Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Sturgis Motorcycle Rally




For anyone who loves to ride on a motorcycle, attending various rallies is a real treat. They provide fun opportunities to enjoy your motorcycle, get to know other riders, and have a break from the daily grind. The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is an annual event held in Sturgis South Dakota. This rally has been taking place each year since 1938, and continues to grow in size each year. In the early days, the main attraction was a spectacular motorcycle raise that drew the top riders from around the world. This annual event was canceled in 1944 and 1945 due to fuel storages as a result of the war.

Keep in mind that each state has their own motorcycle laws to follow. When entering South Dakota to reach Sturgis, you are going to have to obey these laws. They are strictly enforced and you don’t want to spoil your trip by having a serious fine topay as a result of violation such laws.

Every motorcycle must have at least one headlight, and a maximum of two are allowed. There also needs to be at least one tail light that is in working condition. The handle bars on the bike can’t be higher than the shoulders of the individual who is operating it. Motorcycle helmets are mandatory for anyone under 18 years of age. However, they are strongly encouraged for anyone riding a motorcycle.

Eye protection is required for each individual on a motorcycle, regardless whether they are the operator or a rider. The eye protection may not be tinted after dusk. Noise ordinances are also enforced so make sure your motorcycle has a muffler on it. Motorcycle operators much have a valid motorcycle license. If they don’t, their motorcycle will be impounded.

While you are encouraged to have a great time while attending the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, code enforcement is strictly enforced. This is because of the sheer volume of people. There are fines for public intoxication, fighting, indecent exposure, disorderly conduct, careless driving. There are also Zero Tolerance laws regarding drugs. It does not matter the type of drug or the amount, you will be arrested and prosecuted.

There are many great places to hang out while attending the Sturgis Rally. There are also plenty of great concerts taking place each night. Some people decide to get married in Sturgis as well! There is plenty of food, fun, and motorcycle activities to keep you entertained for the entire rally.

If you own a motorcycle and enjoy attending rallies, then you should plan to attend the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally this August. Keep in mind that thousands of people attend each year. It is important for you to plan early and to schedule your accommodations. Many who come for the rally decide to stay in a tent they bring along. Others prefer the comfort of a hotel.

The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is a yearly tradition for many motorcycle owners. Many of them have made it a family tradition with father’s, sons, brothers, and even grandfathers all traveling together. An average of 500,000 riders make their way to Sturgis each year to participate in the many events as well as the wonderful entertainment. It is a few days to enjoy being around other motorcycle riders as well as the pleasure of the ride getting there.

About Guest Author: I have a Harley Davidson Sportster. I rides around Los Angeles to beat the traffic. I have been riding for so many year. Check out this website

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Winter wheelies: bolt-on kit turns your dirtbike into a powder-carving snowbike

 

February 5, 2009 This looks like serious winter fun. What if you could ride your high-performance, lightweight dirtbike in the snow? Imagine throwing huge snowy rooster tails, wheelying across snow-covered fields, carving corners through the powder and cranking your bike down to elbow-dragging lean angles - all the while knowing that if you overcook it, you'll fall into a nice soft pile of the white fluffy stuff... The US$4250 2moto snowbike kit is a bolt-on mod that takes about 2 hours to fit to a range of common dirtbikes. In place of the front wheel, you get a tough, flexible ski on the end of your forks. At the rear end, you swap your swingarm, wheel and suspension out for a thin paddle track drive unit - and voila! You've got half a snowmobile, except it leans over in the turns and looks like a helluva lot more fun.

In the depths of this year's long northern hemisphere winter, there's surely thousands of beloved dirtbikes sitting in garages waiting for springtime and riding season. But when you start looking at your bike as a snow toy, suddenly you're in a position where you can enjoy your steed all year round. And when you see how much fun a snow-kitted bike can be to ride, with zero learning curve, the US$4 grand price tag on 2moto's snowbike kits starts looking like a bargain.

The 2moto product is a fairly uncomplicated do-it-yourself bolt-on kit for anyone who knows their way around a set of spanners. It can be fitted to a broad range of dirtbikes from all the major Japanese companies, Husaberg and KTM, among others. It makes no permanent alterations to the bike, so when snow season ends you can swap back over to your wheels for regular dirt-squirting.

To install the 2moto kit, first you remove the front wheel of your motorcycle. In its place goes a strong fork extension leg, and on the end of the leg goes a Simmons FlexiSki with sides specifically shaped to enhance turning and handling. The front ski's trail is adjustable so you can choose whether you want to go for high-speed stability or super-quick steering, and your forks are left otherwise untouched.

The rear unit is a bit more involved, and requires the removal of your stock bike's wheel, swingarm and shock. The swingarm is replaced with a special unit that incorporates a long-travel Ohlins shock, a scooped belt track, an additional suspension linkage for the track, and a drive train system to get drive from the rear sprocket down to the track.

The track itself is curved - in a sense like the rear tire of a bike, which helps give better drive coming out of turns on a lean. It also means that there's a thinner contact patch on hard packed snow, making the bike handle more responsively under these conditions. The paddles are 2.1 inches deep, and the tracks are supported right out to the edge by a slide rail, so there's no deformation of the tracks at high lean angles, but a solid edge to bite against the snow. The wide slide rail also means that the bike can stand up by itself when stopped on a flat surface, with enough stability to let you kick start it.

The entire assembly is the lightest on the market, and the whole bike ends up weighing around 300lbs without fuel. 2moto claim it's also the most efficient snowbike conversion kit available, robbing only about 10% of the stock bike's power.

Riding it looks like a gas. It doesn't countersteer like a motorcycle anymore, so you turn the bars INTO the corners. Beyond that, there's virtually no learning curve when stepping up from a bike, and it seems to be able to achieve some pretty impressive lean angles in the 2moto demo videos. Top speed is around the same speed as when the bike has wheels on - although the fastest the 2moto guys have had it is 92mph. It'll jump with no dramas, and both ends are built to handle big hits all day long.

In 2 days' time, 2moto will be sponsoring the world's first snowbike race event at the 44th annual McCall Winter Carnival. It should be a blast.

These kits are a fantastic idea, they seem to be truly well designed and tough gear. Better still, they open up a whole winter world of powder carving and mountain exploration to dirtbike owners. Awesome stuff, can we get a ride?

Source: gizmag.com @By Loz Blain

Sunday, May 12, 2013

4mc test ride: can a motorcycle have four wheels?


MOST tests involve a long process of careful assessment to judge the relative benefits and disadvantages of the bike in question, painstakingly attempting to judge whether the new machine has any clear advantage over its competitors. But on swinging a leg over the only existing 4MC prototype the only question in your mind is answered within seconds.

And the answer is yes; this is still a motorcycle, despite the number of wheels. The 4MC feels as natural to ride as any conventional two-wheeled bike. Blindfolded, you'd swear you were straddling a quite normal big-capacity scooter, so familiar are the handling, the feedback and the controls. And that in itself is perhaps the greatest achievement of this completely new design.

So, if it feels so normal, why bother with the extra wheels? To discover that, you really need to get into a situation that you never want on a normal bike; a big, unexpected slide of the front or rear end. Because on the 4MC that slide either simply won't happen, or if it does the bike will mollycoddle you through it, proving virtually impossible to fall off. It's little short of remarkable – in tests on a oil-covered skid-pan that would see any rider, on any conventional bike, picking themselves off the ground within seconds, the 4MC doesn't just remain upright, but it can actually cope better with the slippery conditions than most cars – as proved by skid-pan lap-times several seconds faster than most cars can manage on the same circuit. There are no bike times to compare it with; no two-wheeler has been tested that can safely make a single lap on the low-friction surface.

As a prototype, there's little point in going into the finer points of the 4MC's handling; it feels relatively long, with a low center of gravity disguising it's overall weight, and it's set up to give neutral handling. Only when you tip it over at ultra-low speed do you realize that, with the fear of crashing surgically removed, you can make full-lean, low speed circles tighter than you're ever likely to dare on a conventional bike.

More important than the handling – which on this prototype is so hugely adjustable that it's virtually immaterial anyway – is the feedback. Bumps are something you notice, but which don't upset the bike – even if you hit one with just one wheel during a tight turn, it does nothing to throw the machine off line. And at the bars there's exactly the feeling you'd expect from normal forks, with none of the remoteness usually associated with hub-center steered two wheelers – a result of a its designer's own concoction of play-free joints in the steering system.

