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Author Topic: The Maico Faithful.....  (Read 3257 times)

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Offline ford832

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The Maico Faithful.....
« on: November 05, 2011, 01:27:26 AM »
...seem largely to have disappeared.Sachs,Maicoman and a couple others remain-perhaps because they have no shame :P
The rest must be hiding in dark corners mumbling incoherently about the new models that are just around the corner :o  :D
OK,now that I've had my fun,is there any actual news?It's been a while since I heard anything and a quick Maico search turned up nothing of interest.Anyone?
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline Bioflex

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #1 on: November 05, 2011, 06:12:21 AM »
You can put me in that boat.
All throughout the end of 2010 Id check the Maico International site every day, once they announced the bikes would be released in the new year (rather than slightly early as most are) I stopped worrying, but waited with great anticipation for Jan 1, 2011.
As the months rolled on in 2011 the release got less and less likely, and now were almost into 2012 Maico International haven't released any bikes.

It's quite a sad situation as Id really hoped they'd do well. A bit frustrating that we had endless teasers and plenty of good news, yet nothing but silence when things went cold.

While I appreciate that the whole thing has likely died now, is anyone out there willing to say what happened?
 
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline nom de guerre

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #2 on: November 05, 2011, 09:00:39 AM »
The word that I got after an email less than a month ago is that everything is in legal limbo/lawyers hands... MI is still trying to purchase the Maico name from the rightful owners in Holland.... contrary to most peoples beliefs, Kostler doesn't own the name(according to MI).... so, they are holding off any further news/ development/ etc until this is rectified.... I certainly wish they had thought of this BEFORE all the hype and other related "news". Real disappointing and I am not holding my breath.
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline SachsGS

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #3 on: November 05, 2011, 09:52:09 AM »
O.K. here we go (again).Koestler Maico has very close ties to the original Maisch family,having provided financial help during the 1983 quality control fiasco.The company has quietly produced a minute number of bikes over the last decade and indeed list 2012 Maicos on their company website.Not a whole lot has changed with the bikes,but as Germany's largest KTM dealer maybe Koestler knows something we don't.

MI,on the other hand,may have entered into this debacle with good intentions but have since accomplished little more then to infuriate the Maico faithful and harm the name.Their proclamations about owning the storied brand and moving production to England etc. maybe considered delusional on the one hand or ,perhaps, of a criminal nature on the other.If MI is truly committed to saving the Maico brand they should find inspiration in the quiet,professional manner in which Ossa was resurrected.The ghosts of the Maisch brothers deserve at least that respect,
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline TMKIWI

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #4 on: November 05, 2011, 10:28:25 AM »
It certainly was a sad fiasco. :-[
All the hype and then ............................... nothing.
I e-mailed the Aussie importer ( so it says on their web site ) and got no reply. :o
Not the way to bring back an iconic brand.

Hell, I was mad enough to buy a TM ;) , I would have considered a Maico.
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline nom de guerre

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #5 on: November 05, 2011, 10:59:09 AM »
Glad you guys said it like it IS... that is really what I wanted to put it like. I lost any faith in MI a long time ago and laughed whenever a press released was issue, etc.... I feel the same and was only relaying the "latest"... My '01 is virtually the same as the 2012's... short of the USD fork. The Reiger shock is the same as the one on my '98 250. Herr Kostler is where I got mine via Mulders in Holland. I will always love Maico, but will probaly get a TM in 2012.
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline ford832

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #6 on: November 05, 2011, 09:50:13 PM »
If it's just a name issue,why bother holding up production.I realize the brand has historical ties and great meaning to many people but to others,means little at all.With the joys of the net,everyone knows what they are-why not give up on the name and market them anyway.I can't imagine losing all that $$ ,severely damaging your future sales and possible bankruptcy just to have that name.If you can build a good bike with sweet parts at a reasonable,though higher,price-do it.
There has to be more to it than just the name.Call yourself M.Aico Motors.LeMaico or something altogether different and move along.
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline nom de guerre

