In 1991 Italian manufacturer Gilera released the 'Nordwest' model, the first factory produced supermoto. Other European manufactures quickly followed suit, among them KTM, Husqvarna, Husaberg AB and CCM Motorcycles; all manufacturers whose emphasis were off-road models at the time. Prior to the 1990s, supermoto bikes, including the precursor motorcycles used in Superbikers, were converted open-class two-stroke motocross or enduro bikes desired for their lightweight and jumping abilities.Models were developed for both track and road use. It took another 10 years, until the mid 2000s for Japanese manufacturers, such as Yamaha (2004), Honda (2005) and Suzuki (2005) to start introducing supermoto models in the European market.
Most of the supermoto bikes sold to the public are more domesticated models for road use rather than outright racing, for example the Suzuki DRZ400SM. Slower and heavier but rock solid dual-purpose motorcycles such as the Kawasaki KLR650 are good examples of this. In the spring of 2006, Italian bike manufacturer Ducati announced their entry in the class with the "Hypermotard" machine which has more in common with streetfighter-type motorcycles than realistically being considered a true supermoto bike capable of surviving jumps and crashes. KTM currently has available a 950 "V" twin that could be described as the ultimate road going Hypermoto, and a brand new (and well appreciated) the single cylinder KTM690SM. Aprilia also has two new (450 and 550) SXV v-twin track oriented supermotos for sale.
