#Gasgas

GasGas is preparing to introduce a new __________ for 2024, which we expect to be very similar to the KTM __________ and the Husqvarna __________. Oops, I forgot to fill in the blanks there, but I think you get the gist. It's no secret that GasGas, following its acquisition by Pierer Mobility, has been introducing motorcycles that are essentially reskinned versions of KTM models. The same goes for Husqvarna too, which gets a similar treatment, only with their frames powder-coated blue instead of KTM orange and GasGas red.

Alan Cathcart’s conversation with Stefan Pierer continues, as the PIERER Mobility president and chief executive officer discusses electrification and other future technologies. —ED.

Interview with KTM’s Stefan Pierer – Part 1
Interview with KTM’s Stefan Pierer – Part 2

The opinions expressed by Mr. Allen do not reflect the views of the editorial staff here at Motorcycle.com. In fact, we would be surprised if they reflect the views of anyone remotely familiar with the sport.

Grand prix motorcycle racing – MotoGP to aficionados – is a Eurocentric parlor game for the rich and not-so-famous. It involves undersized riders holding on for dear life to 1000cc bikes with astonishing power-to-weight ratios on road courses at venues on four continents, several of which are in countries one is not anxious to visit. It is almost impossible to find on American television. Riders receive trophies for finishing third. It is the little brother of F1. It is NASCAR’s mentally challenged foreign cousin.

However, for the few of you still reading, at its best, MotoGP is the best racing on the planet, a series of hair-raising encounters between riders and machines traveling at well over 100 mph in unbanked turns, separated by inches, with the difference between winning and not winning often measured in a few thousandths of a second. (By comparison, the autonomic blink of an eye takes around 100 milliseconds.)

Alan Cathcart’s conversation with Stefan Pierer continues, as the PIERER Mobility president and chief executive officer discusses his motorcycle brands (namely, KTM, Husqvarna and GasGas), and some of their competition. This includes MV Agusta, of which PIERER gained a stake in 2022. —ED.

Interview with KTM’s Stefan Pierer – Part 1
Interview with KTM’s Stefan Pierer – Part 3

Alan Cathcart: Let’s talk about MV Agusta, where last November you purchased 25.1% of the equity from its present owner, Timur Sardarov. What is your future strategy for your involvement in the brand?

Stefan Pierer: As part of that 25.1%, it’s taking the first step of working together very closely on current production models. So we’ll take care of the whole supply chain, we’ll buy all the parts needed for MV Agusta’s production for the coming year, and then, after finalizing that, we’ll take over worldwide distribution of the finished product. This is the first step to help them make their entire operation profitable as a company.

As the Coronavirus pandemic gradually disappears in the rear view mirror of history, in its aftermath the global motorcycle industry continues to experience rapid and sustained growth. Leading this charge among European companies is the KTM Group, whose parent company PIERER Mobility AG finished 2022 on a continued high, after a 12th successive record year which saw sales of its three current brands KTM, Husqvarna, and GASGAS continue spiralling upwards to 375,452 motorcycles in 2022, an increase of 13% compared with the previous year’s 332,881 units. Of those, 268,575 of these motorcycles carried the KTM badge, 75,266 were Husqvarnas and 31,651 were GASGAS motorcycles, a sales volume of 375,492 motorcycles. Add to that the 118,465 pedal cycles and E-bicycles sold in the same period under its Husqvarna, GASGAS, Felt and R Raymon labels (up 15% compared to 2022’s 102,753 bikes), and the company’s overall revenues increased to EUR 2.437 billion in 2022, up 19% year-on-year.

As we reported a few weeks ago, GasGas is releasing a new replica based on its 2022 Dakar-winning race bike. The 2023 GasGas RX 450F Replica is a limited-edition model that comes as close as you can get to Sam Sunderland’s and Daniel Sanders’ factory rally-raid bikes.

And just as we expected, the RX 450F Replica is essentially the same bike as the 450 Rally Replica offered by GasGas’ Pierer Mobility stablemate, KTM. Juxtaposing the two bikes, the most visible differences between the two are the colors and the front fender.

GasGas is preparing to launch a new model called the RX 450F Replica that we believe will be based on the machine Sam Sunderland rode to victory in the 2022 Dakar Rally.

The RX 450F Replica model name appears on a recently updated list of vehicles approved by the Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt, Germany’s federal motor transport authority. The name is similar, though not a perfect match, for the RC 450F ridden by Sunderland and his teammate Daniel Sanders (who was no slouch himself in winning three stages) in the Dakar Rally.

GasGas officially revealed two new single-cylinder streetbikes, the ES 700 dual sport and the SM 700 supermoto. Both models will be released internationally as 2022 models, but North American consumers will have to wait for the 2023 model year.

GasGas is preparing to reveal its first street-legal models tomorrow, but photos of one of the models have already leaked online.

