Photo: BSA via amazon.co.uk
BSA, once one of the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer and a British staple, went out of business in the late 1970s, following a series of bad business decisions. After decades, it was bought by Mahindra Group in 2016 and is now preparing to come back from the dead.
Everyone loves a good comeback story, and this could be BSA’s, now operating under the name BSA Company. Billionaire Anand Mahindra, chairman of Mahindra Group, bought the company four years ago and he’s been telling The Guardian in a recent interview that said comeback would take place as early as next year.
After decades of inactivity, the market will see the first BSA motorcycles in 2021: first an internal combustion engine model, followed by an all-electric variant towards the end of the year. Mahindra says he has no plans to retire ICE variants altogether just yet, not until the market reaches “a tipping point.” Or they’re banned.
The billionaire tells the publication that he wants to “resurrect the British motorbike industry” and to pay homage to the illustrious past of the BSA brand. “The UK was the leader in bikes right from the start,” he explains. “That provenance is something that we really want to retain.”
BSA started as Birmingham Small Arms in 1861 as a maker of guns, before switching up to make bicycles and motorcycles. In the ‘50s, it was the biggest motorcycle manufacturer in the world, and it remained a heavy player until the early ‘70s, when the first major signs of problems became apparent. By the end of the decade, BSA was dead.
Mahindra Group is the world’s largest tractor manufacturer, the world’s biggest electric rickshaw manufacturer, and the world’s 20th car manufacturer by sales. It already has experience with reviving dead motorcycle brands (Jawa), and has UK government backing for the BSA Company, in the form of a £4.6 million ($6.1 million) grant as incentive for creating new jobs. Most of the cash comes directly from Mahindra, though.
Mahindra’s stated goal is to make motorcycles under the BSA brand for prices between £5,000 and £10,000 ($6,636 and $13,273, at today’s rate exchange).
After decades of inactivity, the market will see the first BSA motorcycles in 2021: first an internal combustion engine model, followed by an all-electric variant towards the end of the year. Mahindra says he has no plans to retire ICE variants altogether just yet, not until the market reaches “a tipping point.” Or they’re banned.
The billionaire tells the publication that he wants to “resurrect the British motorbike industry” and to pay homage to the illustrious past of the BSA brand. “The UK was the leader in bikes right from the start,” he explains. “That provenance is something that we really want to retain.”
BSA started as Birmingham Small Arms in 1861 as a maker of guns, before switching up to make bicycles and motorcycles. In the ‘50s, it was the biggest motorcycle manufacturer in the world, and it remained a heavy player until the early ‘70s, when the first major signs of problems became apparent. By the end of the decade, BSA was dead.
Mahindra Group is the world’s largest tractor manufacturer, the world’s biggest electric rickshaw manufacturer, and the world’s 20th car manufacturer by sales. It already has experience with reviving dead motorcycle brands (Jawa), and has UK government backing for the BSA Company, in the form of a £4.6 million ($6.1 million) grant as incentive for creating new jobs. Most of the cash comes directly from Mahindra, though.
Mahindra’s stated goal is to make motorcycles under the BSA brand for prices between £5,000 and £10,000 ($6,636 and $13,273, at today’s rate exchange).
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