Cutaway Photos of the Ducati Superquadro Engine

I was flipping through some photos from the 2011 EICMA show, and found these shots of the Ducati 1199 Panigale’s Superquadro engine. Unfortunately at the show, Ducati had its 1199cc v-twin motor behind a Lexan case, which created a bit of a glare, reflections, and of course had smudges from the touchy-feely Italian crowd. But still, the photos give a good idea of what’s going on in Ducati’s most-advanced production engine to date, and are better than just looking at the CAD renders. If you look at the shots very closely, you can almost see where the 195hp and 98 lbs•ft of torque is lurking inside.

AGV, Please Make This Helmet!

In addition to testing the factory Ducati Desmosedici GP12 “Phoenix” this week at Sepang, Valentino Rossi is also trying out a new lid from AGV. Aside from the carbon fiber goodness, and of course the Rossi stickers (which add 5hp & $200), AGV’s prototype helmet sports a noticably pronounced rear spoiler. Tucked in behind the windscreen, it is obvious why the Italian helmet manufacturer designed such a large protrusion off the back of the prototype helmet, as it looks to be clearly helping the flow off the back of the helmet, across the rider’s hump, and down his backside.

2012 Honda RC213V Debuts in Malaysia

While Ducati Corse is busy playing hide-the-Desmosedici at Sepang, HRC is all business in Malaysia this week, and has debuted its 2012 Honda RC213V MotoGP-contender. Honda isn’t saying too much about the RC213V, simply stating that the race bike is all new, but is also a continuation of the company’s design with the 800cc Honda RC212V. Testing the Honda RC213V over the course of last season, reigning-World Champion Casey rode the new 1,000cc machine three times in 2011, while teammate Dani Pedrosa swung a leg over the RC213V twice (missing one test because of injury).

No, This is the “90%” New Ducati Desmosedici GP12

You may have been misled by some eager journalists today and yesterday, if you saw a Ducati Corse livery-clad Ducati Desmosedici GP12 that some sites were passing off as the first shots of the “90% new” GP12. With the alleged new GP12 looking surprisingly similar to the aluminum-framed “GP0″ that was tested at Valencia, Valentino Rossi’s mechanic has now Alex Briggs confirmed that the photos taken were not of the all new “GP12 Phoenix” that the factory team will race this season. While the Ducati lords can taketh away, they can also giveth, and Valentino Rossi himself has posted the first photo of the factory Desmosedici GP12, and the bike is clearly different.

Zero Motorcycles Commences 2012 Model Line Production

Zero Motorcycles has announced the full-commencement of production for its 2012 model line, which is expected to hit dealers in February & March of this year. First off the line was the 2012 Zero DS back in December, though the electric motorcycle company has recently started building the Zero S, Zero XU, Zero X, and Zero MX at its Scotts Valley facility as well. A story we broke back in November, Zero Motorcycles debuted its important 2012 electric motorcycle line up at the 2011 EICMA show in Milan, with the 2012 range being a substantial improvement upon the company’s previous offerings.

The Dainese D-Air Racing Airbag Suit Comes to America

Getting a look at Dainese & AGV’s 2012 collection, Asphalt & Rubber was down in Orange County earlier this week to see the highly anticipated Dainese D-Air Racing leather suit, which has a four liter airbag system that helps reduce the risk of injury during a motorcycle crash. Dainese has been working on the D-Air Racing system for 10 years now, and after soft-launching the airbag suit in Europe, the Italian company is ready to bring the game-changing technology to American soil.

I Love the Nightlife. I’ve Come to Boogie.

Us Danes, we’re a strange breed. From the culture that taught you how to rape and pillage, Scandinavia is making yet another contribution to the motorcycling world with this latest video. Featuring Danish Supermoto Champion Andreas Mikkelsen, we get a RoToR camera-esque perspective (this rig is actually home made) on the Dane’s practice session at the Als Supermotard Club in Denmark. It’s videos like this that are slowly eroding my will-power to resist getting into supermotard riding. Also, I don’t know who was in charge of the music selection on this thing, but my hat is off to him/her. I love the nightlife. I’ve come to boogie.

Confirmed: KTM 350 Duke in 2013 – Moto3 Inspired 350cc Sport Bike in 2014

Our friends over at IndianCarsBikes.in were in attendance at the KTM 200 Duke launch in India this week, as the Austrian brand launched its somewhat bigger-displacement version of the popular KTM Duke 125. During the press event, KTM talked about the future of the mini-Duke line and its product roadmap for the emerging country, as well as abroad. With the Austrian brand confirming/clarifying that KTM would release a KTM 350 Duke for India in 2013, zie Austrians also confirmed that the KTM 350 Duke would be built locally in India by Bajaj, but would be exported worldwide — allaying fears that the KTM 350 Duke would be an India-only model.

Why Today is the Most Important Day for Ducati…Ever

Now that the first Ducati 1199 Panigale has rolled out of the door in Bologna, the die is cast, the chips are in play, and our course is set to see if Ducati has created a “massive breach of brand trust and honesty.” The realization of course should be that Ducati’s brand was never in danger with bikes like the Hypermotard, Multistrada 1200, or Diavel. Instead, the danger of serious brand dilution has always rested on how Ducati handled its Superbike line. A failure to produce a two-wheeled machine that is both as striking visually as it is kinetically, could permanently alienate a loyal fan base that has endured a great deal in the past half-decade.

