [email protected]

Official Publisher of the AIMExpo Show Daily and Show Directory

Dealership OperationsTwo Things: Taiwan and the Satisfaction Index ............................................4The Road Ahead by Brendan Baker

Shifting Gears ............................................................................................................................................................................12All the News that Fits by Robin Hartfiel

Spring in Full Swing ...................................................................................................................................................14NPA Pre-owned Monthly Recap by Jim Woodruff

Dealer New Units in Stock ..........................................................................................................................36Inventory Report by ADP Lightspeed

Mojotown Motorcycle Gear ........................................................................................................................38Destination Dealership by Margie Siegal

Impossible to Ignore: DMS .........................................................................................................................40Dealer Management Systems by Greg Jones

Does Price Really Matter ...............................................................................................................................43The Service Manager by C.R. Gittere

The Importance of Pennies and Nickles ...................................................................44Dealer Management by CJ Pedler

March PG&A Department Performance ...................................................................46Best Operators Club by Steve Jones

Managing People ...............................................................................................................................................................50Finance & Insurance by Steve Dodds II

Diagnosing Yamaha’s EFI Self-Diagnostic Systems .....................51Tech Tips by Cyclepedia Press

All Access Pit Pass ........................................................................................................................................................56News from the racing world

ATV/UTV MarketWill it continue the climb?By Robin Hartfiel

MPN (ISSN 0164-8349) is published monthly by Babcox Media, Inc., 3550 Embassy Parkway, Akron, OH 44333 U.S.A. Phone (330) 670-1234, Fax (330) 670-0874. Periodical postage paid at Akron, OH 44333 and additional mailing offices.POSTMASTER: Send address changes to MPN, P.O. Box 13260, Akron, OH 44334-8660. A limited number of complimentary subscriptions are available to individuals who meet the qualification requirements. Call (330) 670-1234, Ext.242, to speak to a subscription services representative. Paid Subscriptions are available for non-qualified subscribers at the following rates: U.S.: $69 for one year. (OH residents add 5.75% sales tax) Canada/Mexico: $89 for one year.Canadian rates include GST. Other foreign rates: $129 for one year. Payable in advance in U.S. funds. Mail payment to MPN - Circulation, P.O. Box 75692, Cleveland, OH 44101-4755.

Sportbike Helmets ................................................................ 16Keep your customers safe, cool and comfortable

Tires & Wheels ....................................................................... 22Rubber for grip and wheels for style

Cover photo provided by DragonFire

May Product Focus

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The first thing, which was worth spending18 hours in a flying tube for, was getting

to attend the Taiwan InternationalMotorcycle Show held in Taipei early lastmonth. Themotorcycle show wasone of four separateshows heldsimultaneously at theTaipei World TradeCenter whichincluded AutomotiveParts, Electric Vehiclesand Autotronics.

I will be coveringthis show in greaterdetail in the next issue, but one of thebiggest takeaways I got was just how much of a powerhouse Taiwan is inmanufacturing. It’s hard to understand untilyou see it for yourself. Everywhere youturned was another example of a Taiwanesecompany with massive manufacturingcapacity. Most of the exhibitors were therefor the local market which is made up of apopulation of about 10 million scooters.Speaking of scooters, I also had the chanceto visit the KYMCO factory in Kaohsiungand was impressed by the volume andspeed of the production line. But the high-speed rail back to Taipei was equallyimpressive, reaching 177 mph!

The second thing is the recently released

Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index (PSI)which revealed that Ducati dealershipshave returned to the top of of the rankings.The last time Ducati dealerships were

ranked No. 1 was in2009. Harley-Davidsondealers were rankedNo. 1 in last year’sstudy but fell tosecond this year. Thestudy measuresdealership treatmentof motorcycleshoppers, withrankings by branddetermined by Pied

Piper’s special patent-pending process,which gives a score to mystery shoppingand ties it to sales success.

According to the report, performanceimproved significantly industry-wide fromlast year, with 12 of 17 brands scoringhigher. Not getting ahead of ourselves, thestudy also said there’s room forimprovement throughout the industry. For instance, 84 percent of salespeople stillgreet customers with, “Can I help you?”and get, “Just looking,” in response. Onthe other hand, dealerships sell 34 percentmore vehicles when the salesman asks forthe sale at least 67 percent of the time. For more interesting stats from this study,be sure to check it out on our website. t

AHEAD

THE

RoadBy Brendan Baker

ADVERTISING SALESPublisherGreg Cira [email protected]

(330) 670-1234 ext. 203

Associate PublisherSean Donohue [email protected]

(330) 670-1234 ext. 206

Display Advertising Sales

Roberto Almenar [email protected](330) 670-1234, ext. 233

Tom Staab [email protected](330) 670-1234, ext. 224

Bobbie Adams [email protected] (330) 670-1234, ext. 238

Doug Basford [email protected] (330) 670-1234, ext. 255

David Benson [email protected](330) 670-1234, ext. 210

Dean Martin [email protected] (330) 670-1234, ext. 225

Jim Merle [email protected] (330) 670-1234, ext. 280

Glenn Warner [email protected](330) 670-1234, ext. 212

John Zick [email protected] (805) 845-1400

Don Hemming [email protected] (330) 670-1234, ext. 286

ADVERTISING SERVICES

Advertising Services Valli Pantuso [email protected]

(330) 670-1234 ext. 223

CIRCULATION SERVICES

Circulation Manager Pat Robinson [email protected]

(330) 670-1234, ext. 276

Circulation Specialist Star Mackey [email protected]

(330) 670-1234, ext. 242

For show publications advertising information call Sean at 330-670-1234 , ext. 206.

AFTERMARKET MEDIA NETWORKBabcox Media Headquarters

3550 Embassy Parkway, Akron, OH 44333(330) 670-1234 Fax (330) 670-0874

Babcox Media California735 State St, Suite 409, Santa Barbara, CA 93101(805) 845-1400 Fax (805) 324-6015

CORPORATE

Bill Babcox, PresidentGreg Cira, Vice President, Chief Financial OfficerJeff Stankard, Vice PresidentBeth Scheetz, Controller

Copyright 2014, Babcox Media, Inc.

Official Publisher of theAIMExpo Show Dailyand Show Directory

Two Things: Taiwan and PSI

Brendan Baker, Editor

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2014 LA Calendar Motorcycle

Show Moves to Malibu and Will

Benefit American Cancer Society

The 23rd annual LA Calendar MotorcycleShow sponsored by Russ BrownAttorneys has announced that theAmerican Cancer Society will be the 2014show’s designated charityrecipient. The LA CalendarShow will be giving $1 of eachspectator admission purchasedonline at FastDates.com to theAmerican Cancer Society.

The 2014 LA CalendarMotorcycle Show continues itsnow 23-year tradition as thepremier outdoor streetbikeevent in America with theCalendar Bike BuildingChampionship & Concours d’ Elegance, top celebritybuilders, selected vendors andexhibitors, and the live Calendar GirlMusic Show. This year the show moves tothe Malibu Golf Course in the beautifulSanta Monica Mountains. The Show

always kicks off the world premier of nextyear’s new 2015 FastDates.comMotorcycle Pinup Calendars featuringthe world’s top road race and custommotorcycles with the beautiful CalendarKittens featured in the calendars inattendance at the show.

The 2014 LA Calendar MotorcycleShow & Concours d’ Elegance will be heldSunday, July 20th. Purchase advancetickets online at: www.fastdates.com/bikeshow.htm.

BMW Motorrad Achieves Historic

First Quarter

In the first three months of this year BMWMotorrad sales were higher than everbefore in a first quarter. Supplies as ofMarch came to a total of 28,719 vehicles(previous year: 24,732 units), making foran increase in sales of 16.1 percent.15,183 motorcycles and maxi scooters(previous year: 13,067 units) weresupplied to customers worldwide lastmonth. With an increase of 16.2 percentas compared to the previous year, thiswas the best monthly sales performancein the history of the company.

Heiner Faust, BMW Motorrad head ofsales and marketing: “We got off to anexcellent start to the new motorcycleseason with a sales increase of 16.1percent as of March. In the first threemonths of this year we have suppliedmore motorcycles and maxi scootersthan ever before in a first quarter. What is more, last month was the mostsuccessful in the company’s history with15,183 vehicles sold and an increase of

IndustryInside the

Heads Up

Just wanted to say thank you for the excellentApril edition that hit our inboxes today. Wereally appreciated the exposure, it was ahighlight for all of us here in the Scorpion“Nest.” Any high-res. images available of thatcover shot? I want to blow it up and hang it inour office!

- Jayson WickenkampScorpion Sports

Mark Blackwell Short-Changed

I noticed you threw some words down in the March issue's“Shifting Gears” column about Mark Blackwell, but that briefmention doesn’t do justice to what Mark has done for the industry.When I got to Suzuki, Mark and Mr. Shigenoya were in lock-stepwhen it came to the industry, the sport and the future. I learnedvaluable lesions from them, most of the time just listening to themspeak when I was in the same room.

You mention that Mark was involved with RMs… and that’s true.However, he was involved with several other motorcycle types that revolutionized motorcycling in the U.S. and the rest of theworld for that matter. Unfortunately, I’ve never really seen him get credit for it.

First, he was involved with the growing Suzuki sportbike linesand expanding the GSX-R racing programs. There’s been manygreat motorcycles over the past few decades, but nothing is reallyas encompassing a sportbike as a GSX-R. Without them, the lastremnants of U.S. roadracing would be dead today.

But even bigger than that is Mark’s role in the creation of theDual Sport segment.

Not only did Mark heavily influence the features on themachines themselves – starting with the first DR250/350S models –but he led Suzuki’s crusade to build the niche. The company wentout and educated dealers and promoters across the U.S. on howto put on Dual Sport rides and really engage the customers. Theorganized rides, right down to the roll charts, we all take forgranted would not exist if it were not for Suzuki, Mark and thededicated ASMC staff that pitched in.

You said it yourself, there’s not enough room to recount Mark’scontributions – but the Dual Sport thing alone is giant and shouldnot be discounted.

- Avery Innis IRS Media & Saddlemen

Editor’s note: We are doing our best to make MPN relevant to its readership. If there are industry issues that we should be addressing, please feel free to let us know. Please send yourletters to [email protected]. t

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MotorcyclePowersportsNews.com 7

16.2 percent. Never before have we soldas many vehicles in March.”

The positive result was due to thehigh level of demand worldwide. Thefirst quarter was pleasing in Europe, too.The southern European markets areseeing significant growth as compared tothe previous year. The strongestindividual market for BMW Motorradcontinues to be Germany, followed bythe U.S., France, Italy, Brazil and Spain.

“Based on this excellent quarterlyresult we have positive expectations ofthe upcoming months,” concluded Faust.

KENDA Returns as Official

Motorcycle Tire of GEICO

EnduroCross

KENDA tire announced its return as theOfficial Motorcycle Tire of the GEICOAMA EnduroCross Championship for2014. The announcement comesalongside news that EnduroCrosschampionship contenders CoryGraffunder and Kyle Redmond will be

racing on KENDA tires exclusivelythroughout the 2014 season.

KENDA enters 2014 as a seven-yearsupporter of EnduroCross and continuesto be a key factor in the sport’s rapidgrowth and increased popularity withthe mainstream motorcycle crowd.With AMA EnduroCross entering itseighth season as a multi-round,championship series, KENDA looksforward to another year of intenseracing action.

KENDA’s increased investment inEnduroCross comes as the seriesshifts into overdrive – increasing itsrace count to nine cities, including twonew cities/venues for 2014.

Worldwide Harley-Davidson Retail

Motorcycle Sales Climb

Harley-Davidson, Inc. reported first-quarter 2014 diluted earnings per shareof $1.21 grew 22.2% from the previousyear on higher motorcycle shipments andcontinued improvement in operating

efficiencies. First-quarter net income was$265.9 million on consolidated revenueof $1.73 billion, compared to net incomeof $224.1 million a year ago onconsolidated revenue of $1.57 billion.

“Harley-Davidson delivered gains onmany fronts in the first quarter, withshipments up 7.3%, strong marginimprovement and solid growth in dealernew motorcycle sales,” said Keith Wandell,chairman, president and chief executiveofficer of Harley-Davidson, Inc.

“Thanks to the great contributions ofour employees, dealers and suppliers,we continue to lead at delivering



exceptional customer experiences in 89countries. Our Project RUSHMOREmotorcycles were in high demand in thequarter and we began shipping theHarley-Davidson Street 750 and 500 intoselect markets. These motorcycles,together with continuous improvement inour operations at every level, underscorethe momentum we’ve established as acustomer-led company.”