So, it works. But why? Is it a bike? Is it a quad? Is it a car? As far as most governments are concerned, it's none of them – despite the mathematical evidence against it, they reckon it's a trike, and that's exactly why it's got the potential to be the most significant thing in motorcycling for years. Under the licensing laws of most countries, a machine like this can be ridden using a normal car driving licence, so its potential market is far, far bigger than any normal bike can dream of. In most developed countries, bike licence holders are outnumbered at least 15-1 by car drivers, and often the ratio is far greater. That means the 4MC's pool of potential buyers is simply enormous.

And thanks to its four-wheeled design and ingenious suspension system, which means it can go to full lean, complete with a rider, without falling over even at a standstill, it's got the extra element of safety that could tempt drivers who'd never dare venture onto two wheels. It's no wider than the average bike, so it can still slice through traffic, and it's bike-derived engine – a Yamaha YP400 scooter motor in the prototype – means its fuel economy is just as good as a two-wheeler's.

And its designer, Nick Shotter, isn't the only person to have spotted that this sort of bike could take off. Piaggio's three-wheeled MP3 scooter is already a huge success, and the firm has recently revealed a fractionally wider version that uses the same licence loophole as the MC4 to allow car drivers to use it without any extra training or testing. And Yamaha's 2007 Tokyo Show concept bike, the Tesseract, revealed how a future superbike using Shotter's suspension concept could look. Before that bike was built, Shotter had already approached Yamaha with his designs, and Yamaha Japan is in direct contact with him regarding the suspension layout; if they want to put the Tesseract into production, they'll need to licence the suspension technology from Shotter, who owns the patents on the layout.

Source: gizmag.com @By Ben Purvis

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Diapermotard? Ducati dips under US$10 grand to deliver its baby Hypermotard 796

 

Ducati's supermotard-on-steroids, the 1100 Hypermotard, has been terrorizing the streets for a couple of years now, a concept bike that became reality after it made a sensational splash at the 2005 EICMA show in Milan. Aimed at marrying some of the soft-suspension, short-wheelbase, low-weight feel of a motard with the grunt of a 100-horsepower L-twin motor and unmistakeable Ducati streetbike style, the Hypermotard is an absolute giggle machine. It's also fairly pricey though, which is why Ducati have just given it a much more affordable little brother. The Hypermotard 796 will sneak in under USD$10,000, using a torqued-up version of the 696 Monster engine and boasting both less weight and a lighter clutch than the 1100.

The last time I swung a leg over an 1100 Hypermotard, my impression was that it was tall, tiny and a load of fun, the brakes putting it on its nose as quickly as the throttle lifted its front wheel. For a short-range hooligan streetbike, it seemed to tick all the right boxes - even if it was a little wide in the 'bars for serious traffic splitting (particularly given those fold-out side mirrors).

But its pricing still put it well into the boutique level - you can get a whole lot of bike for US$12 grand from other manufacturers. So this new mini-hypermotard (Hyperminitard? Hypomotard? Diapermotard?) 796 might look like a much more attractive option to buyers at its USD$9995 price point.
The 796 motor, developed from the 696 Monster engine, makes about the same horsepower as the donor bike, at 81hp. It's up a healthy 6 foot-pounds of torque though, at 56lb/ft, reflecting the fact that it's designed to be ridden harder at street speeds.

The "super-light action APTC clutch" will make a nice change from the original Hypermotard's clutch lever, which always seemed like a bit of a test of manhood to me. Bikes like the Hypermotard seem to excel as urban weapons in my mind - hard seats and poor tank range tend to make them difficult tourers - so a nice, easy clutch is almost mandatory.

The Hypermotard 796 keeps its weight down, Ducati tell us, by means of a redesigned set of triple clamps and a reworked frame that gets rid of most of the 1100's forged components. The resulting 167-kilo (368 lb) motorcycle should feel light, agile and fun.

The Juniormotard's looks are very similar to its big brother's, retaining the single-sided swingarm, barkbuster-mounted indicators and mirrors and the sharp, flat beak of the 1100. So the 796, too, should be one of those bikes that feels like there's absolutely nothing in front of you as you ride; a bit of a flying carpet feeling.

We'll get our first glimpse of the baby Hypermotard in the flesh at EICMA Milan 2009.

Source: gizmag.com @ By Loz Blain

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Electric Voltra concept paves the way for sexy next-gen motorcycle design


As we wrote in last week's article about the ECOS Harbinger, one of the best things about electric vehicles is that they're much simpler in many ways than a petrol vehicle to build. Freed from the necessities of fuel tanks, airboxes, cooling systems, exhausts and the bulky combustion motor itself, designers are going to be able to start with a pretty blank sheet when it comes to designing tomorrow's electric motorcycles. Take the Voltra, a design study by Aussie student Dan Anderson - with its low-slung, bulldog looks, a seat unit that looks like it's floating on air, detachable dash and an engine-mounted swingarm pivot. It's a filthy sexy bike - and yet unlike anything we've seen before; a blue-sky reinvention of the motorcycle based on the new rules the electric age is going to bring in.

Electric transport has captured the imaginations of the eco-minded among us, but if you're going to sell electric motorcycles in any decent numbers, you're going to have to give them a serious injection of desirability.

Performance in itself can make a bike desirable, but electrics won't be able to offer the stratospheric power-to-weight ratios of modern sportsbikes until battery technology has taken another few strides forward. And while electric will offer immediate practicality in a commuting sense, motorcycles are still viewed as toys by most western consumers, so they'll need to be able to comfortably run a 600km day before most riders will see them as reasonable options for sporty scratching.

But one thing they'll certainly be able to compete on is design. Removing all the dirty, complicated trimmings that a combustion engine requires can open the door for a range of design options the bike world has simply never seen before. In performance terms, mass centralization and targeted mass distribution will take huge leaps forward, which should pave the way for sensational handling, but there's every chance that first- and second-generation electrics will be able to sell themselves on looks alone.

Dan Anderson's Voltra is a great example of the kind of electric that's going to start light bulbs going off in the minds and loins of even the staunchest petrolheads. From any angle, this thing is absolutely stunning.
Without a fuel tank, Anderson was free to bolt the entire subframe to the front end of the bike, leaving the seat and tail unit floating in air above the rear wheel, and making the sharply angled rear shock uniquely accessible through the gaping space in front of the seat.

The engine drives directly to the front sprocket, and its casing appears to rotate as the swingarm pivot. The "tank"-mounted dash is removable, doubling as the bike's ignition key and storing a decent range of information - as well as offering control over selectable power modes that let you choose between giggles and mileage at the throttle.

The batteries, the bulkiest part of any electric, are slung low and forward in the bike's belly, and are kept out of sight by a beefy plastic side fairing - which begs the question, what would you call this thing? With no front fairing, it's not a sportsbike - but then, despite the sharp front headlight unit, with those plastic side covers it's not a naked or a streetfighter.

Whatever label you'd put on it, this is one clean design and one hot ride that would turn heads at any bike meet. We applaud Dan's efforts on this bike and hope he gets a chance to build it one day - for the moment it's just his final year thesis project in an Industrial Design degree. But it's eminently buildable, and a great example of what the electric era might bring to bike design. Bring it on!

Source: gizmag.com @By Loz Blain

Sunday, April 28, 2013

The Vyrus 987 C3 4V: the world's most powerful production motorcycle


The name Vyrus may not be familiar to motorcycle enthusiasts when they begin reading this article, but by the end of it, there’s every chance it will be at the top of their list of “dream bikes.” The small Rimini-based Italian company is currently best known for producing the Bimota Tesi 2D, but the company's new, top-of-the-range, Vyrus 987 C3 4VV naked superbike is just about to propel it to even greater world renown, leapfrogging past a gaggle of superbikes to become the most powerful production motorcycle in the world. It's more powerful than Ducati’s Desmosedici RR, MV Agusta’s F4 312RR, Suzuki’s Hayabusa or Kawasaki’s ZZR1400. The hub-centre-steered Vyrus runs a 211 bhp supercharged 1198cc 1098R Ducati engine, weighs just 158 kg and costs EUR 65,000 (US$91,700).

The 4VV is the lightest and most powerful of four Vyrus variants.
The base model 984 C3 2V comes with a 100 bhp two valve 1000DS air-cooled Ducati engine, weighs in at a featherweight 150 kg and sells for EUR 33,400 (US$47,000). Just to put that weight in perspective, a MotoGP bike weighs 148 kg.

