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2015 Suzuki GW250F — A Fully-Faired 250cc for the USA

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Suzuki has finally brought a full-faired small-displacement machine to the US market, announcing today the 2015 Suzuki GW250F. As the name implies, the Suzuki GW250F is really just the GW250, with full-fairing bodywork.

The move is perhaps the mother of necessity, as Suzuki doesn’t have a proper motorbike to go head-to-head with the Kawasaki Ninja 300, Honda CBR300R, or Yamaha YZF-R25.

With the small-displacement war well underway in the United States, Suzuki Motor America surely felt that something beyond just the Suzuki GW250 was needed, and hence the GW250F was born.

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Bikes

2015 Suzuki GSX-S750 — Budget Middleweight Streetfighter

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Suzuki Motor America has just wrapped up its dealer show, and the surprise announcement is the 2015 Suzuki GSX-S750. The 749cc cousin to the Suzuki GSX-S1000 that debuted at the INTERMOT show, the Suzuki GSX-S750 is exactly what you think it is.

Taking the GSX-R750’s engine, and tuning it for low-end torque and mid-range power, Suzuki says that the GSX-S750 is perfect for street riding. Europeans have been calling it the Suzuki GSR750, since 2011.

The real kicker for the American market though is the price, as the GSX-S750 (available only in matte black) comes in at a paltry $7,999. Meanwhile the “Metallic Triton Blue and Pearl Glacier White” painted Suzuki GSX-S750Z (shown above) will hit dealer floors at $8,149, MSRP.

We gave Suzuki a lot of grief over the GSX-S1000 this week, but it seems they heard our thoughts in advance regarding pricing on the GSX-S line. There appears to be tremendous bang for the buck with the Suzuki GSX-S750 — American street enthusiasts, your budget streetfighter is here. Photos and specs are after the jump.

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BRD Motorcycles Raises $4.5 Million in Series A Funding

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It has been a long time coming, but we have some good news from the folks at BRD Motorcycles, as the electric motorcycle startup has just closed a $4.5 million Series A funding round.

The investment round was led by Spanish investment firm Modara Technologies, which was joined by Cedarville Investments, Tesla Motors founders Martin Eberhard & Marc Tarpenning, and Pedro Zapata Gil, the CEO of Baluarte Real Estate in Spain.

To-date that makes $8.2 million in capital raised by BRD, and now the San Francisco startup will be able to go ahead with production on its BRD RedShift electric dirt bike and supermoto offerings. BRD will show the production-ready RedShift MX & RedShift SM at the AIMExpo in two weeks’ time, which will retail for $14,995 and $15,495, respectively.

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Bikes

2015 Suzuki GSX-R1000 Gets ABS & Bold New Graphics

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When it comes to the four Japanese manufacturers at INTERMOT, Suzuki is looking more and more like it slept in late on test day. Both Honda and Yamaha have been pushing the ball forward, releasing some interesting, albeit not inspiring, motorcycles to the market. Those bikes were fresh at least, and showed some life going on in the motorcycle departments of those companies.

Then there is Kawasaki, which brought out an all-new Ninja ZX-10R superbike in the middle of the recession, and today at INTERMOT they debuted the game-changing Kawasaki Ninja H2R hyperbike. That is a tough act to follow.

To its credit, the 2015 Suzuki V-Strom 650XT is a welcomed addition to Suzuki’s lineup, however other models like the Suzuki GSX-S1000 and Suzuki GSX-S1000F, makes us think that Suzuki is afraid to build anything truly new and inspiring again. Need further proof? Take the 2015 Suzuki GSX-R1000.

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2015 Kawasaki Versys 1000 — Coming to the USA Too

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The good times don’t stop rolling with the new Kawasaki Versys 650, as the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 1000 is confirmed to be coming to the United States as well. We already got a glimpse of the new Kawasaki Versys 1000 from yesterday’s leaked photos, which showed the revised bodywork from Kawasaki.

Getting official details now, we know that the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 1000 makes relatively minor improvements technically over the previous model. Longer travel suspension has been added, and the 17″ wheels have been beefed up, both in order to aid going on off-road excursions.