Dealers worldwide sold 57,415 newHarley-Davidson motorcycles in the firstquarter of 2014 compared to 54,254motorcycles in the same quarter last year.In the U.S., dealers sold 35,730 newHarley-Davidson motorcycles in thequarter, up 3.0% compared to sales of34,706 motorcycles in the quarter lastyear. In international markets, dealerssold 21,685 new Harley-Davidsonmotorcycles during the first quarter, up10.9% compared to 19,548 motorcycleslast year, with sales up 20.5% in the AsiaPacific region, 8.2% in the EMEA regionand 8.9% in the Latin America region,

and down 2.4% in Canada.Revenue from motorcycles grew

13.1% to $1.31 billion, compared torevenue of $1.15 billion in the quarterlast year. The company shipped 80,682motorcycles to dealers and distributorsworldwide during the quarter.

Dainese USA Chooses Dispatch as

Communications Agency

Dainese USA, the U.S. subsidiary forDainese and AGV, has announced a newrelationship with DispatchCommunications, LLC, a full-servicemarketing and communications agencywith clients in action sports, beverage,cycling, motorsports, and travel andtourism industries. Dispatch will provideboth of the brands with public relationsand marketing services in the NorthAmerican motorcycle industry.

“We’re happy to begin this newcollaboration with Dispatch,” saidRoberto Sadowsky, VP of Operations atDainese USA. “We’re impressed with

what Dispatch founder Eric Doyne and histeam have accomplished for their otherclients, and with Chris Jonnum nowserving as Powersports Director, we’reconfident that we’ll be even betterprepared to service our media partners.Having recently expanded our offices,

showroom and distribution center inCosta Mesa, Calif., it’s great that we’realso starting this new collaboration. Theseare exciting times for Dainese USA, andwe’re looking forward to continuing thegrowth we’ve enjoyed in recent years.”

“Dainese and AGV are premiumItalian brands with a rich, authenticheritage in motorcycle protective wear,and they’re recognized everywhere as

Inside the Industry


09 EMGO MPN 5/7/14 9:36 AM Page 9

industry leaders,” said Eric Doyne,Dispatch founder. “I’m eager to utilizemy agency’s experience in motorcyclehead protection products and leverageour strength in technical storytelling forDainese and AGV, both of which possessbreakthrough, trend-setting technologiesand consumer products.”

Dispatch will provide Dainese USAwith its comprehensive public relationsservices and support for the company’svarious marketing efforts and keyinitiatives. The agency will execute astrategic media relations program withNorth American media for both brandsand support Dainese USA’s marketingefforts including content developmentand digital marketing.

KYMCO USA Celebrates 50 Years

and Will Showcase New Models

at 2014 AIMExpo

After a successful launch last year, the2014 American International MotorcycleExpo (AIMExpo) announced that KYMCOUSA will return as an OEM exhibitor at thesecond annual show October 16-19 inOrlando, Fla. KYMCO was a foundingmanufacturer exhibitor at the inauguralAIMExpo and, as part of its 50thanniversary celebration this year, the brandplans to expand its presence at the event.

KYMCO’s lineup of scooters, ATVsand UTVs were well received lastOctober. The company received greatexposure as a result of AIMExpo’s uniqueall-in-one platform, which allowedmembers of the industry, media and

consumers to be exposed to thepremium products KYMCO has to offer.As a result of that success, KYMCO hascommitted to showcasing its newest2015 models at AIMExpo with arevamped exhibit space inside theOrange County Convention Center.

“We’re very pleased to have been apart of the AIMExpo debut and areexcited to be returning for 2014,” saidRick Pawelka, director of marketing,KYMCO USA. “AIMExpo is the one showwhere powersports dealers, journalists andconsumers get to see the latest vehicles,

parts and accessories offered by theirfavorite suppliers and brands. We’re proudto be part of AIMExpo and the importantrole it is playing in the future success ofthe powersports industry in the USA.”

A focal point of KYMCO’s success atlast year’s event was its presence atAIMExpo Outdoors! The event’sinnovative outdoor space allowedattendees to demo both the brand’s on-road and off-road products, and it willonce again be a hallmark of KYMCO’sefforts for 2014 as AIMExpo will serve asthe first opportunity for consumers to

ride the company’s new 2015 models.“KYMCO offers some of the finest

products in the market, and by beingpart of AIMExpo last year thepowersports marketplace was able to seethat first hand,” said Larry Little, vicepresident and general manager,Marketplace Events Motorcycle Group.“We take pride in knowing AIMExpooffered KYMCO the opportunity to gainexposure and a new, positive, andproactive way, and we look forward tobeing part of their 50th anniversarycelebration. We’re also thrilled that

KYMCO has chosen AIMExpo as theevent to give its customers the firstopportunity to demo 2015 models.”

With nearly 300 exhibitors alreadycommitted to AIMExpo this year, theevent continues to cement its placewithin the powersports marketplace.Exhibitor numbers grow every day andcompanies looking to take advantageof the AIMExpo platform should

contact an AIMExpo Account Manager toll free at 855-MCShows (855-627-4697).

For more information visit:AIMExpoUSA.com.

Harley-Davidson Launches

Training With Riding Academy

For the first time ever, those dreaming ofriding can now learn on a genuineHarley-Davidson motorcycle. Harleyunveiled the new Harley-Davidson Riding Academy – the only national rider training program hosted by

Inside theIndustry


Harley-Davidson dealerships andconducted on an all-new Harley-Davidson motorcycles.

“For years we’ve been delivering alife-changing, freedom-inspiring trainingexperience,” said Angela Thundercloud,Harley-Davidson Rider Training Manager.“Now, we’re taking rider training to a newlevel by incorporating a Harley-Davidsonmotorcycle that students will want tokeep riding long after class is over.”

There is nothing like theindependence of the open road. Since itsinception in 2000, Harley-Davidson’s ridertraining program has successfully trainedmore than 350,000 new riders with apremium Motorcycle Safety Foundation(MSF)-approved rider training experiencethat guides students on their journeyfrom the classroom to the street with anemphasis on building student confidenceon their road to independence.

The Harley-Davidson RidingAcademy’s New Rider Course providesnearly everything students need to takethe first step on their motorcycle ridingjourney, including MSF-certifiedinstructors, use of a motorcycle to learnon, and a minimum of 20 hours ofcombined classroom and range trainingwith a guaranteed 6:1 student/instructorratio. All students need to bring to classis appropriate riding gear.

Harley-Davidson Riding Academystudents will learn to ride on the newHarley-Davidson Street 500 motorcycle.Additional features developedspecifically for use in the Harley-

Davidson Riding Academy include anindustry-first Power Limit Calibration thatputs a ceiling on the vehicle’s low-gearspeeds, allowing only the maximum ratea student needs in the course, and aunique Vehicle Protection Kit that allaysstudent fears of damaging the vehicle ina tip-over.

“Instilling confidence is vital topreparing new riders to move from theclassroom to the open road,”Thundercloud said. “We designedeverything – the experience, thecurriculum and the equipment – toinspire that needed confidence andempower new students to have a ton offun learning to ride on a Harley-Davidsonmotorcycle.”

In many states, completion of aHarley-Davidson Riding Academy coursecan exempt riders from needing to takean additional road test before becominglicensed, and manyinsurance providers offerdiscounts to graduates.

In addition tochanges in the UnitedStates, where more than180 Harley-Davidsondealers offer trainingcourses, Harley-Davidson Riding Academy is expandingglobally into Mexico, China and South Africa.

To learn more about Harley-DavidsonRiding Academy, or to find aparticipating dealer, visit www.h-d.com/ridingacademy.

Honda Gold Wing Riders Converge

for 36th Annual ‘Wing Ding’

The Gold Wing Road Riders Association’sannual international event, “Wing Ding,”being held this July 2-5, is the largestsingle-marque motorcycle gathering ofits kind. In its 36th year, Wing Ding isexpected to bring more than 13,000riders of Honda Gold Wings, and othertouring motorcycles to Madison, Wis.This event will be filled with fun activities, rider safety training, charitybenefits, entertainment and manyfriendly competitions.

Riders will converge from all over thecountry and abroad to enjoy the riding,attractions, scenic offerings andespecially the food and hospitality ofMadison and its surrounding areas.During this four-day event, Wisconsin isestimated to gain an economic benefit of$10 to $15 million as members tour the

state visitingand enjoyingthe scenicriding offeredby Wisconsin.

The centerof the WingDing activitieswill be the

Alliant Energy Center. If you areinterested in becoming involved, contactRay Garris, Director of Gold Wing RoadRiders Association at [email protected],or visit www.wing-ding.org. t

Please send news to Greg Jones,managing editor at [email protected].

Inside the Industry



Broc Glover and the crew at Bike WeekRadio Show have a new team member.

Rick Lake joins Glover, BobbyWooldridge, Paul Carruthers and Scott

Cox on the number onemotorcycle show on radio,serving as the senioraccount executive. Lakehas a long history in thepowersports industry,including six years at CycleNews and 12 years at theInternational Jet Sports

Boating Association (IJSBA). He is alsoknown for working the mic at occasionalrace events, such as Scott Burnworth’sSouthern California Vintage Classic andwas the voice of the IJSBA World Finals formany years. “I’ve had a lifelong passion formotorcycles and I’m really excited to jointhis crew,” Lake said. “I worked with PaulCarruthers at Cycle News and alwaysadmired his tireless passion. And what canyou say about Broc Glover? The guy is alegend! It’s a privilege to come on boardthis team.” Bike Week Radio Show is liveSunday mornings at 9 a.m. PST on SanDiego’s 50,000-watt Sports Radio Leaderwww.themighty1090.com or check outarchived episodes atBikeWeekRadioShow.com/archive.html.

••••The Motorcycle Industry Council

welcomes new General Counsel ErikPritchard, effectiveimmediately. Pritchardtakes over for Paul Vitranoand will serve in this rolefor the MIC, theMotorcycle SafetyFoundation, theRecreational Off-Highway

Vehicle Association and the SpecialtyVehicle Institute of America. “After manyyears of working with the associations asoutside counsel, I’m excited to join fulltime,” said Pritchard. “I’m grateful to MICPresident Tim Buche for this opportunityand his support. I look forward to servingthe Associations and their Boards ofDirectors and Trustees.” Meanwhile Vitranohas accepted a position at PolarisIndustries as VP, global government

relations. “Paul has been an invaluable anddedicated advocate for all the associations,also serving as EVP of the Specialty VehicleInstitute of America and the RecreationalOff-Highway Vehicle Association,”saysBuche. “His many contributions to theassociations – from helping to stop the leadban to winning tough negotiations – haveserved the members and other constituentswell. He will be sorely missed.”

••••Bardahl Manufacturing Corp. has

appointed Mark Hallsman as executiveadviser. Hugh McNeil, president and CEO,stated that Hallsman will work with thecompany’s management team to roll out anew sales and marketing program for theU.S. and Canada this year, along with thecelebration of the company’s 75thanniversary. Hallsman is an industry veteranwith more than 30 years of experience. Forthe past 12 years, he was president andCEO for both Silla Automotive andMotorVac Technologies. Bardahl is a familyowned company that was founded in 1939by Ole Bardahl, a Norwegian immigrantwho developed an oil additive product.Today, the company still has itsheadquarters in Seattle and maintainsoperations in Europe, Asia and SouthAmerica to support its worldwide sales and distribution.

••••Welcome back Chris Jonnum! Readers

of Cycle News or Road Racer X will behappy to note that Chris is back in the U.S.

after spending 2011-2013in Europe as the pressofficer for Ducati’sMotoGP squad. He is thenew powersports directorfor full service marketingagency, DispatchCommunications. “Over

the past two years, Dispatch hasconsistently added motorsports andpowersports-related work,” said Dispatchfounder Eric Doyne. “Our experiencealong with Jonnum’s leadership will enableus to deepen our capabilities for existingclients while offering our expertise to newbrands.” Most recently Dispatch wasnamed agency of record for Italian apparel

giant Dainese, and in 2013 Dispatchhelped Bell Helmets re-launch itsmotorcycle-inspired bicycle division. Theagency has executed ongoing motorsports-related initiatives for clients such asMichelin and Red Bull as well. “I wasimmediately impressed with Doyne and theDispatch team and knew it was the rightenvironment for me,” said Jonnum, whowill work from his native Long Beach, Calif.“I’m confident that my deep knowledge ofthe powersports industry and Dispatch’sfirst-rate reputation and long-standingclient relationships will make this one of theleading practices in the industry.”

••••Dutch-based apparel specialist REV’IT!

has appointed Tracy Motz CommunityManager for the USA and Canada. Motz isresponsible for marketing, as well asongoing consumer and media relations.She is a former Madison Avenue consultantand freelance journalist with workpublished in The Wall Street Journal, the New York Post and various online andmotorcycle publications. She has beenriding since 2005 and is a certifiedMotorcycle Safety Foundation Rider Coach.

