Stefan Pierer’s acquisition of Husqvarna continues to baffle me. You will note I say Pierer, and not KTM, bought Husqvarna, since the Austrian CEO used Pierer Industrie AG in the transaction as a means to help side-step European antitrust issues. After all, we can’t have Europe’s largest dirt bike manufacturer, nay largest total motorcycle manufacturer, gobbling up even more brands in the two-wheeled world. But, I digress. Developing three road bikes (Husqvarna Nuda 900, Husqvarna Strada 650, & Husqvarna Terra 650), with three more concepts waiting in the wings (Husqvarna Moab, Husqvarna Baja, & Husqvarna E-G0), it is with even more confusion that we learn that Pierer & Co. intend to kill the Husqvarna Nuda project and its other street siblings.
In case you missed the story last week, Kevin Schwantz is preparing to race in this year’s Suzuka 8-Hour endurance race. For the race, Schwantz will be riding on a team formed by Yukio Kagayama, who in addition to having raced in the MotoGP, World Superbike, and British Superbike Championships, is also a previous Suzuka 8-Hour winner with the Suzuki Endurance Race Team (also joining the three-rider team Noriyuki “Nitro” Haga). Releasing a Q&A about his team’s Suzuka 8-Hour entry, Kagayama-san walks us through how the team came together, what equipment the riders will use, and his outlook on the team’s competitiveness.
A single-cylinder hooligan-maker, the KTM 690 Duke is 330 lbs (curbside without fuel) and 67hp of two-wheeled fun, and we hope that the Austrians bring the KTM 690 Duke R our way as well. While we are on the topic of things missing from KTM’s American line-up, a decent supersport is painfully obvious, yet we can’t see the folks at KTM following the paths of other brands. That’s where our friend Luca Bar comes to mind with his latest concept: the KTM RC4. Using the KTM 690 Duke platform and its LC4 engine, Bar has designed a super-single full-fairing sport bike that takes the Austrian company’s “Ready to Race” DNA and applies it to an idea that is not all that disimilar to the Ducati Supermono.
When I sat down with Claudio Domenicali at the Ducati 1199 Panigale R launch, the now-CEO of Ducati Motor Holding was still just the General Manager of the Italian motorcycle company. Four weeks after our interview though, Gabriele del Torchio would leave Ducati for Alitalia; and Domenicali, a 21-year veteran of both the racing and production departments of Ducati, would take his place at the top of Italy’s most prestigious motorcycle brand. After reading our interview from Austin, Texas after the jump, I think you will agree too.
That Yamaha is working on a seamless gearbox is no secret, with Yamaha’s test riders currently racking up the kilometers around tracks in Japan. Recently, however, Spanish magazine SoloMoto published an article suggesting that Yamaha has already been using its new seamless gearbox since the beginning of the season. My own enquiries to check whether Yamaha was using a seamless gearbox or not always received the same answer: no, Yamaha is not using the seamless gearbox. To test this denial, I went out to the side of the track on Friday morning at Jerez to record the bikes as they went by.
After a very public father/son break-up between Paul Teutul Sr. and Paul Teutul Jr., a steroid-ring scandal involving Paul Sr., and finally a bankruptcy proceeding, it appears that Orange County Choppers is the impossible to kill multi-headed hydra of doom that we all knew it was, as the custom chopper shop is once again headed to the small screen and recruiting some talent, on and off the show. Looking for “someone who will work alongside Paul Senior, running the shop and helping build some of the best custom motorcycles in the world,” OCC says it will be back on television with a new show later this month. Please for the love of god, will someone give this man the attention he craves so dearly??! Or, just shoot us in the face.
We love us some concept bikes here at Asphalt & Rubber, and we have featured more than a few pieces of stunning design and imagination on our pages. Though, we can’t remember the last time one of these works of art were brought to us by a legitimate racing team, but that is what we have here with the Team Alstare Superbike Concept. A nod to the former Suzuki team’s return to the World Superbike Championship as the Ducati factory squad with Carlos Checa and Ayrton Badovini, Alstare has enlisted the help of designer Serge Rusak of Rusak Kreaktive Designworks to ink the shape of its futuristic Superbike concept, while Tryptik Studios handled the 3D modeling prowess.
If you didn’t watch Thursday’s pre-event press conference for MotoGP at Jerez, it is worth a viewing right to the end (assuming you have a MotoGP.com account). Building off the news about the NBA’s Jason Collins coming out as gay in a self-written feature in Sport Illustrated, my good colleague David Emmett had the courage to inquire about the culture and acceptance of the MotoGP paddock for homosexual riders. For the sake of accuracy, after the jump is a full transcript of David’s question, as put to riders Cal Crutchlow, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Marquez, Andrea Dovizioso, Stefan Bradl, and Scott Redding, as well as those riders’ responses to David’s inquiry.
News that Suzuki plans on returning to the MotoGP Championship in 2014 should be old information for dedicated Asphalt & Rubber readers, and the Japanese company’s inline-four race bike was already spotted doing test laps last year by the eager eyes at Cycle World. Well the American print-mag has another set of eyebrow-raising high-quality photos of the 2014 Suzuki GSV-R to mull over from the Motegi race track, along with some technical insights provided by the venerable Kevin Cameron.
A surprise addition to BMW Motorrad’s 2013 model line-up, zie Germans have announced a new middleweight adventure-tourer, the 2013 BMW F800GS Adventure. Like its larger predecessor, the BMW F800GS Adventure is a more travel-ready and off-road capable build of the recently updated BMW F800GS motorcycle. Featuring a larger windscreen, panniers, and a bigger fuel tank capacity (2.1 gallons larger, for a total of 6.3 gallons of fuel), the BMW F800GS Adventure keeps the same 85 hp, liquid-cooled, 798cc, parallel-twin engine found on the F800GS, as well as the same chassis configuration. Pricing in the US will be $13,550 for the base model BWM F800GS Adventure.
