Latest Posts:
Asphalt & Rubber
Tag

2021

Browsing
Rumors

KTM 790 SMC Spotted Out Testing

By No Comments

We knew it was coming, a supermoto version of KTM’s 790 platform. The KTM 790 Duke filled the streetfighter niche quite well, and the KTM 790 Adventure has similarly blown the doors off the ADV market, and now the Austrian brand is looking to give hooligan riders something fun for the street.

As such, spy photos have spotted what is being called the KTM 790 SMC in action, likely testing outside the city limits of Salzburg, Austria.

Readers should remember that the maxi-motard segment isn’t a large one, with the Ducati Hypermotard 950 being really the main player in the space.

The Italian bike has long been a niche machine in Borgo Panigale’s lineup, but this latest edition has been a strong seller for Ducati, which shows the changing tastes of motorcyclists.

Keep Reading
By
Rumors

Indian Has Two More FTR1200 Based Bikes Coming Soon

By No Comments

When we first rode the Indian FTR1200 prototype motorcycle – one of our better A&R Pro stories, if I do say so myself – it was clear that the American brand was seeing this model as the first iteration from a platform of machines.

When pressed the Indian reps on whether we would see more bikes with the new v-twin engine arriving, and the answers in reply were deliciously vague, though hints of an ADV machine and other models could be read between the lines.

So, it doesn’t surprise us today that our colleagues at Motorbike Writer have gotten wind of Indian releasing two more variations of the machine, a “Street” bike in 2020, and an “Adventure” bike in 2021. Though, the story looks to have originally come from the ADV Rider web forum.

This is a very interesting proof of what we suspected, but we should say that the conclusions reached by Motorbike Writer are mostly incorrect.

Keep Reading
By
Rumors

This Week’s Yamaha YZF-R1 Rumor

By No Comments

Get the gears turning, because the rumor mill is starting to churn away on speculation for the next generation Yamaha YZF-R1.

This particular rumor looks towards the 2021 model year, when the Euro5 regulations for motorcycles take effect. Of course to that, we say “well of course there is.”

We will get to all that in a minute, but first, the buzz from Europe on what we can expect to see from Yamaha in two years’ time.

Keep Reading
By
MotoGP

Indonesia To Host Both MotoGP & WorldSBK from 2021

By No Comments

Indonesia is to get a round of MotoGP and WorldSBK from 2021. Confirmation of the news came faster than we expected, as Dorna issued two press releases on Saturday, announcing that both World Championship series it manages will race at the new circuit to be built at Mandalika in Lombok.

That MotoGP would race there is not a surprise, but that WorldSBK would also visit had not been much talked about.

But, this follows the same pattern as the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand, where WorldSBK was sent to the track first as a trial run, before MotoGP went to race there.

The agreement announced by Dorna envisages both series going in the same year, starting in 2021.

Keep Reading
By
Rumors

The Triumph Daytona 765 Is On Its Way…Soon

By No Comments

Though we were disappointed to see that the Triumph Daytona 765 wouldn’t come to us as a 2019 model, rumors about the motorcycle’s arrival have begun to swell.

Alleged spy photos of the bike popped up on the web last week, and out Bothan Spies have been reporting details of what to expect from this middleweight sport bike, which seems set for a 2020 model year debut…perhaps as early as later this year.

Keep Reading
By
News

Ducati CEO Hints at Coming Future Electric Models

By No Comments

The discussion about when Ducati would build its first electric motorcycle has been going on for quite some time, but the conversation reached a new height about a year and a half ago, when Volkswagen debuted its Roadmap E initiative.

The concept here is simple, all of the brands in the VW family would have a full line of electric vehicles by the year 2030. This set off speculation about how this order would affect the Bologna-based motorcycle maker.

Then a month later, Ducati’s Edouard Lotthé (Managing Director of Ducati Western Europe) was quoted saying that an electric model, as well as a scooter, are both in the works for the Italian brand.

Lotthé tipped that we wouldn’t see either before the 2021 model year, but time has certainly ticked by since then. Now in the 2019 model year, Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali has added more fuel to the EV fire.

Quoted at a student event at the University of Bologna, Domenicali stated that “the future is electric” and that Ducati was not far from starting production on an electric motorcycle model.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

Yamaha Ténéré 700 Will Be a 2021 Model for the USA

By No Comments

We have been waiting a very long time for the Yamaha Ténéré 700, with the machine first debuting as a concept in 2016. A no-show at the 2017 EICMA show, the Yamaha T7 concept instead went on a worldwide promotional tour.

So, surely we thought that the 2018 EICMA show would announce the Yamaha Ténéré 700 as ready to go…yes and no. The Yamaha Ténéré 700 is finally coming as a production motorcycle…but not quite yet.

Expected as a Fall 2019 model in Europe, off-roaders eager for a middleweight adventure-touring bike will have to wait another year. If you happen to live on this side of the pond however, we have even worse news for you.

The Yamaha Ténéré 700 will be a 2021 model year machine in the USA, debuting in the second-half of 2020, making this perhaps the most disappointing new model release at the Milan trade show.

Keep Reading
By
A&R Pro

INTERMOT Round Up – Digesting What We Saw in Cologne

By No Comments

The INTERMOT show is done and dusted, and we have had some time to chew on the models that we saw in Cologne, Germany...or didn't see, as the case might be. The second largest trade show in the motorcycle industry, one can wonder though whether the INTERMOT show is the second most important.

Having two major shows on European soil, with INTERMOT coming every other year, creates a Sophie's Choice for motorcycle manufacturers. EICMA might draw the crowds and the press, but it is also a maelstrom of new models, and it is easy for a bike's launch and debut to be lost in the chaos.

To that vein, INTERMOT provides an opportunity for manufacturers to see the forest for the trees. It is less pressure, with most manufacturers choosing to debut more minor releases at the German show, but this makes it ripe for some surprises as well. For 2018, things were no different.

To continue reading this story, you need to have an A&R Pro subscriber account. If you have an A&R Pro account, you can login here.

Keep Reading
By
Rumors

So, Is There a New Honda CBR600RR Coming for 2019?

By No Comments

If you read publications from our colleagues in Europe, then you will know that Honda must surely have plans for a new CBR600RR for the 2019 model year. The proof that they offer is that the recent CARB filings by American Honda show a CBR with a significant weight drop for next year.

First spotted by our friends at Nieuwsmotor, the CARB filings quote a 10kg (22 lbs) weight difference between the listed Honda “CBR600RA” and Honda “CBR600RR” motorcycles, which makes it seem like a lighter and more focused supersport is on the way.

It is an interesting dream – and a funny one for European journalists to spot, since the CBR600 series is all but dead in Europe. But what is the reality of this discovery?

Keep Reading
By