Pre-reg hangover continues

New-plate booster sales in March still couldn’t escape from the flood of pre-registered Euro 5 legacy stock still languishing in dealerships. Total headcount for the month declined by 22.1% year-on-year to 13,086 units. Motorcycles and over-50cc scooters were 22% down to 12,628. Mopeds and trikes were respectively 23.2% and 28.6% in arrears, with numbers falling to 388 and 70. As usual, petrolhead products dominated, albeit 22.5% lower at 12,737 units, while gestural battery-electric contributions dropped by 5.7% to 349.

In the internal combustion firmament, entry-level mobility and delivery products up to 125cc shrank by 27.1% to 2979 units. Updated or derogated Honda PCX125 scooters, 461 of them, ruled the roost. Top-selling mopeds were 30 dramatically over-monikered Lexmoto Diablo 50 LJ 50 QT-9M steeds.

The budget 126-500cc bracket posted a 21.2% retreat to 2509 units, with some 299 examples of Honda’s latest cheap, cheerful and eminently gutless single-cylinder GB350S stealing best-seller status from Triumph and Royal Enfield contenders. The 501-750cc range was 26.7% down to 1645 units, led by 143 Honda NC750X products. Stepping up to sterner 751-1000cc stuff, which was only 8.4% down to boast 3023 units, a 156-strong phalanx of BMW’s S1000XR held the front rank, pursued by 119 substantially cheaper (and actually 755cc) Honda CB750 Hornets. Finally the premium 1000cc-plus slot declined by 28.6% to 2581 units, headed up by 359 BMW R1300GS Adventure cash-cows.

The MCIA’s best-selling brands chart for March 2025 was inevitably a tale of unremitting woe and guesswork. It probably presented a straitforward picture of weaker demand and lack of new-season stock availability pertinent to the fresh plate. The ongoing clear-out of pre-reg showroom clutter would have reduced appeal to some extent too, as would a surfeit of derogated older products.

Set against March figures 12 months earlier, all ten featured manufacturers were on losing streaks, some by very large margins. As ever, Honda was in front, but 10.4% down to 2760 units plated. Runner-up BMW was only 6.7% adrift on 1778. Triumph took a more severe spanking, with a 24.2% retreat to 1491. Then Yamaha plunged by 36.5% to 1081. Kawasaki was worse, completing the top five with a 38.9% dive to 899.

Suzuki followed, falling by 16.8% at 548. Royal Enfield copped a 32.7% loss on 533. Ducati was 28.1% in arrears on 457. Lexmoto suffered a 22.3% decline to 362. And finally KTM plummeted by 58.4% at 302. To be fair, those bikes would have all been old stock made in 2024, heavily discounted and probably derogated, given semi-insolvent parent Pierer Mobility has only just resumed some production at its Mattighofen plant.

In conclusion, first-quarter total registrations now stand at 20,744 units, having fallen by 25.8% — 7208 units adrift of the position at this stage last year.

Market shows signs of recovery in March

The new motorcycle market has displayed expected signs of recovery. However, the NMDA is still disappointed with the overall negative total registration numbers compared to 2024”, says Symon Cook, head of the National Motorcycle Dealers Association (NMDA), commenting on the latest MCIA figures.

“New registrations for March, while negative compared to 2024, closed the month down by 22.1%, a slight improvement compared to January and February which were both more than 30% negative compared to 2024. In February, the figures had dropped to -32.3%.

“Road registered competition bikes was the stand out in the market as the only category to enjoy a gain compared to 2024 – up by 2.2%. All other style categories were negative, the best being modern classics, an increasingly important segment, which was down by 5.0%. Electric power trains also made a strong recovery in March, closing the month at 5.7% down, significantly improving the year-to-date performance to -16.3% compared to -26% at the end of February.”

Cook concluded: “The figures are a positive turnaround for the new motorcycle market, although considering March was the plate change month, the market was expected to receive an additional boost.

“When compared with 2024’s figures, the total registrations remain disappointing and suggest a continuing decline. However, this may change with the upcoming warmer weather.

“Should total registrations continue their decline, it is essential for the government to address the uncertainty in the sector and provide greater clarity on motorcycles in transport policy. The NMDA is hopeful that the motorcycle market will return to previous year’s volumes.”