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Something Interesting from Ducati’s Wind Tunnel Testing

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At the beginning of this month, Ducati posted a promo video for its new Panigale V4 superbike. The video shows the new machine testing in a wind tunnel, touting the tagline that the motorcycle was “shaped by the wind.”

Surely this access to a high-speed wind tunnel for development purposes is the byproduct and one of the benefits of Ducati being part of the Volkswagen Group.

Though, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has all but made wind tunnels obsolete, making such things more of a show of engineering, and thus marketing. We digress.

What is of note though in this video, however, beyond the interesting glimpses of Ducati’s physical fluidic analysis, is that it is a glimpse at one of the Panigale V4’s very early designs.

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Bikes

That Suzuki Katana 3.0 Concept Though…

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One of the less-publicized motorcycles on display at this year’s EICMA show was this Suzuki Katana concept, which has since been making the rounds on social media.

Rightfully so, we would say, as the “Katana 3.0” is a very intriguing idea into how Suzuki can revitalize one of its most iconic names.

A creation by the folks at Motociclismo, with the help of designer Rodolfo Frascoli and Engines Engineering, the Katana 3.0 concept isn’t the “official” concept that many had hoped for from Suzuki.

However, the fact that Suzuki hosted the concept inside its EICMA display is a sign that the Japanese manufacturer is certainly listening to the feeback the bike generates.

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Bikes

Motus Working on a V4 Streetfighter, And It Sounds Goood!

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Motus Motorcycles looks to be working on its second motorcycle model, as a naked prototype of the Motus MST has been making appearances on the American brand’s social media channels, including a very tasty video of the bike testing a 4-2-1 Akrapovic exhaust on the dyno (watch it, after the jump).

We reached out to Motus about its latest project, and the company confirmed its interest in making a naked version of the Motus MST sport-tourer, though it is waiting to see the feedback from other Motus owners and potential customers before committing to make the machine.

Still, Motus is teasing some very intriguing performance specs and design elements, which is more than whetting our appetite.

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Bikes

The Honda Neo Sports Café Concept Is Quite the Looker

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After much teasing, Honda quietly debuted its Neo Sports Café concept at the Tokyo Motor Show today. Releasing nary a detail about the simple but modern motorcycle design, we are left to draw our own conclusions about the machine.

We had hoped that the Honda Neo Sports Café would lead to a retro-styled version of the Honda CB1000R, much in the same vein that the new Kawasaki Z900S is a hipsterfied version of the popular Z900 street bike.

It’s not clear if Honda intends to produce the Neo Sports Café concept, but its design is intriguing, especially when you consider the now ancient four-cylinder engine that resides in its chassis, which is of course derived from the previous generation Honda CBR1000RR.

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Bikes

Naughty Quadro by Alexey Afanasyev

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If you needed more proof that the Ducati 1299 Panigale can make for an attractive retro-styled motorcycle (here, here, and here), then may we present to you one more piece of evidence, the “Naughty Quadro” by designer Alexey Afanasyev.

To make the Naughty Quadro, Afanasyev took the Panigale’s Superquadro engine and built around it an attractive and trendy body structure, which should look familiar to Scrambler owners. If the swingarm looks familiar too, that is because it is off of a Ducati Monster S2R 1000.

One of the most noticeable aspects of Afanasyev design is the custom radiator, which creates a tasteful line for the superbike engine, though we’re not sure if it will do the duty in heavy traffic.

Of course, the most interesting aspect of the motorcycle is that it isn’t a motorcycle at all…as Afanasyev has created some very detailed and very convincing renders for his concept on the computer, which include even the dirt and debris on the engine and tires. It’s really well-crafted.

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Reviews

Is the MV Agusta Brutale 800 the Best Bike on the Market?

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In early 2016, I was fortunate enough to ride the revamped and Euro4 version of the MV Agusta Brutale 800. On paper, the Brutale 800 lost power and gained weight, but the reality is that MV Agusta improved upon already one of its best-selling machines, in subtle and clever ways.

