Goodbye Husqvarna Nuda, We Hardly Knew Thee

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.

Q&A: Yukio Kagayama Talks About the Upcoming Suzuka 8-Hour with Kevin Schwantz & Noriyuki Haga

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.

KTM RC4 Concept by Luca Bar Design

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.

Q&A: Claudio Domenicali Talks Frameless Chassis, Sacred Cows, & The Future for Ducati

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.

Is Yamaha Using A Seamless Gearbox? The Data Says No

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.

OCC Coming Back to TV? — Universe Collapses in on Self

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.

Alstare Superbike Concept by Team Alstare

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.

Transcript: The Gay Question at Jerez

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.

2014 Suzuki GSV-R Spotted Again

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.

BMW F800GS Adventure – Germany’s Middleweight ADV

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.

Radical Ducati Café Veloce

11/08/2010 @ 4:07 pm, by Jensen Beeler14 COMMENTS

Radical Ducati Café Veloce Radical Ducati Cafe Veloce 635x441

Seeing how popular the work of Radical Ducati has been on our site, both with the Radical Ducati 9½ and Radical Ducati RAD02 Imola, we thought we’d bring you another one of the Spanish group’s fabulous creations: The Radical Ducati Café Veloce. Based off a Ducati Sport Classic, the Café Veloce features the same DS 1000 air-cooled two-valve motor, and steel tube frame as the now discontinued Ducati, but grows upon the Sport Classic’s cafe inspired lines.

Tastefully refining the Café Veloce into a sleeker and more dynamic package, Radical Ducati has created the Café Veloce to be devoid of Ducati’s more bland touches to the GT1000. In case you haven’t noticed yet, we’re smitten with the Café Veloce, even if it’s not usually the kind of thing we’d go for in our own garage. Photos after the jump.

Jack Armstrong’s “Million Dollar Harley-Davidson” – Further Proof You Can’t Buy Taste

10/25/2010 @ 2:34 pm, by Jensen Beeler33 COMMENTS

Jack Armstrong’s “Million Dollar Harley Davidson” – Further Proof You Can’t Buy Taste Jack Armstrong custom Harley Davidson 635x422

I suffered through four semesters of art history classes in college (thanks general education requirements!) to realize two big things about art: 1) never date a painter or anyone that refers to themselves as an “artiste”, and 2) aesthetics are subjective, and should be internally processed. So with that intro in mind, I hope you’ll see where we’re headed in this article when I tell you that this custom Harley-Davidson comes from an artist who describes his style as “Cosmic Extensionalism”, name drops Any Warhol seemingly at any given opportunity, and boasts of fastly becoming “The Most Famous Artist on the Planet”. Mmmmk…

Radical Ducati 9½

10/25/2010 @ 12:23 pm, by Jensen Beeler12 COMMENTS

Radical Ducati 9½ Radical Ducati 9 one half Javier Fuentes 5 635x423

From the guys at Spanish firm Radical Ducati comes the 9½, a Ducati ST2 motor wedged into a Monster 900 chassis, making an Italian beauty that’s part cafe racer, part streetfighter. Drawing inspiration form Ducati’s single-cylinder race bikes from the 1970′s, the 9½ is not only a looker, but is comprised of parts from Ducatis long forgotten past (but perhaps more memorable bikes, if you can handle that oxymoron).

If you look closely you’ll see pieces from not only the ST2, Monster 900, but also from the Ducati 916 Superbike (swingarm and rear-wheel), and 999 Superbike (fuel tank). Some other Radical parts enter the mix as well from its RAD series, and the result is a retro-esque bike that looks scintillating, classy, light, and fast. Keep your eyes trained for more bikes from Radical Ducati, we expect we’ll see some more great pieces (like this Radical Ducati RAD02 Imola) from the firm as they continue their Desmo mash-up. Bunch o’photos after the jump.

Wunderlich Curarê – The Gulf Oil BMW S1000RR

10/19/2010 @ 10:38 pm, by Jensen Beeler10 COMMENTS

Wunderlich Curarê   The Gulf Oil BMW S1000RR Wunderlich Curare BMW S1000RR Gulf Oil 2 635x423

Named after the poison used by Brazilian Indians to tip their arrow with for hunting, the Wunderlich Curarê is the German tuning house’s take on the BMW S1000RR. Clad in the blue and orange colors of Gulf Oil Racing and plenty of carbon fiber and titanium, the Wunderlich Curarê is mix of something new with something old, and celebrates 25 years of the company’s business. Making only modest performance enhancements to the S1000RR, Wundrlich has instead focused its efforts on improving the bikes ergonomics and aesthetics (they left the winking headlight in though). Photos and more after the jump.