Next up the ladder is the 985 C3 4V, which weighs in at 157 kg, uses a 155 bhp 999R water-cooled Testastretta Ducati engine and costs EUR 50,000 (US$70,500).
Second from top is the 155 kg 987 C3 4V which sells for EUR 55,000 (US$77,500) and uses a water-cooled 1098R 1198cc Ducati engine producing 184 bhp

Finally, the range-topping 987 C3 4V V takes the 987 C3 4V and adds EUR 10,000, a supercharger, three kilograms, 27 bhp and, of course, the title of being the world’s fastest production motorcycle.
Take a close look at the Vyrus in the photo gallery and you’ll see the machine is full of innovation and incredible attention to detail, and very much a production of Vyrus’ owner, Ascanio Rodorigo.
The essence of the Vyrus brand is adequately encapsulated by this short outline from Rodorigo which explains his passion for detail:

I was a young boy, at the airport of Rimini the Ferrari Team came with a tester and a F40 to make brakes homologation. My father, a jet fighter pilot, was invited to participate and was inside the car. Happy and excited by the adventure. I walked around the car and looked at every particular. Lights, dashboard, internal equipment, everything did tell me, "I’m a race car, only race sensation, rude but efficient", I thought that was the best thing I could see at that time, the enthusiasm of my father become virulent because his approval of noise, velocity, real sensations and feeling. What a beauty!
My dream was a production of little series of bikes that could give me the fantastic sensation of a Race GP motorcycle but with lights and lateral stand!

The rear swing arm hand bended and welded to be the strongest and lightest possible, the special bolts machine worked to save 3 grams each, the seat with 8 mm foam to have the best feeling in drive, the carbon fibre everywhere, the fuel tank cap screw type, the bleeding system of fuel and engine vapour running in carbon fibre canisters, injection and ignition controlled by the most advanced computer, cable wiring almost invisible but the most complicate available, Racing style dashboards, the best brakes. All the best for a “Championship with a license plate”: the dream became true with Vyrus. I never had compromise since was young boy, why should I change now?
So what’s it like to ride?

The most experienced, knowledgable and best known motorcycle road tester in the world is Brit Alan Cathcart. Cathcart rode the unblown Vyrus and his report is available online here.

Vyrus it's a little workshop, and production is limited and highly exclusive and production of the 987 is currently sold until June. A four month wait seems a small inconvenience to pay for such exclusivity.

Soyrce: gizmag.com @By Gizmag Team

Monday, April 22, 2013

European motorcycles edge ahead of Japanese at Cathedral of Speed

 

The world's fastest road bike derivatives went to Italy last weekend for the latest round of the World Superbike Championships at Monza, AKA “the Cathedral of Speed.” Monza favors very fast motorcycles and the results echo what we'd already suspected after several rounds of the championship - there appears to be a changing of the guard underway and the addition of BMW and Aprilia to Europe's previously sole superbike contender, Ducati, appears to have tipped the balance of power away from the Japanese marques. A double-win to Aprilia and BMW's first podium in the superbikes were one indicator as was BMW's continuing superstock dominance. In a class that's an excellent guide to the sportiness of showroom road bikes, BMW's S1000 RR blew the competition into the weeds.

While Superbike racing has been the glamor class of roadbike-based motorsport for the last three decades, it's our opinion that the best indication of the sporting pretensions of a motorcycle is the Superstock class where bikes are very close to those on the showroom floor.

So far this year there have been four rounds, and all four races have been dominated throughout practice and the event by BMW S1000 RR machinery in general and Ayrton Badovini in particular. Badovini has four wins from four starts and a lead a BMW contingent which scored first, third and fourth in the race, and was clearly much faster in a straight line than any other marque in every session apart from a few instances where other riders drafted down the straight.

Badovini's “stock” BMW was clocked at 313.2 kmh – that's 194.6 mph. Most impressively, most of the other S1000 RR BMWs were also obscenely fast down the straight and it must be pointed out that those speeds are measured just before the braking area, and not at the end of a few miles of salt flat. In the race, most of the BMWs approached or bettered 310 kmh while the only time any of the non-BMWs (perfectly prepared examples of the Ducati 1098R, Honda CBR1000RR, Yamaha YZF R1, Suzuki GSX-R 1000, KTM 1190 RC8 R, Aprilia RSV4 1000 and Kawasaki ZX 10R) got above 300 kmh was when they were in the slipstream of a BMW. It is fast becoming clear that the BMW S1000 RR is the fastest roadgoing motorcycle available. In the Superbikes, it was a huge day for both Aprilia and BMW where the German marque scored its first Superbike podium in front of 115,000 spectators after what has been an impossibly long time coming. Two-time champ Troy Corser put his factory BMW into third in the second race and immediately promised that there’ll be more of the same on the way, including maybe adding to his 38 world superbike wins. The steady progress of the BMW at the front of the field has been evident this year with the machine leading several races and being prominently positioned in several others before the usual suspects fought through. In the second race several of the usual suspects crashed, finally giving BMW and Corser the podium they have waited for for such a long time.

“The bike is becoming better and better,” said Corser. “Between the races we made some set-up changes and the bike stopped much easier, and we had the speed to compete with the top guys. Thanks to all the boys at BMW. It has been a long time coming, and it won't be the last time.”

The majority of the Monza crowd would have been delighted to see Aprilia-mounted hometown hero Max Biaggi steal the show with yet another towering performance. The Italian bike and rider combination romped to its second clean sweep of the year on the lightning fast Aprilia, and is now only three points (181 to 178) behind Suzuki-mounted title leader Haslam before the circus heads to round six in South Africa next weekend.

“This track is very long and it’s very easy to make a little mistake plus when you have your rhythm you stay with it, and it’s difficult to go faster and easier to go slower,” said Biaggi. “Anyway I’m happy with the result, it was a close race.”

“I’m happy for me and my team. It’s an unbelievable result; it looks like we are achieving our goal. Here there is also the president of our group and it’s been a great weekend for everyone.”


 Aprilia is of course doing what BMW would have liked to have done, and that's continue to progress its machinery to what may yet become a dominant level. Two clean sweeps (each round has two races and twice Biaggi has won both races) so far this year in only five rounds indicates how well the machine is being set up. On numerous occasions we have seen the outright speed of the RSV4 easily take it past its competitors down the straight – the easiest way to pass. The RSV4s of Biaggi and Camier were clearly the fastest bikes in a straight line, with Biaggi topping 330 kmh down the chute in both races – his highest speed was measured at 330.4 kmh (205.3 mph).

Be sure to check out Gizmag's evaluation of the RSV4 to get an idea of what it's like on the road. Sadly, BMW has a very short corporate memory and won't give us a bike to test, despite the fact we've been testing bikes from BMW for a third of a century, have visited the factory many times and have never so much as put a scratch on one. Apparently it's one of a range of new austerity measures being dictated by the financial department at BMW as things are obviously tough down on the showroom floor.

Superstock 1000

  • Race : 11 laps
  • Time Of Race 19'46.264
  • Race Average 192.848 kmh
  • 1 A. Badovini BMW S1000 RR (307.3 km/h)
  • 2 M.Magnoni Honda CBR1000RR (296.9 km/h) + 6.101
  • 3 D. Beretta BMW S1000 RR (311.2 km/h) + 6.371
  • 4 M.Lussiana BMW S1000 RR (309.2 km/h) + 6.522
  • 5 D. Petrucci Kawasaki ZX 10R (301.5 km/h) +18.222
  • 6 M.Savary BMW S1000 RR (305.3 km/h) + 19.518
  • 7 L. Baroni Ducati 1098R (307.3 km/h) + 21.971
  • 8 M.Bussolotti Honda CBR1000RR (299.7 km/h) + 22.147
  • 9 R. MÄHR Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 (300.6 km/h) + 23.423
  • 10 M.Berger Honda CBR1000RR (301.5 km/h) +26.759
  • 11 P. Tutusaus KTM 1190 RC8 R (295.1 km/h) + 32.551
  • 12 O.Jezek Aprilia RSV4 1000 (297.8 km/h) + 33.301
  • 13 N. Vivarelli KTM 1190 RC8 (289.8 km/h) + 45.026
  • 14 R. Fusco Yamaha YZF R1 (292.4 km/h) +45.065
  • 15 E. La Marra Honda CBR1000RR (297.8 km/h) +46.525
  • 16 D. Lammert BMW S1000 RR (307.3 km/h) +46.595
  • 17 D. Giugliano Suzuki GSX-R 1000 (308.2 km/h) +46.756
  • 18 C. Leeson Kawasaki ZX 10R (301.5 km/h) +51.353
  • 19 T. Svitok Honda CBR1000RR (292.4 km/h) +1:01.297
  • 20 M.Salac Aprilia RSV4 1000 (291.6 km/h) +1:05.467

