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September 2016

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Is This the Year of the Monkey, The Honda Monkey?

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If you read as many motorcycle news sites as I do, then you surely know that Honda is almost definitely probably maybe debuting a new “monkey bike” in the near future. The source of this news is Honda’s recent application for design patents in the European and Japanese markets.

Intellectual property filings are a great way of seeing what a motorcycle OEM is up to, but as our colleagues at Motorcycle.com correctly pointed out, they can also be a great source of red herrings.

This is because motorcycle manufacturers not only patent and trademark the design they intend to put into production, but also the design they don’t intend to produce, but have still shown the public. This is just smart policy when it comes to intellectually property protection.

Fortunately or unfortunately, it’s easy to jump to conclusions when one sees a filing that exactly mimics a show bike or concept, as we’ve seen this week with the Grom-powered Honda Monkey.

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MotoGP

2017 MotoGP Provisional Calendar Released

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There is a current fashion in moviemaking, of taking proven formulas from the past, giving them a light makeover and then relaunching them, then trying to spice them up by referring to them as a “reboot” or “reloaded”.

Dorna executives must have been to see Ghostbusters, Mad Max, and many more, as the 2017 MotoGP calendar is best described as 2016 Reloaded.

The 2017 MotoGP calendar is almost identical to the 2016 calendar, with a couple of minor tweaks. Those tweaks are a clear improvement on 2016: there are fewer large gaps, and there are fewer back-to-back races.

There have been some changes to help with logistics, and some to help with race organizations.

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WSBK

Lausitzring World Superbike Debrief: The Rain Lottery

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It was a weekend of contrasts in Germany. Four weathers in a race weekend is usually something associated with Phillip Island, but with 86°F temperatures having welcomed the WorldSBK paddock from their summer break, the heat gradually transitioned to a downpour on a cold and windy Sunday.

With Chaz Davies and Jonathan Rea claiming the spoils in the races, there was little reason to think that this was a standout weekend, but in many ways the German round of WorldSBK could prove pivotal when the season concludes.

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Recall

Recall: BMW R nineT

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A recall has been issued for the BMW R nineT, affecting bikes from both the 2014 and 2015 model years. The recall is being issued because the design for the rear turn signals may be obscured, for drivers following behind the motorcycle.

Since the light assembly does not comply with the provisions of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 108, “Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment,” this recall was issued through NHTSA.

All said, the recall affects 1,792 machines, those manufactured between November 27, 2013, through January 26, 2015.

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MotoGP

A Question of Trust: Matching Riders to Crew Chiefs

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The music has stopped for the MotoGP riders, with all of them now having taken their seats for next year. That does not mean that contract season is over, however. We are in the middle of another migration, this time of crew chiefs and mechanics.

It all started with Jorge Lorenzo. The Movistar Yamaha rider’s move to Ducati for next season left him needing a crew chief. Once his current crew chief Ramon Forcada made the decision to stay with Yamaha, and work with Maverick Viñales, who takes Lorenzo’s place, that precipitated a search for someone to work with the Spaniard at Ducati.

It was a search that took some time, but which saw Cristian Gabarrini tempted back to Ducati. The quiet, reflective Italian had been set somewhat adrift after the retirement of Casey Stoner, with whom Gabarrini won MotoGP titles at Ducati and Honda.

First, he acted as engineering advisor to Marc Márquez and his crew chief Santi Hernandez, but Márquez made it clear he wanted only to work with Hernandez. Then he was put in charge of Honda’s Open Class project, and managing the bikes.

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Bikes

Two Enthusiasts Podcast #33 – Wankeled

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I’m not going to lie to you, Episode 33 of the Two Enthusiasts Podcast starts off a little rowdy, and never really stops partying. In it, we look at the recently spied 2017 Honda CBR1000RR and recently teased 2017 Yamaha YZF-R6, two incredibly important machines in the sport biking side of the industry.

We also talk about the Wazer water jet cutting project, and how that’s going to affect builders and makers. From there, we pivot to a discussion on the consumerization (that’s a word now) of high-tech manufacturing techniques, which has made things like water jet cutting and rapid prototyping accessible to the masses.

