MOTORCYCLE HISTORY

The first motorcycle in history was produced in 1885 by German inventors Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach It was called a riding car. However, history shows us that in 1967, Sylvester Howard Roper of Roxbury, Massachusetts built a steam propulsion motorcycle. In 1876, Otto produced the first "Four-Stroke Internal-Combustion Engine".

The first motorcycle that went on sale was the Hildebrand & Wolfmüller in 1894. The "Indian" wad the largest motorcycle manufacturer prior to World War 1. Over time different motorcycle manufacturers would dominate the market from Harley Davidson to BSA Group to the powerful Japanese manufacturers that mostly dominate the market these days.

In 1946, Soichiro Honda founds the Honda Technical Research Insitute. By 1947, Honda has produced its first motorcycle, the 98cc, 2-cycle Dream.

The Ducati Family with investors founded the Società Radio Brevetti Ducati in Bologna. Originally they manufactured industrial components for radio transmissions. By 1946, Ducati introduced a 4-stroke 48cc clip-on engine for bicycles. And in 1952, the futuristic Cruiser 175cc, with automatic transmission and electric starter.

Yamaha: Founded by Torakusu Yamaha in 1888 originally as Yamaha Musical Instrument Company. After the war, Yamaha expanded into Motorcycles. The first was the 125cc, single cylinder two-stroke YA-1 Motorcycle.

1902: First Triumph motorcycle is produced. It uses a single-cylinder Belgian Minerva engine. It is fitted onto a bicycle frame.