1999 Harley-davidson Fxdl Dyna Low Rider on 2040-motos

Moto blog

Vespa goes back to the future

IT'S been a while coming, but the gorgeous Vespa 946 - EICMA 2012's Best of Show - has finally introduced something to the two-wheeled world that our four-wheeled counterparts have had for a while.  I call this 'reverse retro-futurism' - the art of borrowing lines from models past and imbuing them with a sleek sense of future direction (as opposed to retro-futurism, the pre-1960s design trend of depicting the technology of the future. The term 'decopunk' may come close, but feel free to tell me if there's a more exact term.) It's what the New Mini and the New Beetle (both 1997 and 2012 versions) have done so well, and so successfully: building an all-new model as a tribute to a classic, something that's modern yet already timeless, with a widely-appreciated, inclusive aesthetic (and here we eliminate the Plymouth PT Cruiser from the conversation). The biking world is great at retro, indeed thrives on it, but not so good at adding in a taste of the 21st century.

Motorcycles at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show

Two weeks ago, I took a break from my regular duties gathering news for Motorcycle.com to fly to Germany to cover the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show for our sister site AutoGuide.com. For two hectic days, AutoGuide editor Colum Wood and I scrambled across the massive 6.2 million square foot Messe Frankfurt trade fair compound, running from press conference to press conference to get the latest on exotic sport cars, futuristic concept models and international unveilings from the automotive world. It was heaven for car lovers, but for me, it meant fighting my way through hordes of photogs, auto-journalists and car show models to get the first photos of four-wheeled goodies from MINI, Ferrari and Lotus.

Harley-Davidson Opens Latin America Office in Miami

Harley-Davidson opened a new regional headquarters in Miami, Fla., to house the company’s Latin America operations. The new Harley-Davidson Latin America headquarters supports the Motor Company’s subsidiaries in Brazil, Mexico and other countries in Central and South America. Harley-Davidson projects international sales to exceed 40% of the company’s revenue by 2014 with the Latin America office a prime area of growth.