The show ends with a listener question about ABS brakes, which is good timing, considering our interesting discussion about electronics as a whole, and the progression of rider aids in the motorcycle industry. Wankel jokes aside, it is a pretty interesting, and dare we say entertaining show.

As always, you can listen to the show via the embedded SoundCloud player, after the jump, or you can find the show on iTunes (please leave a review) or this RSS feed. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter as well. Enjoy the show!

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Bikes

A Baby Version of the Ducati Multistrada Cometh?

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The above photo was sent to the Italian website Moto.it by one of its readers, and it is supposedly a photo of an upcoming new version of the Ducati Multistrada, which is physically smaller than the current 1200cc model.

Presumably, this would make the machine in question then the Ducati Multistrada 939, thus adding to the Euro4 compliant engine’s call to action for the 2017 model year.

We say this all hypothetically however, because it is hard to verify anything from this photo…beyond the very obvious double-sided swingarm setup.

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Bikes

Honda Begins Teasing the 2017 Honda CBR1000RR

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Honda launched a dedicated website for its arriving 2017 model year motorcycles today, giving us a glimpse into what Big Red has in store for us at INTERMOT, EICMA, and the IMS Show in Long Beach, and the first machine they’re teasing seems to be the 2017 Honda CBR1000RR.

While the current teaser is set in the United States, at Thunderhill Raceway Park, we first caught glimpse of the new Honda CBR1000RR while shooting at a similar promo video in Croatia, strangely enough.

From those photos, we know that the 2017 Honda CBR1000RR (that’s the 2017 Honda Fireblade to our European readers) is based off the current model’s design, with the two machines sharing a chassis, and likely many engine parts.

Obviously, Honda has wrapped the 2017 CBR1000RR in very different fairings, and updated the superbike for Euro4 emissions.

Logic also dictates that Honda’s updated superbike will have ride-by-wire, traction control, and other electronic aids, and we can likely expect the engine to get a little bit more pep as well, just to keep us from moaning too loudly that the aged platform is seeing yet another year of service.

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Products

GoPro Karma Drone Debuts for Action Junkies

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The name GoPro has become synonymous with action cameras. As such, we are sure that there are quite a few GoPro owners amongst the Asphalt & Rubber readership.

Talk of a GoPro drone has been circulating for some time now, and today the GoPro Karma drone has finally debuted, along with the Hero5 series of the action camera.

The GoPro Karma drone is of course compatible with the latest generation of cameras, as well as the Hero4 Black and Hero4 Silver. The cost is $799 for the GoPro Karma, though you can buy a camera/drone bundle for $999.

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Bikes

Two New Ducati Scramblers Spotted in CARB Docs?

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More new model news, as filings with the California Air Resources Board (CARB) suggest that we will see two new Scrambler models debuting, later this year.

We come to this conclusion because emissions papers from CARB state that “Scrambler CR” and “Scrambler DS” models are coming from Ducati for 2017, in addition to the models we already have from the Italian manufacturer.

The two-letter designations imply that we are likely to see a café racer (CR) version of the Ducati Scrambler, as well as a dual-sport (DS) version of the machine, which we have already seen in spy photos.

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MotoGP

Nicky Hayden Will Fill-In for Jack Miller at the Aragon GP

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The MotoGP paddock will see the return of Nicky Hayden, albeit only for a solitary round, as the American will substitute at the Aragon GP for the still recovering Jack Miller.

Some fans may be surprised to learn that Hayden almost replaced at the British GP at Silverstone, with the World Superbike rider instructed to bring his leathers to England, just in case Jack Miller was deemed unfit to ride.

That chance ultimately didn’t materialize for Hayden, but with Miller sitting out the San Marino GP, again to nurture his hand injury, there again is a need for Hayden to pack his leathers, and head to the MotoGP paddock.

Releasing a press release today, the Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS Racing team has confirmed Nicky Hayden as replacing Jack Miller for the Spanish round at Motorland Aragon.

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