World Superbike Championships Round Five Race one: 18 laps

  • 1 Max Biaggi, Aprilia 31:07.044
  • 2 James Toseland, Yamaha +0.247secs
  • 3 Cal Crutchlow, Yamaha +0.297
  • 4 Leon Haslam, Suzuki +0.958
  • 5 Leon Camier, Aprilia +4.493
  • 6 Ruben Xaus, BMW +7.343
  • 7 Michel Fabrizio, Ducati +7.369
  • 8 Troy Corser, BMW +9.344
  • 9 Tom Sykes, Kawasaki +15.338
  • 10 Sylvain Guintoli, Suzuki +16.761
Fastest lap and founding record (revised track): Jonathan Rea, Honda – 1:43.031

World Superbike Championships Round Five Race two: 18 laps

  • 1 Biaggi 31:07.122
  • 2 Haslam +4.547
  • 3 Corser +5.469
  • 4 Camier +10.267
  • 5 Sykes +15.561
  • 6 Noriyuki Haga, Ducati +15.816
  • 7 Guintoli +15.861
  • 8 Jakub Smrz, Ducati +20.977
  • 9 Shane Byrne, Ducati +21.920
  • 10 Luca Scassa, Ducati +21.974
Fastest lap and new record: Crutchlow – 1:42.937

World Superbike Championship Standings (after 5 of 13 rounds):

  • 1 Haslam (Suzuki) 181
  • 2 Biaggi (Aprilia) 178
  • 3= Rea (Honda) 110
  • 3= Carlos Checa, (Ducati) 110
  • 5 Toseland (Yamaha) 106
  • 6 Haga (Ducati) 100
  • 7 Corser (BMW) 92
  • 8 Camier (Aprilia) 72
  • 9 Guintoli (Suzuki) 70
  • 10 Crutchlow (Yamaha)65
Next round: Kyalami, South Africa, May 14-16

Source: gizmag.com @By Gizmag Team


Thursday, April 18, 2013

Bubble-bike: US$750 Electric three-wheeler


The Bubble Bike might look like the love child of a scooter and a Messerschmitt Kabinenroller, but it’s an ingenious response to the needs of Northern China and some of the more northern Asian countries where temperatures drop well below zero in winter and the roads get a liberal coating of snow and ice, making them not nearly as suitable for scooters and motorcycles as they are in summer. The recipient of a 2009 Red Star Design Award (China’s equivalent of the red dot awards), the three-wheel Bubble Bike sells in China for RMB 5000 (around US$730).

Low cost transport is imperative in many developing countries, and the Bubble Bike's price-tag makes it the only game in town if you want more than two wheels, or want to carry three people or a lot of luggage and keep them/it dry and warm.
Most importantly, the Bubble Bike is electric, meaning it recharges from a power point for a negligible cost and has oodles of grunt for getting up to its 45 km/h top speed. Now we understand that's not so fast by the standards of the big cities with lots of space that we're accustomed to, but it's plenty fast for urban running in the highly congested streets of China's megacities.
The Bubble Bike has a range of 100 km and takes between six and eight hours to charge from a standard household power outlet in its current configuration. The manufacturers are currently trialling alternative batteries which decrease the charging time to three hours and increase the range of the vehicle to 200 km, plus the cost of the Bubble Bike by several hundred dollars. I'm presuming those batteries are lithium ion but translation between the designer’s Shandong dialect and English was an issue, so I can’t be sure.


 The biggest benefit of the bike is apparently roadholding. Bubble Bike's representative said that because the bike is very light and has three wheels and a low center of gravity, it really hangs onto the road. Given that its specifications and geometry are very similar to the Spira that I tried in Thailand last year I imagine that the handling would be similar (i.e. sensational).
In many ways, it's a scooter with a bit of protection, and there was some discussion amongst those of us looking at the machine whether there was adequate crash protection in comparison with a Western motor vehicle. One of those present contributed, "I'm sure it crash tests better than the scooter it will replace though."

 Source: gizmag.com @By Mike Hanlon

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Uno motorcycle reconfigures itself on the fly


Bombardier's concept for a one-wheeled self-balancing motorcycle-like vehicle called the EMBRIO has been a long time Gizmag favorite. It was envisioned as the type of personal transportation that people might be using 20 years from now. Well, if 21 year-old inventor Ben Gulak has his way, consumers will be able to buy a similar vehicle a lot sooner. His battery electric Uno may look like a regular motorbike at higher speeds, but when it slows down, the wheels realign themselves into a side-by-side configuration – seen in profile, it looks like a unicycle.


Gulak, a Canadian who is currently studying Mechanical Engineering at Harvard, is also the brains behind the stand-up tracked off-road vehicle, the DTV Shredder. Unlike the Shredder, however, the Uno was inspired by a desire to save the environment.
In 2005, Gulak accompanied his father on a business trip to China. There, he saw the huge number of smoky, combustion-engined two-stroke scooters and motorcycles that were on the road. He wanted to create an electric alternative to those vehicles, but knew that it would have to be something pretty special in order to make a name for itself. He proceeded to build his first prototype out of angle iron, wheelchair motors, batteries and gyroscopes, and is now working on commercializing the vehicle through his Massachusetts-based company, BPG Motors.


“Because we’re such a visual society, I wanted something that was really going to stand out and show people that being green can be cool,” he told us. “When I was in China [...] one of the things that seemed to be a problem was the congestion, so I thought if we could make a really small vehicle that could weave through traffic – it had to be the same power and abilities as the larger ones – that would make a lot of sense.”
“I wanted something that you could bring indoors, and charge in your apartment. Right now with electric scooters, one of the problems is that there’s nowhere to charge them, and they get vandalized on the road.”
Not unlike a Segway, the Uno uses gyroscopes to maintain balance at lower speeds – a rear kickstand supports the vehicle when it’s parked. At higher speeds, as it’s moving, the wheels realign themselves into a more traditional, one-behind-the-other motorcycle configuration. This is to provide stability, and to make the handling less twitchy. When we first featured the Uno a couple of years ago, it had two wheels. The version that Gulak is now working on, however, has three. When it hits 15mph (24km/h), the middle wheel moves to the front, while the outer two move to the back and squeeze together.


So, how does it feel to have your wheels rearrange themselves on the fly? “It happens in about one second, it’s a very quick transformation” said Gulak. “We’re still in the debugging stages right now, so I’m not going to say it’s not scary – it’s pretty terrifying, but it’s going to be good... It’s just a matter of time until we get it perfected.”
Unlike the Segway, which was kept under wraps until it was revealed to a rather baffled public, Gulak is constantly seeking public feedback on the Uno, to make sure that it’s something people will want to buy. That feedback has found its way into the vehicle’s current design.


“If you try to sell people on the idea of a self-balancing electric unicycle, [then] that just screams ‘far out there,’ but I think by keeping visual references to things that are familiar, people see it more as an evolution or the next step, as opposed to something that’s just completely out of the blue,” he explained.
Gulak hopes to produce an initial run of 30 bikes, within the next 8 to 12 months. They will be limited to a top speed of 35mph (56km/h) because of liability issues, and will be priced for enthusiasts at around US$25,000. As production picks up, the top speed will hopefully increase, while the price should drop to around US$6,500.

Source: gizmag.com @By Ben Coxworth

Sunday, April 14, 2013

2011 Honda CBR250R: The Babyblade is back!



Twenty years ago, quarter-liter sportsbikes ruled the roost in many regions, offering a mix of racy looks, light weight and snappy performance. But in recent years, with all the other major players leaving the segment, Kawasaki has enjoyed unchallenged sales success with its sharp-looking, yet friendly Ninja 250. But the mini-ninja will soon face stiff competition from Honda's totally re-conceived babyblade CBR250R, equipped with a 249cc single-cylinder, fuel injected engine, a tasty fairing that mimics the CBR1000RR and the first instance of optional ABS to grace the market segment. This will be a killer learner machine and a great introduction to the sport for legions of young riders. It's good to see the quarter-liter segment getting some love again. Oh, and check out what the aftermarket's already coming up with for these new machines.

Back in the early 1990s, the 250cc class was red-hot -– Honda's CBR250RR battling it out with Kawasaki's ZXR250 and Yamaha's YZF250 in a stand-up mini racebike brawl that saw power figures escalating to ridiculous heights. 45 horsepower from a quarter liter, 4 cylinder 4-stroke? That's a heck of a lot, especially considering we're talking more than 20 years ago, when top-flight liter bikes weren't making much more than 130 horses.
But that's what the kids wanted: bikes that looked fast and had lots of power. And the 250cc 4-strokes fit conveniently within learner license regulations in countries like Japan and Australia. They sold like hotcakes.