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Bikes

2015 Kawasaki Versys 650 Is Coming to America

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If you liked what you saw yesterday, when we posted leaked photos of the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 650, then you will like even more what we have to say now, as Kawasaki USA has confirmed that the all-new Kawasaki Versys 650 is coming to the United States as a 2015 model year bike. The official announcement is set for the AIMExpo in October, so there is no pricing yet for the US market.

As we saw in the leaked photos, the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 650 has a revised headlight design, and new fairings that improve wind deflection around the rider. The 649cc parallel-twin engine has also been reworked, producing more horsepower and getting better fuel economy in the process.

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Bikes

2015 Suzuki GSX-S1000F — A Sporty Sport-Tourer

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We caught a glimpse of the 2015 Suzuki GSX-S1000F yesterday, as it sat on the expo floor at INTERMOT, and we were curious about the machine. Thankfully we didn’t have to wait long for the details.

Essentially a fully-faired version of the Suzuki GSX-S1000, the Suzuki GSX-S1000F fills the void in Suzuki’s lineup for a 1,000cc sport-tourer that is actually sporty — think of it as a response to the Honda VFR800.

The GSX-S1000F uses the same purpose-built chassis and retuned 2008 Suzuki GSX-R1000 engine that the GSX-S1000 uses, though Suzuki obviously wrapped that package in a full-fairing design.

Also carried over is the three-way adjustable traction control system as standard, KYB suspension, and Brembo monoblock brakes. Anti-locking brakes are available as an optional item.

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2015 Suzuki GSX-S1000 – How To Sell Leftover GSX-R’s

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A bike we spotted in Southern California shooting a commercial, we already knew to expect the 2015 Suzuki GSX-S1000 at the INTERMOT show this week. Built around the same inline-four engine that was found in the 2008 Suzuki GSX-R1000, the GSX-S1000 has been tuned for street use, though Suzuki isn’t exactly talking key figures.

Proving that it’s not selling just a rebadged GSX-R, Suzuki has built an all-new aluminum frame chassis for GSX-S1000, with an eye on making the machine more of a roadster than a streetfighter.

Also of note is the addition of a three-way selectable traction control system, something even the GSX-R1000 doesn’t have. ABS is available, but only on the aptly named Suzuki GSX-S1000.

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Bikes

2015 KTM 1290 Super Adventure – Even with 180hp, Is This the Safest Motorcycle in the World?

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KTM wasn’t bashful about wedging the 1301cc lump from the KTM Super Duke R into the company’s ADV offering, as the Austrians were fairly frank about 2015 KTM 1290 Super Adventure debuting at INTERMOT. There may not be too many surprises about the adventure-tourer then, but it certainly is a stout package from KTM.

Obvious is the massive horsepower that the KTM 1290 Super Adventure is putting down, but KTM has also infused control into the ADV bike. Bosch’s MSC “cornering ABS” system is standard, as is traction control, cruise control, and semi-active suspension from WP. LED cornering headlights are also standard, while an electronic hill hold control (HHC) can be fitted as an option.

Of note is that the 1290 Super Adventure does not use the exact same engine as the 1290 Super Duke R. The two machines use the same cylinders, connecting rods, and pistons, but KTM’s engineers built a special crankshaft and cylinders for the 2015 KTM 1290 Super Adventure, which also has a heavier flywheel than the Super Duke R.

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2015 Suzuki V-Strom 650XT ABS – Wee-Strom Gets a Beak

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The leaks ahead of INTERMOT turned out to be true, as the 2015 Suzuki V-Strom 650XT broke cover today in Germany. Taking its cues from its 1,000cc sibling, the Suzuki V-Strom 650XT is visually very similar to Suzuki’s other ADV bike, though at its center is the same tried-and-true 645cc v-twin engine.

Noticeable differences to the Suzuki V-Strom 1000, beside the engine of course, are the wire-spoked wheeles, side-by-side dual headlight (the V-Strom 1000 has a stacked headlight). Like the V-Strom 1000 though, the V-Strom 650XT comes with a 19″ front wheel (17″ rear).

At 474 lbs at the curb, the V-Strom 650XT ABS is a lighter option to the V-Strom 1000, and gives the Triumph Tiger 800XC & BMW F800GS a good run for their money — expect the 2015 Suzuki V-Strom 650XT ABS to be priced aggressive, as such.

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