Motorcycle news, Motorcycle reviews from Malaysia, Asia and the world

Bikesrepublic

Latest News

Petronas Yamaha MotoGP team with Jorge Lorenzo and Hafizh Syahrin?

Rumours of a possible Petronas Yamaha MotoGP team in 2019 have been circulating very recently.

This new Yamaha satellite team is said to contract Hafizh Syahrin together with Jorge Lorenzo.

This new team will help MotoGP to solve a few issues they are currently facing at the moment.

There have been many rumours going around the MotoGP paddock but this particular news might be the biggest one yet, especially to fellow Malaysians. It seems that there might be a possibility of Malaysia running its own MotoGP squad after all in 2019 as a Yamaha satellite team. (more…)

Demak shuts down: What could have happened to this promising Malaysian motorcycle builder?

Demak motorcycles was a promising bike maker that specialised in building cheap bikes with Chinese sourced parts.
It has been in operation since 2002 with a factory in Kuching, Sarawak, and later another factory began operations in Banting, Selangor.
It also had a factory in Sri Lanka.
Demak even had the most favourable commission rates for its dealers.
So what could have happened to this promising Malaysian bike maker?

It has been exactly a year since Demak invited us to witness the launch of their new motorcycle models including some commercial vehicles at their new factory in Banting.

A year ago, everything seemed nice and rosy for the company with a few hundred people attending the event, which was officiated by the then Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Zahid Hamidi. Read about that here.

But exactly a year later and the company’s fortunes seem to have gone south.

Photos circulated around the WhatsApp chat application, showing red paint tossed onto the official signboard at the entrance to the factory. Red paint is no big deal, but in Malaysian terms, that usually means that a person or company is in some sort of a problem. Usually a financial problem but we’re not making any speculations here.

Now a lot has been written about what has happened at Demak but it has all been speculative as is this article. But we will never really know unless an insider speaks up or a tell all official report is put out.

But of course, in the name of journalism, we made a few phone calls, spoke to some former employees, and even visited the factory in Banting and also the service centre in Batu Caves to see for ourselves. And yes, sadly Demak, the maker of affordable bikes for the people who need it most is indeed shutting down. The notice below was also posted outside of the service centre in Batu Caves.

So what happened? There’s some rumours flying around, but rumours until confirmed will remain rumours. But be careful about what you choose to believe, our friends at Mekanika have confirmed that rumours such as a law suit from Boon Siew Honda, financial loses, and even political interference is all untrue. You can read their report here.

But after speaking to a few former employees of the company, it seems that Demak simply could not sustain their business operations any longer.

Demak has always played on the price factor of their bikes, some of their models can be bought for as cheap as a little over RM3,000. But the only way to sustain a business model that plays the price game is to push for volume, economies of scale they call it. And though Demak used to export some of their products to countries like Sri Lanka, they simply could not sell as many bikes as was needed to make the business model work.

In fact, it is said that Demak even offers among the highest commission rates to its dealers. It is a fact that motorcycle manufacturers and distributors in Malaysia have always been under the mercy of the dealers. The dealers have an association boasting over 5,000 members, and if the association says it will not support a particular brand, a motorcycle maker will simply go the way of the dinosaur.

So when you sell your product for cheap and even pay the dealer good commission to sell your product, what then is left for you? Very little obviously. And that is supposedly what happened to Demak.

Apparently the company has been loosing money on the bikes it sold. And when the company tried to renegotiate the commission structure, the all powerful dealer’s association simply said NO!

The factory in Banting is huge, 260,000sq ft to be exact. It is the ultra modern facility that Demak invested in after realising that the only way they could probably make ends meet is to increase their production volume. The factory was able to produce up to 200,000 bikes a year. This was their second factory, the first one was in Kuching, Sarawak.

But even so, reports indicate that that Demak only managed sales figures of about 3500 – 4500 a month, or about 54,000 bikes a year.

It is said that the company then tried to turn its fortunes around by investing in the distribution of the famed Italian bike maker MV Agusta. But even that didn’t go very well, and the distribution of MV Agusta is now in a limbo as the parent company seems to have folded. But we will reserve speculating on that until we have more information.

Then there is another Demak factory in Sri Lanka, but due to local regulations which require parts to be shipped from China to Malaysia and then to Sri Lanka, thus increasing costs, the operations there too seemed to have gone south.

It is not entire clear what has happened to Demak and we will bring you more if there is any new developments. For now, it is a sad end to a company that had huge potential. Credit is due where it is deserved and we applaud their bravery to operate relentlessly even when the odds were stacked against them. During our recent visit we noticed hundreds of bikes lined up in the compound of the factory, we do wonder what would end up of them.

SST will start on 1 September 2018 – buy new bikes NOW!

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir has announced that the new SST or Sales and Services Tax will start on 1 September 2018.

From now until the end of August, the 0% GST rates will be implemented which will see prices drop for bikes, cars, and more.

Manufacturers have already begun promoting the new prices plus Hari Raya Aidilfitri promotions.

Gather around folks as this is big news for all Malaysians. Our beloved Prime Minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has just announced that the new Sales and Services Tax or SST will be implemented on 1 September 2018. (more…)

Jonathan Rea to MotoGP in 2019?

Multiple WorldSBK world champion Jonathan Rea is currently in talks to join MotoGP in 2019.

Several factory teams have extended their offers towards the 31-year-old rider.

Rea is also in talks with his current Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK as his contract ends at the end of the season.