But like any hard-edged sports machine, they took a lot of skill to ride. You can't make big horsepower from a 4-cylinder engine without sacrificing a lot of low-end torque, so the CBR250s of old were very easy to stall. Low-set clip-on bars would crush your thumbs against the tank as you tried to do u-turns. These things were great on the open road, but a right pain around town – and I think it's fair to say they put a fair few learners off the idea of riding altogether. They had their shiny, fast-looking bikes, but they just couldn't get their heads around how to ride the things.

Fast-forward 20 years to the learnerbike market of today -– while many countries have graduated license schemes based on power-to-weight ratios, allowing learner riders to get on big, friendly bikes like the GS500, GSX650F, CB400 and the like, the bike that has really been setting sales figures alight is the Kawasaki Ninja 250.

And the Ninja got a lot of things right; it looks fast, but it's not as highly strung as the old ZXR. In fact, it's based on the old faithful GPZ and ZZR bikes that rounded out Kawasaki's 250cc offering for decades. Practical and rewarding machines that always seemed to play second fiddle to the racier looking machines.

The Ninja 250 put a coat of glamor on top of the fantastic GPX platform, creating a learnerbike that was both desirable AND rideable, that drew new riders into the sport but gave them something encouraging and friendly to develop their skills on. Released in 2008 and more or less unchallenged in its segment, it's still selling like crazy.

So the real question here is: why did it take Honda four years to catch up?
Catch up might not be the right word; Honda's upcoming 2011 CBR250R release will push the game a little further on from the little Ninja, but it takes a few big cues from the Kawasaki's success.

First of all, it looks great, every bit the younger brother of the popular CBR1000RR and VFR1200F with its glossy paneling, triangular exhaust and underpants-shaped headlight. It looks quick and it looks *now*.


The engine choice is an interesting one – Kawasaki has had great success with the Ninja 250R's parallel twin, but Honda has opted for a single-cylinder 249cc 4-stroke, fuel injected and very much oversquare, with a bore of 76mm and a stroke of just 55mm.

No power figures are quoted as yet, but that engine configuration suggests a very torquey bike, easy to get off the line and quick to build revs. It's also light, tipping the scales at 161 kg wet. Seat height is a fair bit higher than the Ninja 250R, at 78 cm versus the Kawasaki's 74.5 cm.


Most significantly, the Honda CBR250R will be the first bike in the segment to offer an ABS braking system – in this case, Honda's Combined ABS system, which in addition to managing wheel slip, also makes a proportion of the rear pedal braking pressure activate the front brakes.

It cannot be overstated what a good idea this is on a learner bike. I've had my reservations about motorcycle ABS systems in the past, but the simple fact is, you can grab and stomp the brake levers like a baboon in the pouring rain and Honda's ABS system will get you safely to a stop. And the combined braking system will nurse learners through that ubiquitous period where they're too afraid to get on the front brakes hard because of all the weight transfer issues. This combined ABS system alone will certainly save a legion of young riders from expensive and painful drops and crashes they would have had without it.

ABS is an optional addition, adding additional cost and 4kg of weight to the package. I would thoroughly recommend it.


So there you have it; in some ways, you might look at the new CBR250 and see it as a step backwards from what we had in the late 80s and early 90s. It will certainly not match the stratospheric power figures of that era, but as an entry machine into the world of motorcycling, it will serve new riders much better – without sacrificing the desirability factor of the older machines.

The aftermarket is already getting in on the act, anticipating this machine will be a big hit. The recent Thai Motor Expo saw big-name players like Mugen and Moriwaki showcasing an array of aftermarket gear for the new babyblade, including a couple of full fairing kits to make race replicas. 
Expect this part of the market to take off even harder when MotoGP's 125cc 2-strokes leave the grid forever, replaced by 250cc 4-strokes. Check out the prototypes below:



Loads more photos in the gallery, by the way.

The only thing that remains to be seen is how the new CBR goes against the Ninja 250R – and you can bet your hat there'll be a rash of comparo tests hitting the magazines and the Web the second the CBR250R becomes available – which will be in Q2 this year. Whichever one takes off quicker from the lights, my vote's with the Honda and its ABS system.


Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Night Rod Special - cream of the 2012 Harley-Davidsons



Harley-Davidson is an American success story. The company has been manufacturing its iconic machines since 1903 but its values were forged by association with the post-war "rebel" motorcycle clubs and paradoxically with the highway patrol police they were so often in conflict with. Like so much of US manufacturing Harley-Davidson took a hit from the rise of the Far East in the 1980s but the boom years of 90's excess saw Harley-Davidson successfully consolidate its brand into the global symbol of 'the American Dream' that it is today. Harley-Davidson understands its place in the world and the 2012 model line up contains variations on all the traditional designs that people expect, some of them going back to the 1920's. It would be wrong however to imagine that the company rejects technological advancement - far from it, and there can be no more beautiful expression of that than the Night Rod Special.

The Night Rod Special is a custom variation of the V-Rod series that brought a more modern and aggressive street style plus a number of technological advances to the brand. The famous V-Twin engine has been "breathed" on by the engineers at Porsche to bring increased RPM and power - 125bhp - with fuel injection, double overhead cams and water cooling. The unique feature of the V-Rod series though is the "exo-frame" which wraps around the tank and engine like no other Harley. To manufacture the sensuous curves that the designers wanted Harley-Davidson turned to the use of hydroforming where the frame tubes are created in a mould using 60,000 psi of pressure. They are the only bike manufacturer using this technique at present.

To ensure the iconic engine and unique frame are seen without distraction all cabling is invisible, either passing through the frame or mounted in plastic mouldings under the fuel tank. Of the all the electronics on the bike Harley-Davidson is most proud of their self-cancelling turn indicators that use accelerometers to detect lean angle, direction and speed to calculate when to cancel the signal.

But enough of the technology, Harley-Davidsons are all about cruising and looks, and the visuals of the Night Rod Special couldn't be stronger - fully blacked out tank, engine, wheels, forks, tail and exhaust - apart from the stainless steel mufflers. A black low-rise bar, some contrasting red lining, a fat rear tyre and lowered suspension complete the look. If you're not particularly interested in going around corners and want to pretend to be keeping a low profile whilst gaining really rather a lot of attention, it's yours for around US$16,000.

Monday, April 8, 2013

BMW reworks the S1000RR


We were mightily impressed by BMW's S1000RR superbike the first time round, now the German manufacturer has announced the S1000RR mark II. Power and maximum torque figures remain at 142 kW (193 hp) and 112 Nm on the revised superbike with the mostly subtle changes centered on improving response, power delivery and handling. The torque curve, throttle response and suspension have all been tweaked along with the (very effective) ABS and Dynamic Traction Control systems. Externally, the 2012 SS1000RR gets an upgraded instrument cluster, revised rear-end, redesigned side panels with the addition of two winglets for improved aerodynamics and a new range of colors.
The S 1000 RR has has wasted no time populating the trophy cabinet since its release in 2009, winning 13 titles and over 120 race victories in superstock and superbike championships during its first full year of competition. BMW Motorrad, which offers a support service to customers who want take the S1000RR racing, says feedback from the track played a major role in the bike's overhaul.
"We listen very closely to our racing colleagues in many teams, especially the BMW Motorrad Italia superstock team or the IDM Team BMW Motorrad Wilbers Suspension," said RR Product Manager Sepp Mächler." We help these teams out and they give us quick and reliable feedback, which helps reduce development times."
Here's a run down on the key changes:
  • reconfigured throttle with 25% less twisting force and tighter twistgrip for improved response
  • more linear torque curve and expansion from two to three performance curves (one each for Rain and Sport modes and an additional one for Race and Slick modes); Rain mode now 120 kW (163 hp)
  • enhanced tuning between Race ABS and Dynamic Traction Control (DTC)
  • final drive now 17/45 (was 17/44)
  • modified steering head angle, swing arm pivot position, fork projection, and rear shock absorber length
  • new internal structure for upside down fork and the rear shock absorber
  • new mechanical steering damper adjustable over ten levels
  • leaner tail section, modified stainless steel exhaust system, larger intake air guide, redesigned side panels, side aperture grilles and winglets
  • revised LCD instrument cluster easier to read rev counter, five dimming levels and additional functions such as "Best lap in progress" and "Speedwarning"
  • revised RR logo
  • new color variants: plain Racing Red with Alpine white, Bluefire, Sapphire black metallic, BMW Motorrad Motorsport
The revised BMW S1000RR was shown this month at EICMA in Italy and is set for release in January 2012. No RRP has been announced as yet.