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #7 on: November 05, 2011, 11:25:31 PM »
I totally agree Ford... I brought this up and it was glossed over. They could have easily been called "MMX" or something like that... I don't think there would be any confusion and the like. Lots of hype and more than likely never going to come to fruition. If so, they will need lots of convincing on my end. Unfortunate fairy tale...
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline SachsGS

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #8 on: November 06, 2011, 01:35:26 AM »
Globally offroad motorcycle sales are down by almost 20% and in the U.S. volume has dropped by 1/2 since the peak a few years ago. With statistics like that how would a start up motorcycle manufacturer attract investors?Think about KTM for a moment,they've gained market share only at the expense of the Japanese competition.Maybe now just isn't the best time to resurrect Maico.
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline ford832

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #9 on: November 06, 2011, 05:15:49 AM »
I can see that but at the same time,if you already had the bikes built and an interested distributor in place,would it not be better to at least import a few units so they could been seen,tested,talked about etc-or just sit on your inventory for a few years and hope the market improves.
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline yota

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #10 on: November 08, 2011, 12:47:36 AM »
I spoke to Rich Winkler a year or so ago about this, he was all excited about being the US importer, said he just had a few small issues to work out with gov't issues.   guess not.
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline VintageBlueSmoke

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #11 on: November 08, 2011, 01:23:14 AM »
I agree with Ford. MI has no ties to the original Maico family or brand. They should see what other name they can use or come up with their own! At this point, very few of the original Maico faithful are young enough to ride a new one anymore so only those with deep enough pockets to own 'boutique' brand will buy them. Best to start making a name for themselves now, while the market is down and they are still 'boutique'.

Let's see, what's in my garage that no longer exists...Rickman is from England...Bultaco and OSSA from Spain (yes, I know someone is producing under the OSSA name now)...Zundapp...SACHS!

SachsGS...Dude! You should start a campaign to get them to rebrand it as Sachs and call it the GS!
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline SachsGS

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #12 on: November 08, 2011, 01:46:24 PM »
You gotta think big or go home .... Maico/Zundapp/Sachs....separate design facilities,common manufacturing facility,group component purchasing power - economy of scale and lower unit cost....first Germany and then the world. ;)
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Offline JohnN

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #13 on: November 08, 2011, 07:54:18 PM »
As you may have noticed, I haven't been on here very much. All my choice.

Do you really want news or are you just looking to create more animosity towards the folks attempting to do something to improve a two stroke? Because much of what's been written has been pretty negative towards Maico. Mostly on this site.

The reason I've said nothing is because after I post a bunch of folks jump in and write something terrible. The information I had been providing had been of an inside nature, from a very small factory. From these kind of posts it's obvious that doesn't work.

So until there is actual news, like bikes are available, you'll not hear anything from me.

Oh, and by the way, some of you guys have the story (written in this thread) completely wrong... just saying.
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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Offline maicoman009

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The Maico Faithful.....
« Reply #14 on: November 08, 2011, 09:37:00 PM »
Quote from: ford832 on November 05, 2011, 08:27:26 AM
...seem largely to have disappeared.Sachs,Maicoman and a couple others remain-perhaps because they have no shame :P
The rest must be hiding in dark corners mumbling incoherently about the new models that are just around the corner :o  :D
OK,now that I've had my fun,is there any actual news?It's been a while since I heard anything and a quick Maico search turned up nothing of interest.Anyone?
Ford I recall stating on here that if I decided to buy a new Maico that it would be one from Koestler in Germany & with this economy that won't happen any time soon! As far as any new info I would have to say that I know nothing more than what Sachs has already posted.
 Also Ford I'm quite happy with my current Ktm-300 and after just seeing what Ossa is doing I may just have to set my sights on a new Ossa 300........... :P
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 04:00:00 PM by ' »
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