PART TWO
AS PSYCHEDELIA GAVE WAY TO GLAM ROCK, motorcycle dealers struggled to keep up. Money was becoming increasingly more readily available; with just a small cash deposit, it was possible to buy almost any bike on hire purchase (HP). The 250 learner limit was now part and parcel of riding motorcycles and generally accepted as a minor inconvenience to getting something bigger. The Government’s apparent concern some nine years previously – vis-a-vis teenage mortality rates on two wheels – was arguably distant/remote at best and parsimonious at worst. It was still possible to buy a bike with no idea as to how to ride it, which must have led to numerous accidents and, presumably, fatalities. If a rider did want training, it was available via schemes like the RAC/ACU courses, but these were optional – and of variable quality on occasion. Many learnt on wasteland or private roads, on the hard stands by council garages, or simply wobbled off down the high street on a wing and prayer... teenage ‘safety’ in the eyes of HMG was very much a relative term!
The ensuing years had seen the Japanese factories revise their models substantially, which was due in no small part to feedback. Dealers, importers and concessionaires were telling their principals what the customers were saying. This, with marketing input, saw existing models evolve and new ones develop. The rapid increase in sales of larger-capacity Japanese machines also focused the attention of the British firms. AMC had effectively walked away from small bikes at this point. BSA’s