Now a year-and-a-half later, the 2017 MV Agusta Brutale 800 is finally available in the United States, and I have been reunited with one of the best street bikes on the market.

Spending almost all of last month with this motorcycle again, it is clear that not much has changed from a rider’s perspective, though internally improvements have been made to some of the weaker elements of the design, like the sprag clutch and valve train.

While not much has changed with this year’s edition of the MV Agusta Brutale 800, I am mostly fine with that.

I say mostly, because the MV Agusta Brutale 800 could benefit from some changes, with those handful of refinements, the MV Agusta Brutale 800 could be the best street bike on the market…and I don’t say those words lightly.

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Bikes

BMW R1600C Concept by Nicolas Petit

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One item we might expect to see at EICMA later this year is BMW Motorrad’s alleged “XDiavel killer” – as the German manufacturer is expected to continue expanding its lineup of motorcycles into new model segments.

Not much has been said about the rumor, since it was first published 16 months ago by Motorrad Magazine, but BMW has several options on the table for this power cruiser.

In this concept sketch, Wunderlich and Nicolas Petit have teamed up to create an “R1600C” motorcycle, with a new boxer engine design. Students of the BMW brand will surely remember the now defunct R1200C cruiser model.

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Lifestyle

Here’s Your Chance for a Real Career in Motorcycles

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If you are a young motorcycle enthusiast, looking to start a real career in this industry, the perfect time might be now. KISKA, the design firm responsible for the KTM and Husqvarna brands, is looking for a Product Management Intern in its motorcycle section. 

An amazing opportunity, this six-month internship is open to students or recent graduates, with fields of studying in marketing or product management. You must be willing to relocate though, as KISKA’s main base of operations is in Salzburg, Austria (one of the most beautiful cities in Europe).

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Bikes

Bold New Graphics for the 2017 KTM RC390 & Kin

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While we expect to see the KTM 390 Duke to get a minor update for the 2017 model year, along with a refresh of its design and graphics, it seems its sport bike counterpart, the KMT RC390 will just be getting the “bold new graphics” treatment.

This makes some sense in a way, since the KTM RC390 and its kin came to market a year after the KTM 390 Duke debuted. This could mean then that a model refresh is due for the pint-sized racer for the 2018 model year.

These leaked photos apparently confirm that the KTM RC390, KTM RC200, and KTM RC125 will get only changes to their liveries for the 2017 model year.

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Bikes

Is This the Year of the Monkey, The Honda Monkey?

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If you read as many motorcycle news sites as I do, then you surely know that Honda is almost definitely probably maybe debuting a new “monkey bike” in the near future. The source of this news is Honda’s recent application for design patents in the European and Japanese markets.

Intellectual property filings are a great way of seeing what a motorcycle OEM is up to, but as our colleagues at Motorcycle.com correctly pointed out, they can also be a great source of red herrings.

This is because motorcycle manufacturers not only patent and trademark the design they intend to put into production, but also the design they don’t intend to produce, but have still shown the public. This is just smart policy when it comes to intellectually property protection.

Fortunately or unfortunately, it’s easy to jump to conclusions when one sees a filing that exactly mimics a show bike or concept, as we’ve seen this week with the Grom-powered Honda Monkey.

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Bikes

Hi, Are You the 2017 Honda CBR1000RR?

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If you were hoping that the 2017 Honda CBR1000RR would be a completely new machine for sport bike enthusiasts, the following might disappoint you.

This is because photos published on Twitter seem to suggest that the 2017 Honda Fireblade will get mostly cosmetic changes for the upcoming model year.

As you can see after the jump, what looks like the new CBR1000RR was caught lapping for what appears to be a PR video spot for the Japanese OEM.

While it is clear from these shots that the pictured Honda CBR1000RR has a radically new fairing design, a closer comparison to the chassis (see above) suggests that the machine is simply the current generation machine, with new clothing.

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