Mission Motorcycles: The Mission R Lives??!

Mission Motors tweeted out something interesting just a moment ago, a link to a new website for Mission Motorcycles. Teasing there a photo of the Mission R, it would seem that the electric superbike that does competitive AMA Supersport lap times at Laguna Seca, is finally set to come to production. It seems we won’t know everything about the new Mission Motorcycles project until June 3rd, though we can speculate pretty accurately on what the A&R Bothan spy network has been telling us. Expect to see the Mission R electric superbike in street legal trim, honed even further than when we rode the machine back in August last year.

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.

XXX: 36 Photos of the MV Agusta Brutale 800

11/26/2012 @ 6:05 am, by Jensen Beeler13 COMMENTS

XXX: 36 Photos of the MV Agusta Brutale 800 2013 MV Agusta Brutale 800 12 635x423

We might question the wisdom of building a stroked-out 798cc version of the three-cylinder MV Agusta Brutale 675, but we cannot disagree with the fact that the machine is a sight to behold. Using the same engine that motivates the MV Agusta Rivale, power for the MV Agusta Brutale 800 comes in at 123hp, with 59.7 lbs•ft of torque at 8,600 rpm, which means the new Brutale 80 won’t be nearly as peaky with its horsepower as the Brutale 675.

Fitted with higher-spec suspension and components, along with the MVICS electronics package, MV Agusta hopes that the Brutale 800 will be the feature-rich alternative to the more affordable naked bike, which is the Brutale 675. However you want to make the distinction between the two models, it is another piece of rolling motorcycle art, better known as MV Agusta. We have 36 photos of it after the jump for you to…enjoy.

MV Agusta Brutale 800 – Too Much of a Good Thing?

11/02/2012 @ 2:40 pm, by Jensen Beeler23 COMMENTS

MV Agusta Brutale 800   Too Much of a Good Thing? MV Agusta Brutale 800 02 635x469

It made a lot of sense when MV Agusta debuted the four-cylinder side of its Brutale line, as the oddly positioned MV Agusta Brutale 920 was absent from the now exclusively 1,078cc range. Priced close to the MV Agusta Brutale 675, the Brutale 920 likely would have cannibalized sales from its three-cylinder successor.

For a moment there, it seemed MV Agusta was about to shy away from its previous strategy of over-saturating market segments with multiple varieties of similar bikes, but luckily today, balance has been restored in Italian motorcycle land, as the Varese brand has announced the MV Agusta Brutale 800.

Three Flavors of MV Agusta Brutale 1090

10/22/2012 @ 2:16 pm, by Jensen Beeler7 COMMENTS

Three Flavors of MV Agusta Brutale 1090 MV Agusta Brutale 1090 635x397

We have already showed you MV Agusta’s teaser video of its four-cylinder Brutale line-up for 2013, which featured only 1078cc machines, and seemingly dropped the MV Agusta Brutale 920  from the company’s repertoire (its entry-level position taken by the 2013 MV Agusta Brutale 675). Teasing three versions of its MV Agusta Brutale 1090 street-naked, MV Agusta has confirmed the three models today: the MV Agusta Brutale 1090, MV Agusta Brutale 1090 R, & MV Agusta Brutale 1090 RR.

Spreading three models over this narrow niche, the 203 MV Agusta Brutale 1090 & 2013 MV Agusta Brutale 1090 R feature a 142 hp / 82 lbs•ft 1078cc package, while the peppier MV Agusta Brutale 1090 RR get a power boost to 156 hp, though is down to 73.74 lbs•ft of torque according to MV Agusta’s typotastic website. All three machines appear to be very peaky with their power, and come with MV Agusta’s traction control system that first debuted on the MV Agusta F3.

Video: 2013 MV Agusta Brutale – 920cc Dropped?

10/17/2012 @ 9:18 am, by Jensen Beeler5 COMMENTS

Video: 2013 MV Agusta Brutale   920cc Dropped? MV Agusta Brutale 06 635x423

While the MV Agusta’s future may depend on its three-cylinder machines, the MV Agusta F3 & MV Agusta Brutale 675, many people forget that the small Italian company still has a range of rolling four-cylinder works of art as well. EICMA is getting closer, and as such the promo videos are starting to roll out from Italy, and this latest one from MV Agusta raises some eyebrows.

Showing only its 1090cc four-cylinder Brutale models, MV Agusta has seemingly dropped its 920cc variants (presumably because they competed against the MV Agusta Brutale 675 for buyers), and has added to the line-up the MV Agusta Brutale 1090cc, in addition to the MV Agusta Brutale 1090R & MV Agusta Brutale 1090RR.

There are no additional details beyond what we can see in the video, so we will have to see the tech specs drop before we can fully appreciate what MV Agusta is doing with its Brutale line. Until then, watching some video close-ups of an MV Agusta is a pretty good way to start the day. Enjoy it after the jump.

Up-Close with the MV Agusta Brutale 675

12/06/2011 @ 5:40 pm, by Jensen Beeler13 COMMENTS

Up Close with the MV Agusta Brutale 675 2012 MV Agusta Brutale 675 EICMA 10 635x444

Finally making its public debut, the MV Agusta Brutale 675 was easily one of the most anticipated motorcycles of the 2011 EICMA show. Representing Varese’s commitment to more affordable motorcycles, the Brutale 675 comes with a €8,990 price tag in the EU (US pricing is still up in the air, but should be competitive with the Triumph Street Triple). No exactly a surprise in its design, the 2012 MV Agusta Brutale 675 is true to the Brutale format, and follows the lines of the F3 supersport…without fairings of course.

