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Motorcycle Dealers and Lovers

Working 200 Years of Tradition Into

Motorcycle Sales

Incredible Past

Few industries have as colorful a past as the

motorcycle industry

Amazing characters, near-impossible technical

feats, remarkable tenacity and passionate

customers all make their contributions

So let’s start at the beginning…

1903

Harley-Davidson

William Harley and Arthur Davidson build the first

production Harley-Davidson, designed to be

raced in a velodrome, which were popular venues

for bicycle races in those days.

Their headquarters were on Chestnut Street in

Milwaukee, and though the street’s name was

later changed to Juneau Avenue, the company’s

headquarters are still there.

1905

Harley-Davidson

1901-1903

Indian

1901: Oscar Hedstrom and George Hendee

launch Indian Motorcycles in Springfield, MA.

1903: Hedstrom sets the world motorcycle speed

record at 56 mph.

1911

Indian Single

1910-1912

Harley-Davidson

1910 Creation of their

iconic logo

1912 Nine years after

forming, the company has

more than 200 dealers

across America.

1919-1923

Bayerische Motoren Werke

1919: The Treaty of Versailles forbids Germany to

manufacture airplanes, so BMW, which had been

making airplane engines, turns its focus to

motorcycles.

1923: Legendary BMW designer Max Friz invents

the 486cc R

It reaches a top speed of about 60 mph

1925

BMW R 32

1920

Harley-Davidson

Eight years after starting,

they're the biggest

manufacturer in the world

with 2,000 dealers in 67

countries.

The company’s racing

team so completely

dominates the circuit

they’re known as the “The

Wrecking Crew”

Their bikes become

known as “Hogs”

because the team’s

mascot is a little pig.

1920

Indian

The Scout makes its introduction with a 42-

degree V-Twin.

Many aficionados consider the Scout to be the

best bike they ever made

1920

Indian Scout

1923

Indian

The Big Chief debuts with a 74 ci (1200cc) V-

Twin.

1935

Indian Chief

1936

Harley-Davidson

According to the Discovery Channel, the Harley-

Davidson Knucklehead has “probably the highest

sex appeal factor on record.”

They add that if that bike hadn’t existed, Harley

wouldn’t exist today.

Faster than anything else on the market, it could

hit a then-mind-boggling 100 mph.

1936

Harley-Davidson

Enthusiasts removed as much of the machine as

possible to make it lighter and faster, creating the

first Choppers

And this was the first Harley that growled with

that throaty, world-famous “potato-potato” roar

(more on that in a moment…)

1936

Harley Knuckle Head

1946

Honda

After the war, Soichiro Honda realizes that Japan

needs affordable transportation.

He grafts war-surplus two-stroke motors from

portable generators onto bicycles.

1946

Honda

1946

Ducati

Ducati does something similar in Europe, but with

a motor designed for the purpose, the 50cc

Cucciolo (“pup”)

Ducati will keep improving the Cucciolo

expanding it to 60, 65, 98, and finally 125cc.

1946

Ducati Cucciolo

1953

Indian

Indian ceases production after failing to sell many

motorcycles in the post-war era.

1949

Honda

Honda produces its first real motorcycle, powered

by a 98cc two-stroke motor

They call it Model D – “Model Dream”

1949

Honda

1958

Honda

The Super Cub or Honda 50 will shortly become

the world’s most popular motor vehicle – of any

kind

1958

Honda Super Cub

1960

BMW

The R 69 S is introduced, reaching a top speed of

109 mph.

1960

BMW R 69 S

1962

Suzuki

At the Swedish Grand Prix the East German

driver Ernst Degner defects to the west with his

motorcycle

The bike contains Germany’s greatest motorcycle

engineering secret: expansion chamber designs

Suzuki gets the bike, and in 1962 applies the

technology to win the 50cc World Championship

1962

Suzuki RK67

1966 Hell's Angels: A Strange and Terrible Saga

Maybe named after 1930 Howard Hughes film

about aviation daredevils, Hell's Angels, and

certainly named in the tradition of military fighter

squadrons, the Hell’s Angels becomes a cultural

icon as the 1960s heat up.

Hunter S. Thompson publishes his iconic expose,

launching his own career and greatly adding to

the group’s outlaw mystique.

Weirdly, after he earned the right to hang out with

the group, the writer bought a BMW rather than a

Harley-Davidson

Circa 1970

Hells Angel’s

1963-1986

Suzuki

1963 U.S. Suzuki Motor Corp. opens in Los

Angeles.

1986 The most important new Suzuki in a decade

arrives in the U.S., the GSX-R750

1986

Suzuki GSX-R750

1969

Harley-Davidson

The American Machine and Foundry Company

(AMF) acquires Harley-Davidson

Despite their success with bowling balls and other

manufactures, they will nearly destroy the

beloved motorcycle manufacturer.

Quality rapidly plummets

The market for “pre-AMF” bikes is stronger than

for new ones.

1968

Honda

Honda produces its 10 millionth motorcycle only

19 years after the company’s first bike rolled out

of its factory

1969

Honda

Honda releases the first mass-market bike to

come with a disc brake, the CB750

It’s engines were sand-cast at first, and those

bikes are the ones preferred by collectors.

1969

Honda CB750

1965

Ducati

Release of the classic Mark 1 250, featuring a

rare five-speed gearbox.

1965

Ducati Mark 1 250

1977

BMW

The R80/7 is introduced and becomes a favorite

of police forces.

1977

BMW R80/7

1983

CrossCheck

CrossCheck, Inc., check guarantee service

provider founded

www.Cross-Check.com

1981

Harley-Davidson

Vaughn Beals leads a group of executives to buy

the company from AMF, which quickly agrees to

the $75 million price tag.