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Ducati tests 2012 MotoGP bikes


Ducati recently finished its first series of official MotoGP testing at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia, beset by the typically hot and humid conditions and rain that interrupted track time. Nicky Hayden had a painful shoulder injury that limited valuable time on the bike, limiting input to the technicians as well as getting a feel for the new machine. Valentino Rossi continued until the rain arrived, finishing the session with the fifth-best time behind Honda's Casey Stoner, Yamaha's Jorge Lorenzo, Honda's Dani Pedrosa and Yamaha's Ben Spies.

Technical changes

A big part of the progress the team has made is due to the twin-spar aluminum frame, which provides better feel of what the front end is doing, something that Rossi has been concerned with throughout the 2011 season (and which he alludes to in his comments below).

While Fillipo Preziosi, general manager Ducati Corse, is happy with the overall progress that has been made so far, he hasn't revealed details of the changes that have been made. Preziosi expressed concern that while the GP12 is performing better than the previous version, the gap to Stoner's Honda is still 1.2 seconds, but the gap to the Yamaha's is half that.

Here's what the riders had to say:

Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team) 5th, 2:00.824 (42 laps)

"We on the team are all happy with how this test has gone, especially today," commented a typically up-beat Valentino Rossi. "With a 2:00.8, we're starting to get to a decent time. The two Hondas and the two Yamahas are still ahead of us, but we consider this test to be a starting point. The most positive things we've achieved are that the front now lets me ride a little more as I'm able, that the bike reacts well to changes and that we have very clear ideas on what's still missing. In particular, if we manage to improve the bike's behaviour on acceleration, we'll be able to take a consistent step forward. I know that the work has never stopped at Ducati, and now with the information we've gathered, they'll keep working on the areas that we've identified. That might take a while, but there's still some time before the first race. We have to keep improving, so we're not getting too excited, but I'm pleased with how things have gone so far."

                      Electronic traction control or not, this is what we can look forward to in 2012

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) 10th, 2:01.729 (just 19 laps)

In what must have been a very frustrating time owing to a should injury that limited time on the bike, and as a result, the amount of feedback required by the team technicians to optimise settings, American Nicky Hayden nevertheless put a positive spin on the Sepang tests:

"Obviously, I'd like to have done more. I can't really say it was a real test for me, but I did a few laps each morning in order to at least get a feel for the new bike, get a little data and understand a couple of things. Even in that limited time, I was able to make small improvements and go quicker each day. Ducati did an amazing job with this bike in a short amount of time. It's smoother than any other Ducati I've ever ridden, it looks slick and it's good to work on. It's got good power, and the front end is working well, but with the extra power, now we've got to find better rear traction at the first touch of the throttle. With the few adjustments we've made, everything seems to be going in a good way, so now I just need to get healthy."

                                    Nicky Hayden's shoulder injury put paid to any serious testing

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Sway unveils its sporty tilting three-wheel e-scooter prototype

After years in development, Sway Motorsports has unveiled a prototype of its tilting three-wheel electric scooter, one with a rather sportier bent than the tilting electric three-wheelers we've seen before, such as Sidam's Xnovo. And though this is a relatively low-powered machine, judging from the videos this thing isn't without agility and zip. Clearly the Sway is pitched squarely at the leisure market.

The scooter is the spare time project of IDEO toy-designer and Rhode Island School of Design alumnus, Joe Wilcox. Prior to his current stint at IDEO, Wilcox worked at NASA's Johnson Space Center and MIT on various space-oriented projects. I'm not one for arguments from authority, but it's probably fair to say that Wilcox knows a thing or two about design.

We got in touch with Wilcox to find out about the Sway scooter's spec, and though the final details could change (it's not due for release until 2013), Wilcox was able to reveal some particulars.

The prototype pictured here is powered by a 60-V, 20-Ah lithium iron phosphate battery pack, which gives the vehicle a range of about 10 miles (16 km). Sway Motorsports intends the production model to include a 60-Ah pack for a range in the order of 30 miles. The wheels are driven by a 3500 W hub motor in the Sway's solitary rear wheel, giving the 230-lb (104-kg) scooter a top speed of 40 mph (64 km/h). The Sway's overall dimensions are 52 x 35 x 40 inches (1.32 x 0.89 x 1.02 m), and its three wheels are 10 inches in diameter.

All the lighting from the headlights to the turn signals (plus some decorative strip lighting) is LED-based.

"Notable about this design is the patented placement of the batteries in the wing/foot platform that extends back from the bottom bar of the linkage," Wilcox told Gizmag - an innovation which keeps the battery away from the tilting mass and helping to keep the Sway's center of gravity as close to the road as possible.

As for that tilting mass, the scooter's tilting steering mechanism is perhaps its most eye-catching feature, and is probably best observed in motion (see the video below). There's no final word yet on pricing, but one can expect the Sway to be rather more expensive than its more staid, tilting brethren, if only due to tighter production runs.

Monday, April 1, 2013

Kawasaki's 39 horsepower Ninja 300 bonsai superbike

 


Kawasaki's best-selling motorcycle is not the lightning fast Ninja ZX-10R litre sports bike, the only Japanese bike still in the race for the World Superbike Championship. Nor is it the company's 200 mph ZX-14R Ninja projectile. Ironically, it's the diminutive Ninja 250 which translates the performance DNA of the brand into a more practical and affordable "learners" bike with definite sporting aspirations.

On the fortieth anniversary of the bike which changed everything (the original 900cc Z1 superbike), Kawasaki has announced a 300cc version of its entry-level, four-stroke, parallel-twin Ninja 250R, and those sporting aspirations have been comprehensively realized.


 A significant redesign of the 250 was recently announced for the Japanese marketplace after three decades of incremental improvement and the new 300 gets all those features, plus an extra 50cc.

Most significantly, the engine is entirely new, and although the stroke is only slightly longer, the power output of the new liquid-cooled, DOHC, 8-valve, fuel-injected parallel twin is claimed to be 29 kilowatt or 38.9 horsepower - that's roughly a 20% increase in power over the current Ninja 250 and puts it into the same performance envelope of the thinly-disguised two-stroke quarter liter racer-roadsters of not-long-ago ... and instead of the hydrocarbon-broadcasting, ecological disasters of yesteryear, we now have finely-tuned, fuel-injected, responsive and squeaky clean engines which the other ASEAN motorcycle manufacturers will not be able to match, at least not in the foreseeable future.


Both the new Ninja 250R and Ninja 300 are clearly aimed at Honda's sweet single-cylinder CBR250R which has taken significant market share from the Ninja in many important "monied" marketplaces since its release.

It's not surprising that the Honda CBR250R should draw such an aggressive response from Kawasaki - just as prestige automotive brands provide entry-level vehicles to introduce aspiring enthusiasts to their brand, the emergence of dozens of Chinese and Korean brands has now elevated the Japanese establishment into the utmost upper strata of motorcycledom.


Accordingly, Honda and Kawasaki are fighting over what they perceive as long-term customers, so the prestige/horsepower war that has traditionally been fought with flagship four-cylinder liter-plus models has now being escalated to Defcon 1 in the lower, entry-level classes.

A quick perusal of the specifications reveals a completely new motorcycle - new motor, new induction, new frame, new suspension, new brakes, new wheels, and a superbike class feature set - many of the features which sell liter-bike supersport machinery have been added to the bonsai Ninja.


Apart from the massive horsepower boost, clumsy agricultural carburettors have been replaced with finely calibrated, second-generation fuel-injection, and features which have only recently become available on superstock contenders have been added to the mix - a 290mm petal-disk, twin-caliper brake, advanced suspension, and astonishingly, a slipper clutch.

The slipper clutch was derived to mitigate the engine braking of high compression racing four-strokes on the entry into corners on the racetrack ... and not all that long ago.


Apart from adding unnecessary stress on the engine, chain, clutch and gearbox, the dysfunctional stress of engine braking unsettled the bike on corner entry, and getting a bike into a corner on the limits no longer required the additional effects of engine braking as the rear disk brake had more than enough power and feel to provide optimum retardation. What was once a bonus on big four-stroke singles with anemic drum rear brakes had become a problem and the slipper clutch was the answer.

