Zie Germans are still hard at work this winter back in zie mother country, as the final production version of the Horex VR6 is coming together. Today, the German company has announced the official performance figures of its new street bike, and the base 1,218cc six-cylinder VR motor comes with 161hp on tap and 100 lbs•ft of peak torque.

Making its peak power at 9,000 rpm, the Horex VR6 also makes most of its torque extremely low in the rev range. With 66 lbs•ft of torque at 2,000 rpm, the German roadster reaches 74 lbs•ft of torque at 3,500rpm, which fits well with the company’s hope of making the VR6 easy to ride on city streets.

Perhaps more interesting that the performance figures is the announced constant solid-graphite chain lubrication system. As the name implies, the Horex VR6 will constantly lube its chain, but instead of using oil or wax, as is traditionally used, the German motorcycle company has partnered with specialists at the Schunk Group, who have created a system that constantly coats the chain drive with a thin layer of graphite.

Less messy, and not prone to being flicked off the chain by centrifugal forces, the dry chain lubrication system is an industry first brought to market by Horex, and sounds intriguing on paper. With claims that it increases maintenance intervals over standard chain lubrication systems, this is a feature owners will be particularly interested in seeing reviews of as the VR6 hits dealer floors.

Ducati has released pricing and power specs for the 2012 Ducati Streetfighter 848 here in the US, and the fighter’d version of the Superbike 848 is interestingly priced at $12,995 MSRP, the same price as the Superbike 848 EVO “Dark” or $1,000 less than the colored Superbike 848 EVOs, which retail for $13,995. Making 8hp less than the current Superbike 848 EVO, the Ducati Streetfighter 848′s motor makes 132hp and 69 lbs•ft of torque on Ducati’s dynos, just 23hp shy of the current Streetfighter 1098. Additionally, the Ducati Streetfighter 848 will tip the scales at 373 lbs dry (439 lbs wet), the same weight figure quoted for the current Ducati Streetfighter 1098.

As we stated when the Ducati Streetfighter 848 first broke cover, the positioning on the smaller Streetfighter was going to be critical and difficult for Ducati. The Bologna brand not only has to balance the the Streetfighter 848 against the Superbike 848 EVO, but also against the Monster 1100 EVO as well, which retails for $11,995. With the Streetfighter 848 getting lower-spec suspension and brakes compared to the Superbike 848 EVO (along with a presumably smaller airbox resulting in less power), Ducati seems to be hoping that the standard traction control on the SF848 will help distinguish the Streetfighter from its Superbike compatriot, which has no Ducati Traction Control (DTC) option.

Times are tough in MotoGP if you haven’t noticed, and the penny-pinchers are in full-force both in the paddock and at Dorna Sports. Word has it that new rules are being discussed, and could be implemented in order to cut the costs of running a MotoGP team down. Continue reading for 3 of the major proposals on the table.

Pirelli’s Cyber Tire will provide real-time tire performance information via a chip/transponder setup embedded in the tire tread. The system will send and store a myriad of information such as: operating temperature, pressure, road conditions, and vertical load. The system will work in conjunction with another Pirelli invention, the Cyber Wheel, which will convey wheel information such as hub loads in a similar fashion. While the naming is gruesome, the potential for data logging and analysis could be extremely useful to racing and enthusiasts.

Pirelli has also partnered with Brembo and Magnetti Marelli on the Cyber Tire project. While details are not certain, we’d suspect the partnership would mean a system that quickly transfers information from the tire to the driver, car, and brakes, and allows for more informed and instantaneous performance changes based on driving conditions.

The technology’s use is centered around automobiles, but the mechanics and application could easily be carried-over into motorcycles. Just don’t hold you breath on seeing it soon though. The car version is expected in 2010, with no details on whether there will be a motorcycle version. As we are all well aware, motorcycle tires already cost considerably more than car/truck tires, and last an even shorter amount of time. Presumably the decreased longevity and added costs of the Cyber Tire/Cyber Wheel system would make the technology a bit harder to justify cost-wise in a motorcycle application outside of racing.

Source: Autoblog