••••Electrifying news: Michael “Tex”

Mawby has been named president ofheated gear manufacturer GerbingMotorsports. Most recently the director ofmotorsport sales at Gerbing, Mawby is nowresponsible for product and businessdevelopment, sales, marketing andmanufacturing for the Gerbing Motorsportdivision, including all 12v business. “This isan incredible opportunity,” said Mawby. “Iam excited to help lead this great brandinto the future.” Prior to joining Gerbing,he spent seven years as Eastern U.S. andCanadian Sales Manager for REV’IT!Mawby is an avid rider and amateurroadracer, winning four nationalchampionships with AMA, WERA and theUSCRA roadracing series. In his spare timehe buys and restores vintage motorcycles(and currently owns 22 bikes). Mawby has adegree in English and a degree in Historyfrom Penn State University, and nowlives in Philadelphia. t

SHIFTING GEARSPrinting All The News That Fits

By Robin Hartfiel

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13 MTA MPN 5/7/14 9:36 AM Page 13

By Jim Woodruff

NPA Pre-Owned Monthly Recap: Spring In Full SwingR

eca

p

Pre-owned monthly


With all but one powersports vehicle category on the risein March it’s clear that spring is here, buyer confidence is

up and retail customers are gearing up for the riding season.On-highway categories saw a small but noticeable increase inAverage Wholesale Pricing (AWP) in March as compared to theprior three months – domestic cruiser AWP was up five percentwhile metric cruisers increased six percent and sport bikes justmissed double digits with a nine percent increase. Off-roadAWP rose as well over the prior three months with the ATVcategory up six percent, while the MX category rose 15 percentand the side-by-side category is up 7 percent. Note thatwholesale ATV volumes in 2013 were less than half of thevolume we saw in 2010 and if we continue to see the volume ofwholesale off-road units (ATV, SxS and MX) decrease, weexpect off-road prices will hold steady into summer while othercategories begin to decline.

From a volume perspective, 2014 is continuing the trendtowards a shift in the wholesale product mix to a larger share ofdomestic and metric cruiser volumes at the same time theshare of off-road has shrunk. This is primarily due to consumerpreference and the credit policies of banks the last few yearsfavoring street motorcycles, as well as the fact that dealers arestill learning the value of consigning off-road products toauction like they do for street motorcycles.

Seasonality and Trade-Ins/Off The Street Purchases

One certainty in the world of pre-owned powersports vehicles isthat prices spring in the spring and fall in the fall. March’sperformance is a perfect example and provides helpful guidanceto savvy dealers. For example, when wholesale prices are high itcan be a perfect time to be more aggressive with trades or buyoff the street to sell at auction. Also, the decline in wholesalepricing typically starts in June, so now is the time to take thatinto account – when taking trades or buying off the street asspring winds down, factor in the wholesale value for those unitscan be 5-10 percent less in the summer or fall when you mightneed to unload them rather than paying last month’s top dollar.This can make for a much better inventory managementexperience later – rather than being heavily underwater on a unityou no longer need in your inventory, you can liquidate it quicklyvia auction in the summer or fall without taking a big loss.

The best way to stay ahead of the curve is to know yourmarket and use tools like the NADA powersports guide and theNPA Value Guide. These tools will give you true wholesalevalues nationwide and their history of values from the past willgive you the insights you need to use seasonality to youradvantage. t

NADA VALUE GUIDE

www.nadaguides.com/Motorcycles

NPA VALUE GUIDE

www.npauctions.com/ValueBrowse.aspx

MPN has partnered with National Powersport

Auctions (NPA) to provide our readers with a

monthly recap of pre-owned wholesale

powersport sales results. NPA is the largest provider of pre-owned vehicles. All

data is owned by NPA and provided to MPN specifically for this column. For

more information, please visit www.npauctions.com or call 888.292.5339.

Data includes all live and online transactions from all four NPAlocations. Closed OEM auction data is excluded.

14 NPA recap_May 5/7/14 9:35 AM Page 14

15 Yuasa MPN 5/7/14 9:35 AM Page 15


R1000X SeriesJoe Rocket

The R1000X series helmet by Joe

Rocket boasts graphics and

helmet ventilation performance

from a combination of 11 vents.

Featuring wind tunnel

engineered aerodynamics, the

fusion of the R1000X’s SNELL

and DOT approved

polycarbonate composite shell

and integrated rear spoiler

dramatically reduce both

turbulence and drag.

Complimenting the advanced

aerodynamics is a CAD sculpted,

dual-density EPS impact absorbing

liner, which encloses the fully

removable and washable moisture

wicking QwickDry interior to provide a

superior fit. Backing the fit is an aggressive

ventilation system. The integrated Quadport 2.0

system comprised of two adjustable front intakes that flow through

raised channels and out the two rear exhaust vents tucked under the

spoiler, create a front to back venturi affect, pulling heat and humidity

up and out of the shell cavity. This foundation is complimented with yet

another three lower intake vents and four lower exhaust vents adding up

for a total of 11 vents to ensure a cool, dry ride.

Superior optics come in the form of a hard coated, anti-fog, 3D

shield that is actuated by a precision movement, tool-free closure

mechanism. Plus every R1000X also includes an additional hard

coated/dark smoke shield.

Other details include; a removable internal air-guide for enhanced

fog resistance, removable chin curtain, and clavicle-friendly sculpted

bottom edge gasket that further compliments the R1000X’s comfort and

turbulence reducing aerodynamics.

- - - - - - - - - - - -MSRP: $169.99

- - - - - - - - - - - -For more info: www.joerocket.com

Vector-2 HawkArai HelmetArai’s Vector-2 Hawk lives up to its namesake

with bold, feather-inspired graphics above

angular geometric elements. Three color

combinations are available, including a dynamic

red on red, a cool blue on blue and a stealthy

grey on frost black with green accents, providing

plenty of options for any style of rider.

From a technical perspective, the Vector-2

Hawk features Arai’s customizable FCS Cheek

Pad system, an SAI shield and wider eyeport for

exceptional visibility, plus high-flow ACR-type

crown ventilation. As with all Arai helmets, the

Vector-2 Hawk also features the foundational

R75 Shell Shape, providing a rounder, smoother

and stronger shell that better disperses energy

by sliding, not catching, on uneven surfaces.

- - - - - - - - - - - -MSRP: $639.95

- - - - - - - - - - - -For more info: www.AraiAmericas.com

There are few things in this world as exciting as going fast on a motorcycle.

However, speed can have a price, and in order to better protect riders while

simultaneously keeping them more comfortable on the road, a helmet is needed.

And what’s more fitting than a product focus on sportbike helmets during Motorcycle

Awareness Month?

Today’s sportbike helmets, often called full-face helmets, are specifically designed

to function best at higher speeds while riding in a tuck position (often on the track). This

doesn’t make a full-face helmet exclusively a sportbike helmet as it will still work for more

vertical riding as on a cruiser, it just ensures good air flow and ventilation in more of a

racing posture.

Sportbike helmets tend to gravitate toward younger riders, captivating their attention

with graphics, aerodynamics and lightweight designs. These helmets also have more

functionality than most with aggressive aerodynamic shells and shapes taken right off

the racetrack, increased ventilation and moisture wicking interiors to keep riders cool.

In this month’s product focus we showcase some of the best and brightest sportbike

and full-face helmets capturing the rider’s attention today. t

Sportbike Helmets

16,17,20,21 Sportbike Helmets 5/7/14 9:47 AM Page 16


Shiro 7000Shiro

The Shiro 7000 is the first full face Shiro product to hit the U.S. market. The Shiro 7000’s

lightweight, carbon fiber and fiberglass shell is wrapped in a tribal inspired “Force” graphic

available in four UV protective, clear-coated paint colors as well as flat and gloss black.

The interior of the helmet is adorned with plush pillow soft cool max material which is

removable and washable.

The chin strap features a convenient quick release retention system allowing riders to

latch and unlatch their helmets effortlessly. The Shiro 7000’s tight tolerances keep road and

wind noise to a minimum allowing for a comfortable and enjoyable riding experience. The

helmet also features anti-scratch and anti-fog shields, and adjustable front and rear venting.

Shiro Helmets are exclusively distributed in the United States by Fulmer Helmets.- - - - - - - - - - - -MSRP: $289.95-299.95 - - - - - - - - - - - -For more info: www.fulmerco.com

EVS Sports Cypher EVSThe EVS Sports Cypher helmet is injection molded with ABS high-impact material. It

has a quick-release shield, interior drop down sun visor that has anti-fog and anti-

scratch capabilities. The DOT and ECE certified Cypher also has quad density EPS, a

removable and washable ultra suede inner comfort padding and adjustable top and

chin venting system.

- - - - - - - - - - - -Retail price is $159 – Gloss White & Gloss Black / $169 – Matte Black,

Maverick & Bolt.

- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.evs-sports.com

Shoei RF-1200 ‘Review From the Field’By Kevin Butler, Northern Ohio Ducati Triumph

In today’s market there are vast options for full-face helmets. The

majority of your mainstream manufacturers have suitable

candidates in the mid- to upper-midrange price point, but right out

of the box a few things were very obvious about Shoei’s replacement

of the popular RF-1100. First off, this helmet is light!

Based on my scale, it’s two ounces lighter than similarly priced

offerings. In addition, the shape is aggressive and sportier than its

predecessor, boasting a slim, new, weight-saving shell

complemented by a new rear spoiler that makes you want to go fast!

As I further inspect the helmet, I noticed the bright red emergency

cheek pad removal straps and streamline entryway to make getting

the RF-1200 on and off a snap. Included in the box are an optional

integrated chin-curtain and breath-guard. Both of these can easily be

installed or removed by the rider.

I couldn’t wait to road test the RF-1200. I opted for the Shine Red

version with an MSRP of $498.99. The graphic version retails

a bit higher at $589.99. As I clicked through the gears and increased

speed, I immediately noticed how quiet and comfortable the

RF-1200 was. The pads are made both for comfort and to dissipate

moisture. Shoei updated the shield to offer multiple positions for venting and even included a pin lock anti-fog system compatible

with the supplied clear shield. It was a brisk spring evening so I decided the breath-guard should be part of the test. Used in

conjunction with the venting system, there were no issues of fog even in slow traffic. With a pre-cut speaker pocket and competitive

price point, the Shoei RF-1200 is ideal for riders from weekend track day warriors to those seeking excitement from adventure or

sport touring trips. t For more info: www.shoei-helmets.com


18-19 Joe Rocket SPD MPN 5/7/14 9:46 AM Page 18

18-19 Joe Rocket SPD MPN 5/7/14 9:46 AM Page 19


Stealth F117VegaThe Stealth F117 is Vega’s flagship full-face helmet brand, which

joins the off-road Flyte and the convertible Phantom to expand the

offerings of Vega’s premium helmet line, featuring European styling,

excellent fit, plush fabrics and edgy graphics.

The Stealth F117 is lighter than many full-face helmets on the

market at only 1350 grams for the Carbon Fiber version and 1450

grams for the full line. The advanced CAD designed aerodynamic

shape ensures a quiet ride by minimizing wind buffeting. Ample

venting options add to rider comfort,

including multi-position top vents,

chin vent, and rear venting that has

been designed for a Venturi effect

to yield faster airflow and

unmatched comfort.

The tinted drop-down interior

sunshield is spring-loaded for

easier manipulation with bare or

gloved hands. The anti-scratch,

anti-fog, optically-correct outer

shield has a positive locking design

for a secure seal and has been

designed with a mechanism for

effortless shield change.

The F117 comes in eight sizes (XXS-3XL)

based on two different shells. The thick, plush

Dupont Coolmax liner sports contrast stitching and an embossed

interior, with communication-ready Easy-Com cheek pads. The liner

is fully removable and washable. The Stealth F117 is dual-certified to

meet ECE and DOT standards.- - - - - - - - - - - -MSRP: $169.99 for solid colors, $189.99 for graphics and $349.99

for Carbon Fiber.- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.vegahelmet.com

HJC CL-17HJC

The HJC CL-17 helmet has an

advanced polycarbonate

composite shell that makes it

lightweight. The CL-17

provides superior fit and

comfort using advanced CAD

technology. The optically

superior pinlock-ready

faceshield has a new 3D design

that provides 95% UV protection.

The shield has an anti-scratch coating

and is prepared for the ultimate anti-fog Pinlock

insert, which is sold separately.

