Harley Seized for Drunken-Driving Offenses

Police in Vermilion, OH are auctioning off a 2009 Harley-Davidson Softtail that was seized after its owner was arrested for drunken driving for the third time. State law allows for the confiscation of vehicles if you are arrested three times in six years, and that was the case with 51-year-old Herman Walbom of Lorrain. The motorcycle is now up for sale on eBay with no reserve. It was seized in July 2011 and has been in storage. Check it out here.

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Warm winter weather, higher gas prices and an economy that may be improving combined to help boost motorcycle sales in the first quarter of 2012. The Motorcycle Industry Council reported Friday that on-road bikes and scooters were up 8.8 percent from a year ago, with scooter sales alone up 16.9 percent. Sales of dual purpose bikes, meant for on- and off-road riding, were up 12.7 percent. However, sales of off-road machines were off 6.7 percent. The “Los Angeles Times” has more here.

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Sales are booming worldwide for Royal Enfield, the India-based maker of small bikes. The company sold 74,6000 motorcycles in 2011, a 40 percent increase from the previous year, and is spending $30 million this fiscal year in an effort to boost manufacturing capacity. In India, there’s a wait time of six to nine months for buyers to get their new bikes. Royal Enfield originated in England in 1901 and entered the Indian market in 1949. The company stopped building bikes in England in 1970 and was bought by India Eicher Motors in 1994. Reuters has a story here.