If we take a look at today’s motorcycle market, what will we notice? Well, for starters, we’ll see massive adventure bikes with way too much power and way too much tech commanding upwards of $30,000. We’ll also see a middleweight segment that’s becoming more and more infused with technology.
Much to the disappointment of the riding public (i.e., dwindling sales figures and just the financial inability to drop $30K on a fancy toy), manufacturers seem to turn a blind eye, and keep pumping out bikes with fancier displays, autonomous riding capabilities, and tons of features nobody really asked for.
Luckily, there are a few brands out there that know what they’re doing. Small- to mid-displacement offerings like the Kawasaki Z500, Royal Enfield Himalayan 450, and Aprilia RS 457 have been on fire lately, and for good reason. I mean, these bikes are practically all that’s left when it comes to having a semblance of a “raw” riding experience. You know, simply turn the key, thumb the starter, and hit the road (or trails).
Now, if we fix our gaze across the pond in Europe—specifically in the A2 segment, we’ll notice a whole different ecosystem of motorcycles. Bikes that don’t so much focus on cutting-edge tech, but rather, being solid platforms for riders to hone their skills on and just get out and have a good time with.
One of these bikes is the Wottan Rebbe 401, a retro-inspired naked bike that’s about as simple as it gets, all while being practical and convenient enough for today’s modern world. Wottan is a rather obscure motorcycle brand headquartered in Spain that sells commuter-focused bikes with small to mid-sized engines. Like many European brands, Wottan outsources the production of its bikes to China, in a bid to satisfy demand and keep prices competitive.
And in the case of the Rebbe 401, well, it’s clear that this bike used another bike (one from a certain Swedish brand with the same “401” in its name) as inspiration. It’s rocking a liquid-cooled, 401cc thumper claiming 42 horsepower and 25 pound-feet of torque—adequate for a bike of its size. It’s also rocking no additional tech other than ABS. So no fiddling with ride modes, map switches, or switching TC off just to get the front wheel up—it doesn’t need it.
Granted, Wottan knows that the folks who buy this will probably use it for commuting, and so a full-color TFT display with Bluetooth smartphone pairing comes as standard. But hey, you don’t need to use any of the connectivity stuff if you don’t want to.
Now, eagle-eyed readers may notice the Taro logo on the bike’s handlebar clamp. And yes, Taro is indeed a Chinese motorcycle manufacturer, and in this case, is clearly the company Wottan is working with to produce the Rebbe 401.
And that’s precisely why Wottan is able to price the Rebbe 401 at a very attractive 4,490 euros, or about $4,800 at the time of writing. This makes it almost a thousand bucks cheaper than its closest mainstream rival, and given how the market is now more price-sensitive than it’s been in a while, well, this thing might just have what it takes to be a stateside sales success.
But what do you think? Does this bike’s retro styling, simple design, and minimal tech make it the perfect stylish daily rider? More importantly, would you consider this thing as a prospective next bike? I’d love to read your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Wottan Motor
