Moultons are handmade in England.. building/brazing the steel chromoly frames is very labor intensive .. if you get a polished stainless model, an extraordinary amount of time and care is taken ... they sell every one that they build .. there is a generally a waiting period while a bike is built on a customer by customer basis.. the waiting period can be 3 months or more.. there are people who appreciate this type of attention and are more than willing to pay the going prices .. they are among the most comfortable bikes to ride, regardless of tire size ... when set up to race, they were very successful, to the point of being banned from some competitions.. they certainly are not to everyone's liking, and some can't see the value, but I think it speaks volumes that this small, factory operation has trouble keeping up with demand for their product which has spanned 50+years from their introduction.