[AzCal Retred]

(12 July 2022)  2022 BSA Gold Star - price, distribution, warranty, servicing & delivery
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czSHA9zi59U

Going for a Gold Star: BSA’s new owners aim for refinement and authenticity with all-new model
Published: 12 July 2022
https://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/new-bikes/2022-bsa-gold-star/
Where is the Gold Star made?
Back when it was announced, the plan was to build the Gold Star here in the Midlands but is this still the case? Well, for now at least, the answer is no. BSA have produced the first models in India where all the tooling has been made but the hope is still to move to a plant the Midlands in the future.

https://www.visordown.com/news/industry/bsa-announces-new-uk-and-ireland-distributor-ahead-gold-star-launch

[Warwick]

I got into RE bullets as it was a long stroke single and now the 500 is discontinued. I watch this bike with great interest 
cheers and beers
Warwick

[AzCal Retred]

I saw a BMW "Funduro" on Craigslist today for $1500, same engine as the new $8500 USD Goldstar...so DIY? Some good tires, a nice exhaust and a bit of fettling and you'd be there. Loads of Bullet & other make tinware available. Of get a Suzuki 5-speed S40 650 single and start with that, or a KLR 650 Kawasaki, or....

The venerable Pre-Unit Bullet 350/500 has a 50 year production history and its parts are still plentiful. Even the newer UCE machine bits are easy to source. Elsewhere here R211 shows how to create a crank mounted ignition, and once you have spark without an ECU then a carb is no trouble at all to segue into. Nothing wrong with a long stroke, hydraulic valved, carbureted pushrod single. Don't forget to replace the OEM primary chain with an upgraded part and de-fang the tensioner.

The new OHC 350 Meteor is virtually the same stroke as the old machines, and the upcoming (450cc?) Big Bore kit from H's will allow it to meet or exceed the pushrod motors performance levels, and do all that with a smooth, counterbalanced engine.

Lots of options here.

[pedro__]

It looks amazing the new goldstar. Nice color schemes too.

[AzCal Retred]

The $64,000 question remains; why is the new India-built, faux Goldstar rebadge of the Funduro one lunger apparently slated to be maybe $2000 more than an R.E. twin? Just early days pricing to skim max-profit off the first-in, must-have adopters? This has to be a $5,000ish machine to compete and gain sales against the "traditionally styled" Interceptor. Being manufactured in India, I'm not seeing why the retail price would need to be in the suggested $8,500 range with the R.E. Interceptor retailing around $5,500 - $6,500.

BSA/Triumph went the 2/3/4 cylinder route to follow the actual market. There's still no Triumph dual purpose single. The new BSA looks like a very nice stand alone effort, I just can't see how they'll get new buyers to justify an additional $2000.

Here's some new info. The reviewer compares & contrasts it to the R.E. Interceptor.
15 July 2022:  2022 BSA Gold Star - first ride review & old vs new
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AQWhJG14Qg

[axman88]

The $64,000 question remains; why is the new India-built, faux Goldstar rebadge of the Funduro one lunger apparently slated to be maybe $2000 more than an R.E. twin? Just early days pricing to skim max-profit off the first-in, must-have adopters? This has to be a $5,000ish machine to compete and gain sales against the "traditionally styled" Interceptor. Being manufactured in India, I'm not seeing why the retail price would need to be in the suggested $8,500 range with the R.E. Interceptor retailing around $5,500 - $6,500.

BSA/Triumph went the 2/3/4 cylinder route to follow the actual market. There's still no Triumph dual purpose single. The new BSA looks like a very nice stand alone effort, I just can't see how they'll get new buyers to justify an additional $2000.

Here's some new info. The reviewer compares & contrasts it to the R.E. Interceptor.
15 July 2022:  2022 BSA Gold Star - first ride review & old vs new
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AQWhJG14Qg

In my previous post I used a $ where I should have used a GBP £ symbol.

This article places relative UK pricing between the new Gold Star and the RE Int. much closer: 

https://www.autocarindia.com/bike-news/bsa-gold-star-650-uk-prices-leaked-placed-above-re-interceptor-650-425100

The article doesn't include USA pricing, which hasn't been announced for the BSA.  The $ numbers are my conversions at current conversion rates.  USA price is per your estimate avg.

                                    India                                 UK                     USA
650 Interceptor      ~3.0 lahk rupee ($3760)    ~£6,200  ($7360)      ~$6500
BSA Gold Star 650     Not announced               ~£6,800  ($8070)    not announced

UK will pay just a £690 premium.  Presumably, US buyers would pay proportionately ~$830, if we get access to the machine at all.

If Classic Legends is intending to only sell this to the UK, they must not be planning to make very many, total UK motorcycle sales for 2021 was ~108,000 units.
https://www.visordown.com/news/industry/uk-motorcycle-sales-2021-exceed-totals-2020-and-2019-month-go#:~:text=It%20means%20sales%20for%20the,a%20month%20still%20to%20go.