The CL-17 also has a RapidFire shield replacement system that has

quick, secure, tool-less removal and installation. The helmet's “ACS”

Advanced Channeling Ventilation System has full front to back airflow

that flushes heat and humidity up and out.- - - - - - - - - - - -MSRP: $139.99- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.hjchelmets.com

Corsa SolelunaAGVThe AGV Corsa features

most of the features of the

Pista GP model, in a

super light composite

fiber outer shell. It was

developed in the same

AGV Extreme Standards

Helmets project of the

Pista GP, which makes it

one of the most

innovative helmets ever

released by AGV. Designed,

developed and tested together

with Valentino Rossi aiming to create

the ultimate protection for racing, the use of

FEM (Finite Elements Analysis) enabled developers to

reach new untouched standards in terms of protection,

comfort and ergonomics. The improvements over the

GP-Tech are groundbreaking. The new IVS (Integrated

Ventilation System) provides a total surface area of air

intakes improved by 193%. The rear spoiler and the

smaller dimensions of the front section and lateral

section maximize aerodynamic performances at high

speeds. The new quick release visor mechanism is 71%

smaller. It is also provided with a front microlock system

that reduces the risk of opening, in the event of an

accident. The field of vision is 15 degrees wider and has

been optimized for a rider tucked over the tank.

- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.store.agv.com

Schuberth S2LinesSchuberthFor over 60 years

Schuberth has created

and built upon a

tradition of head

protection innovation,

and the S2 continues

that tradition as the

world’s first motorcycle

helmet to incorporate an

internal antenna to enhance reception when using the

optional Bluetooth Schuberth Rider Communication

System (SRC-System). The S2 also features Schuberth’s

proprietary S.T.R.O.N.G fiber construction, an internal

sun visor, and an aerodynamic shell design that utilizes a

full-circumference spoiler for reduced lift and drag at

speed. As with all Schuberth helmets, the S2 helmet has

undergone extensive test lab development to exceed DOT

and ECE safety standards.

- - - - - - - - - - - -MSRP: $649

- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.SchuberthNorthAmerica.com

Sportbike Helmets



EXO-R2000 CircuitScorpionThe EXO-R2000 is Scorpion’s flagship performance race

helmet that was developed with the help of their sponsored pro

riders in MotoGP, therefore it’s not your average arachnid. The

EXO-R2000 features an exclusive five-layer composite shell

and uses a special ratcheting system called Ellip-Tec that pulls

the shield in as it locks down to create a tighter seal. The

ventilation system produces generous airflow and circulation

throughout the helmet with plenty of inlets and outlets to direct

just the right amount of airflow for any rider’s preference. The

aerodynamically designed tear-drop shell shape minimizes

buffeting at high speeds and has a unique “Air Fit” cheekpad

system that ensures a custom snug fit. The helmet also comes

equipped with Emergency Release cheek pads, a standard

clear shield plus a bonus dark smoke EverClear shield. Pinlock

MaxVision-ready flat shields with tearoff posts are also

available as an option for customers who are prone to stretch

the legs of their sportbikes on the track. One of the sure sellers

of this premium helmet is that it comes full-featured at a very

reasonable price point. Your customers are sure to give the

EXO-R2000 a second look when choosing their next lid.

- - - - - - - - - - - -MSRP: $389.95

- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.scorpionusa.com

Sportbike Helmets



Tires and wheels are vital for the safety and

performance of any vehicle – they are, after all,

the only thing connecting your customers’

machines to the road. But motorcycle and powersports

riders also look to these components to add style to

their rides.

Because tires and wheels can make for big additions

to your dealership’s bottom line, having the right

knowledge and inventory is key. Seek out supplier

training opportunities, whether online or in-person, to

educate your sales and service staff.

On the tire side, do your best to get sales associates

actual experience on the latest rubber so they can offer

customers first-hand advice. Stay up-to-date on the

latest technologies and trends – tire manufacturers

said popular trends right now include higher mileage

options without sacrificing performance, more white

wall requests, taller tires, cafe and retro, and an

increasing number of unusual sizes from OE bike

manufacturers.

Regarding wheels, seven spoke wheels that replicate

the same ones used in MotoGP and World Superbike are

currently trending. The MSRP on high-end aluminum or

magnesium wheels can be quite a shock for some

consumers. Consider installing the wheels on a new

motorcycle in the dealership, giving the appearance of a

bike that’s a special/limited edition. Also consider

allowing the impact of the wheel cost to be spread out

through financing. A few bucks more per month to have

that “killer bike jewelry” is an easier sell.

Win with customers by keeping up with new

technology in order to select the right tire and wheel

pairing to meet their needs. Today’s riders, who are

well-educated from the moment they enter your door,

consider the value proposition of the benefits of new

technology versus what they pay for it. Remember,

value isn’t the same as price – customers are willing to

pay for technology that benefits them.

You don’t want to miss a sale when the opportunity

presents itself, so for starters, stock core products in

the popular sizes for each major bike brand. This

information often can be found in manufacturers’

fitment guides or dealer support websites.

This month’s Tire & Wheel Product Focus will

keep you up to speed on the latest offerings in this

important segment. t

Mudder InlawWPS Inc.Distributor WPS Inc. added the

Sedona Mudder Inlaw, a deep

lug, 8-ply, puncture

resistant radial mud tire.

The tire features a tread

design that wraps down

the sidewall for deep

paddling traction, as

well as an

aggressive tread

pattern that offers

deep mud traction, is

self cleaning, and is

relatively smooth

running on transfer

sections.

- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info:

www.wps-inc.com

Tires &Wheels

By Denise Koeth

22-27 Tires_Wheels Products 5/7/14 9:45 AM Page 22

23 Vee MPN 5/7/14 9:35 AM Page 23

VRM-393 Tour CruizeMarshallDistributingThe Vee Rubber

VRM-393 Tour

Cruize motorcycle

tire, offered by

Marshall

Distributing, is

designed for the

touring rider who

likes to cruise

with confidence with a quiet, well-constructed tire. Its compound

is built for long mileage and exceptional handling while providing

great wet weather performance and rain shedding ability. - - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.shopmarshalldealers.com


Kanati MongrelGBC Motorsports

GBC Motorsports’ Kanati

Mongrel, the first DOT-

approved radial tire

built specifically for

side-by-sides and

utility ATVs, is a

true all-purpose

tire with an

aggressive and

versatile tread

pattern.

Designed to

handle a variety of

terrains including

dirt, sand, hardpack

and paved roads, the

Mongrel is available in

seven popular sizes for side-

by-sides and utility ATVs, as well as a

number of unique sizes. The tire features aggressive tread and

8-ply durability for maximum performance, plus an

overlapped centerline for safe and smooth driving on roads

and paved surfaces.- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.gbcmotorsports.com

Sport Bike, Harley and Off-Road TiresDunlopDunlop has released several new tires, each featuring new

technology. For sport bike enthusiasts, Dunlop’s Sportmax Q3

is the only motorcycle tire with carbon fiber in the sidewall to

tune handling performance. Dunlop’s American Elite range

for Harley riders, now with more sizes and sidewall options,

features Multi-Tread in all of the rear tire sizes for more miles

without sacrificing handling when cornering. The new off-

road Dunlop Geomax MX32 and MX52 tires provide traction

and handling for motocross and recreational riders. The tires

feature patented progressive cornering block technology to

enhance traction over a broader range of terrain.- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.dunlopmotorcycle.com

Storm 3D X-MAvon TyresAvon Tyres’ Storm 3D X-M tire,

specially engineered for sport

touring motorcycles, combines

long life with performance,

ride comfort and handling.

Featuring interlocking 3-D

points in the sides to

improve stability, warm up

time and grip while limiting

tire flex. The tire design

includes both single and

multi-compound super rich

silica for longer life and

excellent performance and

grip in both wet and dry

conditions. The Storm 3D X-M

is available in six popular 17- to

19-inch front sizes and 10 popular

16- to 18-inch rear sizes. - - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.avonmoto.com

Slasher AT401MTA DistributingMTA Distributing’s Slasher AT401

ATV/UTV tire offers dimpled lug,

directional tread to provide

excellent traction over a wide

variety of terrain. The tire’s 4-ply

carcass features a cut-resistant

compound for maximum

durability, while its overall light

weight makes the Slasher AT401

a great choice for older or

smaller displacement models.- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info:

www.mtadistributing.com


25 Bendpak MPN 5/7/14 9:34 AM Page 25


MV 675 and 800cc rangeBlackStone TekBlackStone Tek recently added wheels that work across

the MV 675 and 800cc range of motorcycles. The wheels

offer a 38 percent weight savings and create 50 percent

less inertia than OEM wheels; pricing starts from $3,200.- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.blackstonetek.com

FierceXtreme MachineXtreme Machine’s new Fierce wheel features a five-

spoke design with creative, engineered cut-outs

machined through and through. Available in chrome,

contrast cut and the new Xquisite finish, Fierce carries

a retail price starting at $1,249.95 for HD applications.- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.xtrememachineusa.com



Evo Spokes forMammoth WheelsDNA SpecialtyDNA Specialty now offers Evo

spokes for its Fat 52-Spoke

Mammoth wheels. All

Mammoth wheel spokes and

nipples are high polished

stainless steel; rims are

triple chrome-plated spun

steel for durability; and hubs

are forged 6061 billet alloy. - - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info:

www.dnaspecialty.com

StealthDWT RacingDWT Racing’s newest billet-style utility ATV/SXS wheel, Stealth,

is cast in lightweight, yet strong heat-treated aluminum.

Available in all current UTV and utility ATV model wheel

fitments, the Stealth wheel features a billet-look center,

included molded center cap, pre-installed valve stems, and

tapered lug nuts that are sold separately. It is available in

machined black wheel finish.

- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.dwtracing.com



By Robin Harfiel

In a passion-based industry likethe powersports market,emotions can color basic

business decisions. Face it, giventhe economic downturn of recentyears, selling ATVs and UTVs hasbeen a hard way to make an easyliving. However, being objectiveand rational, it looks like themarket is making a comeback. TheOEMs and the aftermarket alikehave experienced solid growthsince 2010. If you break thenumbers down, more than half amillion UTVs were sold in thattimeframe, and an equal numberof ATVs has passed through theretail pipeline as well. Forgetemotion, the cold hard fact thatmore than one million new unitsare now in use is something youcan take to the bank.

28-35 UTV_ATV_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:52 AM Page 28

29 Marketplace MPN 5/7/14 9:33 AM Page 29

ATV sales are up marginally. The latestMotorcycle Industry Council Flash Reportindicates that ATV sales are up for Q12014, as 45,388 units sold from January-March. Granted, the increase is only 0.5percent over the same timeframe in2013, but that is worlds better than thedouble-digit drop experienced in thescooter market and the continuing woesof the dirt bike market.

Not reported by MIC is the realbellwether for the 4-wheel market: UTVs.The North American UTV marketcontinued to grow significantly in 2013as recreational applications helpedincrease sales by more than 9 percent toapproximately 353,500 units — a newrecord, according to Power ProductsMarketing. PPM is a Minneapolis-basedresearch firm that provides detailedmarket share data and research servicesto the global power equipment industry.*According to PPM, the strong growthsurge was again led by Polaris Industries,which now enjoys a UTV market share ofmore than 40 percent, followed by Deereand Kawasaki.

However BRP/Can-Am may be theone to watch. “BRP’s market share inboth ATVs and side-by-side has grownsince 2010,” says Jerrod Kelley, Media &PR consultant for BRP / Can-Am. “We’recurrently the leader in big-bore ATVs anda strong No. 2 in side-by-sides. Alongwith its positive reputation, the Can-Ambrand has become more prevalent due

to our substantial product offerings andinnovative approach. These include theintroduction of the versatile Commanderline of side-by-sides, the redesign of theOutlander ATVs, the launch of theMaverick 1000R family and now astrong model-year2015 launch, with thedo-it-all Outlander 6x6ATV and value-drivenOulander L models.”

In fact, as this issuewas going to press, the2015 Can-Am media kitwas hitting the consumerpress. The value-propositionof the two “L” model ATVsand the growing strength ofthe Maverick side-by-side definitely makeCan-Am a contender in the heavy weightranks. With the early release of the 2015product line, it was too soon to getKelley to speculate on where Can-Amgoes from here, but that didn’t stop usfrom asking!

“I really can’t comment on futureproduct or our strategic approach,” hesays. “However, BRP is an industry leaderand will continue to develop ATVs andside-by-side vehicles that appeal to theend users and their demands. Whetherthat’s more vehicles that appeal to acertain niche or enhanced cross-overabilities remains to be seen.”

The aftermarket numbers confirmthese trends. “Polaris has been our bread


4WheelDirt.com GoesLive: ATV/UTV SiteBreaks New Ground

An all-new ATV/UTV focused

site was recently introduced:

4WheelDirt.com. Brought to

you by the same team that

produces Motorcycle-

USA.com and Cycle News,

4WheelDirt.com

provides a dedicated

home for the 4-Wheel

off-road market.

