What industry analysts are saying…

Rob Hobson, editor, Cap Green Book, the industry’s pricing ” bible ” :

” This shows how the bike industry is going.

” The car industry has shrunk to core businesses, this is the way the motorcycle industry is going too.

” There will be a crossover in the way the bikes are built and look. The parts and accessories will come from the same places.

” With cars, there has been ” badge engineering ” where the bodywork and dashboards are the only differences between cars.

” I can’t see that happening in bikes as the people who buy them are more discriminating. People buy a car on contents – and things like a nice dashboard can make a difference. ” Whereas that’s a functional buy, a bike is an emotional buy. Bikers are interested in what it does.

” It will be some way down the line before you notice anything in terms of the bikes the firms are making.

” If it’s just a manufacturing link, it won’t make much difference, but if Suzuki and Kawasaki are pooling resources, one of the brands would weaken and maybe have a smaller place in the new range.

” Kawasaki has been struggling to get depth in its range for some time. It has nothing in the small bike or scooter range – which is growing – so it has no sales in the Third World and China.

” The top-end of its range hasn’t been doing well either so things have been getting worse.

In its history, Kawasaki has always had a core model that has been cutting-edge, but that’s not been the case for a few years, which has been reflected in the sales. ”

Hilton Holloway, news editor, Car magazine:

” If the car industry gives any indication, duplication of engines will be the first thing to happen. Volkswagen has made an art of it. It expects people to pay more for a car because of the name – there’s little difference between an Audi and a Skoda, other than the price.

” It’s major league economies of scale for these companies. There’s no point in them constantly inventing the same stuff over and again.

” As an example, here are three very similar 1.6 5dr cars: Audi A3 £15,200, VW Golf £12800, Skoda Octavia £10,500.

” The only differences are the panels, dashboard and badges. ”