Video: Community + Motorcycles = Motomethod

There is a lot that can be said about why dealerships fail or succeed (we’ve already seen an interesting insight on the subject of shops being open on Sundays), and one aspect on how to be a successful dealership that will surely rise to the top is one of community. Here, Vancouver-based Motomethod is all about the community, as the do-it-yourself community garden style repair shop has become a place for British Columbian riders not to work on their motorcycles, but also to congregate together with a shared love of riding on two wheels. Not exactly a new concept business-wise, but still a fresh perspective in an otherwise unwilling to change industry. More on this thought process to be published in the coming weeks. Enjoy.

Ducati & MIT Join Up to Make the Copenhagen Wheel at the COP15 United Nations Climate Conference.

Tue, December 22nd, 2009 @ 12:16 pm, by Jenny Gun5 COMMENTS
Home » News » Ducati & MIT Join Up to Make the Copenhagen Wheel at the COP15 United Nations Climate Conference.

Unveiled at the COP15 United Nations Climate Conference in Denamrk, the Copenhagen Wheel system was developed by Ducati Energia, MIT’s SENSEable City Lab, and Progical Solutions for the Kobenhavns Kommune (City of Copenhagen), and is an electrical drive system that can be added to any bicycle to help assist the rider with a boost of extra power. Along with its motor assist, the Copenhagen Wheel has a variety of sensors that relay information back to the rider via a Bluetooth connection that syncs with the rider’s smart phone (iPhone used in the demonstration). It’s a pretty cool concept, check after the jump a video and more.

Using a combination of dynamo’s and regenerative braking, the Copenhagen Wheel charges both as the rider pedals down the street, and during braking. The hub-centric battery packs can then be used when the rider encounters a hill or rough terrain. The Copenhagen Wheel also has a bevy of sensors that not only relay information like GPS location, routes, etc, but also measure things like the pollution levels in the air.

Controlled via smartphone, the Copenhagen Wheel addds a level of sophistication to bicycling. You can use your phone to unlock and lock the bike, change gears, and select how much the motor assists with its electric power. During use, the Wheel’s sensing unit is also capturing the rider’s effort level and information about the Wheel’s surroundings, including road conditions, carbon monoxide, NOx, noise, ambient temperature, and relative humidity. After riding, a cyclist can access this data through the smartphone or online, and use it to plan healthier bike routes or achieve exercise goals.

Perhaps the greatest power of the Copenhagen Wheel is its ability to share the information gathered. This has tremendous value for cities like Copenhagen, which are extremely green-oriented. The Copenhagen Wheel allows the city to have a sources for information sampling environmental & road conditions. This application goes beyond the obviously “green” label the project has been given by its creators. It can allow cities like Copenhagen to get real-time traffic flows and road-conditions at a level that hasn’t been achieved before.

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Tagged under: bicycle, COP15, Copenhagen, Copenhagen Wheel, Denmark, Ducati, Ducati Energia, electric, MIT, photos, Progical Solutions, SENSEable City, United Nations Climate Conference

Comment:

Darren Pearce says:
December 22, 2009 at 1:31 PM
Ducati and MIT team up on a project. Retrofittable, smart bike wheel/motor controlled via bluetooth http://bit.ly/7jXMRa vi asphaltandrubber
Asphalt_Rubber says:
December 22, 2009 at 8:16 PM
Ducati & MIT Join Up to Make the Copenhagen Wheel at the COP15 United Nations Climate Conference. – http://bit.ly/7hOFXa #motorcycle
giova says:
December 23, 2009 at 8:11 AM
very nice I love this design, why didn’t somebody do this before. WOW I”m impressed. I want one.
andrew says:
December 25, 2009 at 10:22 PM
What a load of crap! I don’t need my bike to network with social sites, provide me with updates about traffic congestion (traffic? what does traffic mean to a bicycle?!?) or to act as my personal trainer.
I think a bicycle needs Bluetooth link like the proverbial fish needs a bicycle. I can just see it… ‘Road assistance? Help, somebody hacked into my wheel!”
But what I do expect from a power-assisted vehicle is to provide propulsion. How much can this bike provide? Not a lot, if all it is going to do is store the energy that *I* would have to provide in the first place. Electric engine without batteries is about as much use as a combustion engine without a petrol tank – just more dead weight to lug around. It might look good in Copenhagen which I believe is flat as a pancake and where you don’t need much power assistance anyway but I can’t imagine it being any use anywhere else.
Like most ‘green’ solutions it answers a question that nobody asked and ignores the actual needs of most people.
WRXr says:
December 26, 2009 at 8:59 PM
There are electric bikes all over Asia, many truly sophisticated and better laid out then this. The Dutch company Spartan also makes some super-tech ones.
Hate to be negative, especially when you know somebody put a lot of work into the project, but I’m not seeing any real advantages here:
1. It offers connectivity which the rider may or may not want, OK. Cant’ really say that is an advantage.
2. It has regenerative braking. How much can it really extend a ride? Also, on a bike, unlike a car, if you run out of volts you can keep on pedaling, so again, I’m not really seeing the necessity.