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volume 8 | issue 8
AUGUST 2017
Sprockets
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INDUSTRY NEWS
New Ninja 400 Spotted The forthcoming replacement for the Ninja 300 was caught on film by a local Milwaukee TV news crew at several spots throughout the city where the streets had been closed for filming. The new Ninja closely resembles the existing 300 model in terms of suspension and brakes, but other details like frame geometry are hard to make out. It does not appear to be the Ninja 400R chassis, which was introduced in 2011 and sold in Canada and New Zealand. The bike is likely cousin to the Z650 and Ninja 650. The 400cc engine is reportedly a new power plant however, and unrelated to the current Ninja 300 mill which dates back to the GPZ250 of 1983. Or the Ninja 250R, introduced in 1986, which granted sportbike status to thousands of young and underfunded riders worldwide. The new Ninja 400 promises to be a far more sophisticated instrument, in terms of power, handling, speed, and instrumentation than the aging 300. Speculation is already making the rounds that both Yamaha and Honda are bringing some new muscle to the small-bore bike segment, a segment that is enjoying increased interest. Since KTM has already shown some level of interest in this category with the release of the Duke 390, we’re confident that the light-middleweight class will continue its ascending curve. It seems that more people have been discovering, or re-discovering, that motorcycling fun doesn’t require 100plus horsepower and a large investment in maintenance, tires, insurance, etc. Smaller is often better. As yet there is no word from Kawasaki on the timeline or price for the Ninja 400. However, we can confidently predict that it will be available in green.
2018 Model Shown US
Indian’s 2018 Lineup Builds on its AwardWinning Lineup of Motorcycles At its big dealer meeting on July 25th in Sin City, Indian Motorcycle announced its 2018 lineup to the assembled group of dealership owners. The company has really come a long way since Polaris took charge, adding more and more models each year. For 2018, the company amped up its motorcycle lineup from its entrylevel Scout Sixty to its long-distance
2018 Newest Additions
touring Roadmaster. Along with the newly introduced Indian Scout Bobber, headlining the 2018 model year is the ultra-premium Indian Roadmaster Elite and blacked-out, toughed-up Springfield Dark Horse. Also receiving a noticeable upgrade is the Chieftain Dark Horse. Riders will see a 19” ten-spoke blacked-out wheel with an open front fender and the industry-leading Ride Command infotainment system now included standard.
A limited production model, the ultra-premium Roadmaster Elite features custom-inspired two-tone candy paint that takes 30 hours to complete and is finished by hand, with real 23K gold leaf badging on the tank and lowers. The Roadmaster Elite comes standard with a large number of premium amenities, including the industry-leading Ride Command system, a 300-watt premium audio system, passenger armrests, billet aluminum passenger continued on PG. 03