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.
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.
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).
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 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
If they intend to have a rev limit they should just have a rev limit instead of attempting to limit it mechanically, because all that will result in is ever higher-tech and more expensive engine bits.
Also I want the V5s back :(
MotoGP: 1000cc Formula for 2012 – 81mm Bore – http://bit.ly/5Q0YcP #motorcycle
RT @Asphalt_Rubber MotoGP: 1000cc Formula for 2012 – 81mm Bore http://bit.ly/5Q0YcP
990cc → 800cc → 1000cc みたいですね。 RT @daruyanagi: RT @Asphalt_Rubber MotoGP: 1000cc Formula for 2012 – 81mm Bore http://bit.ly/5Q0YcP
your so greedy ceolwulf ;) haha
this should be fun!
-peter
It seems this change is driven by a concern about costs, but what is this the 3rd significant change to the engine rules in what 4-5 years? Talk about costly.
Well, I wonder how long it takes until the manufactures grow tired of not being able to run a long term development due to all changes in the technical rules.
It wouldn’t surprise me at all if there soon will be another series of racing with traditional long-term rules that you can rely on. A serie run without any “formal” world champion title, but where the best riders will be due to the good competition there.
Dorna is just running a short term schedule for their own profit with no engagement at all in the true soul of racing.
The world has changed really fast and Dorna finds itself with the wrong product with bad timing.
The key justification for a factory run race team is brand exposure and a platform for R&D. Focus on the factory run teams as they are the core of MotoGP. They leave, it’s all dead.
MotoGP has tooled itself up for essentially speed at all costs, but that isn’t where the market is. The bikes are already plenty fast. The real challenge is efficientcy, noise and emissions. MotoGP doesn’t care. By being locked into a complete prototype package, the cost of productionising any benefits are large and long. And since they can’t use production anything really, MotoGP effectively becomes a full on factory in its own right with no rapid or easy way of merging the road and race business. The priorities are different.
The second justification is exposure. And this is MotoGP’s biggest pain. And that pain has a name. Its’s World Super Bike.
SBK is cheaper, easier and has vast amount of higher credibility in engineering and marketing terms then MotoGP. The link between SBK and the fan in the stand is short, tangible and understandable. MotoGP is a hard-on for the afficianado’s, not the masses. SBK gets the eye balls.
Anyway, the FIM were stupid to allow this situation to develop. Production is production, prototype is prototype. I don’t think its a particularly smart divide, but if that’s what it is, then that’s what it is.
But since the FIM are Dorna’s bitchslap, they’ll float anything if asked.
MotoGP moves to 1000cc max beginning 2012 http://tinyurl.com/y9tecyg
MotoGP: 1000cc Formula for 2012 – 81mm Bore: Dec 11, 2009 … MotoGP has tooled itself up for essentially speed a… http://bit.ly/6m0kPF
its good to surf u….
nice experience..
i want to have core engine knowledge…. can u please help me..??
m waiting for ur reply…..:):):)