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Results of the MOTORRAD readers’ choice 2017

So our readers voted

The winner in the enduro / supermoto category in the motorcycle of the year poll is not the BMW R 1200 GS this year. The Honda Africa Twin won!

Results 2017

F.almost 50,000 readers and users cast their votes in the 2017 MOTORRAD readers’ poll. And there is a big surprise: The Honda Africa Twin wins the Enduros / Supermotos. congratulation!

Results of the MOTORRAD readers’ choice 2017

So our readers voted

Variety on ranks 2 and 3

In the other eight categories, the first places go to last year’s winners. This year the second and third places ensure plenty of variety. Seldom have so many different brands been on the podium. Triumph was able to take two second places with the single-seat Bobber and the Thruxton / R. With the Z 1000 SX, Kawasaki achieved third place among the tourers. And Yamaha swaps the crossover runner-up from last year for two third places.

MOTORCYCLE readers’ choice celebration

Rivas

Full house: Well over 200 guests came to Stuttgart to celebrate the 2017 award winners.

What actually makes a motorcycle desirable? As much performance as possible? A lot of electronics? Successful design? If you look at the winners of the major MOTORRAD readers’ poll, you realize that the mix has to be right.

When almost 50,000 motorcycle connoisseurs (i.e. potential buyers) vote, the industry has to take it seriously. But she also needs to know: not everyone who dreams of this or that motorcycle will buy it. Many will just keep dreaming. Nevertheless, of course, it makes you proud and happy to have met the customer’s taste so exactly. Especially when the motorcycle in question is right at the top of the MOTORRAD readers’ favor for the second or third time.

A well-known Bavarian manufacturer has managed to do this surprisingly well in the past. One model in particular seemed almost concreted in on the top step. The winner in the Enduro / Supermoto category was practically always the BMW R 1200 GS. But this year, of all things, the in-house arithmetic got in the way of the bestseller. The Bavarians have been seeing their own model in the mighty Adventure GS for years – and count as such. This year MOTORRAD has now also rated separately. Result: 2nd and 3rd place for the two GS models, 1st place for the Honda Africa Twin, the shooting star of the 2016 season. It will undoubtedly be one of the bestsellers this year as well.

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Editor-in-chief Pfeiffer is beaming, reader Jan Vogt is happy about Ducati Monster 1200 S..

That should give the Japanese courage, even if the men on stage at the award ceremony mostly spoke either German with a Bavarian or Austrian accent or Italian. Four wins for BMW (S 1000 RR, S 1000 XR, R nineT, R 1200 RS), two for KTM (1290 Super Duke R, 125 Duke) and two for Italy (Ducati XDiavel and Vespa GTS Super 300 ie) – except for We already knew the Africa Twin from last year. A strong indication that the mix is ​​really right with these winners, because the air at the top of the motorcycle Olympus is extremely thin.

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Two without fear of heights: MOTORCYCLE world record holder Carsten Schwers and the Africa Twin.

The colleague was then able to report live on stage how well the Africa Twin and MOTORRAD tester Karsten Schwers got along so far: From sea level to 6000 meters in 24 hours – Metzeler / Pirelli and MOTORRAD had concocted this project, Honda provided the motorcycles.

So it came about that the red Africa Twin stood as the muddy sparrow of the evening between the shiny winning bikes and still made a sparkling clean appearance. Class winner, record vehicle and new image carrier – Honda had reason to celebrate. Like the successful BMW crew, yes, actually all the guests, because the signs for a successful motorcycle year 2017 are not bad. It remains to be seen who will be ahead in the registration statistics. The guests, who partied well into the night, agreed: 2017 will be an exciting motorcycle year.

Motorcycle brand climate 2017

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Knows everything about brands and their image: MOTORRAD division manager Peter Paul Pietsch.

With the choice of the "Motorcycle of the year 2017" readers also gave a clear assessment of how they see the big brands positioned.

The model policy is important, but so is the image. How do motorcyclists rate the manufacturers? What changes are there? What are the properties that ultimately add up to a good reputation? Innovative strength, competence, reliability and, last but not least, a friendly demeanor form this positive image. That takes a lot of perseverance and effort, and sometimes there is also a bit of luck involved.

The choice to "Motorcycle of the year 2017" and the associated largest reader survey in the two-wheeled media landscape has been providing a precise and reliable barometer of sentiment for the industry for years: changes in trends either sound the alarm bells for those responsible for the brand or confirm the course they are on.

The knowledge of MOTORRAD readers is of great importance. They only assign the requested properties to those brands about which they can make specific statements. And this produces consistently meaningful results.

It is also interesting how the nearly 50,000-strong MOTORRAD electorate was made up in 2017: 92 percent are men and 92 percent also own a motorcycle, of which almost half bought the machine new. The average age of the electorate has remained unchanged since 2015 at 47.3 years.

More than 72 percent drive a motorcycle with more than 750 cubic centimeters and thus cover an average of 7,900 kilometers a year. The annual mileage has increased by almost seven percent compared to 2015. Over 22 percent of the machines participating in the voting were registered for the first time from 2015 and a total of 38.8 percent of the readers’ bikes were purchased in the same period.
The feel-good factor with their own brand has become more firmly established among drivers of new machines: 73 percent say they are very satisfied with the motorcycle they have bought – that’s three percentage points more than in 2015. Aprilia and Harley-Davidson buyers are with each 77 percent agree that they are above average satisfied with their choice, the same applies to new machine owners from Honda (76%), BMW (75%) and Ducati (74%). Moto Guzzi, on the other hand, has the red lantern on its handlebars again: Only 62 percent of owners of a new machine are very satisfied with the brand.