"Although MotoUSA has

included ATV and UTV content for years,

it was time to consolidate this coverage

into a more focused, truly dedicated site,"

says veteran Motorcycle-USA staffer

Justin Dawes.

A diehard ATV/UTV enthusiast, Dawes

was the obvious choice to become the

editor leading the charge at

4WheelDirt.com. “I’m looking forward to

the variety that we will be bringing to the

readers of 4WheelDirt," he adds. The site

features everything from ATV/UTV

reviews, travel articles, gear reviews,

industry news and racing coverage.

"We live the sport! From reviews and

racing, to project builds and camping

expeditions, the 4WheelDirt team will

strive to keep you entertained and

informed," concludes Dawes. Log on

to www.4WheelDirt.com to get the

straight scoop.


31 Kymco MPN 5/7/14 9:32 AM Page 31


and butter for the past four years, morespecifically the RZR,” says DragonFire’ssocial media manager Chris Moore (whoshot the Can-Am on the cover of thisissue, incidentally). “But moving forward,we see Can-Am becoming a real player.”That being said, Moore notes that theaftermarket accessories firm saw anunusual spike in dealer orders for ArcticCat’s Wildcat UTV this spring. “The morethe merrier we say,” says Moore.

There is huge potential for aftermarketaccessories, so much so that our friends

on the automotive side at SEMA cluedinto the fact that more than 670,000 UTVswere sold between 2010-2012. And unlikemotorcycles, you can multiply yourtire/wheel/shock sales x4! Clarity Researchteamed with SEMA to put together theUTV Accesorization report to help itsmembers understand the value of theUTV market. “By looking at accessorypurchases, vehicle usage and interests,you can better understand the buyers thatare likely to be your company’scustomers,” says the SEMA report.

“Understanding the needs of thesekey consumers can help you better serveyour customers.” This approach worksequally well on the powersports dealerlevel. “Expansion opportunities may existwith customers you haven’t previouslytargeted. By recognizing the similarneeds and interests of UTV consumers,you may be able to tailor existingservices to prospective crossoversegment,” again what SEMA says makessense, but it is their findings on thenumbers side that are most interesting:

1) About 82 percent of owners havepurchased or plan to purchase upgradesto their UTV. More than 410,000households in the United States buy UTV accessories.

2) Accessory decisions are made early.Most purchases occur within the firstthree months and many are completed atdealerships or direct through the OEM.Personal sources, such as dealers, friendsand family, have the greatest impact onthese buying decisions.

3) Sport models are the most


33 Zurich MPN 5/7/14 9:31 AM Page 33


accessorized. Sales for this type of UTV ismore common in the West, and ownersof these vehicles are more social, oftenriding with passengers and in groups.

Multipurpose vehicles comprise thelargest segment of UTVs sales with thehighest volume residing in the South.Owners seek ultimate versatility withtheir vehicles and its modifications.

Utility model sales are strongest in theSouth and Midwest. Owners perceiveand use their UTV as a tool, focusing onpracticality and durability. They are theleast likely to upgrade their vehicle andare the most solitary, frequently drivingtheir UTV alone.

A rising tide floats all boats, as theysay. The demand for new units hashelped keep older units in use and keptthe value up for clean late modelmachinery. According to NADAguidesnew Market Insights report, the badweather actually helped drive up utilityATV sales. The appraisal guide/valuationexperts surveyed dealers across thecountry to find out what used units weremoving for a comprehensive report

ATV Safety BlitzThe ATV Safety Institute is launching all-

out safety blitz this summer. Set for

June 8-15, ATV Safety Week will be

highlighted by free ATV RiderCourse

training throughout the country. ASI is

currently seeking dealers to partner

with. ASI will support each event with

information on the website and send

participants ATV safety educational

materials. ASI also can assist in offering

the ATV RiderCourse at no cost, as well

as with site selection, course scheduling,

registration materials, and completion

materials. Groups or others interested in

joining ATV Safety Week should contact

ASI at [email protected] or call

(949) 727-3727 X3064.

The ATV RiderCourse gives riders the

opportunity to learn how to safely get

the most out of their machines on a

closed-course range, with the help of a

licensed ASI Instructor. The RiderCourse

is free for anyone who signs up during

ATV Safety Week. The RiderCourse is

also free year-round for anyone who has

purchased a new, qualifying ATV from an

ASI member company. The ASI offers

easy enrollment at atvsafety.org, or call

800-887-2887.

ASI also offers a free E-Course,

available online 24/7. This online course

is available in three age-specific

courses for adults, teens and children.

Students in each course learn how to

apply the "golden rules" of ATV riding in

an interactive setting. The course

includes videos, pictures and interactive

games to make it a fun and effective

learning experience for all ages. After

taking the course, users can take an

ATV safety exam and receive a

certificate of completion.

The All-Terrain Vehicle Safety

Institute (ASI), a not-for-profit division

of the Specialty Vehicle Institute of

America (SVIA), was formed in 1988 to

implement an expanded national

program of all-terrain vehicle (ATV)

safety education and awareness. The

ASI is sponsored by Arctic Cat, BRP,

Honda, Kawasaki, KYMCO USA, Polaris,

Suzuki and Yamaha.



released in January. “The bestselling categories in the past 60days have been Utility ATVs at39.2 percent followed very closelyby utility side-by-sides at 24.3percent,” notes Lenny Sims,NADA’s VP of operations. Sportside-by-sides accounted for asolid 8.1 percent of the salesduring this time. “However, as theindustry heads into the springseason, NADAguides anticipatesa greater move toward new unitsales causing the used market tosoften slightly.”

Unlike new unit sales, Honda isright with Polaris when it comes toused units, according to users ofNADA’s online search tools.“Consumer behavior is a keyindicator in predicting marketactivity,” says Sims. “We includedthe most researched brands andregional activity for January 2014 in the Consumer Overviewsection of the NADAguides Market Insights, where Polaris and Honda tied for the most researched ATV brands.” Yamaha was a close third on the ATV side (see corresponding

chart). For the side-by-sidesegment, Polaris had the lion’sshare of search activity with awhopping 59 percent.

We are not suggesting thatdealers give up their passion formotorcycles, but simple mathshould dictate taking a closer lookat the ATV/UTV business to seewhat you’re leaving on the table.SEMA’s research indicates thatregardless of the make, model orgeographic location, the averageUTV owner spends more than$1,550 on accessories… and theyare relying on you, Mr. Dealer to help them with this buyingdecision. t

*PPM’s 2013 North AmericanUtility Vehicle Market Report and research services are available to original equipment

manufacturers (OEMs), component & aftermarket suppliers, associations and government agencies linked to the global power equipment industry. Learn more atwww.PowerProds.com.

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

NADAguides.com TrafficTop 5 Most Researched ATV Brands

January 2014

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60% NADAguides.com TrafficTop 5 Most Researched Utility Vehicle/

Side-by-Side BrandsJanuary 2014

29% 29%

23%

10% 9%

59%

16% 15%5% 5%

Source: NADAguides.com

Po

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ris

Ho

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as

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Jo

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De

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ADP Lightspeed DealerManagement Solutions aredesigned to help manage dealeroperations by tracking and storingdata from every department anddelivering information that willassist dealerships in makingsuccessful business decisions.

Every night, more than 1,800Lightspeed powersports dealersautomatically transmit theirinformation to a collective databaseheld at the ADP Lightspeed officesin Salt Lake City, Utah. Summariesand aggregated reports areavailable to dealers for both currenttracking and historical research.This helps dealers know how theirdealership is performing comparedto other dealers across the country.

Parts and major unit inventoryinformation is gathered and used inthe highly successful LightspeedDealership Locator program. Thisprogram is designed for dealers topost obsolete inventory, allowingother dealers from across thecountry to locate hard-to-find partsand units.

ADP Lightspeed stands ready towork with all parties and move theindustry to new levels ofunderstanding, and ultimately tomore efficient and profitableoperations.

For questions regarding thisreport or to inquire about acustom report, please contactLightspeed Data Services at (800) 521-0309.

www.adplightspeed.com

Powersports Dealer New Units in Stock

April 20141,805 Lightspeed Dealers, Distribution of Units by Type and Model Year

Utility Vehicle

Scooter

On-Road Motorcycle

Snowmobile

ATV

Off-Road Motorcycle

Prior to 2013 Model Year 2013 Model Year 2014 Model Year

9%

23%

68%

13%

25%

62%

14%33%

54%

17%

42%

42%

11%

17%

71%

4%

12%83%

36 adp report_May_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:51 AM Page 36

37 ADP MPN 5/7/14 9:51 AM Page 37

Mojotown Motorcycle Gear


DealershipDESTINATION

Story by Margie Siegal / Photos by Joel Aron Photography

Some people are good at keeping alot of balls in the air, and Michael

Aron, proprietor of Mojotown MotorcycleGear Shop in San Rafael, Calif., is one ofthem. He is not only managing his retailstore, but also running an ad agency,named Mojotown Multi Media,promoting RaceFuelZ, an all naturalrecovery and endurance drink, andoverseeing a nonprofit, the MojotownProject, that connects nonprofit groupswith marketing resources and the fundsto obtain them. In his spare time, hedoes a little acting in films.

All this activity would stress manypeople, but Michael positively thrives onhis juggling act. He explains that he grew

up in Indianapolis and was inspired bythe sights, smells and sounds of racing atthe Speedway. Moving to California, hestarted racing motorcycles at SonomaRaceway (also known as Sears Point) andworking for the San Rafael Yamahamotorcycle dealership.

Michael had done quite a bit of

design work, and, through his racing,met Larry and Eraldo Ferracci. Aconversation at the racetrack led to himmoving to Pennsylvania for a position asart director with the Fast by Ferracciteam. Michael moved back to Californiain 2000 and helped launch the Hotwirediscount travel website that year. HisMojotown creative services agency hadbeen started as a part time venture in1998, and went to full time in 2001. Theagency specializes in Web design andcorporate identity for small to largebusiness as well as motorsportsmarketing for companies.

The ad agency was (and is) doingwell, but Michael has always been

fascinated by the idea of openinghis own dealership. Fast forward to2009, when the idea of a parts andaccessories store became a newfocal point.

“Find a hole and fill it,” is an oldretail slogan. In Michael's case, thehole was the lack of a nearby place

to buy tools, parts, helmets, boots andgloves. Michael was getting tired ofhaving to travel to San Francisco to buygear for his racing effort, and assumedthat if he was being inconvenienced, thatmany motorcycle enthusiasts in the areawere being inconvenienced, too.Mojotown Motorcycle Gear store waslaunched five years ago at a location neara freeway. This location was not whatMichael wanted on several levels, and hemoved to his present premises about ayear and a half ago.

The store is now on a major shoppingstreet in an upscale area. One of themajor incentives to rent the space was alarge parking lot available to thecustomers. Parking is difficult in this area,as in most urban areas, with ever-presentparking meter enforcement, and theparking lot takes stress out of theshopping experience. “The parking lot istrailer-friendly,” he notes. “We have raceteams coming through to buy stuff, andthey can drive in with their trailers.”

Another reason why Mojotown movedto the present location was the look of thestore. “This place has high ceilings thatgive it a gallery feel. I wanted people to

A shop designed by an ethusiast for enthusiasts

38-39 destination_May_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:50 AM Page 38

feel the motorcycle culture. I wanted ahomey, comfortable feeling that would bedifferent from most motorcycle stores.”

Mojotown sells boots, helmets,accessories, OEM and aftermarket parts,specialty tools, racing oil, clothing, andmotorcycle related art, as well as usedconsignment motorcycles. If something isnot in stock, it will be cheerfully ordered,with overnight delivery available for manyitems. The selection of items the storeoffers is chosen with the intention to caterto all motorcycle enthusiasts and providesomething for everyone. When Michaelfirst went into business, he also offeredservice on motorcycles, but quicklydiscontinued it. “Service opens too manyissues,” he says.

“I am surprised at the random lot thatcomes in the door. Our clientele hasevolved slowly, but it is now about halfstreet and half dirt riders. There are afew cruisers and Harley guys. With thenew location, we get increased foottraffic, and a lot of street riders. We geta lot of kids, too – there is a used kidsclothing place nearby, and when momis shopping there, guess where thekid is!”

“This location gives me an outlet forreclaimed motorcycle art. Non-riders willwalk past the store and see something inthe window that will make a great gift forsomeone. This location is also more female-friendly, and I have sold more stuff towomen in one year at the present locationthan in three years at the old place.”

The store is relatively small. Despiteits artistic look, it is actually very carefullylaid out to display the maximum amountof product that can be shown withoutmaking the space look crowded.Merchandise is displayed on different

levels, there is a tiny try-on area withlarge mirrors and chairs, and art for saleis attractively arranged on the walls. “I tryto run an efficient shop. Much of our stuffis available on order. If we see a demand,we start stocking the items. We want tobe a miniaturized better version of thelarge accessory shops, with uniquemerchandise and more individuality.”

