It’s the second month of spring and there are more bikes heading out on the roads. But what have riders been buying this year, and which bikes are finding an audience? We dive into the NZTA rego stats to find out.
- CFMOTO leads with 535 registrations.
- The 450MT stands out with 224 registrations.
- The 251–750cc bands account for 60.8% of registrations above 125cc.
We’re as partial as anyone to a 200hp superbike or an adventure bike with enough electronics to run the Beehive. Yep, there’s always room for a bit of daydreaming.
But what are Kiwi riders actually buying? The stuff we drool over and get to ride in the BRM shed doesn’t always match what gets a new number plate.
With nine months of 2026 behind us, BRM has gone through the NZTA registration figures, looking at new registrations above 125cc and excluding used imports and re-registrations. That leaves 4,407 new registrations from January to September.
That capacity cutoff matters. Scooters above 125cc are included alongside motorcycles; machines of 125cc and below are excluded. So the brand standings here cover the above-125cc motorcycle and scooter market, rather than every bike sold in New Zealand.
Registrations are a useful guide to what’s moving, rather than a direct count of retail sales. Dealer demonstrators can get plates too. Even so, there’s plenty to chew over, starting with the brand at the top.
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“The stuff we drool over and get to ride in the BRM shed doesn’t always match what gets a new number plate.”
CFMOTO takes the lead
CFMOTO recorded 535 new registrations through September, giving it the lead among motorcycle and scooter brands above 125cc. That’s 12.1 percent of the total. Yamaha follows on 498, with Suzuki third on 477. Honda has 421, Triumph 420 and Kawasaki 416, followed by KTM, Royal Enfield, Harley-Davidson and BMW.
CFMOTO’s advantage over Yamaha is 37 registrations. And Honda, Triumph and Kawasaki are separated by just five, so nobody needs to order their 2026 NZ sales victory T-shirts just yet.
A closer look at CFMOTO’s registrations shows that a fair chunk of its tally comes from one bike: the 450MT accounts for 224 registrations, or almost 42 percent of CFMOTO’s total.
| Brand | New registrations |
|---|---|
| CFMOTO | 535 |
| Yamaha | 498 |
| Suzuki | 477 |
| Honda | 421 |
| Triumph | 420 |
| Kawasaki | 416 |
| KTM | 363 |
| Royal Enfield | 286 |
| Harley-Davidson | 245 |
| BMW | 182 |
The 450MT has found its audience
The CFMOTO 450MT is the clearest individual standout, with 224 registrations recorded as MT450. Another 29 were added during September.
Getting a sensible model comparison takes more work than sorting the NZTA Model column. KTM’s ‘390’ entry, for example, totals 187, but covers six different motorcycles. The 390 Adventure R accounts for 90 of them, with the older Adventure, Adventure X, Duke, Enduro R and SMC R making up the rest.
Suzuki’s ‘GSX250’ entry also needs splitting. Its 119 registrations comprise 71 faired GSX250F models and 48 naked GSX250s. The Himalayan total includes one older 411cc bike, leaving 87 for the Himalayan 450.
The reverse happens with Kawasaki: 105 bikes are explicitly labelled Ninja 500, while another 13 identifiable EX500 entries bring the combined Ninja 500 tally to 118, including SE trim.
So the 450MT’s performance remains impressive after the housekeeping. At 224 registrations, it’s ahead of the combined Ninja 500 tally by 106. That’s rather more than winning by a front wheel.
Top 10 new motorcycles Jan–Sep 2026
| Motorcycle | New registrations |
|---|---|
| CFMOTO 450MT | 224 |
| Kawasaki Ninja 500 incl SE | 118 |
| KTM 390 Adventure R | 90 |
| Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 | 87 |
| Yamaha Ténéré 700 | 75 |
| Triumph Speed 400 | 75 |
| Suzuki GSX250F | 71 |
| Yamaha R7 LAMS | 70 |
| Yamaha R3 | 69 |
| Suzuki V-Strom 250SX | 68 |
Adventure bikes without the heavyweight wrestling
The 450MT, KTM 390 Adventure R, Himalayan 450 and Ténéré 700 all feature prominently among those identifiable models. Suzuki’s V-Strom 250SX adds another smaller adventure option to the list.
BMW’s F 450 GS has also recorded 47 registrations through September. Having recently ridden it ourselves, we can see why this sort of motorcycle gets a look-in.
For New Zealand riding, a manageable adventure bike makes a lot of sense. There’s enough performance for a decent road trip, and when the seal ends, you’ve got less weight to wrestle with. Anyone who’s picked up a big adventure bike after getting a bit carried away off-road knows how quickly the romance can wear off.