The world of MotoGP is getting a huge buzz of gossips this time around with the possibility of multiple WorldSBK world champion Jonathan Rea finally ready to jump ships over to MotoGP. It seems that his side is already in talks with a few factory teams as we speak. (more…)

2018 Yamaha XMAX 250 Test & Review

The Yamaha XMAX 250 is the biggest scooter officially sold by Hong Leong Yamaha.
It is more of a GT scooter compared to the NMAX and NVX.
The new basic selling price is at RM 21,225.00 with 0% GST.

Sure, scooters are the embodiment of convenient motorcycling, to the stage of being lazy – nothing else you need to do but to fill up, twist and go. Besides that, I don’t need to worry about slinging a backpack hence neckaches and backaches, since I could throw everything into the storage space under the seat.

But, I’ve never actually considered owning a scooter prior to this; due to the fact that their suspension gets hammered followed by my spleen over sharp bumps or potholes. If that’s not bad enough, their front tyres weave about when cornering. Those two factors alone had always put a damper on my enthusiasm.

But what about this new Yamaha XMAX 250? I was looking forward to testing the new MT-09 and was a little smitten when Hong Leong Yamaha Motor only had this XMAX available during the time. Well okay, for the benefit of our readers who do like scooters, I acquiesced to the offer.

WHAT IS IT?

Hong Leong Yamaha Motor is the one manufacturer who offers a wide selection of scooters in the Malaysian motorcycle market.

The XMAX 250 on the other hand, is powered by a 250cc, single-cylinder engine, making it the biggest scooter officially offered by HLYM. While the rest could be considered “city” scooters, the XMAX is of the maxi/GT type. As such, the XMAX is much larger in size, complete with a large windscreen and bigger fuel tank. The underseat trunk is also much bigger and you could fit a couple of helmets, or a helmet and a backpack filled with a 15” laptop.

WHAT FEATURES DOES IT HAVE?

There instrument panel is also large in size, dominated by a large speedometer and tachometer, flanking an LCD multi-display in between.

There are storage compartments on each side of the front panel – the left is locked with the ignition while the one on the right is unlockable. A 12V cigarette lighter type outlet is on the left, enabling you to charge your phone on the go.

The XMAX also features the SMART Key system first seen on the NVX. It needed a little figuring out at first, but it becomes second nature soon enough. Once you’re used to it, you’d swear that it’s the best motorcycle locking system. For example, it’ll warn you if you’ve forgotten to arm it.

The XMAX is one of the best-selling scooters in Europe, therefore it’s equipped with ABS and TCS (traction control) as standard equipment.

Those beautifully designed headlamps are fully LED with LED “positioning lights” (other manufactures call them daylight running lights). The taillights were equally good-looking and they were LED too. The turn signals remain as normal bulbs, though.

WHAT WAS THE FIRST IMPRESSION?

The seat was taller than it looked. Although the spec sheet described the seat height at a low 795mm, I had to move one cheek off the seat just to tip toe on one foot like I was on an adventure bike. The wide portion under the seat was the cause. And surely enough, the test bike had been dropped on one side.

The handlebar is placed lower than on most scooters and it felt sporty. That placement also meant that my view of the instrument panel wasn’t blocked at all.

The seats were definitely comfortable and supportive.

HOW DID IT PERFORM?

The 250cc, fuel-injected, single-cylinder engine features Blue Core enhancements, including variable valve timing (VVT). It started up quickly every time and there was very little vibration for a scooter.

The fun of a twist ‘n’ go is of course the acceleration and the XMAX accelerated very quickly all the way to its redline. Hold on to it and you’ll hit a little more than 140 km/h. However, the bike was very economical. We managed to obtain 324 km from 11 litres of fuel despite our heavy-handed testing and we had to fill it up only once in the nine days that we had the bike.

But best of all, the XMAX 250 never once shook its handlebar when we blasted it through fast, sweeping corners unlike other scooters.

The handling was confidence-inspiring, and I didn’t hesitate in taking up to Genting Highlands. At night. On these roads, it was a joy to ride the XMAX as I could just swing it into the corners. It had plenty of cornering clearance and took lots of lean angle to scrape the centrestand. Even then, it never once threatened to chuck itself down the road (or off the mountainside) at full lean.

The brakes were superbly strong although they felt a little vague at full pressure, possibly due to the rubber hoses. However, that’s just a personal preference as I’m sure owners will find them pretty strong in standard trim. Another thing I noticed was the brake levers didn’t pulsate when ABS was triggered. Instead, the levers actually extended slightly to the front when that happened, allowing me to maintain maximum brake pressure.

The headlights were bright as a much-welcomed feature in the fog.

Down Karak Highway, I could ride the XMAX almost as if it was a normal bike, surprising a few car drivers along the way.

As for the suspension, it was a good balance between comfort and performance. Big potholes still translated to big hits but they were a lot more damped out than other scooters and mopeds.

CONCLUSION

The Yamaha XMAX 250 is a great scooter for the daily commute and also some touring. Its great looks is matched by its great performance, especially because it doesn’t wobble in corners, but also due to its practicality and economy.

So I guess I’ve found the scooter that I’ve been looking for.

Is this the most expensive Harley-Davidson in the world?

H-D expert Bündnerbike together with Swiss watchmaker Carl F. Bucherer has probably created the most expensive Harley-Davidson in the world.

The Harley-Davidson Softail Slim S Blue Edition comes with over 360 diamonds, custom watches, and jewellery.

Those who are interested in the Blue Edition can get it for a cool £1.4 million (around RM7.42 million).

We’ve seen, witness, and ridden some of the world’s most expensive bikes in the world. The most expensive one that has graciously received our behinds would be the Honda RC213V-S which is a cool RM1 million each but one look at this particular custom Harley-Davidson and it takes the whole lot. (more…)