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Unbelievable - Freddie Spencer’s 1983 Honda NS500 World Championship bike and 1985 Honda NSR250 World Championship bike are for sale.

Spencer won the 1983 500cc World Championship aboard the NS500 and won the 1985 250cc World Championship aboard the NSR250.

Although located in the U.S., the bikes are being sold by exotic motorcycle outlet RMD Motors in Tsukuba City, Japan. Both bikes were built by Honda Racing Corp. (HRC). There are duplicates of each model, but both are housed in the Honda Museum in Japan.

Spencer rode this particular NS500 at Monza, Anderstop and Imola. As for the NSR250: “This is the actual bike I wrapped up the 250 championship with a fourth place finish at Silverstone,” Spencer says. “Four out of my seven wins were on this bike that legendary ’85 season.”

The bikes are to be sold as a pair only. Learn more HERE.

BMW delivered 5,485 motorcycles worldwide in February, up 24.6 percent compared to deliveries of 4,401 units in Feb. 2009.

The OEM delivered 9,299 motorcycles during the first two months of the year, up 14.4 percent compared to 8,132 units during the same two-month period last year.

BMW says the revised R 1200 GS, R 1200 GS Adventure and R1200 RT, as well as the S 1000 RR, contributed to the growth.

Hey, Motorcycle Industry Council – representative of major motorcycle manufacturers in the U.S. – what about offering TV ad time like THIS?

Yamaha’s cumulative production of outboard boat motors has reached the 9 million-unit mark.

Yamaha outboard motors are manufactured at two factories in Japan and at MBK Industrie in France.

The OEM’s outboard motor production began in 1960 with its first outboard model, the P7 (7 hp), and total production reached the milestone of 5 million units in March 1996. Total production reached 8 million units in October 2006. The next million units of production to reach the 9 million mark were achieved in the three years and four months since.

Outboard motors make up more than 90 percent of the marine engines manufactured by Yamaha. 
The company’s 4-stroke lineup ranges from 2 to 350 hp and its 2-strokes range from 2 to 300 hp.

Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (Pvt.) Ltd. (HMSI), Honda’s motorcycle production and sales subsidiary in India, plans to build a second motorcycle production plant in India to meet increasing demand in the country’s rapidly growing motorcycle market.

The new facility is scheduled to become operational in the latter half of 2011 with annual production capacity of 600,000 units. Further, HMSI is expanding annual production capacity of its existing plant from the current 1.25 million units to 1.55 million units, with a further expansion to 1.6 million units already scheduled for next year. As a result, HMSI’s total annual production capacity will be 2.2 million units when the second plant becomes operational.

India represents the world’s second largest motorcycle market behind only China, and industry-wide motorcycle sales in India for 2009 reached 8.78 million units, up 19 percent compared to 2008. The 100-110cc market segment accounts for approximately 50 percent of the total motorcycle market.

Founded in 1999, HMSI operates through 725 dealerships.

Earlier today I posted a piece about Germany’s two-wheeler industry seeking the assistance of lawmakers. Evidently, judging by a response from Immo Dubies of Germany’s ATV&Quad magazine, the same isn’t true for the all-terrain vehicle sector.

“ATVs are a very tiny niche and a very young one as well,” Dubies says. “Sales (in 2009) decreased less than 10 percent – most of this concerned Chinese producers who have increasing problems: They are not any longer able to offer their cheap prices so they're losing market share.

“Sales of premium brands were stable. One reason for this: The market is (so) young that the demand is still growing – especially in terms of utility applications. So I don’t worry about our niche.”

Listening Arctic Cat, BRP, Honda, Kawasaki, KYMCO, Polaris, Suzuki and Yamaha?

Most ATVs are street-legal in Germany. Dealers often display one or two modified units on the showfloor. Modifications tend to include suspensions that are lower and stiffer than stock, as well as large alloy wheels wrapped with low-profile tires.

As most of us who were watching saw: Grant Langston suffered a serious crash  aboard his J-Law Racing Yamaha YZ450F in Daytona on Saturday night that left him unconscious for two to three minutes and unable to move his legs. 

Today, Grant’s sister Whitney says he is OK, but has not been cleared to race next Saturday night in Toronto.

“He has also suffered a bruised rib cage and a contusion to his right lung, causing him to cough up blood,” Whitney wrote in a note to Facebook fans. “We also think that the hard impact to his back, that caused the contusion to his lung, is the reason he was unable to move his legs at first. This is why the officials red flagged the race, he was lying on the blind landing in a high speed section and unable to move. Grant's knee is also extremely swollen. He will be going in to visit his doctor this week to see if surgery is necessary. In general, Grant is very banged-up, bruised and swollen; but our initial scare from him not moving his legs after the crash are fortunately relieved. 

“On behalf of Grant and the rest of our family, we would like to thank everyone for their prayers and concerns. All the calls, texts and Facebook messages really showed Grant how truly loved he is by friends and fans alike.”

Best wishes to Langston for a speedy recovery.

Click HERE to visit Langston’s dealership website. Click HERE to watch Langston’s crash.

A couple of videos featured today on YouTube:

BMW S1000RR Clears the Table … Watch Here.

Eddie Lawson & Ben Spies Talk … Watch Here.

We here in the U.S. may think that motorized two-wheelers are more widely accepted in Europe than stateside. That’s not necessarily true, according to recent remarks made by a representative of Germany’s motorcycle industry trade association – an organization that has stepped up its lobbying efforts for a political atmosphere that supports and promotes mobility on two wheels.

As I previously reported, two-wheeler sales in Germany last year totaled 137,045 units, down 17.58 percent compared to 166,282 units in 2008.

“When red ink prevails in terms of turnover, the consequences are requirements for both political decision makers and the industry to create conditions and perspectives that stimulate a strengthening of the market,” says Reiner Brendicke, general executive manager of Germany’s motorcycle industry association, the Industrie-Verband Motorrad Deutschland (IVM).

While Germany’s auto industry received billions of Euro in support from the government in 2009, the two-wheeler industry did not.

“The IVM and its members did not call for taxpayer-funded subventions, although there were existence-threatening declines in the motorcycle industry as well, not least in business and trade,” Brendicke says. “However, as a representative of the enterprises – in most cases medium-sized businesses – and of more than 30,000 employees in the motorcycle trade in Germany, we ask for a political setting that does not (only) allow but in fact supports and promotes mobility on two wheels.”

Evidently, bicycle riders and manufacturers are beginning to realize what the motorcycle industry has known for years: drive belts offer a number of benefits over chains.

The LA Times today published a story about a bicyclist who took part in the 24 Hours of Adrenaline Solo World Championship using a belt-drive bike in the event’s single-speed division.

“With dedicated chain rings required to match the studded belt, this Carbon Drive System from Gates, a leading motor-vehicle belt supplier … offers a number of benefits over the 150-year-old chain,” the Times article notes. “It’s lighter; doesn’t use grease; requires no maintenance; won’t break, stretch, rust or fall of; and, best of all, it offers a pronounced improvement in ‘engagement’ – the millisecond it takes for the bike to react to your pedaling forces.”

Learn more about Gates’ Carbon Drive System HERE.