Those Italians over at MotoBlog have found the new 2010 Honda VFR1200 out in the wild doing some road testing. The sport-tourer, which will feature variable cylinder management, and a dual-clutch gear box, is found this time with matching red saddle bags, completing the overall tourer look of the motorcycle. If you parlo italiano, head over to MotoBlog, and check out the rest of their shots.
Yamaha is recalling 180 YZF-R1, FZS600, and FJR1300 motorcycles from 2005 for a faulty throttle position sensor. Not all 2005 owners need to fret though, as the affected bikes were manufactured only between October 2004, and April 2005.
Overshadowing his podium finish from the Indianapolis GP, Alex de Angelis didn’t make too many friends in San Marino, and certainly didn’t impress any teams in paddock with his turn 2 performance. So it isn’t with great surprise that we find de Angelis still looking for a ride in MotoGP this September.
With seats in the MotoGP paddock quickly filling up, the Sammarinese rider has even entertained the prospect of going to World Superbike for 2010, but has stated that he would not consider Moto2 as an option.
UPDATE: The Italian Order of Accountants has ruled against Rossi, who now has 40 days to appeal their decision.
After settling an unpaid tax-debt with the Italian government in 2008, Valentino Rossi paid nearly €30 million in back-taxes with the help of accounting firm Cesaroni-Cappellini. The firm saved Rossi nearly €150 million, and was entitled by contract to ~1% of the MotoGP star’s savings.
Doing some quick judo-math, that’s nearly a €3 million tab (€1.7M-€2.5M to be exact) that Rossi has racked up at Cesaroni-Cappellini, and according to the firm Rossi has yet to actually pay them for their services.
Motus Motorcycles is back on the radar after their mysterious awakening back in April. Along with slightly less cryptic information about their MST V4 sport-tourer, Motus has announced their partnership with Pratt & Miller.
If you’re not familiar with Pratt & Miller, they’ve made quite a name for themselves in the automotive endurance racing scene developing chassis in the American Le Mans Series, Rolex Grand-Am series, NASCAR, and have won the 24 hours of Le Mans six times in the GT1 category. Pratt & Miller have also worked with the US military in developing missiles and other classified projects.
French site Moto-Station is reporting, and multiple other sites are confirming, that Ducati is about to debut a Hypermotard 796. Just as the current Hypermotard 1100 borrows on the basic design of the Monster 1100, the 796 will center around the same 696cc, air-cooled, two-valve, motor found in the Monster 696.
Tuner house AC Schnitzer is known well for its work on BMW automobiles, making the Ultimate Driving Machine just that much more…well, ultimate. Every now and then though, AC gets their hands on a BMW motorcycle, usually with hit or miss results. This time getting the AC treatment is the BMW F800, the black sheep of the ugly ducklings. While we like where AC Schnitzer is going with this look, we still can’t fathom why a tuning brand has yet to do really any tuning on their motorcycle works bikes. Pictures and more after the jump.
When Mission Motors first came out of stealth mode, they used the slogan “The World’s Fastest Electric Production Sportbike”, and quoted a top speed of a 150 mph. It seems only logical then, that the company would have to back that claim up at some point, and apparently that time is now.
Last week we showed you a simple YouTube video entitled: “Electric Motorcycle 160 MPH”, and now we know the story behind that 160 mph run, and can report that the Mission One electric motorcycle is the fastest production electric motorcycle in the world, with an official land speed record of 150.059 mph. Video and more after the jump.
As Honda continues to dribble out all the details on the VFR1200, more information about the V4 motor is starting to surface, and it is shaping up to be one of the most technologically advanced power plants in the motorcycle world.
You’ve probably already read about how the VFR1200 will incorporate a dual-clutch gearbox, and now Honda has released more information on the V4 configuration itself, which will include space/weight-saving design elements, cylinder deactivation, and a unique firing order. Video, patent diagrams, and more after the jump.
Looks like our tip about Suzuki is coming to fruition sooner than we expected (although, we’re still holding our breath on the GSX1000R part of that tip). Suzuki has launched a new European Bandit at the Bol D’or 24 hour endurance race, in Magny-Cours, France, and it looks like they have given the Bandit a bit of a make-over. Pictures and more after the jump.
Although initial reports suggested that John Hopkins went relatively unscathed after his crash at the Nürburgring (video above), .