If you liked what you saw with the 2021 KTM 1290 Super Adventure S, and you live in the United States, well…we have some bad news for you. The new 1290 ADV bike will not be coming to the USA this year, and instead will be a 2022 model.
This news comes to us from our Bothan spies, and the indication is that none of KTM’s upcoming 1290 bikes will see US soil until next year, including the KTM 1290 Adventure R and KTM 1290 Super Duke GT – two models we are expecting to see updated soon.
When the KTM 890 Duke debuted two weeks ago, we were impressed by what the Austrian brand was bringing to the table with this 890cc naked bike.
The KTM 790 Duke had been our sweet spot for price and performance in the sport, and while the KTM 890 Duke promised more “bang” than its predecessor, we wondered at what cost on the “buck” side of the equation.
This is because KTM North America didn’t release pricing information when the 2021 KTM 890 Duke was unveiled – thankfully our Bothan spies have been busy on the job.
On December 17th, the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) raided with armed tactical agents the offices of Ducati North America in Mountain View, California.
Though only a handful of employees were in the Mountain View office because of COVID restrictions during the time of the raid, it is being reported that roughly 30 agents stormed the building with a search warrant in hand.
An account of this happening was posted by a Ducati North America employee to the Bay Area Riders Forum, with RoadRacing World subsequently publishing the news.
As we get closer to the debut of the Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 for the 2021 model year, information about this adventure bike is making its way into Harley-Davidson’s various channels, which means it’s making its way into the ears of our Bothan spies.
First reported on the Brap Talk motorcycle podcast, our initial news is that the Pan America will debut at a fairly affordable price for the category, starting around the $17,000 mark.
With all the bells and whistles installed, the bike is still expected to be a sub-$20,000 machine, which makes it one of the more affordable luxury ADV bikes on the market.
Episode 46 of the Brap Talk motorcycle podcast is back with another weekly episode, for your two-wheeled listening pleasure.
In this episode, we took a little break from talking about the news that has happened in the motorcycle industry, and tried our hand at breaking some stories.
The folks at Motociclismo.it are reporting that a KTM 1290 Super Duke RR is going to drop in the coming days – news that our own Bothan Spies are giving good vibrations about as well.
The concept behind the KTM 1290 Super Duke RR is pretty simple: it will be a version of the current streetfighter, complete with a bevy of farkles and go-fast parts from the Austrian brand to make it even more of a hooligan machine on the street and track.
Cameron Beaubier is finally leaving MotoAmerica for the world stage, with reports putting the American in the Moto2 paddock, with the aptly named American Racing team.
Roadracing World was the first to report the news, and our own sources have confirmed Beaubier’s move from the US championship to grand prix racing.
In 41 days, Kawasaki plans on unveiling six new motorcycles for the 2021 model year, and no ink has been wasted trying to speculate what those bikes could be.
Could there be a new KLR to rival the Yamaha Ténéré 700 and help Team Green back into the ADV category? Another supercharged model to keep the H2 and H2 SX street bikes company? One more retro-modern play? It’s hard to say.
One thing that did seem for certain was that we would see a new Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R superbike, and that is where today’s story takes us.
Now, our Bothan spies have reported in, and given us some clarity on what has only been speculation so far.
The arrival date of the Bimota Tesi H2 is getting closer, so it doesn’t surprise us that today a Bothan spy dropped off these photos in our inbox, showing the supercharged sport bike in its final production form.
Not too much has changed since we first saw the Bimota Tesi H2 at the EICMA show in 2019, as the basic lines from the Italian boutique have remained throughout the machine.
The bike is still built around the Kawasaki Ninja H2 power plant, with the addition of an iconic and unique hub-center steering design chassis, which itself is clad with carbon fiber bodywork.
The Bothan Spies of Asphalt & Rubber have been hard at work during the recent months, and they bring us news from Austria: the KTM 200 Duke will be coming to the USA as a late 2020 model.
The KTM 200 Duke is not a new model in the Austrian brand’s lineup, as it is available in various markets world, and most notably in the Asian markets where tiered licensing and cost-of-ownership constraints make the 25hp motorcycle a great choice for street riders, but it is a new and curious model for the United States.
Our Bothan spy sources are telling us the the Ducati 1299 Superleggera recall from yesterday is just the tip of the iceberg of what is coming from Brembo, as the Italian brake supplier’s affected brake pads are in multiple makes and models throughout the USA and worldwide (editor’s note: we see Triumph now making the same recall today as Ducati).
For those keeping track, this is the second time that Brembo has seen a large recall for its brake pads because the friction material might become separated from the backing plate. And like the Brembo recall for its master cylinder piston failure, this is something that is going to affect a number of motorcycle brands, as Brembo is a large OEM supplier.
Our sources are telling us that thousands of bikes in the United States will be affected by this recall, though thankfully the fix for the brake pad failure is pretty easy – one only has to change out the brake pads for new ones.