Opinion: Straight Talk From the Motorcycle World

The Stark Varg is selling surprisingly well in Germany — reportedly around 1,000 units in 2025. For some observers, that’s already proof the electric motorcycle has finally broken through.

That conclusion is premature.

Electric cars have already crossed into the mainstream. On two wheels, the transition is moving far more slowly.

When Kawasaki bought into struggling boutique manufacturer Bimota at the end of 2019, the motorcycle world was divided. To some, it looked like yet another attempt to keep an Italian cult brand alive on artificial life support. To others, it was an intriguing industrial experiment. Six years later, the sober conclusion is clear: the plan is working – and better than many expected.

Too heavy, too expensive, too much motorcycle? Hardly a conversation at a bike hangout goes by these days without those three accusations being aimed at the modern adventure bike. Parking lots are packed with tall, do-it-all machines, flagship prices are brushing the EUR 30,000 mark – and manufacturers keep adding more. So has the adventure category reached its peak?