Advertising is mostly word of mouth.Mojotown sponsors racers and trackdays, and has a lot of support among thelarge local road racing and off roadcompetition communities. Michael has,of course, designed his own website,which takes advantage of newtechnology to feature maximumunderstandable content in a minimalspace. Featuring a constantly shiftinghome page, the idea is to engage thereader as much as possible. The websitehas constantly updated racing news,photos and information on theconsignment motorcycles, and alerts tothe latest products from Mojotown'ssuppliers. Cartoons (designed andsketched by Michael and completed byhis artists) add a touch of humor. Theshop's Facebook page is also constantlyupdated. Michael and staff check emailand the different on line rating sites on aregular basis, adding comments andcontacting the few customers who havecomplaints. “We try very hard to take thehighest road possible.” The result isexcellent online ratings.

“Retail can be a nightmare, but I havedeep relationships with the motorcycleculture on a pro level. I have a concept ofmixing business with pleasure, and it isworking. We are enthusiasts, and it isalways fun to be here.” t


Mojotown Motorcycle Gear Shop1417 4th St. San Rafael CA 94901(415) 457-6656www.mojotowngearshop.com

u Open 5 yearsu Three employees u Used and consignment

motorcycle salesu Aftermarket: AGV, Alpinestar,

Arai, Gaerne, Motul, Motorex,Roland Sands Designs, Scott,Shoei, Sidi, Troy Lee Designs, and Vanson Leather

38-39 destination_May_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:50 AM Page 39


By Greg Jones

Picture yourself in this scenario: You’re working behindthe counter of a fast food restaurant, but you don’t

have a register or system in place to take orders. Menuitems, price, stock quantity, communication tools andaccounting are no longer at the push of a button. Youronly option is to take out a piece of paper and write it alldown manually. This is quite time consuming andinefficient to say the least.

This scenario is what some industry experts relate to adealership operating without adealer management system(DMS). While a dealermanagement system is muchmore robust than a fast foodregister, the idea is similar. ADMS is software that connectsall the departments of yourdealership together and allowsyour business to function withmore efficiency and productivitywhile also giving youperformance reports andopportunities to maximize profits.

Not all DMS are created equal, however. In theory theyaim to accomplish similar tasks for a dealer, but in practiceeach one varies in its scope, capability and depth within adealership’s operation, and for good reason – not alldealerships are created equal, either.

DMS are not new to the powersports industry. In fact,they have been around a while and dealers themselveshave been responsible for making these offerings morerobust and its capabilities farther reaching. Continuous

innovation and technology trends among DMS providerskeep pushing the envelope in this market, making it nearlyimpossible for dealers to ignore the benefits of thesesystems any longer.

Out with the Old, In with the New

“How dealers were doing it before with just paper ticketsis very, very old,” says C.R. Gittere, owner of ServiceManager Pro. “I think not having a DMS in place to

operate your business devaluesyour company’s potential by a lot of zeros. That is the biggest drawback to nothaving a DMS.”

A DMS enables the dealerto track the performance ofeach department and thedealership as a whole at anypoint in time. It also collectsand stores data, which allowsthe user to reduce the timeneeded to perform daily

functions such as repair, order entry, billing, invoicing, etc.Since each department is in some way dependent onother departments within the dealership, having onecentral dataset for each to share means you can get acomplete picture of the customer value propositionthroughout the store.

With a fully utilized DMS, you not only can do the day-to-day operations, but you are capturing and retainingdata that can help you spot trends, market to yourcustomer base and budget and forecast for growth.

40-42 DMS Feature_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:58 AM Page 40

Having a DMS that allows you easy access to the data andprovides built-in reporting capability will streamline your dayand help your personnel be more efficient and effective.

With today’s dealerships comprised of as many as fiveoperating departments – new unit sales, used unit sales,finance, service and parts, garments and accessories (PG&A) – there’s a lot for a DMS to keep track of.

“One of our main strengths is that we cover all the modulesof the dealer in a very integrated fashion,” says Greg Smith,vice president and general manager, ADP Lightspeed.“Whether it’s sales, service, parts, accessories and accounting,all those work together in a very seamless fashion. WhereLightspeed is head and shoulders above most folks is theintegrated accounting, the way transactions are seamlesslyposted to accounting, the financial reporting it can give you,and all the ways it can help improve profit.”

Accounting and managing profitability is becoming veryimportant for dealerships to be able to survive and prosper,and that’s where ADP has put its focus. On the other hand,Dominion Powersports Solutions’ DMS known as DX1, focuseson integrating marketing aspects of a dealership.

“The few things that make DX1 unique is No. 1 being thatoverall business management platform,” says CJ Pedler,director of customer support, Dominion PowersportsSolutions. “Instead of the traditional DMS having beenfocused on the operations aspect – the parts, sales, service,accounting and the reporting of all of that – DX1 certainlybrings all of that in, but then it goes into marketing andcustomer relationship management (CRM) to expand upon theidea of what a DMS is.”

According to Pedler, the marketing and social media aspect of DX1 works like this – if somebody was checking out adealer’s bike on Facebook, Cycle Trader or on your websiteand they entered their information to say they’re interested inbuying the bike, DX1 will pull that information from the enduser into the system so you can start the lead managementprocess. Whether they end up buying the bike or not, all theirinformation will already be in the system the next time they



come into the dealership.Easy information is the name of the

DMS game, and ADP Lightspeed, DX1and others such as Brainstorm,Commander and nizeX, offer dealersfunctionality in sales, service and PG&A.However, a full-blown DMS has so manydealer aspects to track that it’s nearlyimpossible for these systems to offer thebest solutions for individual aspects withina dealership such as service and parts.

Solutions such as Service ManagerPro’s Spec Link Technology or ARI’sPartSmart and AccessorySmart, workalong with a DMS to enhance aspectsof a full system.

“We specialize in the servicedepartment and developed a technologycalled Spec Link Technology that links upfluid levels and tightening torques to partnumbers; part numbers, fluid levels andtightening torques to services; and fluidlevels, tightening torques, part numbersand services to standard jobs,” Gitteresays. “Spec Link Technology won’t justtell you what you should do to a 5Kservice, it also tells you what’s required todo that service. It answers the entirequestion. The speed in which things getdone compared to what it was before mysystem came out is the equivalent ofgoing from a bicycle to a GSXR 1000.”

ARI’s product offerings also enhancehow a DMS can benefit a dealer. “DMS isfantastic for purchase orders and all thetactical accounting elements, but the one

place where they don’t havequite as much informationis what product or part doyou need,” says BradSmith, vice president ofproducts, ARI. “That iswhere our productsolutions plug in reallynicely.”

A DMS will oftenhave part numberspreloaded or the dealergoes in and adds all ofthat, but it’s flat

information. ARI’ssoftware helps fill in that gap.

“When you connect PartSmart you cansee your current in-store availability likequantity on hand, bin location and pricefor any given part,” says Smith. “You canalso build a pick list if you need severalitems. Once you’ve identified the partsyou need you don’t have to re-key thoseinto your DMS, it is already done for you.”

ARI’s AccessorySmart does a verysimilar thing, but it does all of that for thePG&A world. “AccessorySmart is a verydynamic electronic catalog that operateslike Amazon,” Smith says. “You punch ina make, model, year and see everyproduct that will fit that.”

Trending Up

Dealer management system companiesare always looking to improve the in-store experience for a dealer andsubsequently the customer. The trendstoday in the DMS market surroundhosted offerings such as cloud or web-based DMS.

“About 40 percent of our dealers noware hosted in the cloud,” says GregSmith. “It wouldn’t surprise me if wewere 80- 90- or 100 percent hosted inthe next couple of years because it’s somuch easier for the dealer.”

The cost of implementing servers canrun a dealer upwards of $20,000 to$30,000. A cloud-based or a web-based

Continued on page 45



Well it’s that time of year again,when most of the country is

starting to fire up their bikes to get theseason started. It’s also the time of yearwhen service departments get a mix ofstreet, snow and off-road business.Watching a service department duringthe first few weeks of spring is funbecause everyone is buzzing about likebees on crack.

Every year around this time I get thesame phone call from a spun outmanager. They always ask me how muchthey should charge for an oil change, aprimary oil change or a tire change.I always answer the question thesame way, too: does the price reallymatter? Then the awkward silencebegins the kind where you know theother person on the phone did notget the answer they wanted andthey think you’re trying to playsome stupid mind game.

I guess I look at things a bitdifferently, so this seemingly simplequestion always turns into aphilosophical discussion. I thinkthere are two different philosophiesto service work. Both ways will makeyou money, but they are just differentapproaches.

Service is work usually priced by whatthe local market will bear, right?Customers will shop you to save a pennyon the oil change or tire change so youneed to offer the lowest prices on theblock, right? I mean after all, mostpeople in this industry like racing so whynot get into a race to the bottom?

This price scenario may work, but itrequires a laser-like focus on the upsellopportunities that might be created. Yourwhole service and parts team need to beon board to make this a win for yourdealership. This is probably the hardest

way to go about getting true profitability,but it can be done. The dollars will beturned but the profit will be less than itcould be. The drawbacks are every singlemisstep will have huge ramifications onyour profits because your margins are sothin.

I used to sell paper to commercialprinters throughout the southeast. Thepaper I was selling was white just like allmy other competitors. There was nothingspecial about it and everyone had it. Ihad an old grumpy sales manager thatwould stand over my shoulder and listen

to my sales calls and approve or deny myorders. It seemed like he controlled mypaycheck by how much he drank thenight before. However, he taught mesomething that has made me moremoney over the course of my life thananything else. He said, “C.R., you havethree things you can sell around here,best price, best delivery time and bestquality of product. If you ever try tosubmit an order with all three of those Iwill fire you on the spot. You only needto have two of the three, and since youare paid on a gross profit commissionstructure pick the two you want.” Thinkabout this when you buy something; if

you want it right now do you really care ifyou can get it cheaper on Amazon? Whydo you think some of the scooters thatare sold under the tent outside the fleamarket are priced the way they are?

I think of the service department likemy old paper company. The quality ofproduct is based around the quality ofwork your tech does and the feeling yourcustomers get when they deal with yourservice staff. Do they feel like they aretreated like rock stars or cattle? Do youwash the unit when you are done or justsend it out the back door and move onto

the next one? The delivery time ishow fast you can get the bikeserviced and the customer backdown the road. Is your staff fasteror slower than the competition? Soif you concentrate on having thebest service staff and the bestdelivery does the price reallymatter? Customers will pay morefor fast, first-class service.

It all boils down to what yourphilosophy is. Making a quick, easydollar or working the market andmaking the long, slow, biggerdollar. The second philosophy will

take a while, but making a profit will beeasier in the long run, and yourcustomers will be more loyal and theupsell opportunities will be easier tocapture. t

C.R. Gittere and the Service ManagerPro team specialize in servicedepartment efficiency, elevatingcustomer service and increasingdepartment profitability. His monthlycolumn focuses on best practices andunique ways to get the most out of yourservice department. More informationabout Service Manager Pro can be foundat www.servicemanagerpro.com.

MANAGERService

By C.R. Gittere

THE

How Much Does PriceReally Matter?Creating Customer Experience in the Service Department

43 Sevice Manager 5/7/14 9:57 AM Page 43


In a brisk economy, eyeballing the littlethings seems trivial. Almost miserly.

In our economy, it’s downright smart.As you and your staff accelerate your

spring and summer plans, it pays toexamine two components of anysuccessful parts and accessoriesoperations: your escalators and rounders.

Please note: The time you invest toexamine these parts of your businesswon’t result in a sudden landslide of newrevenue. Hardly. In fact, these two areasof your business equate to the old sparechange bottle sitting in my closet.Most of the time, it’s almostmeaningless. It collects pennieshere, nickels there. But after a fewmonths, it becomes something. Forme, it becomes a family outing. Foryou and your version of the“escalator” change jar, it canbecome a significant expenditurefrom seemingly insignificant savings.

Bottom line, it producessomething meaningful. That’s critical inthis economy.

But first, you have to be willing totake in the pennies and nickels throughyour escalators and rounders.

For those of you who haven’t takenthe time to do this lately, a reminderabout these important tasks:

• Escalators: These call for pricing apart, garment or accessory above MSRPby a measured amount, say 5, 10 or even15 percent. Often this is done on lessexpensive items.

• Rounders: These are often viewed asa “Wal-Mart” strategy because every priceends with a “9,” like a Yuasa battery for anolder FZ600 for $48.99, rather than $48.90.

Both strategies drive additionalrevenue through measured means. Theinteresting part is just how much of an

impact they can have on a partsdepartment’s bottom line.

