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Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier class of motorcycle road racing events held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held since the start of the twentieth century and large national events were often given the title Grand Prix. The foundation of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme as the international governing body for motorcycle sport in 1949 provided the opportunity to coordinate rules and regulations in order that selected events could count towards official World Championships. It is the oldest established motorsport world championship.
Vespa is an Italian brand of scooter manufactured by Piaggio. The name means wasp in Italian. The Vespa has evolved from a single model motor scooter manufactured in 1946 by Piaggio & Co. S.p.A. of Pontedera, Italy to a full line of scooters and one of seven companies today owned by Piaggio.
Piaggio & C. SpA is an Italian motor vehicle manufacturer, which produces a range of two-wheeled motor vehicles and compact commercial vehicles under seven brands: Piaggio, Vespa, Gilera, Aprilia, Moto Guzzi, Derbi, and Scarabeo. Its corporate headquarters are located in Pontedera, Italy. The company was founded by Rinaldo Piaggio in 1884, initially producing locomotives and railway carriages.
The Norton Motorcycle Company is a brand of motorcycles, originally based in Birmingham, England. For some years around 1990, the rights to use the name on motorcycles was owned by North American financiers. Later, a line of motorcycles was produced under Chief Executive Stuart Garner. Due to financial failure with large debts, in April 2020 administrators BDO agreed to sell certain aspects of Garner's business to Project 303 Bidco Limited, a new business established for the purpose with links to Indian motorcycle producer TVS Motor Company.
The Morgan Motor Company is a British motor car manufacturer founded in 1910 by Henry Frederick Stanley Morgan and owned by the Italian investment group InvestIndustrial since March 2019.
Gilera is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer founded in Arcore in 1909 by Giuseppe Gilera. In 1969, the company was purchased by Piaggio.
The Honda Shadow refers to a family of cruiser-type motorcycles made by Honda since 1983. The Shadow line features motorcycles with a liquid-cooled 45 or 52-degree V-twin engine ranging from 125 to 1,100 cc engine displacement. The 250 cc Honda Rebel is associated with the Shadow line in certain markets.
The NH series of Honda scooters was sold worldwide beginning in 1983, in 50, 80, 90, 100 and 125cc versions. All models have an air-cooled two-stroke engine with CDI ignition. All models except the Lead 50 have leading link front suspension, electric and kick start, and a fuel gauge. The Lead 50 has a traditional telescopic fork front suspension and only electric start. All models have drum brakes and CVT transmission.
JAWA is a motorcycle and moped manufacturer founded in Prague, Czechoslovakia in 1929 by František Janeček, who bought the motorcycle division of Wanderer. The name JAWA was established by concatenating the first letters of Janeček and Wanderer. In the past, especially in the 1950s, JAWA was one of the top motorcycle manufacturers and exported its 350 into over 120 countries. The best known model was the 350 Pérák and in the 1970s the 350 Californian. It appeared in the typical black and red coloring from Californian beaches to New Zealand. After 1990, there was a significant loss of production. A successor company was formed in 1997 in Týnec nad Sázavou, continuing the name as JAWA Moto.
Cyril Pullin was a British inventor, engineer and motorcycle race driver. His inventions contributed to the rotary engine and the helicopter. His son was the pilot for the first successful British helicopter flight in 1938. Cyril Pullin died in 1973 aged 80.
New Imperial was a British motorcycle manufacturer founded by Norman Downes in Birmingham, between 1887 and 1901, and became New Imperial Motors Ltd in 1912, when serious production commenced. New Imperial made innovative motorcycles that employed unit construction and sprung heel frames long before they became commonplace, and were moderately successful in competition. The 1920s were a financially successful decade, enabling the innovations of the 1930s that fought decline.
Aeon Motor is an exporter and manufacturer of ATVs, scooters and mini-bikes in Taiwan and is based in Tainan City, Taiwan.
Victoria was a bicycle manufacturer in Nürnberg, Germany that made motorcycles from about 1901 until 1966. It should not be confused with a lesser-known, unrelated Victoria Motorcycle Company in Glasgow, Scotland that made motorcycles between 1902 and 1928.
PZL Świdnik S.A is the biggest helicopter manufacturer in Poland. Its main products are PZL W-3 Sokół and PZL SW-4 Puszczyk helicopters. In early 2010 the factory was acquired by AgustaWestland.
Megelli Motorcycles was a British motorcycle manufacturer, which made its debut at the Milan EICMA exhibition in November 2007. Megelli motorcycles was founded by the Managing Director of Sports and Leisure Direct UK Ltd, Barry Hall, who previously specialised in off-road Aeon all-terrain vehicles, mini bikes and pit bikes. The Megelli range is currently sold in 37 countries in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, North America and South America.
The Advance Motor Manufacturing Company was a British motorcycle and engine manufacturer established in 1905. As well as supplying aircraft engines to the pioneering monoplane developers, Advance engines were also used by Captain Robert Scott to power Antarctic snow sleds. After the end of the Second World War the company was sold to Sheepbridge Engineering and became a motor supplies organisation.
Granville Eastwood Bradshaw OBE, AFRAeS (1887–1969) was an English engineer and inventor who designed motorcycle, auto, and aero-engines.
Capriolo, later called Aeromere, was the name of the motorcycle production arm of the Italian aircraft company Aeromere or Aero-Caproni. After World War II, the victorious Allies prohibited wartime aircraft and other military hardware suppliers from remaining in their previous industries, and Aero-Caproni would change its name to Capriolo and become one of several, including Aermacchi, MV Agusta, Vespa and Ducati, that switched to producing motorcycles or scooters. These companies did well until the mid-1960s, when the advent of affordable cars like the Fiat 500 removed the economic barrier that kept many Italians relying on motorcycles for basic transportation. Capriolo was typical of those that could not survive the transformation to a more export-orientated industry, with the US as the most important market. Motorcycle production ran from 1947 or 1948 until 1964.
Meguro motorcycles were built by Meguro Manufacturing Co motorcycle works (目黒製作所), founded by Hobuji Murato and a high-ranking naval officer, Takaji Suzuki, in 1937. One of the first Japanese motorcycle companies, it became a partner of Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd, and was eventually absorbed. Named after a district of Tokyo, Meguro had its roots in Murato Iron Works, which was established in 1924. Meguro Seisakusho, which had once developed a copy of a Harley-Davidson V-twin, was established to design and build gearboxes for the nascent Japanese motorcycle industry. Abe Industries, which had once produced its own motorcycle, merged with Meguro in 1931.
References
- ↑ Erwin Tragatsch; Ash, Kevin. The New Illustrated Encyclopedia of Motorcycles, Quantum Publishing, London, 2000 ISBN 1-86160-342-8