Motus Motorcycles
Motus Motorcycles is a start-up motorcycle manufacturer housed at the Innovation Depot. The company was founded by entrepreneur Lee Conn and former Confederate Motorcycles designer Brian Case with plans to develop a sport touring motorcycle. They have designed a 1650cc liquid-cooled V4 engine, unique in the motorcycle industry. It was engineered by Pratt & Miller and Katech Engines of Detroit, Michigan.
In March 2012, Motus unveiled their first two models at events at Pratt & Miller in Detroit and at the Barber Museum of Motorsports. Conn and Case plan to tour 250 cities on their first bikes, beginning at Daytona Bike Week. Limited production of the motorcycles is expected to begin before the end of the year at an assembly plant near the Motorsports Park.
In March 2012 the company began seeking a site for a production facility which could begin building motorcycles for sale to the public in the Fall. The first year of production will be devoted entirely to filling existing orders, with 2013 models set to be completed at a rate of 20-30 per month. Tom Vaeretti was hired away from Honda of Alabama as the company's production manager.
In July 2012 the company won approval from a Birmingham City Council committee for $75,000 in incentives to keep the company in the city. Signage for a building at 500 28th Street South was approved by the Birmingham Design Review Committee. That same summer, the Motus MST-R sport-tourer was named "Best Dreambike" in Motorcyclist magazine's "2012 Motorcycle of the Year" issue.
The company's first production motorcycles, the 2014 MST-T and MST-R, in Fall 2013.
Models
- Motus MST: 1,650cc V-4 sport-tourer, 7800 max. RPM, available in silver or red for $30,975
- Motus MSTR: 1,650cc V-4 sport-tourer, 8200 max. RPM, available in white or black for $36,975
References
- Kent, Dawn (September 23, 2009) "Birmingham motorcycle company developing model for sport touring market." The Birmingham News
- Tomberlin, Michael (January 25, 2010) "Founders of Birmingham's Motus talk motorcycle." The Birmingham News
- Stein, John (February 2010) "Motus Operandi: New motorcycle startup envisions a uniquely American sport-tourer." Motorcyclist
- Reynolds, Ed (May 13, 2010) "The Best of Both Worlds." Black & White
- Brooke, Lindsay (March 4, 2011) "Motus Motorcycles: Sport-Touring, American Style" Wheels Blog. The New York Times
- Coman, Victoria L. (March 6, 2011) "Birmingham men unveil Motus MST, MST-R motorcycles." The Birmingham News
- Tomberlin, Michael (March 15, 2012) "Startup to start production." The Birmingham News
- Bryant, Joseph D. (July 9, 2012) "Birmingham City Council committee OKs incentives for Motus Motorcycles." The Birmingham News
- Diel, Stan (July 24, 2013) "Motus motorcycles to ship first production bikes this fall." The Birmingham News
External links
- Motus Motorcycles website
- Motus Motorcycles on Facebook.com