In person, the MV Agusta Brutale 675 comes with the fit and finish you would expect from the historic Italian brand. For as much as I bag on MV Agusta for its various monetary and business troubles, the Italian factory is trying to make available a gorgeous motorcycle at a very attractive price tag. For all the concerns made about how MV Agusta was going “down market” with its brand, the basic bullet points of what defines an MV still remain true with the Brutale 675, which should make it a winner when it comes to market.

2012 MV Agusta Brutale RR 1090

11/07/2011 @ 3:27 pm, by Jensen Beeler4 COMMENTS

2012 MV Agusta Brutale RR 1090 2012 MV Agusta Brutale RR 1090 09 635x423

MV Agusta continues to broaden its Brutale line, debuting the MV Agusta Brutale RR 1090 today for the 2011 EICMA show. The pinnacle of the company’s naked bike offering, the Brutale RR 1090 comes packed with 156hp from its 1,078cc inline-four motor. Though we might take issue with MV Agusta’s statement that the “Brutale RR 1090 is the most important addition to the new Brutale 2012 line-up,” as the stylish and more affordable MV Agusta Brutale 675 deserves that title more, the addition of the Brutale RR 1090 helps make more sense out of MV’s naked bike line-up, while offering an impressive package to Italian motorcycle lovers.

MV Agusta Brutale 675 Video Teases All Trepistoni

10/27/2011 @ 1:33 am, by Jensen Beeler13 COMMENTS

MV Agusta Brutale 675 Video Teases All Trepistoni MV Agusta Brutale 675 Trepistoni 4 635x355

It clearly must be almost time for the EICMA motorcycle show, as manufacturers are out in full-force teasing their 2012 model year motorcycles. One of the more anticipated models set to be unveiled in Milan, Italy is the MV Agusta Brutale 675, the naked counterpart to the still unavailable MV Agusta F3 that debuted at EICMA last year. While MV hasn’t been teasing the three-cylinder (tre pistoni) street bike as heavily as the F3, the Brutale 675 is just as important to the Italian brand in bringing the company back to profitability.

Expected to sell in the €9,000 range, the Brutale 675 will go up against other premium brand nakeds, namely the Ducati Streetfigher 848 and Triumph Street Triple. Want to get your first glimpse at the MV Agusta Brutale 675? Check out the teaser video after the jump.

Moto Corse MV Agusta Brutale 1133 Evo-CA

03/28/2011 @ 1:04 pm, by Jensen Beeler10 COMMENTS

Moto Corse MV Agusta Brutale 1133 Evo CA Moto Corse MV Agusta Brutale 1133 EVO CA 15 635x476

The MV Agusta Brutale 1078RR is a special bike in its own right, featuring another of Massimo Tamburini’s iconic designs in motorcycling. It’s hard to improve upon such a work, which is perhaps why we see MV Agusta currently recycling its aesthetic as it updates its motorcycle line.

This fact hasn’t stopped Moto Corse from trying its hand on improving upon the Tamburini design though, as the company has put together what it calls the MV Agusta Brutale 1133 Evo-CA: a carbontastic work of both visual bling and go-fast parts.

Canada Outs New MV Agusta Brutale Model & Pricing

12/20/2010 @ 4:16 pm, by Jensen Beeler3 COMMENTS

Canada Outs New MV Agusta Brutale Model & Pricing new mv agusta brutale 920 635x381

After recently announcing the return of MV Agusta to the Canadian market, MV Agusta’s Canadian distributor Motovan has outed the Italian company’s new Brutale model. While it doe not seem that this model is the 675cc “Brutalina” that Castiglioni hinted at earlier this year, this Brutale instead appears to be an F4 derived street-naked, and is expected to hit the North American markets in mid-summer 2011. With pricing starting at $15,595 CAD, we expect pricing here in the United States to be closer to $14,595.

Likely based off the revised MV Agusta F4, which debuted at EICMA back in 2009, the new Brutale should see a style update to keep the street-naked inline with MV’s current take on the F4. Noticebale from Motovan’s pricing is the new Brutale’s lower price tag amount, which should help move some more units. We expect the new Brutale to have a 920cc displacement, and borrow heavily from the F4′s chassis design and aesthetic.

MV Agusta Cannonball Kit Adds 21hp to the Brutale

06/28/2010 @ 11:41 am, by Jensen Beeler1 COMMENT

MV Agusta Cannonball Kit Adds 21hp to the Brutale MV Agusta Brutale 1090RR Cannonball Kit 560x370

Have you ever wanted a 2010 MV Agusta 1099RR, but thought the bike’s 144hp just wasn’t enough umpf for you. Well MV Agusta has you in mind with this “track only” Cannonball Kit that adds 21hp (165hp in total) to the top of the 1099RR’s peak horsepower figure.

Not an actual new bike from MV, the Cannonball Kit features a new ECU, cylinder head, camshafts, valves, and titanium exhaust system, which boosts horsepower on the Brutale 1090RR without sacrificing any of the bike’s down low torque, which remains at 84.81 lbs•ft.

The intention is to make the Brutale 1090RR a track day weapon, however we think most of the kits will find their way onto daily riders…but keep that on the down-low, it’s not exactly street legal.