[seruzawa]

Why not? Since Harleys are overpriced and loaded with foreign-made parts, why should Americans turn away from the overpriced Fisher made with a few foreign parts.... engine, electrics, suspension, tires, battery, brakes....... er, exactly what part of the bike is built in the USA?



Q: Which comparable Japanese 650cc V-twin bike sells for $8.5K?



A: There aren't any.



So what the hell is Fisher talking about? I guess he's referring to the 600 supersports.



Don't get me wrong, I hope he's successful. But I ain't laying down $10K for an 800 much less a 650 with a V-Twin engine from Korea. On the other hand there are so many people willing to toss big bucks down the drain so they can bring home a chopper that there might be enough people who'll want a Fisher. At least it won't be an overly dangerous sort of contraption like a chopper.



On the plus side, since the bike is built mainly from quality import parts we will probably avoid a repeat of the "Indian Copycat Motorcycle Junk Company".

 

[seruzawa]

I have to differ a bit. The MRX IS a "real" sportbike. It may not have the arbitrary 100hp minimum in demand by the squidlies, but it is still a sportbike. After all, Ninja 250s, GS500Fs, SV650Ss and the like are sportbikes.



I refuse to let a few spec-junkies redefine "real" sport riding as riding 100+ hp bikes. For me, a blast around the mountains on an RD400 or a GS500 is more fun than the same on a 150hp literbike. You'd seldom get out of first gear on a CBR1000R. And you'd spend too much time worrying because you forgot your parachute.



But then, I could give a f%^k less what anyone else thinks about the bike I'm on. I buy it for me, not to pose.

 

[seruzawa]

How about a 750 triple? That would give a bit of uniqueness. More HP and torque (especially) than a supersport. Fisher is obviously not planning to field a racing team.



I think they would have done better to start out with a Rotax twin. An undeniable facet of the "buy American" crowd is a larger distaste for oriental imports than european ones. Unfair maybe, but difficult to dispute.

 

[seruzawa]

Briggs is already at capacity in providing engines for Buell Blasts.

 

[seruzawa]

Re: Take a look at the SV650

Maybe Hyosung could take a page from the Russians. The Russkies reverse engineer a BMW and call it a Ural. Hyosung should call their reverse engineered Suzuki an "Oriental Ural" or "Oral" for short.

 

[seruzawa]

Re: Take a look at the SV650

Dave's not here!

 

[seruzawa]

Re: Take a look at the SV650

I've entertained a minor theory that the real reason Honda was so successful was that the name wasn't instantly recognizable as Japanese. Yamaha is close to Omaha in sound and wasn't so irritating either. However Kawasaki (or Kamikaze as my grandmother used to say) and Suzuki are instantly recognizable and by that reason alone they were more likely to be rejected by Americans during a period so close to WWII. Interestingly, around that time the TV show Hogan's Heroes also received a lot of grief for their attempts to make the Germans in WWII look funny.

I didn't even need a junk science degree like Sociology to come up with that lame theory.

 

[seruzawa]

Re: Not lame at all

I remember that my parents (my Dad was in the AirCorps in WWII) were highly incensed by the show and refused to watch it for a couple of years. "There was nothing funny about the Nazis" they'd say. My uncle, however, who fought with the Marines in the Pacific, thought it was a hoot. "Don't forget that we mongrels kicked those supermens' @sses", he'd say.

In retrospect though it was probably one of the worst things you could do to those insufferably arrogant Nazis (aside from simply shooting them in the head).... make fun of them and treat them as contemptible idiots and incompetents.

 

[seruzawa]

Ouch, it hurts just thinking about it.

I can think of more edifying forms of masochism than studying medieval Russia, thank you.

 

[seruzawa]

Re: Izz problem whiff MuZ, I think?

Yeah, and while doing this you don't have to study medieval Russia, heh heh.

 

[seruzawa]

Re: Not lame at all on both counts.

The Nazis persecuted some of their best nuclear scientists because they were Jewish. The Scientists went to Britain and the US.

The Nazis never let the crying need for railroad rolling stock to move their troops get in the way of the program to exterminate the Jews and other "genetic inferiors".

The Germans got beaten in every engagement with the US, except for Kasserine Pass. Rather than bypass Stalingrad they blew the war with Russia by investing the city. Then Hitler wouldn't allow a defensive retreat, allowing the Germans to get bagged in Russia, thus sealing his doom. There are many examples of the Nazis' stupidity.

Well heck for that matter in the late 30s the French and Brits couldn't give Hitler everything he wanted fast enough. Germany was even getting its African colonies back when the fool Hitler attacked Poland.

They were very efficient. Given a task they could probably organize and pull it off better than anybody. Being efficient doesn't mean being smart. One of the diry little secrets is that wars are seldom "won". They are usually lost by the worst blunderers. Japan's worst blunder was attacking the US at all, for example. We'd never have gotten into the war at all without that "brilliant strategy". And the Japanese commander didn't even carry out his mission anyhow by destroying the fuel facilities at Pearl Harbor.

Hitler was Austrian. Maybe he was merely carrying out an elaborate plan to destroy Germany. He did a pretty good job of it. That could explain many of his decisions.

 

[seruzawa]

Re: Not lame at all on both counts.

Well, good. Maybe you'll be able to welcome them in your neighborhood again soon.