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Up-Close with the Yamaha YZF-R3

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This week we not only go a chance to see the 2015 Yamaha YZF-R3 unveiled at the AIMExpo, but also we had the chance to see the R3 up-close in the flesh. The budget-minded sport bike shows the obvious signs of more cost-effecient construction and fitted components, yet retains the fit-and-finish you would expect from a Yamaha motorcycle.

This makes the R3 a prime candidate for aspirational riders, who want an affordable first motorcycle that looks the part of a proper sport bike. Track enthusiasts and veteran riders though will be disappointed with the Yamaha YZF-R3’s non-adjustable KYB suspension, box swingarm design, and bulky chassis — this is still a 368lbs (wet) motorcycle.

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Up-Close with the Kawasaki Ninja H2R

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Asphalt & Rubber is coming to you live from the AIMExpo in Orlando, Florida today and tomorrow, covering the new bikes that are debuting on North American soil. We’ve already seen the new Yamaha YZF-R3 released here, as well as the Alta RedShift electric motorcycles (formerly BRD Motorcycles).

While both bikes are impressive, and are massively important to the American motorcycle scene, the buzz remains about the Kawasaki Ninja H2R. The AIMExpo is the first venue for Americans to get a glimpse of Kawasaki’s hyperbike, and the H2R sits like a praying mantis, waiting to strike you with its supercharged charms.

Naturally, we had to get a closer look…and bring you a bevy of high-resolution detail shots from the trades how floor. Enjoy!

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Bikes

2015 Yamaha FJ-09 Leaked ahead of EICMA

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Someone at Yamaha is going to get a stern talking to today, as it seems a photo of the still unreleased Yamaha FJ-09 made its way to Yamaha’s press site accidentally, and didn’t yank it down before our friends at Common Tread caught a glimpse of it.

Mixed in with photos of the Yamaha FZ-09, the photo of the 2015 Yamaha FJ-09 doesn’t really give too much away from the machine, as we’ve seen the same shot in black & white already.

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2015 Alta RedShift SM — A SuMo Wrestler with Lights

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Like its off-roading counterpart, the Alta RedShift SM is built around the most powerful motor on the market, per pound (40hp coming from an 11 lbs motor), which is a proprietary design by Alta.

Building around that a proper supermoto package, complete with WP suspension and Brembo brakes, the Alta Motors crew hopes that it has built a supermoto that will blow away the competition on the track, whether it be another electric sumo, or a lites-class gas-powered machine.

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2015 Alta RedShift MX – Lites, Camera, Action

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The now newly named Alta Motors is ready to announce its production machines for the 2015 model year, and first up is the company’s off-road model: the Alta RedShift MX. Designed to take on the toughest gas-powered lites-class motocross bikes on the track (250cc four-strokes), the RedShift MX boasts some impressive electric figures as well.

With 40hp on tap, from only 11 pounds of motor, the RedShift platform has the most powerful motor per pound, anywhere. Add that to the fact that Alta says the RedShift MX tips the scales at 251 lbs, though feels lighter once it’s underway — a known benefit of electric motorcycles.

Revving to 13,750 rpm from Alta’s proprietary motor, the RedShift MX is good for 2 hours of “recreational” riding. For riders that want to keep going longer, Alta has designed the battery pack to be swappable, in about 10-15 minutes with two sets of hands working. This also means that future battery pack upgrades will be available as new battery tech comes to market as well.

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Yamaha YZF-R3 Revealed – 321cc Twin Coming to the USA

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The rumors were true, Yamaha is bringing a special small-displacement model to market, the Yamaha YZF-R3. As the name indicates, the new R3 gets a fuel-injected displacement bump over the R25, to the tune of 321cc. Debuted at the AIMExpo today, the Yamaha YZF-R3 is coming to the USA, with a price tag of $4,990.

Said by Yamaha to have “class-leading power”, the new R3 finally adds a small-displacement sport bike to Yamaha’s North American lineup, and makes an attractive offering when compared to the other 250cc/300cc machines from the other Japanese manufacturers. Expect to see it in Yamaha dealers, starting January 2014.

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Is This How Much the Kawasaki Ninja H2R Will Cost? Nope.

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It has certainly been interesting to see the buzz around the Kawasaki Ninja H2 these past few weeks, especially as everyone tries to cash in on the supercharged hype-machine that Kawasaki has been running.

First we saw Motorcycle.com just create a story out of thin air, to help its owner VerticalScope promote a new web property. That was…uhh…the most ridiculous thing I’ve seen while in this industry, not to mention just sloppy journalism. Now lately we have seen a supposed dealer invoice for the track-only Kawasaki Ninja H2R, with a price tag just north of $60,000.

Many publications have latched onto that price point — which isn’t the craziest conclusion to come to, considering that the H2R is Kawasaki’s halo-bike project, and will likely cost a pretty penny — though with just a quick glance, we can see that the alleged paperwork has clearly been a work of Photoshop, and not inside information.

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“DVT” Ducati Valve Timing Announcement Coming Soon

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Ducati sent out a rather terse press mailer today, which you can see above. Simply stating that DVT is coming on October 15th, we would normally be scratching our heads over what the Italian manufacturer has in store.

However, since we broke the news yesterday about Ducati bringing variable valve timing to the market, first with its all-new Multistrada, one doesn’t have to be a rocket scientist to put two-and-two together to come up with “Ducati Valve Timing” as the teaser’s subject.

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LEAKED: First Image of the Kawasaki Ninja H2 Street Bike

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Just last week the Kawasaki Ninja H2R, KHI’s supercharged track-only 300hp beast of a hyperbike, debuted at INTERMOT. The reception of the H2R was astounding, and Kawasaki has certainly laid down the gauntlet with the design, philosophy, and execution of its latest Ninja.

Kawasaki’s test riders are already reporting on social media speeds over 210 mph, and we eagerly await Kawasaki’s street-legal Ninja H2.

Set to debut at the AIMExpo in two weeks’ time, it seems the first image of the machine has leaked ahead of schedule. Caught in what looks like an early release of Kawasaki’s next teaser video, we can make out the lines of the Ninja H2 street bike.

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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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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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