Escalators can be a tricky thing,especially in a retail climate astransparent as ours. “Didn’t I just see thathelmet online for $10 less?”

Sound familiar? It certainly does tomany of us who use escalators moreliberally on lower-cost, must-have OEMhard parts than the more expensiveaccessories and garments. It’s notuncommon to hear dealers droppingescalators from products over a certain

dollar amount. Sometimes it’s $100.Sometimes it’s half that.

Interestingly, we drop escalatorsbecause of our real fears that consumerswill price-shop us on our showroom floors.This is happening today nationwide, andyou can bet it’s only going to accelerate inthe years to come, especially on moreexpensive items. How should you react?Should your escalators continue to recedeinto the background, becomingsomething for products that are so cheapthat they’re not worth price-shopping?

Ultimately, what you decide to do withyour escalators needs to reflect yourmarket. What is your competition doing?What will your consumer bear? But youalso need to adapt to the online shopperwho happens to be in your showroom. Youknow what drives an online shopper to buy

from the store vs. buying online? The topreasons, according to a 2013 ColumbiaBusiness School study include customerservice and return policies. Does your partssales staff mention your consumer-friendlyreturn policies when they’re asked why thishelmet costs $10 more than online?

“Yeah, it’s a few bucks more, but ourreturn policy is terrific and you can wearit home today.”

The #1 reason for not buying onlinewhen a consumer is in a retail shop? The“now” factor. They can take it home right

here, right now.Consider driving those points

home before you drive escalators outof your parts department revenue.

Also, don’t end this task withsimply examining and possiblyupdating your escalators androunders. Turn this measuredrevenue addition into measuredprogress for your dealership. Vow totake whatever revenue comes from

these moves and put it to good use, likeupgrading your business software.

We still know too many smallpowersports operators who work withouta dealer management platform. Dealerswho use those systems swear by thembecause they provide such a thoroughanalysis of store profitability.

Through effective escalators androunders, you can make those penniesand nickels count for something. t

CJ Pedler is the director of customersupport for Dominion PowersportsSolutions, the provider of DX1, the industry’sonly end-to-end business managementplatform. Pedler has spent more than 15years setting up and providing training fordealerships. He can be reached [email protected].

MANAGEMENTSOLUTIONS

DealerBy CJ Pedler

The Importance of Penniesand NickelsIt Pays to Examine Two Key Components of Your Operations

“Does your parts sales staffmention your consumer-friendly return policies whenthey’re asked why this helmetcosts $10 more than online?”

44-45 Dealer Management 5/7/14 9:57 AM Page 44


system functions off of an Internetconnection and eliminates the need for aserver. While there is still a cost associatedwith both of these solutions, the price isminimal in comparison and the offering is superior.

“Cloud-based technology is alwaysaccessible and always available,” saysPedler. “It’s less expensive, provides a lot ofcomputing power and it takes things out ofthe dealer’s hands like having to update it ordo back-ups.”

Another trend within the DMS market isdata standardization, which ensures all data,including major units, entering a dealersystem is consistent. Without datastandardization, units could be spellednumerous ways, creating likely inaccuraciesin reporting and additional headaches andinefficiencies for a dealership. With datastandardization, unit reports are alwaysaccurate and available at the touch of abutton.

As consumers and dealers alike continueto work on the go, another trend is mobilecapabilities. Apps where dealerships canaccess specific portions of their software viatheir smartphone or tablet are beginning tobe seen. When an employee doesn’t have toserve the customer from a fixed spot in thestore, it really opens the experience to bemore customer-focused.

And lastly, dealerships are realizing how vitalan integrated CRM system is to improving theirreturn on investment for marketing. “CRM isanother tool to help dealerships increaseprofitability and productivity,” says JoyMcClanahan, sales manager, nizeX. “I thinkthese products are going to get increasinglymore sophisticated to address the needs of achanging market.”

With seemingly nothing but upside forDMS, there are still dealers who have doubtsabout them – One big reason being theupfront cost.

“Dealers are going to have to make aninvestment,” Pedler says. “Once you getpast initial cost and explain to a dealer allthe places they’re going to save time andthat time equates to money, it’s really allupside. On average, a DMS with thecapabilities of a DX1 can save a dealeraround 800 hours or 80 business days ayear.”

There is no doubt a DMS is aninvestment, but there are very tangiblereturns if you get a feel for how to correctlydeploy it. Dealers can no longer argue theimpact of a DMS. t

Continued from page 42

44-45 Dealer Management 5/7/14 9:57 AM Page 45

In the first chart (Chart 1) we see somepromising numbers. Total store sales

are up over last year as are gross profitmargins. We also see that the parts,garments and accessories (PG&A)department represents a very significantportion of the total store gross profit. Inthe case of the Top 5 dealers, it makesup more than 40 percent.

The number of door swings (fromdoor swing counters) and loggedcontacts have both decreased for thegroup and the National Norm averages.Note that both lost almost 3 percentmore in working contacts than in doorswings. This could indicate a lack ofeffort in logging contact information.However, the Top 5 are still improving onboth door swings and working contacts.

Regardless of the size of yourdealership, you can compare your grossprofit dollars per employee with thisdata. One of the biggest factorsinfluencing this number is the quality ofyour staff and the level of training theyreceive. Good, well-trained staff canmake a big difference in your bottomline. More importantly, it makes a hugedifference in customer retention. It isalways less expensive to keep an existingcustomer than it is to attract and capturea new one.

In the Part 1 chart there is more goodnews: sales increased for PG&A acrossthe board. In addition, there are strongnumbers for gross profit per vehicle sold.Here is a real good example of thedifference well-trained staff can make.The Top 5 dealers are selling roughly$500 more PG&A per vehicle sold thanthe group or National Norm average.Wouldn’t you like to make an extra $500in gross profit per vehicle sold? Thinkabout that the next time you catchyourself saying; “It costs too much to

send them to training…”The Top 5 are averaging 4-5 percent

more on margins than the group orNational Norm dealers. How do they dothat? Do they inflate their prices? Not

likely when today’s shoppers compareeverything online. For one thing, theycontrol discounting. A chart we use inour training sessions shows one 20 percent discount sale takes seven

By Steve Jones

BESTOperators

CLUB

March PG&A DepartmentPerformance

CHART 1

Total Store Sales YTD 1.5 mil. 2.2 mil. 1.9 mil.

Total Store Sales Change from Previous Year 6.6% 19.3% 8.5%

Total Store Gross Profit Margin 22.7% 27.1% 24.3%

Gross Profit Margin for Previous Year 21.8% 25.6% 22.5%

Contribution to Total Store Gross Profit: PG&A Dept. 29.8% 43.1% 25.0%

Logged Working Contacts: Change from Previous Year -14.0% 32.6% -2.7%

Door Swings: Change from Previous Year -11.0% 43.1% -0.7%

Gross Profit per Employee, YTD $22,710 $29,864 $28,010

GROUP TOP 5 NATIONALNORM DEALERS NORMTotal Store Stats for March 2014

PG&A Sales Change from Previous Year 13.0% 31.0% 4.0%

Total PG&A Gross Profit Per Vehicle Sold $871 $1,387 $759

Parts Margin 34.8% 39.2% 33.2%

Clothing/Access. Margin 31.7% 35.3% 30.6%

Personnel Exp as a Percentage of Dept. Gross Profit 42.2% 28.7% 40.1%

Change in Dept. Selling Margin from Previous Year -3.7% 2.8% -0.8%

GROUP TOP 5 NATIONALNORM DEALERS NORMPG & A Dept Stats – Part 1

CHART 2

Invoice Volume Change from Previous Year -3.2% 10.2% -0.6%

Operating Profit Change from Previous Year -0.0% 3.1% -0.6%

Percentage of Obsolete Inventory 16.2% 4.2% 7.9%

Parts Inventory Turn 4.7 7.5 4.3

Clothing/Access. Inventory Turn 2.0 2.7 2.6

Average Number of Customer-Facing Staff, YTD 4.0 5.9 4.5

Gross Profit per PG&A Employee, YTD $23,718 $35,100 $25,011

GROUP TOP 5 NATIONALNORM DEALERS NORMPG & A Dept Stats – Part 2

CHART 3


46-47 BOC_May_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:56 AM Page 46

additional sales at full retail to getCLOSE to the original margin. They alsotake advantage of pre-season programsoffering additional margins. Manydealers minimize suppliers to leveragepurchasing power to maximize marginsand program benefits.

The Top 5 are also doing a muchbetter job of controlling personnelexpenses as a percentage of departmentgross profit. Of course, if you are makingmore gross profit per person, you arealso reducing your expenses as a part ofdepartment gross profit.

Part 2 shows invoice volumedecreasing slightly for the group andNational Norm dealers, but up 10percent for the Top 5. Obsolescencenumbers are here, but they are hard toquantify, since we don’t know how muchis still “there” but written off of theinventory. Suffice it to say that the “real”percentage should be under 15 percent.

Inventory turns are not bad (this is a12-month number), but tracking will bemore useful once we can get all thedealers on board with measuringclothing separate from accessories.

As I have pointed out in the past, thegross profit dollars per employee is ameasurement that can be compared byany size of dealer. The Top 5 are knockingit out of the park; showing $10,000 moregross profit per person than the group orNational Norm dealers – and this is onlythrough March! Look at your numbers inrelation to these as an indicator ofstaffing levels or needed training.

Use these benchmarks to improveyour operation. As always, feel free to

contact me if you havequestions or needassistance. Email me [email protected]. t

Steve Jones, GSA seniorprojects manager, outlines dealershipbest business practices to boostmargins, increase profitability and retainemployees. His monthly column recapscritical measurements used by theleading 20-group dealers. GSA isrecognized as the industry’s #1 authorityon dealer profitability. Access to our newVoyager 5 data reporting and analysissystem is available for any dealership fornominal fee. For more information onour data reporting system, managementworkshops, dealer 20-groups, on-siteconsulting or training, send me an emailat [email protected] or visitwww.gartsutton.com.


“The Top 5 are knocking it out of thepark; showing $10,000 more grossprofit per person than the group orNational Norm dealers – and this isonly through March!”

46-47 BOC_May_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:56 AM Page 47

DeltranLithium Iron Phosphate Engine Start BatteriesBattery Tender’s line of Lithium Iron Phosphate (LifePO4) batteries

are designed to replace flooded, AGM, and Gel Cell lead acid

batteries in powersport applications such as motorcycles, ATVs,

personal water craft, lawn mowers, utility vehicles, scooters, and

dirt bikes. Features and benefits of the DelTran lithium batteries

include: 80 percent lighter than lead acid equivalent, 18-month

shelf life, 5x the life of a lead acid battery, lithium batteries do not

sulphate, can be mounted in any direction, 3-Year Limited Warranty

and Quad Terminal Configuration for ease of installation.- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.batterytender.com


Namura TechnologiesTop End Repair KitsFitting 2010-2014 Kawasaki KX250F. Namura says it

has what you need at a price that can’t be beat.

Everything they make is meticulously crafted to OEM

specifications, so you can be sure your new parts will

be a perfect fit. Namura Top End Repair Kits include a

piston, top end gasket and a bearing if required, all at

a special price starting at $182.93- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.namura.com

48-49 Product Essentials_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:54 AM Page 48


Liberty SportMagTraxion Technology SunglassesMagTraxion Technology Sunglasses by Liberty Sport are designed to

keep out the elements and keep riders on the road! Convert fashion

sunglasses to high-performance sport riding sunglasses in seconds

with the patented MagTraxion magnetic technology. These comfortable,

quick and removable magnetic eyecups provide maximum peripheral

coverage and still look like a killer pair of shades. Eye protection is

essential equipment for many riders and Liberty Sport delivers with

over 80 years of optical success. Superior optics and premium

lightweight frames provide exceptional comfort and performance.- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.libertysport.com

ASA ElectronicsJensen HD1BT RadioThe JENSEN HD1BT is the first true replacement

radio custom designed to fit into a Harley-Davidson

without requiring any special mounting kits or

brackets. The true plug and play design means the

factory harness plugs directly into the back of the

JENSEN radio and works with the factory handlebar

controls. The IPX6 waterproof unit has an

impressive 50 x 4 watts along with a host of innovative features including Bluetooth

streaming audio, AUX input, SiriusXM-ready and Weatherband. This is an excellent

upgrade for any Harley-Davidson that will keep riders smiling for years and miles to come.- - - - - - - - - - - -For More Info: www.asaelectronics.com

48-49 Product Essentials_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:54 AM Page 49


Why is it that at every dealership Ivisit and every workshop I host I

hear the same types of complaints: “Mysalespeople won’t …” Or, “I have tocheck behind my salespeople becausethey can’t …” Or, “My salespeopleforget to …” Or some other variationalong this line?