Jesse James Closes Down West Coast Choppers

10/16/2010 @ 9:01 pm, by Jensen Beeler19 COMMENTS

Jesse James Closes Down West Coast Choppers West Coast Choppers Dominator Ted Puryer 635x458

This one hits us out of the blue, but according to Cyril Huze, Jesse James has shutdown for good his custom chopper business: West Coast Choppers. If true, it’s not clear what will become of James’ Long Beach based company, but it looks like West Coast Choppers’ frames and parts will be produced by Daytec and Belt Drive LTD respectively, and sold through Custom Chrome. More info as we get it, but considering this news is hitting us during the weekend, we don’t expect to hear much before Monday.

Source: Cyril Huze Blog via Basem Wasef; Photos: West Coast Choppers

The Ducati Diavel That Roland Sands Design Built

10/11/2010 @ 1:07 am, by Jensen Beeler12 COMMENTS

The Ducati Diavel That Roland Sands Design Built 2011 Ducati Diavel Roland Sands Designs 2 635x476

Sometimes if you want to know where something is going, it helps to know where it’s been. That seems to be the case as Ducati News Today has esnagged some photos 2011 Ducati Diavel from way back in May of last year. Caught in the United States being fitted with a new swingarm (according to DNT), this version of the Ducati Diavel shows some interesting lines that depart from the photos we’ve seen earlier of the performance cruiser.

But why does this Diavel look so different from the clay models and spy shots we’ve seen? While some will say it’s an earlier model, our eagle eye spots a few parts from the Roland Sands Design parts bin. When we saw the latest spy shots of the Diavel, the bike had some wheels on it that screamed influences from Performance Machines. It’s no secret that PM and RSD have close ties, so we went digging, and our sources tell us that Roland Sands Design has been helping Ducati kit the Diavel with aftermarket parts (note the Öhlins shock which will surely be a Ducati Performance part for the Diavel). More info and photos after the jump.

Ducati Please Make This: Ducati Streetfighter Corse

09/03/2010 @ 8:58 am, by Jensen Beeler1 COMMENT

Ducati Please Make This: Ducati Streetfighter Corse Ducati Streetfighter Corse custom 21 560x367

When Ducati released its Corse themed Superbikes at Milan last year, we knew the Italian company was onto something special. With ample carbon fiber, aluminum tanks, and a tasteful amount white and red paint, the Corse livery sets itself apart from the rest of the Ducati line as being the pinnacle of the Italian company’s offering.

So when we saw the “Corse” Multistrada 1200S that took place in Pikes Peak, we were equally excited, and begged Ducati North America to make a race replica model (we’re still begging them by the way). While Ducati might take a little more convincing, some owners have taken things into their own hands. Enter into the picture Finishing Touch 4U‘s Ducati Streetfighter Corse.

eBay: Custom Built Tron Lightcycle

07/01/2010 @ 2:00 pm, by Jensen Beeler4 COMMENTS

eBay: Custom Built Tron Lightcycle Tron legacy lightcycle movie poster 635x396

Being products of the Nintendo generation, Asphalt & Rubber can thank movies like Tron and Akira for piquing our interest in motorcycles at an early age. While there have been several attempts to build Kaneda’s feet-forward steed , replicas of the Tron lightcycle prove to be more elusive.

With Tron Legacy set to come out later this year, some custom bike builders have risen to the challenge to complete our ultimate geek-meets-motorcycling dreams, and are offering 5 custom made road-going Tron lightcycles for purchase on eBay.

Confederate C3 X132 Hellcat – Brought to You by New Orleans and S&S Motors

04/21/2010 @ 9:29 am, by Jensen Beeler11 COMMENTS

Confederate C3 X132 Hellcat   Brought to You by New Orleans and S&S Motors Confederate C3 X132 Hellcat 635x357

After creating the F131 Hellcat, B120 Wraith, and P120 Fighter Combat, Confederate Motor Company announced at the New York International Auto Show its fourth motorcycle: the C3 X132 Hellcat. Built in conjunction with S&S Cycle (better known for its S&S motors), the new Hellcat is being touted as “the lightest, fastest, toughest, smoothest, most exquisite Hellcat, ever”, which isn’t as lofty of a statement as you’d think considering there’s really only two other motorcycled to compare the new Hellcat to: the two older Hellcats.

Magpul Ronin Gets Closer to Production

03/22/2010 @ 12:51 pm, by Jensen Beeler8 COMMENTS

You may remember that we drooled over Magpul’s take on the Buell 1125R. While we often give Buell motorcycles a hard time, we admittedly fell head-over heels for this concept. Hinting at the time it debuted that there could be a limited production run or a kit for current Buell owners, Magpul has taken the feedback and attention from the Ronin, and refined the motorcycle further. Photos and more after the jump.