Projecting the single model selling the most units in Nov. '21 over 12 months, ( Congratulations Royal Enfield Meteor with 284 units) and assuming this new BSA narrowly takes top slot, that would still only be something like 3500 units over a year.   I'd assume Classic Legends intends to expand their market.

[pedro__]

Brakes on the video are really brembo ! Quite surprised by that.

And they are using rotax engine right ? So they arent making engines just buying them.

They must have good margins on these.... its strange to price them above interceptor.


Im not sure if i would get it though, id rather have 2 cilinder.

[pedro__]

Bennets released a new video about bsa, i like this guy, very shill free, seems really a good person.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvoBMh6G-no&t=4s

So the BSA director says their future is electric....so this seems to be just a side gig to fund that electric bike maybe ?

In honesty even japonese are doing same, refreshing same motorcycles with same engine every year to fund EV production.

[GlennF]

So the BSA director says their future is electric....so this seems to be just a side gig to fund that electric bike maybe ?

In honesty even japonese are doing same, refreshing same motorcycles with same engine every year to fund EV production.

To be honest the big issue in 10 years time will not be finding petrol motorcycles, there will be truckloads of second hand ones going for a dime. it will be finding somewhere that still sells gas.

[Richard230]

To be honest the big issue in 10 years time will not be finding petrol motorcycles, there will be truckloads of second hand ones going for a dime. it will be finding somewhere that still sells gas.

I can buy stabilized non-ethanol gasoline designed for powering gas-powered lawn equipment in a really nice metal can for only $30 a gallon at my local hardware store. Just like in the good old days before roadside gas stations (and their attached "convenience" stores) were a thing.   

[tooseevee]

I can buy stabilized non-ethanol gasoline designed for powering gas-powered lawn equipment in a really nice metal can for only $30 a gallon at my local hardware store. Just like in the good old days before roadside gas stations (and their attached "convenience" stores) were a thing.   

            I started buying canned pure gasoline from my local Ace Hardware a few years when it was around $16 a gallon. I think it was $26 when I was in there a few days ago.

[axman88]

I can buy stabilized non-ethanol gasoline designed for powering gas-powered lawn equipment in a really nice metal can for only $30 a gallon at my local hardware store.

And this future scenario is exactly why what GlennF is saying will come to pass.  Driving the old gas buggy will become a once a year event where, at considerable expense, you can ride in parade with the model Ts, muscle cars and land yachts.  I've never been a "new car" guy, but it really seems like the handwriting is on the wall.  If there's a collector car you've always wanted, wait a while longer until the lower 3/4 of the market is decimated.

I wonder if our IB Bullet engines can run on naptha?  It has an octane rating in the low 60s.  It's not cheap, but, cheaper than california canned gas.  https://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-Butane-and-Propane-1-Gallon-Camping-Stove-Replacement-Fuel/20703040

The off brand stuff might be almost competitive with pump gas:  https://www.walmart.com/ip/Crown-White-Gas-Camp-Fuel-for-Use-in-Gasoline-Stoves-and-Lanterns-1-Gallon/51741744

Mixed 65/35 with 150 octane Acetone, you could probably formulate something that any gasoline engine would burn, for $11.75 / gallon.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Klean-Strip-Acetone-1-Gallon/17208794

How the plastic and rubber parts in the fuel system will survive, is another question.

[AzCal Retred]

All the I.C. hardware will just go to across the border to Mexico where they do what's reasonable. The idiocy of not just adopting synthetic fuels instead of entirely rebuilding our transport infrastructure based on non-existant battery tech is incredible. If the intent is to limit new carbon into the biosphere, synthetic fuels are a good tool.

[AzCal Retred]

Visor Down - New Goldie doing a burnout!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFeGNH1gkTg

[axman88]

The 11.5 : 1 compression ratio suggests that premium fuel will be required, despite the dual spark ignition.  Has this been discussed?   Another thing I haven't seen is specs on the fuel system.  One assumes it must be EFI, but have any details been revealed?  They are claiming 70.6 mpg on the website, https://www.bsacompany.co.uk/bsa-gold-star/   which is very close to what is claimed for the RE Int.   The fact that BSA doesn't use KPL, but goes straight to MPG shows how committed they are to UK focused marketing.

To me, the idea of Indian companies employing British workers, to produce products that will extract money from their own country, to the benefit of India, is quite interesting.  I wonder how Indian nationalists view recent economic developments?

Too bad about that huge radiator.  All that liquid holds a lot of heat, one can really feel it at the stoplights in the summertime.   On the other hand, hydronic heating is the most comfortable kind of heating you can have, .... in your house.