On May 25 Frank White of ATK USA and Taekwon Kim of S&T Motors signed a four year deal for ATK to rebrand and sell S&T vTwin motorcycles in the United States.

This is not the first agreement between S&T Motors and another powersports company to rebrand the Hyosung product line. United Motors had a four year deal to rebadged the Hyosung sport bikes, scooters and cruisers and eventually build their own bikes based on the Hyosung engine. In early 2009 United Motors closed it’s doors leaving a hole in S&T’s production output. Fischer Motors also produces the high spec Fischer MRX650 using a Hyosung 650cc engine licensed through S&T Motors.

The previous relationship between S&T and United Motors did cause some territorial disputes between UM and Hyosung USA, S&T Motor’s US distributor. No mention is made on any limits to territories ATK can sell the re-branded machines.

It is interesting that Harley Davidson does not acknowledge ATK’s plans to provide Harley dealerships with small to medium displacement vTwin cruisers. It is common to see scooters on the sales floor of Harley dealerships and with the Buell Blast no longer available for HD’s training programs the 250cc ATK cruisers should make a nice learner bike. This air cooled vTwin has a low seat height and is capable of 90 mph speeds.

See the full press release below.

CENTERVILLE, UT – May 27, 2010 – (Motor Sports Newswire) – Taekwon Kim, CEO of S&T Motors, and Frank White, President of ATK, signed a multi-year $100 million dollar contract. According to terms of this contract, signed on May 25th at ATK headquarters in Centerville, Utah, more than 33,000 units will be brought to the American marketplace during the next four years.

“This contract signifies that the world’s best motorcycle market has acknowledged the high technical skills, outstanding quality and the competitive price of S&T products,” says Kim. White agrees about the level of quality and the fact that the price is right. “Dealers who have tested some of our first ATK/S&T motorcycles are very satisfied with the overall quality, and they are ready to be a part of this bit of history.”

White adds; “Our strategy is for ATK to be the second American brand in select Harley-Davidson dealerships. The prime focus of our initiative is to be a feeder brand to the V-Twin dealers — similar to what Scion has been to Toyota.” White is quick to explain that The Harley- Davidson Motor Company does not endorse or support this joint venture in any way. White states; “Nevertheless, our new products fit the current Harley-Davidson dealer need and move to offer both the dealer, and more importantly, the retail customer, a complete staircase of V-twin based products, which only acts to complement the current Harley-Davidson product line-up.”

“The approach is simple; get new and younger riders to go into the Harley-Davidson dealerships,” explains White. “We want to capture those customers who are initially looking for a smaller displacement motorcycle, at an affordable price, and then over time these new riders will develop the aspiration for a traditional Harley-Davidson.”

According to S&T CEO Taekwon Kim, this partnership is a win-win for ATK, S&T and for the dealers, saying, “We are happy to be a part of the” Confidence in America‟ moving forward and expanding what we see the conventional brands have brought to the marketplace.”

This $100 million contract will see S&T produce enough parts to manufacture 33,000 motorcycles, ranging in displacement from 250cc to 680cc.
These motorcycles will be sold and marketed under the ATK brand name in the US market for the 2011 to 2014 model years.
Starting in 2012 motorcycles will be assembled in Utah and should employ some 65 additional jobs into the state at peak production.
This contract establishes trust between S&T motors and ATK and follows the signing of a strategic alliance agreement back in November 2009, at the EICMA Motorcycle Show in Milan, Italy.

About S&T Motors Co., Ltd.

S&T Motors is the largest motorcycle manufacturer in Korea and is a publically traded company on the Korea Exchange (KRX) under identifier 000040. S&T has been manufacturing “Hyosung” branded motorcycles ranging from 250cc to 700cc, exporting to Asia, Australia, North & South America and Europe, totaling more than 60 countries worldwide and has a great reputation for making affordable, quality motorcycles.

About ATK:

ATK is best known for its racing legacy. The first ATK conceived in 1985 won the legendary Barstow, CA to Las Vegas, NV Off-Road Motorcycle Race and since then has won multiple AMA National off-road and Dirt Track Championships. ATK is the second oldest continuously running US motorcycle manufacturer and currently is the only US based off-road motorcycle manufacturer. Over the past 25 years ATK has manufactured more than 15,000 Motorcycles / ATV‟s with a small staff of craftsmen in the Salt Lake City, Utah area. ATK has been a pioneer in innovation and technology advances, including being the first motorcycle company to introduce fuel injection technology beginning in 1991. ATKUSA.com

Looks like the Hyosung GV700i is official, only it will be called the ST7. The Hyosung ST7 should be on boats to dealers now and will be available in two models.  Hyosung Motors parent company S&T Motors Korea explains it this way:

At the last EICMA 2009, the most popular model ST7 was the traditional cruiser motorcycle which is more perfect for long distance cruising than the sports cruiser Aquila 650.

