Limited Amount of Particular Model Motorcycles

[MikeL]

Has anyone had a dealership tell them they are "not getting anymore of (insert model) this year."

I'm honestly curious if manufacturers halt production on extremely popular motorcycles and limit production? If a dealership is moving units why wouldn't they allocate more?

Just curious on this. I've heard this said by different dealerships in different parts of the state. Anyone know the truth on this?

 

[gixxerjeff]

They don't "halt production on popular motorcycles" but there is a process as far as what they do with a given model run.
Motorcycles are not just distributed differently region by region but also dealer by dealer. Things like sales volume and CSI (customer satisfaction index) are among the things considered when deciding who gets what and how many.
Car sales work the same way, just on a much bigger scale.

 

[bikeama]

Only for Covid-19. Looking for a BMW S1000XR low suspension model in April. Several dealers including my local dealer told me only 6-8 of the low suspension models were in CA. And no more until the factory in Germany restarted. SJBMW was able to get me a bike. So yes sales volume and CSI to make a difference.

 

[ScottRNelson]

Some of the smaller manufacturers only make a limited number of bikes and each dealer is often limited as to how many they get.

I had that issue with the KTM 790 Adventure R. My local dealer couldn't get as many as the customers wanted. I put a deposit down about a year ago to get in line, expecting to finally get one about May or June. Turned out they got a few extras in December and that's when I got mine. Apparently they finally caught up with demand, but they didn't have enough of them for over a year. They definitely ran out of 2019 models before they came close to catching up with demand.

 

[budman]

It has been that way forever in my mind.

Each dealer only gets allocated so many of the most popular models.

I remember this in the 70's until now for certain bikes.

It is not across the board though.. some models sit for a long time waiting for that certain person to pull the trigger.

 

[gixxerjeff]

some models sit for a long time waiting for that certain person to pull the trigger.

I was that guy. In 1984 I bought a 1982 Suzuki GS650 from Motorcycles Unlimited in Corte Madera in 1984. It was brand new, less than 20 miles on the odometer. I think the payment was around $60.00/month on a two year loan.
(I wish I still had that bike)

 

[Tom G]

BMW had halted production due to Covid 19. Back in Germany you would order a car from you dealer picking items from a catalog. The car was then assembled to your specs and you would receive it about 2 month later. Then the also had certain models which they just produced and every dealer had a few. Once these "specials" were gone that was then end of it.

 

[Map8]

The volume is much lower than cars. Motorcycle manufacturers don't have separate production lines for each model running all year round. They produce the projected amount of model A and then retool the line for model B and then again for model C and so on. There may be several production lines but each produces several models each year.

 

[MR662]

Covid-19 changed everything. Most factories shut down or limited manufacturing, and believe it or not, sales are doing great for motorcycles, boats, RV, side by sides etc during this pandemic. So there is a shortage.

 

[MikeL]

Appreciate everyone's replies. It all makes sense. I'm not ready to purchase personally so I'll be waiting anyway.