Harley-Davidson, Inc., H-D, or Harley, is an American motorcycle manufacturer founded in 1903 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Along with Indian, it was one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression. The company has survived numerous ownership arrangements, subsidiary arrangements, periods of poor economic health and product quality, and intense global competition to become one of the world's largest motorcycle manufacturers and an iconic brand widely known for its loyal following. There are owner clubs and events worldwide, as well as a company-sponsored, brand-focused museum.
A motorcycle, often called a motorbike, bike, cycle, or trike, is a two- or three-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising, sport, and off-road riding. Motorcycling is riding a motorcycle and being involved in other related social activity such as joining a motorcycle club and attending motorcycle rallies.
Gilera is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer founded in Arcore in 1909 by Giuseppe Gilera. In 1969, the company was purchased by Piaggio.
An outlaw motorcycle club is a motorcycle subculture. It is generally centered on the use of cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-Davidsons and choppers, and a set of ideals that purport to celebrate freedom, nonconformity to mainstream culture, and loyalty to the biker group.
Matchless is one of the oldest marques of British motorcycles, manufactured in Plumstead, London, between 1899 and 1966. A wide range of models were produced under the Matchless name, ranging from small two-strokes to 750 cc four-stroke twins. Matchless had a long history of racing success; a Matchless ridden by Charlie Collier won the first single-cylinder race in the first Isle of Man TT in 1907.
There are many systems for classifying types of motorcycles, describing how the motorcycles are put to use, or the designer's intent, or some combination of the two. Six main categories are widely recognized: cruiser, sport, touring, standard, dual-purpose, and dirt bike. Sometimes sport touring motorcycles are recognized as a seventh category. Strong lines are sometimes drawn between motorcycles and their smaller cousins, mopeds, scooters, and underbones, but other classification schemes include these as types of motorcycles.
Motorcycling is the act of riding a motorcycle. For some people, motorcycling may be the only affordable form of individual motorized transportation, and small-displacement motorcycles are the most common motor vehicle in the most populous countries, including India, China and Indonesia.
Bigtoe is a motorcycle that once held the Guinness World Record in the category of Tallest Rideable Motorcycle, bearing a maximum height of 7.5 feet and a top speed of 62 mph. It weighs 3,600 pounds. Tom Wiberg, from Sweden, built it in 1998 with a Jaguar V12 engine.
The Hurt Report, officially Motorcycle Accident Cause Factors and Identification of Countermeasures, was a motorcycle safety study conducted in the United States, initiated in 1976 and published in 1981. The report is named after its primary author, Professor Harry Hurt.
Showa Corporation is a manufacturer of high-performance automotive, motorcycle and outboard suspension systems based in Gyoda, Saitama in Japan.
The Type 97 motorcycle, or Rikuo, was a copy of a Harley-Davidson motorcycle produced with a sidecar from 1935 in Japan under license from Harley-Davidson by the Sankyo Company. Some 18,000 of the machines were used by the Imperial Japanese forces during World War II. A variation was also manufactured without a side car, called the Type 93.
Royal Enfield is an Indian multinational motorcycle manufacturing company headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. The company is the oldest global motorcycle brand in continuous production, and operates manufacturing plants in Chennai in India. The first Royal Enfield motorcycle was built in 1901 by the Enfield Cycle Company of England, which was responsible for the design and original production of the Royal Enfield Bullet, the longest-lived motorcycle design in history. Licensed from Royal Enfield by the indigenous Indian Madras Motors, the company is now a subsidiary of Eicher Motors Limited, an Indian automaker. The company makes classic-looking motorcycles including the Royal Enfield Bullet, Classic 350, Meteor 350, Classic 500, Interceptor 650, Continental and many more. Royal Enfield also make adventurous and offroading motorcycles like Royal Enfield Himalayan. Their motorcycles are equipped with single-cylinder and twin-cylinder engines. First produced in 1901, Royal Enfield is the oldest motorcycle brand in the world still in production, with the Bullet model enjoying the longest motorcycle production run of all time.
Kawasaki motorcycles are manufactured by the Motorcycle & Engine division of Kawasaki Heavy Industries.
The following outline is provided as an overview of motorcycles and motorcycling:
The Pope Model L was a motorcycle produced by Pope Manufacturing Company in Westfield, Massachusetts, between 1914 and 1920.
The Motorcycle Federation of Japan was established in 1961 as an organization concerning the sport of motorcycle racing in Japan. This organization is also affiliated with the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme.
The single cylinder engine had been a mainstay of the Harley-Davidson line since the early days of the company's founding in 1884, but it was not until 1909 that the V-twin design was added. It was Introduced in 1926, and it disappeared from the program in 1934 and was reintroduced in 1937 as Harley-Davidson V - Twin B.