The middle is busy and big bikes are still in the game
The busiest capacity band is 401–600cc, with 988 registrations. Next comes 251–400cc on 906, followed by 601–750cc on 784.
Together, motorcycles and scooters from 251cc to 750cc account for 2,678 registrations, or 60.8 percent of the above-125cc total. But there’s still plenty of appetite further up the capacity ladder. Bikes from 751cc to 1000cc recorded 684 registrations, with another 635 above 1000cc. Combined, that’s 1,319 bikes over 750cc, or 29.9 percent of the total.
Nobody needs to organise a farewell sausage sizzle for the big bike. Harley-Davidson’s 245 registrations alone show there’s still a place for substantial machinery.
| Recorded capacity | New registrations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 126–250cc | 410 | 9.3% |
| 251–400cc | 906 | 20.6% |
| 401–600cc | 988 | 22.4% |
| 601–750cc | 784 | 17.8% |
| 751–1000cc | 684 | 15.5% |
| Over 1000cc | 635 | 14.4% |
“Nobody needs to organise a farewell sausage sizzle for the big bike.”
Smaller bikes with plenty to offer
We reckon equipment, affordability and running costs help explain the appeal of this part of the market. Modern middleweights give riders a lot to consider. Depending on the model, you’ll find colour TFTs, traction control, riding modes and quickshifters, features that used to be the preserve of bikes closer to the litre-bike end of the showroom. You don’t need every one of those gadgets to enjoy a good back road, of course. But a well-equipped 400, 500 or 650 can be a very appealing motorcycle in its own right, with useful performance and manageable weight. And for many riders, there isn’t the drive to keep going up in capacity.
Then there’s the ACC levy bands to consider, and while they were only introduced in July, we’re sure the fact bikes up to 750cc are cheaper to register than those above is sure to sway spending patterns.
September Keeps Things Interesting
September added another 515 new motorcycle and scooter registrations above 125cc. CFMOTO again led the manufacturer numbers with 61, followed by Suzuki on 54, Honda and Yamaha on 53 each, and Kawasaki on 51.
The 450MT kept the registrations coming, adding another 29 during September. Kawasaki’s Ninja 500 recorded 14, while Yamaha’s Ténéré 700 added nine and Triumph’s Speed 400 eight. BMW’s F 450 GS, Royal Enfield’s Himalayan 450 and Yamaha’s R7 LAMS recorded seven each.
The 401–600cc category was again the busiest, with 125 registrations, followed by 601–750cc on 104. There were also 84 registrations of bikes between 751cc and 1000cc, 81 between 251cc and 400cc, 78 above 1000cc and 43 between 126cc and 250cc.
There were some interesting names among those bigger bikes, too. Harley-Davidson recorded seven Street Bobs, plus five each of the Breakout, Low Rider ST and Road Glide. BMW added six R 1300 GS registrations, while KTM’s 890 Adventure R and Kove’s 800 Rally recorded five apiece. Triumph’s Trident 800 and CFMOTO’s 800MT Explore added four each. So there’s still plenty of interest in bigger adventure bikes, roadsters and cruisers.
So, September delivered another varied batch of new machinery. The middle capacity bands remained busy, but 162 bikes above 750cc joined the tally too. Clearly, a few Kiwi garages still have room for something substantial — even if the lawnmower has to live outside.
As we roll into the warmer months, it’ll be interesting to see whether this mix changes. Can the 450MT keep its momentum, and which of the next crop of new models will tempt Kiwi riders into the showroom? There’s plenty for manufacturers to play for, with buyers choosing everything from small adventure bikes to substantial cruisers. We’ll keep an eye on confirmed launches and New Zealand arrival dates to see what joins the contest.
With the middle capacity bands accounting for more than 60 percent of registrations, there’s plenty of interest in manageable machinery. But the bigger-bike numbers show Kiwi tastes still cover a wide range. We can’t wait to see what the final quarter adds to the picture.
Source: BRM calculations from the supplied NZTA Motor Vehicle Registrations Dashboard export, January–September 2026, using the original NEW first-registration selection. Motorcycles and scooters with recorded engine capacity above 125cc are included. Machines of 125cc and below, used imports and re-registrations are excluded. This is a registration analysis, not a count of all retail sales or unregistered off-road motorcycles. NZTA Model, Vehicle Submodel and CC rating fields are used to identify motorcycles, split broad descriptions and combine identifiable aliases or equipment trims. The motorcycle model table reflects BRM’s treatment of distinct models in the export, including the two CFMOTO cruiser entries counted separately.
NZTA Motor Vehicle Registrations Dashboard and open data