Yet, when you fly, a smilingflight attendant will always greetyou on every airline. You alwayshear the exact same safetybriefing. At 10,000 feet, you willalways hear a beep followed bya flight attendant lettingeveryone know that they mayuse larger electronic devices.How is it that the aviationindustry can achieve a kind ofconsistency in routine that themotorcycle industry cannot?

At first, I entertained thefact that the people who were hired asflight attendants were smarter or moreeasily trained than the average salesperson. After really examining thishypothesis (as intriguing as it was toentertain, as I too was a salespersonwhen I started in the industry), this didnot make sense. So why is this?

In most cases, it comes down to twodifferent forces at work: nurture andnature:

1) A lack of accountability (nurture)2) Geography of most salespeople’s

brains (nature)

Nurture

I was a finance manager for 10 years andcan understand that sometimes it is justeasier to do it yourself. What you needto ask yourself is, “What does that teachthe salesperson?”

I have learned more about managingpeople from raising my four children thanI ever imagined. When you have a smallchild, it is easy to see that when you treatthem a certain way, you are training themto expect this treatment. It can be lessobvious when you are working with an

adult, but the training works the same. Ifyou do a certain aspect of a person’s job,they will start to expect you to do it fromthen on. Don’t fall into this trap.

If you expect your salespeople to gettrade miles, stock numbers or thecustomer’s full legal name, then theyneed to do it. While it may be easier todo it for them, again, I caution you NOTto fall into this trap!

Nature

You may have heard in the past thatcertain sides of the brain manage specificbrain functions. In general, people tendto be either “right-brained” or “left-brained.” This simply means they useeither their right or left side to do themajority of their thinking. Most goodsalespeople are “right-brained.” Whatthis means is that they tend to be more

intuitive, thoughtful and subjective. Left-brained people tend to be more logical,analytical and objective. When we ask aright-brained salesperson to be thoroughwhen completing their paperwork, theymight have a problem completing thistask because they are having to work

against their nature.So, how do we hold them ac-

countable without expectingthem to be what they are not?

The middle ground that I thinkworks the best is to have thesalespeople get the informationthat you expect them to handle.Immediately – this is key – immediately you should checkover the complete form. If there isanything missing, bring it to yoursalesperson’s attention and letthem know that you will get theinformation this time, but it is their

responsibility to do it next time. Thefinance manager then meets the customeron the sales floor for their first meet-and-greet and gets the missing informationfrom them. You can find the completearticle about the importance of meetingevery customer on the sales floor here:http://tinyurl.com/keemcfy. t

Steve Dodds II is a moderator, trainerand consultant for Gart Sutton andAssociates with experience in everyposition in the sales and finance depart-ments. Dealers rave about his ability toidentify areas for improvement andimplement the changes that producesuperior results. If you have questionsabout what he or one of our othertalented consultants can do to help youmeet and exceed your goals, contact usat [email protected].

By Steve Dodds II

Finance&Insurance

Managing ‘Right-Brained’People with ‘Left-Brained’Tasks

Left Brain:

•Logical

•Sequential

•Rational

•Analytical

•Objective

•Looks at parts

Right Brain:

•Random

•Intuitive

•Holistic

•Synthesizing

•Subjective

•Looks at wholes

50 F&I_May_Layout 1 5/7/14 10:03 AM Page 50

For years now technicians andeducated vehicle owners have

enjoyed the benefits of the self-diagnostic functions of fuel injectionsystems. Evaluating fault codes is now astandard task in powersport vehicleservice. Some fuel injection systems haveexpanded onboard diagnostic abilitiesthat can be used to troubleshoot issuesin addition to the simple fault codes.

Cyclepedia.com recently producedonline service manuals for the YamahaRaptor 700R sport ATV and WR250R dualsport motorcycle. These models, alongwith many other recent Yamaha vehicles,have a diagnostic mode that can beactivated with the multifunction display.This diagnostic mode goes beyond justbeing able to read fault codes – it canoperate sensors and actuators totroubleshoot the vehicles componentsand circuits.

Like most fuel injection systems, theECU can detect and store fault codes if itdetects something amiss. Once the codehas been expressed, the next step is tocheck the fault code number against thediagnostic trouble code (DTC) table toidentify the suspect malfunction. TheDTC table provides the symptom andprobable cause of the fault code; allpretty typical so far for fuel injectiontroubleshooting. What’s new is adiagnostic code number that is providedwith each relevant fault code.

The fault code is the detectedproblem. For example fault code 15 is afaulty throttle position sensor/circuit. Itsdiagnostic code is d01. The diagnosticcode is the code used with thediagnostic mode to troubleshoot theparticular item. Consult thesensor/actuator operation table in theservice manual for more information onusing the specific diagnostic codes.

When d01 is activated in the

diagnostic mode, the multifunctiondisplay will show a numerical value toindicate the throttle position. The sensoroperation table has specific ranges forthis throttle position number at throttleopen and closed positions. The TPS andits circuit should be inspected in greaterdetail if the indicated number is outsideof the specified range.

This type of troubleshooting dataanalysis has typically required theconnection of a special tool to the

vehicle. Having this type of technologyonboard is a huge advantage in that noexpensive special tools must bepurchased, and the diagnostics can beperformed anywhere as long as one hasaccess to the correct information. Note,the 2006 – 2008 and 2013 and newerRaptor 700 models do not have an LCDmultifunction display, and they stillrequire a special tool to use thediagnostic mode.


Diagnosing Yamaha’s EFI Self-Diagnostic Systems

TipsTECH

Inspect a faulty TPS with the diagnostic mode

Cyclepedia Press LLC

Yamaha uses a diagnostic mode that can be accessed with the multifunction display

51-52 techtips_40th rewind_May_Layout 1 5/7/14 10:03 AM Page 51


In addition to sensor troubleshooting the diagnostic codescan also be used to operate circuits and actuators to checksystem functions. Want to know if the radiator fan motor circuitis functional? Select the d51 diagnostic code to actuate theradiator fan motor relay repeatedly. This should cut the fan ontwo seconds, off for three seconds and repeat this cycle fivetimes. If the fan or relay fails to operate this indicates aproblematic component or circuit that needs to be inspectedfurther.

The system can operate the fuel injector, fuel pump relay,ignition coil, EXUP valve and others all with the multifunctiondisplay. One only needs to have the information to use thediagnostic mode and be able to interpret the results. Nospecial FI tool needed, and no need to pick up a multimeteruntil one has allowed the vehicle to diagnose itself. t

Electrical circuits can be activated and checked with themultifunction meter.

The diagnostic mode can be used to operate sensors and actuators.

Cyclepedia Press LLC authors powersports service manuals, a specification

database and training modules to help technicians efficiently service ATVs,motorcycles, scooters and side by sides. Each month Cyclepedia examines reallife shop scenarios with recommended tech tips for handling the problemsencountered. For more information about Cyclepedia manuals and professionalproducts visit www.cyclepedia.com.

Even more rare was the use of color in an editorial ad. That’s how important it was.

Color Ads Were Rare

In July 1974, MPN was

just a baby and so was

the yearly trade directory

that we now call the

Buyer’s Guide. It’s still

just as important today.

In fact, it’s not too early to

start thinking about the

2015 edition. If you

haven’t updated your

listing since ’74, now is

the time to log on to our

website and give us your

new information. And, it’s

still free.

http://bit.ly/PUMgVU

51-52 techtips_40th rewind_May_Layout 1 5/7/14 10:03 AM Page 52

53 Tender MPN 5/7/14 10:02 AM Page 53

MarketPlace

Same Day Shipping • Huge Inventorywww.sammytanner.com909-350-2727 888-258-0369

TO ADVERTISE IN CLASSIFIED MARKETPLACE

CALL Roberto Almenar330-670-1234 ext. [email protected]

54-55 Classifieds_May 5/7/14 10:02 AM Page 54

MotorcycleAndPowersportsNews 55

Find out more about the classified advertisers in this issue online at www.motorcyclepowersportsnews.com/resourcecenter.

ww

w.m

otor

cycl

epow

ersp

orts

new

s.co

m/r

esou

rcec

ente

r

Ad IndexADP Lightspeed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

Amsoil Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Cover 2

ASA Electronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42

Bendpak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25, 41

Deltran/Battery Tender . . . . . . . . . .53

Duro Tire/Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

EarthX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

EMGO International . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Fulmer Helmets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

Johnson Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Kuryakyn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Kymco USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

AIMExpo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

Mattracks, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41

Maxxis International - USA . . . . . . .26

MBA Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47

Motor Trike . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Cover 3

MTA Distributing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Namura Technologies . . . . . . .10 & 11

National Powersport Auctions . . .card

Redline Synthetic Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Rizoma USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Scorpion Sports Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Service Manager Pro . . . . . . . . . . . .48

Sudco International Corp . . . .Cover 4

Sullivans Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 & 19

Vee Rubber America . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Vega Helmet Corp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Wizards Products/RJ Star Inc . . . . .34

XY Powersports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

Yuasa Battery Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Zep Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

Zurich . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

54-55 Classifieds_May 5/7/14 10:02 AM Page 55


VARTA Powersports Batteries Sponsors

Jagged X Racing Team

VARTA AGM powersports batteries hasannounced its co-sponsorship with theJagged X Racing Team for the 2014racing season. Jagged X Racing will beparticipating in five UTV competitionswith the SCORE World DesertChampionship series and six off-roadraces in the Best in the Desert series.

“We are excited to team up withVARTA powersports batteries. We arehere to win races and need to have themost reliable battery available on themarket,” said Bill Schueler, Jagged XRacing team owner. “The VARTApowersports battery is winning all thevibration, performance and torture testswe have thrown at it while racing in thedesert.”

“We are proud and excited to beassociated with this championshipwinning UTV racing team, and lookingforward to a winning season,” saidDoreen Lucht, VARTA powersports

product manager. t

Suzuki MotoGP Team Tests in Texas

The Suzuki GSX-R has always been aboutrace-bred performance for the street.With its recent test at the Circuit Of TheAmericas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, Suzukireinforced that message by showcasing2014 Suzuki GSX-R1000 sportbikesalongside Suzuki GSX-R race bikes that compete on national andinternational circuits.

Following round two of the MotoGPrace series held at COTA, April 13, Suzukiheld a track test for the Yoshimura SuzukiFactory Racing team and its GSX-R1000fleet competing in the AMA ProSuperbike series, as well as the SuzukiMotoGP racing team as it develops its all-new race bike for the eliteinternational

series. Builtaround an inline four-cylinder

powerplant, like that in the SuzukiGSX-R, the new MotoGP racemachine will help Suzuki promote itsproven “Own The Racetrack” messageworldwide.

The entire Yoshimura Suzuki FactoryRacing team – including racers Martin

Cardenas, Roger Hayden, and ChrisClark – attended this test to ride theirGSX-R1000s equipped for AMA ProSuperbike competition. Also on thetrack were Suzuki MotoGP test ridersRandy DePuniet, Nobuatsu Aoki, andAustin resident and special guest testrider Kevin Schwantz.

Schwantz is preparing to compete inJuly’s Suzuka 8 Hour endurance race inJapan, riding for the Yoshimura Legendsteam along with racer Satoshi Tsujimoto,

former Japanese Superbike Champion.The Suzuki MotoGP bike is scheduled

to enter the 2015 race schedule. t

Sign-Up for AMA Vintage Motocross

National Championship Series

Racers can pre-register now for all roundsof the AMA Vintage Motocross NationalChampionship Series, presented byCernic's Racing. The seven-round seriesincludes rounds in Ohio, Illinois, Michigan,Kentucky and Indiana.

“It's exciting to watch the vintagemotocross series grow and improve," saidAMA Motocross Operational CoordinatorAlex Hunter. "Not only is onlineregistration up and running, but we haveCernic's Racing on board as a seriessponsor, and several new venues are onthe 2014 calendar."

Jeff Cernic, owner of Cernic's Racingin Johnstown, Pa., is not only sponsoringthe series, but he's also a vintage racingenthusiast, with more than 100 vintagemotorcycles of his own.

"It makes sense forCernic's Racing to be involved with theAMA Vintage Motocross NationalChampionship Series with our long historyof involvement in motocross," Cernic said.

New rounds for 2014 include SunsetRidge MX in Walnut, Ill.; Russell Creek MXin Greensburg, Ky.; and Mammoth East inPaoli Peaks, Ind.

Rules, schedule updates, classrequirements and online entry links can befound at: americanmotorcyclist.com/vintagenationals.aspx. t

56 pitpass_May_Layout 1 5/7/14 9:59 AM Page 56

C3 Motor Trike MPN 5/7/14 10:04 AM Page C3

C4 Sudco MPN 5/7/14 10:04 AM Page C4

Documents

MPN, May 2014