After buying 4 motorcycles I must admit the cost of motorcycles are relatively high than buying a car, and I am sure you must have thought about they are so expensive? When I first bought my motorcycle with my dad at the age of 18, I asked him the same question and he told me why motorcycles are expensive.
The demand for motorcycles is very less as compared to cars, and there is a limited number of companies manufacturing motorcycles, and their parts cost more as compared to car parts. Because of less demand, the R&D and labor costs are very high.
There are various reasons that decide the cost of a motorcycle like, what category it fits in, small-displacement motorcycles don’t cost as much as the liter-class motorcycles, and other big engine motorcycles like Harley and triumphs, they also cost a lot, there are other factors that decide the price of a motorcycle. But today we are giving you what are the reasons that make motorcycles so expensive.
Making a motorcycle is not as easy and the location where the motorcycle is manufactured also decides the final cost of the motorcycle, that is why Japanese motorcycles cost less than the motorcycles that are made in the US.
They have cheap labor in their home country but in the US the cost of labor is high, that is why Harley Davidson and some other companies who manufacture their motorcycles in the US charge a lot as compared to the other motorcycle companies who manufacture their motorcycles out of US.
Motorcycles are small and lightweight machines, but it requires a lot of things to fit all the essential things like transmission, suspension, electronics, engine, in a small body. And this increases the cost of the motorcycle. Here are the five reasons why are motorcycles so expensive?.
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Less Demand for Motorcycles
Parents don’t like if their kid starts riding a motorcycle because they think the motorcycle is dangerous as compared to cars, and because of this myth many people fear about riding a motorcycle.
Because of this reason there is very less demand of motorcycle among the Americans, but this is not same if you see some Asian countries, they prefer two-wheelers because of small and crowded roads and they have parking issues as well, but this is not the problem with the US, there are very few customers who like to own a motorcycle.
We have made a detailed article about How Safe is Motorcycling, you can read that as well. And if the demand for a product is low, then the company have to increases the price of the product so they can get more profit from each one product, and if the demand increases then the price will also go down.
And because the demand for motorcycles is high in Asian countries that is why buying a motorcycle is cheaper there as compared to European countries.
Limited number of companies for manufacturing motorcycles
As the demand is very low, that is why new companies don’t come to the US market, because there is very less chance of making a profit form a low demand market, and only big companies like Harley, Triumph, BMW, Honda, Ducati, etc. can afford to sell their motorcycles in the US.
And these big companies can barely make profits out of their sales and for a new company, it becomes more difficult to set up stores, service stations, and manufacturing sites. This then increases the cost of the motorcycles that are already selling their motorcycles.
Manufacturing Cost is High
Do you know why your iPhones are made in China? Because it is costly to manufacture them in the US, and if they do so, then the prices of iPhone will go way high that we are seeing right now, and this is the same with the manufacturing of motorcycles.
Because of the recent increase in the taxes of import of aluminum and steel, this also increases the cost of making the parts of motorcycles. And in sports motorcycles, manufacturers use lightweight materials like titanium and copper fiber to reduce the weight and increase the strength of the frame.
These materials are light in weight but these are much more strong as compared to steel and aluminium. These materials cost a lot to make, some of the most common materials they used are aluminum, titanium, and carbon fiber.
Sports motorcycles are flagship models of that company which need a lot of Research and Development to make, it requires a lot of engineering and labor to make.
Research and Development Cost
Every year the manufacturers have to update their motorcycles with new features to make them more fast and lightweight and to improve the sales . These new innovations improves the overall performance, and it requires a lot of research and resources to find new innovations.
And they also use their motorcycles for championship races, and to win those races it requires new updates in terms of performance and handling, and it also increases the cost of the final product. You can watch this video to know how a BMW S1000RR is manufactured.
Additional Taxes
To buy a new motorcycle you have to pay a lot of taxes, and if the motorcycle is manufactured out of the USA, then the company needs to pay the import taxes, and it all adds to the final price of the motorcycle.
And after buying a new motorcycle, you have to pay for the insurance other types of fees like Destination Charge or Freight Fee, Setup/Prep Fee, Doc Fee, Tags/Title Fee, and Sales Tax. And then you have to pay for the license and for regular maintenance of the motorcycle.
The insurance and sales tax are different for every state, and every country, so first check these taxes, and motorcycles adove 600cc of engines have the most expensive insurance, and if you are a new rider, then we suggest you go with a small motorcycle first, as they don’t have expensive insurance. We have made a detailed article about Are Sports Bikes Good for Beginners, you can read that if you are a beginner.
Is it worth to buy a Motorcycle?
Now you are confused about whether to buy a motorcycle or not, right? Don’t worry, we are going to answer whether it is worth buying a motorcycle or not. There are a lot of benefits that motorcycles have over cars or four-wheelers.
Motorcycles are more Economical: Motorcycles can cover more miles as compared to cars in terms of miles/gallon of gas, and if you want to save some money then you can go with motorcycles, to save some bucks while traveling.
— Also read: Why are there no Automatic Motorcycles like the Automatic Cars?
Better Performance: If you are the kind of person who likes thrill and loves the flow of adrenaline, then motorcycles are for you, they pack so much performance as compared to cars, if you need a similar kind of performance from a car, then you have to buy a sports car, but you can get better performance at very less price as compared to sports cars.
Freedom: With two wheels you have more freedom of going anywhere, just rev the throttle and experience the cool breeze of the open road, grab some essentials and pack it into your luggage for your adventure touring motorcycle and go anywhere.
What is the best time to buy a motorcycle?
Yeah, there are some months which are the best time to buy your favorite motorcycle, and winters are the perfect time to buy a motorcycle, in this time, there are very less demand of motorcycle and you can easily negotiate, and if the weather is good enough then you can also ride it, because at that time the roads are less crowded, and you can enjoy your ride more peacefully.
Will a motorcycle save me money?
Definitely, motorcycles give your far better mileage and that you can use to save money, and the maintenance cost of motorcycles is also very low, and the cost of motorcycle tires also very less, means you can save a lot of money just by using a motorcycle.
You also save your money on insurance, other taxes while purchasing, because taxes are also low on motorcycles.