The name ST7 is derived from the initials of ‘SUPER & TOP’, ‘SAFETY TRAVEL’, ‘SATISFACTORY TOUR’, ‘700cc engine solely developed by S&T Motors R&D departments’ and ‘symbol of lucky’. So the ST7 represents safe travel, and that is what brings lucky driving to you. And the ST7 is stresses the best performance and top quality in its class.

ST7 has the unique appeal of a mixed classical and sports style. Installed is a DHOC 8valve 90° V-TWIN engine with expanded displacement from 650cc to 700cc. This gives impressive low and mid-range performance fit into the theme of tour/cruising.

The frame of a traditional cruiser will give a comfortable riding position, neutral handling with a powerful engine.

Twin muffler, multiple LCD meter on fuel tank (17L), clear lens multi reflector headlamps, LED etc gives ST7 a combined style of modern functionality with a classical image.

ST7 will be released and will begin exporting at the end of January. There are two type of models; Standard and Deluxe (Deluxe comes installed with full accessories), and both come in black, red and white color.

Hyosung ST7 Specifications:

Seat height: 690 mm (27.2 in)
Length: 2479 mm (97.2 in)
Wheelbase: 1675 mm (66 in)
Tires (front): 120/80 16 60H
Tires (rear): 170/80 15 77H
Dry weight: 244kg (537 lbs)
Fuel capacity: 17 l (4.5 gal)
Engine: 678.2cc

Source: S&T Motors via: Korider

Hyosung GV700i Aquila

We have not received confirmation that S&T Motors will have the new GV700i Hyosung in the 2010 line up but judging by the pics our friends at Asphalt And Rubber sent me bike is looking very production ready. The classic styled liquid cooled vTwin is based on the flexible 650 that sits in Hyosung’s GV650 cruiser and GT650 sport bike line. The engine block is painted black and the valve covers and engine cases receive a chrome finish. A red GV700i with leather side bags with red stitching, windshield and case guards showed off Hyosung’s potential to accessorize the line. Dual exhaust pipes, chrome wheels, full coverage fenders and a tank mounted speedometer further differentiate the classic Aquila from it’s sporty cousin, the gv650 Avitar.

More pics after the break…

With the recent announcement that ATK and Hyosung will be working together to sell ATK branded Hyosungs at select Harley Davidson dealers it seems this model is showing up at a great time. Frank White, CEO of ATK mentioned Harley Davidson is not in on the deal and only individual dealerships are working with ATK and S&T. Hell For Leather speculates the lack of objection by the Mo Co means Harley is considering this deal for the entire retail chain. You can’t argue it could be a great way to bring a younger market into dealerships with low prices and get them hooked on the HOG coolaid. Possibly another reason for the unfortunate decision of dumpstering Buell?

Have a look at the Hyosung GV700i pics below and check out Asphalt and Rubber for more pics from the 2009 EICMA show.

Dale Franks is reporting that US based ATK and South Korea based S&T Motors have entered into an agreement where ATK badged Hyosungs (owned by S&T) will be built in the USA by ATK and sold by select Harley dealerships. The company Harley Davidson is not involved in the deal, the dealerships are taking it upon themselves to work with Frank White, one of ATK’s owners.

The press release on Dale’s site is vague about what models will come out of the agreement but it mentions ATK will leverage Hyosungs street bikes and S&T will leverage ATK’s dirtbike knowledge. Frank White explains:

By joining forces, we believe, we believe we can strengthen our distribution network, reduce our production co sts, spread development costs and substantially accelerate our entry into the street bike business. We also look forward to sharing some of our off-road technology with S&T.

Dale goes on to mention that his sources say a plan is being considered for ATK to restyle and rebrand the GT and GV series of sport bikes and cruisers including the classic styled GV700 introduced this week at EICMA. This would not be a big strech for S&T.

Hyosung is known to be more than willing to allow other companies to rebrand their bikes. The flexibility and quality of the Hyosung products and engines makes it a great option for a marque to leverage for breaking into new markets without the cost of tooling up and staffing production.

United Motors sells most of the Hyosung product line in the US with it’s own graphics and has long term agreement to build it’s own bike around the 650 and 250 cc Hyosung vTwins. Italjet was working on a new version of the Griffon which was a restyled Hyosung GT650 and Fischer Motors uses the GT650 engine in it’s MRX650.

This partnership is a win for all groups involved. ATK may be able to diversify from being a low production niche dirtbike manufacturer and add sport bikes and cruisers to it’s lineup. Hyosung will increase sales using a brand agnostic production driven formula they are very comfortable with. S&T Motors displayed 450cc prototypes of supermoto and dirt machines which were well received by enthusiasts. I’m sure ATK would do a great job helping them make the bikes a reality.

This will be an interesting development to watch unfold. Follow the source link below to Dale’s site to see the press release.

Source: Dale Franks