As we were first to confirm back in February, GasGas will be adding two street legal models to its lineup, the SM 700 supermoto and the ES 700 dual-sport. Over the last week, GasGas has been teasing an announcement on social media, hinting at two new models. Most notably, the teaser shows one bike equipped with mirrors, which suggests a street legal model, a first for the Spanish brand.

GasGas is preparing to introduce its first street legal motorcycles with a new ES 700 enduro and a SM 700 supermoto. Motorcycle.com can confirm those two models will be coming to the U.S.

[UPDATE: We’ve gotten our hands on a price list from two separate GasGas dealers in Spain confirming the SM 700 and ES 700. Prices in euros added below.]

The confirmation comes from vehicle identification number (VIN) decoder information submitted to the U.S. by KTM. The VIN decoder was recently amended on Feb. 16, with a cover letter noting the only changes were to add the “GG ES 700” and “GG SM 700” for 2022 and 2023, with both models marked specifically as being street legal. The decoder includes the two new bikes with models dating back several years from KTM, and its sister brands GasGas (labeled in the document as “GG”), Husqvarna (“HQV”) and the shuttered Husaberg (HSB).

Like many motorcycle brands, KTM had a challenging 2020, with sales shrinking in the face of COVID-19 and the economic toll it exacted. The Austrian brand sold 212,713 motorcycles through the year, a 9.3% decrease from the pre-pandemic world of 2019.

Despite the decrease in orange bikes, not to mention a two-month interruption in motorcycle production, parent company Pierer Mobility actually saw an increase in market share, thanks in large part to its other two motorcycle brands: Husqvarna and GasGas. Husqvarna sales increased from 45,650 units in 2019 to 49,046 units in 2020, while GasGas sold 8,648 motorcycles in its first full year as part of Pierer Mobility. That wasn’t quite enough to make up the 21,736 decrease in KTM sales, but it did help cushion the blow.

GasGas announced its 2021 model lineup, its first fully under the auspices of Pierer Mobility, with a range of 18 models for the North American market.

That, of course, means a range of enduro, cross-country, motocross, and mini motocross bikes that will share much in common with its corporate cousins from KTM and Husqvarna. So, expect similar engines, frames and WP suspension through out the lineup. GasGas also announced it will compete in the 2021 AMA Motocross and Supercross championships, partnering with Troy Lee Designs in the 250 and 450 divisions.

GasGas is best known for its trial bikes, and the Spanish brand will continue offer its trial lineup in three displacements.

The non-trial models will be fairly similar, with red powder-coated chromium molydenum steel frames and aluminum subframes. Most models will be equipped with WP Xplor inverted forks and rear shocks with linkage, just tuned for their specific applications.

Pierer Mobility is developing a new range of electric Husqvarna streetbikes for 2022. The new line will be styled after the Svartpilen and Vitpilen line, with the company giving it the tentative name of “Husqvarna E-Pilen“.

The Husqvarna E-Pilen was outlined in a slide from the company’s report for investors for the first half 0f 2020. The slide describes the E-Pilen as using a modular battery system, with either a 4 kW  or a 10 kW electric motor. A sketch of the E-Pilen (pictured above) gives us a rough idea of what the bike may look like. It should be noted that there’s a lot of time for further development and changes before the planned 2022 launch, so expect the finished product to look a little different.

Trials is an incredible sport. What those competitors manage to do on two-wheels seems to disregard the laws of physics. I have to admit though, while I find the feats of trials riders’ gravity-defying moto acrobatics mind-boggling, I’ve maintained only a passing interest in trials that has rarely strayed further than spending more time than I should watching videos of Toni Bou, HRC’s 26-time world trials champion, on Instagram. That said, when the invite came through the MO inbox from GasGas to attend its inaugural California Trial Invitational in Murrieta, CA, I was more than willing to accept the assignment. 

This event, presented by GasGas, came about in large part due to the cancellation of the 2020 AMA/NATC National MotoTrials Championship series, the premier competition for Trials in the U.S. Thanks, Coronavirus. The canceled series was also the first time GasGas would have been competing Stateside since Pierer Mobility AG – owner of KTM and Husqvarna – acquired a 60% stake in the Spanish company in September 2019. With backing from a company the likes of Pierer Mobility AG, not only is GasGas poised for a level of growth not seen before in the brand’s history, but also, particularly in the U.S., it’s likely that the sport of Trials might benefit as well. 

UPDATE: We’ve discovered a similar presentation from August for the prior fiscal quarter that had an even larger list of future Husqvarna models including 901 and 1301 (!) versions of the Norden adventure bike and for the naked category.

Join our Husqvarna Norden Forum

A presentation for investors produced by KTM’s parent company reveals a roadmap of future Husqvarna models including electric scooters, retro-inspired models and a new 501 Twin-cylinder platform. The presentation was released in late November by Pierer Mobility, the parent company of KTM, Husqvarna and the recently-acquired GasGas.