The TGB Blade is the backbone of the Taiwanese company’s all-terrain vehicle range. The manufacturer lists it in a long series of versions, from the Blade 250/300/325 through the IRS and EFI models of 500 to 600 cc to the Blade EFI 1000 LT, and it is under this name that TGB has become one of the leading quad makers in Europe.
TGB Blade at a glance
| Maker | Taiwan Golden Bee Co., Ltd. (TGB), Taiwan |
|---|---|
| Model | TGB Blade, all-terrain vehicle family |
| Small versions | Blade 250/300/325 |
| Independent rear suspension | Blade IRS 500/525/550 |
| Electronic fuel injection | Blade EFI 550/600 |
| Largest version | Blade EFI 1000 LT |
| Sister family | TGB Target IRS 500/525/550 and Target EFI 550/600; TGB Gunner IRS 550 and EFI 550/600 |
| Engines | mainly Morini units, licence-built Moto Franco Morini designs |
| Assembly | Taiwan: Youn-An plant (270 staff) and Ping-Tung plant (170 staff) |
| Market position | TGB counts among the leading quad and ATV makers in Europe |
No Wikipedia page exists for this model in any language. The page is built from the German, Polish and English articles on the manufacturer, Taiwan Golden Bee, and from the model list they give; the source publishes no technical data for the individual Blade versions.
History of the TGB Blade
Taiwan Golden Bee was founded in 1965 as Taiwan Vespa Co. Ltd., making Piaggio scooters under licence, and was renamed in 1978 when it started building vehicles of its own. The move into four wheels came later and turned out to be decisive: the company now describes itself as one of the leading makers on the European quad and ATV market, having been present there for more than twenty years.
The Blade is the range on which that reputation rests. The manufacturer’s list separates it into groups rather than single models: the small Blade 250/300/325, the Blade IRS 500/525/550 with independent rear suspension, the fuel-injected Blade EFI 550/600, and the largest of them all, the Blade EFI 1000 LT, with the Blade 600 and Blade 1000 named separately. Two sister ranges run beside it, the Target and the Gunner, both in IRS and EFI forms with engines between 500 and 600 cc.
Beyond those designations the sources are silent. There is no article on the Blade in any language of Wikipedia and the manufacturer’s list gives no power, torque, weight, suspension travel or production years for any of the versions, so this page keeps to what the sources state: the size steps, the IRS and EFI distinctions and the place of the family in the company’s programme. The naming itself is informative, since a range that reaches from a 250 to a 1000 cc machine covers utility and recreational use alike.
The machines are built in Taiwan, at the Youn-An plant with 270 employees on 31,260 square metres and the Ping-Tung plant with 170 employees on 21,623 square metres, by a company capitalised at NT$190 million, about four million euros. Bodywork is largely made in-house, while cockpits, handlebar switches and engines come mainly from Morini, whose units are licence-built Moto Franco Morini designs; TGB’s separate business supplying complete continuously variable transmissions to Piaggio, Rotax/Can-Am, Peugeot, Polaris, Minarelli, Morini and SYM feeds directly into its own quads. In Germany the ATVs have been imported exclusively by the ZEG cooperative of Cologne from 2001, and since 2008 by the Austrian importer Leeb.
Design and features
- Widest range: the Blade family runs from 250 to 1000 cc, the broadest in the TGB programme.
- IRS versions: the 500/525/550 models are listed with independent rear suspension.
- EFI versions: the 550/600 and 1000 LT models are listed with electronic fuel injection.
- Flagship: the Blade EFI 1000 LT is the largest machine the maker lists.
- Own transmission technology: TGB builds complete CVT systems for Piaggio, Polaris and others.
TGB Blade versions
- Blade 250/300/325: the small end of the family.
- Blade IRS 500/525/550: the independent-rear-suspension models.
- Blade EFI 550/600: the fuel-injected middle of the range.
- Blade EFI 1000 LT: the largest version listed.
- Blade 600 and Blade 1000: further designations in the same list.
- Sister models: the Target and Gunner, offered in the same IRS and EFI pattern.
The TGB Target is the Blade’s closest sister, and the TGB R50X shows the smaller end of the company’s four-wheel work. More machines are in the TGB collection.
Sources
- Taiwan Golden Bee, German Wikipedia: Blade, Target and Gunner model list, plants, market position
- Taiwan Golden Bee, Polish Wikipedia: company profile, model names
- Taiwan Golden Bee, English Wikipedia: origins, transmission supply to Polaris and others