Industry analysts universally acclaim him for

leading a remarkable turnaround.

The first thing he does is implement world-class

quality control.

1987

Harley-Davidson

Fearlessly, the company petitions the government

to LOWER the tariff on imported motorcycles,

serving notice to global competitors that it

welcomes a level playing field.

It takes them on with, among other bikes, the

classic Fat Boy

1990

Harley-Davidson FLSTF Fat Boy

1997

CrossCheck

CrossCheck offers Multiple Check or Hold Check

services

Merchants can now accept more than one check

for payment, with some checks deposited at a

future date to match their customer’s cash flow.

The service allows many CrossCheck customers

to increase sales

And they can do so risk free, since all verified

checks are guaranteed

1997

Harley-Davidson

The company crushes its competition on the level

playing field.

They build a new 217,000 sq.-ft. design center in

Milwaukee.

They buy a plant in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin

to build engines.

And their new 330,000 sq. ft. plant in Kansas City

produces Sportsters.

1997

Harley-Davidson Sportster

1995

Ducati

1995 The public gets to buy the 916 in

reasonable quantities, and the bike’s design is

immediately seen as a classic.

1995

Ducati Tamburini 916

2000

Harley-Davidson

In the 1990s, somewhat whimsically, the

company tried to trademark the “potato-potato”

sound its engines make, but the U.S. Patent

Office couldn’t quite get its head around the

concept.

2000

Harley-Davidson

In 2000 they dropped their application

“Harley-Davidson owners from around the world

[tell] me repeatedly that there is nothing like the

sound of a Harley-Davidson,” explained their VP

of marketing, Joanne Bischmann, “[and] that’s

good enough for me and for Harley-Davidson.”

2000

Harley-Davidson Street Glide

Special

2004

BMW

The K1200S has a radical new across-the-frame

four-cylinder motor pumping out 167 horsepower.

With it, BMW alerted the competition that it was

ready to go head-to-head for market share.

2004

BMW K1200S

1967-2006

Indian

At the Bonneville Salt Flats, Burt Munro rides his

modified 1920 Scout to an under-1000cc land-

speed record.

His 183.586-mph mark remains unbeaten today.

The World’s Fastest Indian, starring Anthony

Hopkins, hits the big screen in 2006, celebrating

his remarkable achievement.

2006

The World’s Fastest Indian

2007

Ducati

The 1098 evokes the Tamburini 916

The “Ducatisti,” as the company’s fans come to

be known, love it.

2007

Ducati 1098

2003- 2008

Harley-Davidson

In 2003 a quarter of a million people went to

Milwaukee to celebrate the company’s 100th

anniversary.

Introduces the XR1200 in Europe, but demand in

the U.S. is so strong they decide to sell it

worldwide.

2003- 2008

Harley-Davidson XR1200

1999

Suzuki

Targeting a mid-range market, Suzuki releases

the Hayabusa and claims it is “the ultimate

aerodynamic sport bike”

It’s 1298cc liquid-cooled DOHC in-line 4-cylinder

engine becomes the darling of land-speed racers.

The name means “peregrine falcon” in Japanese.

1999

Suzuki-Hayabusa

2004

CrossCheck

The Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act (or

Check 21 Act) goes into effect

It allows banks and merchants to scan checks

and to treat the digital image as if it was the paper

check

“Remote Deposit Capture” gets it start, and will

become a critical component of CrossCheck’s

services

2001

Harley-Davidson Breakout

2006-2008

Indian

2006: Decades of wrangling that kept anyone

from meeting the demand for Indian bikes finally

ends.

The newly formed Indian Motorcycle Company

announces production in a new facility in King’s

Mountain, North Carolina.

2008: Production begins on the 2009 Indian

Chiefs

2009

Indian Chief

2009

BMW

The S1000RR sport bike represents a major shift

for the company.

Its advanced traction control system arises from

the company’s expertise in developing electronics

systems

2009

BMW

2011

Ducati

Ducati blows minds globally with its first true

power cruiser, the Diavel.

2011

Ducati Diavel

2011

BMW

Billing its new K1600 series as the ideal machine

for curvy roads, these are the first BMWs

powered by a six-cylinder engine.

2011

BMW K1600GTL

2013

CrossCheck Turns 30

2014

Harley-Davidson

Surprising practically everyone, the company

develops a prototype electric motorcycle

Launching it on Route 66 (where else?), they

drive forty of them to thirty dealerships across the

country

2014

Harley-Davidson

Critics and the public rave

Believe it or not, they managed to hit upon a

great signature sound for this bike, too

2014

Harley-Davidson Livewire

2013

Indian

The 2014 Chief three-model lineup is introduced

on August 3 at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

2014

Indian Chief

2014

Zero

More alternative power-train motorcycles are on

the way

The Vetter Challenge creates a race to spur that

innovation

It’s to be won by the motorcycle that can travel

171 miles at an average of 80 mph for the lowest

energy cost

2014

Zero

The closest a production electric motorcycle can

come to this is a Zero S with a Power Tank that

extends its range to about 88 miles

And Zero wins it, with a total cost of 1.3 cents per

mile.

2014

Modified Zero S

2015

Elio

Three-wheeled motorcycles are nothing new, but

ones designed to compete with cars are

The Elio, another home-grown innovation that will

be built in Troy, Michigan, might begin production

in 2015

Founders promise 84 mpg and a sticker of only

$6,800.

2015

Elio

2014

Zero

The 2015 Zero S with the least range goes 113

miles

Even better, it costs $600 less than the 2012

version

And it has an App (of course) that allows the rider

to check the bike’s vitals

2015

Zero S (not modified)

2014-2015

CrossCheck

32 Years and Counting

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* Most of the information in this slide show came from Wikipedia and

motorcycle.com