Quote:
Originally Posted by vexor
Any news on a newer generation Suzuki GSXR 600/750?
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It's interesting when you look at the market.
Prior to 2008-2009, the sports bike market in the United States was on fire. As a result, and in an effort to promote their offerings, Japanese manufacturers were routinely refreshing their 600cc-class machines on a two or three year cycle. The 2008 recession caused havoc with the
entire motorcycle industry. For most of the North American population, motorcycles represent
discretionary spending and it's one of the first things that people shift away for when they need to be more conservative with their finances.
Naturally - many new bikes were already in development during this period and many landed in showrooms in 2010 and 2011. However, many have remained (largely) unchanged since that time. New bikes require immense R&D capital and R&D capital isn't made available unless the manufacturer can substantiate an ROIC that will exceed the input.
The Yamaha R6, Suzuki GSX-R600/750 and several other models have been caught in this period of stasis for the past number of years as the manufacturers have been unable to justify the capital necessary to overhaul the bike or are instead putting that money into other lines (the R3, R1, etc.) to satisfy other market demands.
The other major consideration is that traditional bike markets (North America and Western Europe) are being usurped in priority by developing markets like India, China and South Asia. 600cc bikes present an ASP that isn't ideal for these markets and thus the MFRs have been focused on lower displacement, lower ASP bikes that are more compatible with the market conditions in those countries (licensing restrictions, pricing, fuel economy, etc.).
The good news is that the economy is stabilizing in the United States and parts of Western Europe and bikes sales (globally) are rebounding strongly. Curiously though, the 600cc-class has remained stagnant and the industry growth in sales is coming from refreshed and new entry-level 300cc sportsbike/naked offerings and ultra high-end superbikes.
We have seen a surge in superbike development that has mirrored the explosive growth in this category (the new R1/R1M/R1S, Panigales, S1000RR, S1000R, etc.).
I guess the argument of course is always that sales are flat/soft in the 600cc-class because the offerings aren't exciting but the manufacturers won't invest in this class because they can't justifying the associated costs. In the meantime, the sub-600cc and superbike ranges continue to expand and grow.