I wish I wasn’t too tall for a RSV4. Damn.
Add ABS and another 50 miles of range to the Tuono!
Ironically I was looking at an Aprilia RVS4R today.
On a 2012 model priced at 13,999 what would be considered an aggressive out the door price in CA that I shouldn’t walk away from? Anyone know?
Thanks for being a loyal buyer…. Thanks for buying at premium price whilst they are still less than perfectly developed. Why don’t the brands make a gesture to the loyal that have already bought. Free service, some apparel or something.
Try trading your 12 month old bike in on a new one. Sorry sir, we recommend you sell privately and come back and pay cash… sure they do.
Watching your resale value instantly lowered by the brand you supported.
This hurts the most … Aprilia are not alone in doing this.
I think I could buy a new r1 for less than 14.500 if that is what you mean in this post…it list on there website for 14.200 but this is not the price a smart buyer would pay..it is the list or asking price and only first time buyers would let them charge you that much, truth be known you can get a new r1 for undr 13.500 if you deal smartly with your salesperson….if your a repeat well known buyer at a dealership you can probably get one for a little less than that…having a good trade in can reduce your taxes as well cuz you will only pay tax on the difference not the whole amount.
but getting a rsv4 for that price now that is a deal and i would buy one over a duc or ktm any day…if I had the coin for a new bike.
by the way i’m not too tall and only weigh 145 lbs…only in motorsport racing is my size an advantage…..used to be they would say…”your too small to play middlel inebacker anymore have you thought about the tennis team?” now they say who was that little guy that just passed me on the inside in big bend ….lol
Deals to be had all around!
Good job Aprilia, now how about a price drop on the Shiver….
What’s a guy gotta do to get an Aprilia dealer in his state? Seriously, how is there not a single Aprilia dealer in the Chicago-land area?
The Factory is actually $4k less than the Panigale S if you include the $1k option cost for ABS on the Panigale…
Pretty compelling pricing indeed. It’s making me rethink my purchase plans…
lower the $$$$ in Australia in ’13… Seriously.. 24k here.. Joke
The Tuono gets a bigger tank as well. And a few of the updates. At least, that’s what I’ve been told.
The Factory also got a lower seat, so …
Anyway, the larger tank, ABS etc. of the special edition factory sold me, I put down some money yesterday. You can’t argue with the package… and now you are getting a bike that debuted at $26K with less power, no traction control, some early bike bugs, less tire, heavier wheels, lower-spec calipers, no ABS… etc.. for much less.
Had to do it.
I own an 2010 RSV4 Factory and the RSV4 package is in my opinion the best out of the box “pure sportbike” in any sportbike class.
Aprilia develops the best performance-focused “how a bike superbike should be made” motorcycle. Now with the price drops… you simply cannot buy another motorcycle that will outperform the RSV4 in any category aside from RWHP (which honestly means nothing for 99% of riders) for the money.
If you want a bike with the most balanced power delivery, largely usable power band, top-end hit, incredible chassis, handling of a race-bike, and superior build quality, choose Aprilia.
Get on an RSV4 and experience one for yourself.. you will be pleasantly intrigued.
Much as I appreciate Japanese bikes, the service and support offered by good dealerships, which is really essential for maintaining a high performance sport bike and getting the most out of it, at least for those without a technical background, I buy the RSV4 R APRC over any rice rocket currently on the market. I’m mechanically inclined, so the prospect of having to do everything myself is only slightly daunting. Likely you have to buy some special tools which are probably ridiculously expensive, but that’s the price you pay for thoroughbred ownership. I might change my mind if Honda comes out with an affordable V4 with +180 hp, but at the moment the Aprilia is my top choice.
Back in 1999 I was lucky enough to get to ride a RSV Mille R, Aprilia had a dealership next door to Fort Lauderdale Honda, the only one I’ve ever seen. I’d buy my leather there, still have a pair of Held kangaroo gloves that have held up for 15 years with only a few minor repairs. But a rider their swap bikes with me one afternoon, Italian guy. I just jokingly suggested it as we were sitting there outside the dealership on our bikes and to my disbelief he agreed, next thing I knew we’re on 95 south.
And it was amazing, felt small like a 600, tightest feeling best mass centralization, most responsive bike I’d ever been on, several notches above any Ducati I’d ridden up to that point. The quickest thing back then was the new R1, which I’d ridden, and raced against some well tuned examples. But that tuned and tricked Mille R would embarrass any of those Yamahas in every way except at the very top end. The brakes, modified with the best parts, had ungodly power amazing feel and grip, suspension beautifully compliant and nearly unshakable, and that engine… good Lord, love at first twist. That showed me how good a street liter bike could really be. When I got back on my Honda, which was no slouch with Ohlins suspension and heads from Erion Racing, felt like I was riding a fat dog by comparison.
I’ve always been surprised that the Italians haven’t gone after the US market harder, Aprilia are currently making the best outright open road speed bike on the market period. Let’s hope they start opening dealerships to back up this push. They sell enough bikes and their prices will pull dead even with the Japanese, which no longer have the economic advantages they once did. Then the support will get there.
this maybe apples and oranges but ive owned a RGV250, NSR250, TZR250 but the aprilia RS250 I owned made all of them seem cumbersome and SLOW!!! I am certain that the RSV4 would feel the same compared to japanese bikes because of aprilias razor sharp chassis and perfectly balanced suspension that they are known for. I never ridden a RSV4 but it sure resembles a RS250 so I have no doubt it handles sweet.
can’t beat that price! Put a deposit on a factory ABS model today in San Jose BMW (California). ETA: 60 days.