Such invention is less than a quarter century old at the elite level of motorsport, so whether it's warranted on an entry-class machine is debatable – we'll reserve judgement on the need for a slipper clutch on such a small free-revving engine until we've ridden one. Whilst it sounds like a minor case of overkill, it may be just another refinement on the way to the perfect motorcycle for riders who have not yet developed the feel to push a motorcycle to its limits.
 

The ABS (anti-lock braking system) is claimed to be significantly more sophisticated, and a new more rigid diamond frame, revised suspension, a wider 140 mm rear tire, better heat management (to direct hot air away from the rider), plus a range of features from larger Ninja and ZZR models such as a ZX-10R-style floating windscreen, dual headlights similar to the Ninja ZX-6R, a ZZR1400-style fairing and wheel design, aluminum foot-pegs and a silencer shaped much more like the bigger Ninja models (and far more advanced in its design.)

 

There's also a completely new instrumentation package, with an analogue-style tachometer, a multi-function LCD including fuel gauge, dual trip meters, clock, and an "Economical Riding Indicator."

The new Kawasaki Ninja 300 will be available at Kawasaki dealerships later this month or next. Different colors and specifications will be available in different markets, but for now, we're aware of Pearl Stardust White, Ebony or Special Edition Lime Green liveries, and some markets will get ABS as standard, while others will get them as optional. Pricing has not yet been announced.





Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Hanebrink Hustler X5 electric bike has top speed of over 80 mph, 200+ mile range


In addition to providing excellent traction on slippery slopes and sandy dunes, the chunky tires of Hanebrink pedal-electric bikes have also become something of a trademark look for the company. Change is in the air though, as signified by the launch of a new website and the addition of a new model to the family. The Hustler X5 electric street bike has the look of a small motorcycle and is capable of speeds in excess of 80 mph (128 km/h), yet also sports some pedals hidden behind the removable lower portion of the fairing.

CEO and Hustler X5's designer Dan Hanebrink told us that his latest creation is "a very capable street electric two-wheeler, able to keep up with and ahead of normal car traffic on city streets and highways. Massive battery capacity, and advanced electronics allow the rider to select power modes for any jurisdiction or situation."


The 120-pound (54-kg) X5 has a dual suspension monocoque chassis with 6061-T6 aircraft-grade seamless aluminum tubing and a watertight sheet aluminum box section that houses the four Li-ion Nickel Manganese Cobalt liquid-cooled AllCell batteries.

Hanebrink says that the battery pack can provide a 200+ mile (321 km) range and a top speed of over 80 mph in competition mode. The battery packs and controllers are custom made to suit the needs of the individual customer.

The bike features a Crystalyte 5303 Mid Motor, 14-speed transmission, inverted triple clamp coil/hydraulic front forks with seven inches (177 mm) of travel and monocoque swing arm rear suspension with air adjustable hydraulic shocks. The bike's creator states that, "optional adjustable offset triple clamp forks allow the rider to adjust for corner entry reaction from very quick to very stable, or anywhere in between."

There's Avid hydraulic disc braking at the rear and Brembo four piston hydraulic disc brakes to the front, and the 20 x 8 x 8-inch rear wheel has a tubeless fat tire while the 120/80 x 14 front wheel gets a Moto GP tire.

"The aero design of the bodywork greatly benefit speed, range, safety, and comfort, and provides convenient compartments to carry needed items," claims Hanebrink. "The bike has operable pedals, and can be pedaled, with the belly pan of the fairing removed. Pedaling does, however, reduce the range and speed (efficiency) of the bike (in a pedaling position, the increased aero drag more than cancels out the benefit of pedaling)."


Despite the sharp-looking edges in the photo above, we're assured that there's no conflict between the rider's legs and the fairing when the lower part is detached with a coin (via six Dzus quarter-turn captive fasteners) and removed for pedal mode.

On the question of the X5's street legal status, Hanebrink told us that "the benefit of a legal electric bicycle is, of course, that it does not require registration, drivers license, or special motorcycle permit, etc. and can be operated where motorcycles are not permitted (National Forest, BLM land, and so on). The owner can register it as a motorcycle, if desired, and benefit from applicable tax rebates."

"There are two operating modes – Legal and Competition. The fact that a vehicle is capable of higher speeds does not in any way imply that the operator intends to break the law. Look at any car or motorcycle on the road today, some of which can exceed 200 mph. The rider may choose pedaling, or full fairing. Both are legal. The law does not require the rider to pedal, only that the pedals be operable."

Pricing starts at US$16,940 and customers ordering now can expect delivery by the end of March 2013. Each model is built in consultation with the buyer, where custom options like different colors and LED lighting/turn indicators can be selected.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200 Sport


Harley Sportsters have been with us for many years now, and with the 1996 1200S Sport edition you could say they've come full circle. First introduced in 1958, Sportsters were based loosely on the K-model racer of the middle to late 50's. Stripped down, narrow, and light-weight, they were considered the Sixties superbike. During the AMF days of the 70's and early 80's, though, the Sporty evolved into Harley's econo-cruiser. With the arrival of the 883 Sportster, and now the Sportster 1200S, Harley has brought the Sporty back to where it started, to compete with semi sporting bikes.
The XL 1200S is an all new model in the Sportster family for 1996. The first road-going Harley to be factory equipped with full-on
adjustable sporting suspension, the 1200 Sport features many other enhancements not found on the likes of any other Harley-Davidson. Items such as new 13-spoke cast aluminum wheels mounted with Dunlop K591 Sport Elite tires, flat, sport-styled handlebars, sport-styled seat with textured insert and embroidered Sportster logo, larger 3.3 gallon fuel tank, and dual front, floating-disc brakes turn this Sporty into a serious backroads scratcher.   The addition of fully-adjustable suspension to the new 1200 Sporty is a radical update for the Motor Company. Of course, in the grand scheme of motorcycle building, adding spring- and damping-adjustable suspension components isn't a big deal -- for instance, designing and tooling up a new motor, like Harley did with their five-speed Evolutions a decade ago, is much more costly and labor intensive. No, the new 1200 Sport is a big subjective gain for many.
"Harley-Davidson has finally admitted that some of their owners might actually want to go blitzing up a twisty canyon road as well as lazily cruising down a boulevard. Call it a sport-cruiser, if you will."
But if a Harley is what you want, and carving canyons is what you crave, then this Sporty is the bike for you. The new Showa suspension offers a wide range of adjustments, and each click of a dial at either end has noticable effect on suspension  action. Handling-wise, the 1200S offers no cause for concern when flicked about in the corners, once properly set up.
If the settings aren't right, the Harley can be a bit twitchy, but proper care and patience while dialing it in will reward the rider with a light-feeling, stable handling machine with quick turn-in and loads of ground clearance. The K591's are grippy and fully up to the task; once banked over, the Sporty holds its line well. Equipped with the best brakes we've ever had the pleasure of squeezing on a stock Harley, a firm pull on the lever returns impressive reduction of speed.
The big 1200cc Evo mill delivers smooth, torquey power with no surprises. Not a real powerhouse, this Sporty relies more on its light weight (497 lbs. dry) and cubic capacity than all out horsepower for its back road performance. All '96 Sportsters feature a new high-contact-ratio gearbox that makes the slick-shifting 1200S a real delight to row through the gears between bends in the road. Ergonomics are mildly sport oriented (for a Harley), with an excellent bar-seat-peg relationship that offers surprising comfort even over longer distances, and makes a great platform for those occasional banzai runs around the local fast sweepers.
"The 1200 Sport is an enjoyable, easy-to-ride motorcycle with no real vices, and without the extreme riding position." 
If riding in the twisties at anything more than a good clip is your idea of fun, you should take a hard look at the new 1200S Sportster Sport. Assuming, of course, that you want a Harley -- because compared to almost any modern sport bike, the 1200 Sporty doesn't stand a chance in hell of staying close when the going gets tight.
The 1200 Sport is an enjoyable, easy-to-ride motorcycle with no real vices, and without the extreme riding position. It's just the best handling, most competent H-D Sportster ever to come out of Milwaukee.

Specifications: 
Manufacturer:  Harley-Davidson
Model: 1996 XL1200S Sportster 1200 Sport
Price:  $7910
Engine: ohv, 2-valve, V-Twin
Bore x stroke: 88.8 x 96.8
Displacement: 1200cc
Carburetion:  40mm Keihin CV
Transmission:  5-speed
Wheelbase: 60.2 in.
Seat height: 28.9 in.
Fuel capacity: 3.3 gal.
Claimed dry weight: 497 lbs.