When it comes to brand loyalty, the generally high satisfaction scores are somewhat at odds with the results. In the meantime, more than half (54%) of those questioned also consider another manufacturer when buying a new motorcycle – that’s six percentage points more than two years ago. There are also blatant differences in this parameter depending on the brand. While 71 percent of Aprilia new buyers are receptive to the charms of non-brand models, not even a third of the Harley clientele (30%) are interested in the beautiful daughters of other mothers.
What is driving the growing interest in competing brands? New variety of models, targeted niche occupancy or even technical innovations? In order to sound out the latter, readers were asked for the first time in 2017 to name those models from 30 new products that they believed to represent innovative technology. On average, 21 percent of the models deserve this rating from the reader’s point of view. The BMW R 1200 GS Rallye (65%), KTM 1290 Super Adventure / R (57%), Ducati 1299 Superleggera (51%), KTM 1290 Super Duke R (50%) and Honda Fireblade (47%) achieve top values.

Seven out of ten models in the top 10 nominations come from European manufacturers. Clear message from the readers: The superiority of Europeans in terms of modern safety electronics – from cornering ABS to active chassis control to automatic gearshifts – is undisputed.

This is partly reflected in the snapshot of which brands are currently trending from the reader’s point of view. After the slight dampening of the two previous years Bmw again fully and almost unchallenged hip. How do they do it? The variety of engines has been reduced, i.e. the four-cylinder K models have been completely canceled, and instead of single-cylinder there is currently a gap in the range. Because the G 310, after years the first new, albeit small-volume, single-cylinder, is in the starting blocks with considerable delay because there were massive problems with the start of series production. On the other hand, there is a consistent expansion of the modular system: the R nineT has now become a whole Heritage series with a total of five models. With the boxer enduros, every niche that the GS clientele could offer is served with variants such as Adventure, Rally and Exclusive – and that can still be expanded at the lower and upper edge of the series. Although it is getting on in years, the BMW S 1000 RR is still the best-selling super sports bike that is still in top form and on which all the attacks of the competition have rebounded. The Bavarians are also well positioned with the tourers with the R 1200 RS, RT, K 1600 GT and GTL. It remains to be seen whether that will be enough for the future. The competition from Europe and partly also from Japan is catching up.

Above all, accelerate Ducati. The brand has overtaken KTM in the current trend barometer. This is where the many innovations from Bologna pay off. And the Italians clearly benefit from having tapped a whole new group of buyers with the Scrambler models. With the SuperSport S, a promising everyday athlete is now entering the race. It is still difficult to say whether the small Multistrada 950 will be successful below the 1200s. The model variant fits in with the brand strategy of positioning itself more broadly and finally leaving the niche position behind.

Whining, but at a high level: KTM has had to give up and was relegated to 3rd place by Ducati. After the successful transformation from an off-road specialist to a full-range supplier, with many attractive models, technological independence and a brand-typical design language, the innovative momentum now seems to be slowed down. For 2017, Mattighofen only comes with a model that is well-kept. Really new models, such as a 790 Duke, will have to wait until autumn, as will a successor to the earlier KTM bestseller SMC 690 R. Have the rapid rise in previous years, the MotoGP commitment and the ambitious goal of Husqvarna number 3 to do in Europe, for example provokes a development backlog?

Yamahas Trendsetter potential has also suffered somewhat. The MT hype has flattened, which the four-cylinder version MT-10 apparently couldn’t prevent. The brand remains true to the modular strategy – see Tracer as well as XSR 700 and 900. The brand new YZF-R6, however, has a unique selling point: It is the last 600 super sports car of its kind and drives into the niche at full throttle.

And how are the other Japanese brands positioned? Kawasaki stood there better. A little incomprehensible, since there are innovations that are actually very trendy: Slimmed down, visually upgraded and ultra-modern, the Z 650 and Ninja 650 are the better successors of the ER-6f and -6n and have what it takes to build on old successes. The hope brand is the strong Z 900 naked bike.

Suzuki reports back from the reader’s point of view: With the new GSX-R 1000, the brand is again offering the original super sports car at a competitive price, but now with absolutely competitive technology. And the V-Strom 1000 is up to date again. The loyal fan base of the all-rounder can give hope for success.

Meanwhile, the big winner from the Far East is Honda. Within a year, the world market leader gained 20 percentage points in the trend barometer – the big names Africa Twin and Fireblade have given the brand an unprecedented boost. The Honda bestsellers NC 750, CB 500 and CBR 500 are also considered a solid foundation for success.

There is still a lack of trendy brands triumph. The English gain six percentage points compared to the previous year. With good reason: thanks to new, water-cooled engines, the Modern Classic segment from Bonneville to Bobber is technically up to date again. And that the new Street Triple will build on the success of its predecessor is actually beyond question. In the enduro segment, Triumph is also well positioned with its Tigers – even if they are denied sales records like BMW.

You can find more detailed statistics in MOTORRAD 8/2017 and in the following PDF.

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