2006 Harley-Davidson Street Rod Street Ride



You ask yourself; if this is such a fine motorcycle, why would Sean need to preface this story with that opening paragraph? This is where it gets complicated. Depending on what they expect from their motorcycles, different riders will view the new StreetRod as different things. Accomplished cruiser riders will view it as a resounding success. "Standard" riders will see it as another large, solid motorcycle for commuting and weekend fun rides.
The StreetRod is available in five colors, but only the black version gets the beautiful black frame The StreetRod is available in five colors, but only the black version gets the beautiful black frame
However, Sportbike riders will see this bike as a failure and just another example of Harley's inability to build a proper sportbike. Me? Well, I'm all f@c&ed up about it. I love all motorcycles (ok, so I sorta hate choppers and I'm really a "sportbike" fan) and I would be overjoyed to have a StreetRod in my (imaginary) stable of bikes. Harley is quick to point out that the StreetRod is NOT intended to be a "sportbike". Think of it as more of a Gentleman's Express that mixes a healthy dose of style into its basic engineering. Thus, I urge you to take my objective dynamic impressions with a grain of salt. I rode the bike as intended and it worked fine. However, I also rode it like I'd ride a standard or hooligan bike, because... lets face it, I have no self-control.
Along with the FX and Sportster "Sport" series of motorcycles, the StreetRod marks a slight departure from Harley's bread and butter "cruiser" product line. All three of those models offer a reasonable riding position and a willing (but still long and heavy) personality and it's no surprise that those three bikes are my favorite Harleys. However, they are still "Harleys" and this fact became evident in the technical briefing, which focused more on style and styling related compromises like the StreetRod's 32° effective fork rake, produced by a 30° steering head, + 2° triple-clamp offset (compared to the VRod's outlandish 38° effective rake from a 34° steering head, +4° offset triple-clamps) which is needed to allow clearance between the "stylish" 19" front wheel and the stylishly funky radiator placement. When we asked why they didn't simply switch to 17" wheels for better clearance, geometry and handling, they replied: "Because it wouldn't look right." Different strokes for different folks, I guess.
V-RodV-Rod
Street Rod™Street Rod™

To their credit, Harley recognized the importance of good brakes when designing a fast Gentleman's Express, so they went to Brembo to help them with the new 4-piston Harley-badged brake calipers. Those calipers clamp a set of non-floating 300mm rotors and the bike is equipped with braided-steel brake lines and high performance pads.
It's a good thing Harley upgraded the brakes, because an aggressively ridden 650Lb motorcycle generates a lot of energy. On the road, I found the brakes to be sufficiently strong to deal with whatever I could dish out. However, the pads do bite aggressively around town, so riders will want to be extra observant for traction reducing substances when approaching intersections, lest they lock-up and tuck the front. The improvement in these brakes is particularly startling when compared with the rest of Harley's product line, which is known for dumbed-down brake tuning that offers a soft and friendly application at the expense of responsiveness and overall stopping power. Overall, I really like the new brakes and by the end of the day, their aggressive initial bite receded to the back of my mind as I subconsciously adjusted to them.
The revised chassis geometry is complimented by a new set of non-adjustable 43mm upside-down front forks and a relocated set of longer preload adjustable shocks in the rear. The revised suspension produces a taller ride height and when you couple that with the re-positioned exhaust and footpegs, you get significantly better ground clearance than a VRod. According to Harley, the VRSCR can now be leaned just over 40°, which isn't bad for a "custom" style bike.
Even a big dork like Sean can look cool on the StreetRod Even a big dork like Sean can look cool on the StreetRod
The revised suspension produces a taller ride height and when you couple that with the re-positioned exhaust and footpegs, you get significantly better ground clearance than a VRod The revised suspension produces a taller ride height and when you couple that with the re-positioned exhaust and footpegs, you get significantly better ground clearance than a VRod
StreetRod riders probably wouldn't want to pick a fight with an FZ-1, but old farts on Suzuki GS-1100Gs should look out!StreetRod riders probably wouldn't want to pick a fight with an FZ-1, but old farts on Suzuki GS-1100Gs should look out!

The StreetRod's revised chassis is reasonably stiff and responsive; however, the luxury liner wheelbase and 19" wheels conspire to make tight corners and quick direction changes a bit slower than they should be. Furthermore, the 32° effective rake means that the front contact-patch is still way out there, so the tire's feedback is muted. Most of the time, this isn't a problem, but as I tried to approach the limits of the bike's newly enhanced ground clearance, I noticed a bit of chatter and an impending sense of doom from the front tire. However, at normal (or slightly faster) speeds, the bike behaves wonderfully, feeling solid and planted. That extra poundage actually helps in this case and doesn't prevent the StreetRod from being responsive to inputs from its rider.
The new riding position strikes a nice balance between sporting and standard, offering excellent control when probing the bike's limits. However, the revised frame is still long and low, meaning it's a bit too tight between the seat and the bottom frame rail. Thus, the pegs are about an inch higher than is ideal for tall-guy comfort. The bars are properly placed and offer a nice neutral arm position that never seems to fatigue, while the new thinner grips give a more comfortable place to hang-on.
The new seat is a bit too soft though, so it is quite comfortable for short trips, but the rider starts to develop pressure points after an hour or two. Towards the end of my long test ride, you were just as likely to see me standing dual-purpose style, as you were to find me sitting like a normal streetbike rider. Of course, this is easy to fix, and a revised (firmer/taller) seat would allow for more legroom as an added bonus. With the seating and legroom issues sorted, the StreetRod would be better equipped to capitalize on its new 5Gal. gas tank, which appears to be good for around 180 miles between stops. (The VRod has a smaller 3.7Gal tank that's only good for about 110 miles.)
When ridden aggressively, the bike's biggest problem is that it's just too long and heavy. When I first heard about the StreetRod, I assumed that it had an improved riding position, improved ground clearance, less rake, more horsepower and lighter weight than a VRod. Unfortunately, only three of my five assumptions were correct, as the horsepower is about the same and the StreetRod is actually 20Lbs heavier than a VRod, thanks mostly to stouter forks and triple clamps. When riding up a canyon road, the StreetRod can be a lot of fun, but when you start back down, the effect is akin to a freight train. It is perfectly controllable, as long as you don't expect to go charging into a downhill decreasing-radius corner hard on the brakes, while trying to shake off some squid on a sportbike. Keep a cool head and you can make good time on the StreetRod, just don't expect it to tear-up Deal's Gap like an XB-9S.
When ridden aggressively, the bike's biggest problem is that it's just too long and heavy When ridden aggressively, the bike's biggest problem is that it's just too long and heavy
The wonderful engine is basically unchanged from the VRod, aside from a revised exhaust that Harley says ads 5Hp. However, we just dynoed an '05 StreetRod, and its 107.4Hp and 71.2LbFt don't compare very favorably with the last two VRods that we've tested ('03 VRod: 106.6Hp 72.6LbFt / '05 VRod: 110Hp / 75.8LbFt.) On the road, the power delivery is similar to a VRod, though it isn't quite as "impressive", since the new riding position better equips the rider to handle accelerative forces. Seems it's easy to feel fast, when you're already rocked-back on your tailbone. Of course, the VRod may be able to keep up in a straight line, but once you get to the slightest curve, the StreetRod will leave it in its dust.
As I trolled the roads surrounding Palomar Mountain, I found the Street Rod was happiest when kept in the 5 -7K RPM range.
This produced seamless thrust and enabled me to enjoy the delicious sounds, while taking advantage of the bike's improved ground clearance and brakes. That ground clearance isn't class leading, (if the StreetRod fits into a class) but it is sufficient enough that I had to make a conscious effort to scrape anything, and even then, it was only the outside of my boots and the peg feelers that touched down. As "standard" bikes go, StreetRod riders probably wouldn't want to pick a fight with an FZ-1, but old farts on Suzuki GS-1100Gs should look out! Besides, when's the last time a "standard" looked this cool?
Harley is offering the new Street Rod for $16,495. That certainly isn't "cheap", but this manufacturer seems to get away with pricing like that, so I assume it won't be much of a barrier for potential buyers. The VRSC is a damned fine engine, and the StreetRod is a fun bike to hustle around on. We're encouraged by the direction that Harley is taking with the VRSCR and hope it's a sign of things to come.
107.39 Hp @ 8,250RPM / 71.21 LbFt @ 7,600RPM 107.39 Hp @ 8,250RPM / 71.21 LbFt @ 7,600RPM