Latest Posts:
Asphalt & Rubber
Tag

leak

Browsing
Bikes

Even More Photos of the 2015 Yamaha FJ-09 Leak

By 19 Comments

Yesterday we brought you the first official photo of the Yamaha FJ-09 tourer, which had been accidentally added to the Yamaha FZ-09 gallery on the Yamaha NA press site. Today it seems that leaks in Yamaha continue for the FJ-09, as our Dutch friends at Nieuwsmotor have discovered a bevy of press images, ahead of the 2015 Yamaha FJ-09’s debut at EICMA next month.

Based around the FZ-09/MT-09 platform, the FJ-09 uses a similar three-cylinder engine as the sport nakeds, though looks to have more suspension travel and other touring elements. Picking up where the Yamaha TDM left off as a middleweight sport/adventure-tourer, the Yamaha FJ-09 could be a very interesting addition to Yamaha’s lineup.

With the FZ/MT line showing great value for the performance, Yamaha could be set to release a very adorable machine for ADV and sport-touring riders. With the name trademarked with the USPTO, we can expect to see the Yamaha FJ-09 in the American market. Get excited.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

2015 Yamaha FJ-09 Leaked ahead of EICMA

By 10 Comments

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.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

LEAKED: First Image of the Kawasaki Ninja H2 Street Bike

By 22 Comments

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.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

2015 Kawasaki Versys 650 Photos Leak Ahead of INTERMOT

By 17 Comments

In addition to the leaked photos of the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 1000, our friends at Nieuwsmotor have also received photos of the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 650, which we can see here is an all-new revamp of the popular bike for Kawasaki that will debut at INTERMOT tomorrow.

Visually similar to its 1000cc counterpart, the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 650 has been completely overhauled for the next model year. Obvious is the dual-headlight setup, the 5.5 gallon fuel tank, and the revamped chassis; though the 649cc parallel twin engine appears to be the same.

We should get more photos and details tomorrow when the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 650 officially unveils. Until then, we can chew on how the new Versys 650 compares to the soon-to-be released Suzuki V-Stron 650 Adventure.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

LEAKED: Photos of the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 1000

By 9 Comments

It’s the day before the INTERMOT press day, which means leaks are coming left and right, as the villainy and scum that are moto-journalists get their hands on embargoed information from motorcycle manufacturers. Kawasaki seems to be the biggest leaking sieve, as a photo of the Kawasaki Ninja H2 has already surfaced.

Now our friends at Nieuwsmotor have gotten their hands on the photos of the 2015 Kawasaki Versys 1000 and 2015 Kawasaki Versys 650. First up is the updated Kawasaki Versys 1000, which has mostly revamped bodywork, when compared to the 2014 model. We are expecting there to be few technical changes for 2015, though an adjustable windscreen has obviously been added.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

LEAKED: Here is the First Photo of the Kawasaki Ninja H2

By 37 Comments

Our INTERMOT coverage is in full-swing today, and we bring you the first photo of the Kawasaki Ninja H2. Showing more clearly the wings we spotted in Kawasaki’s last video, we can see now the extent that the Japanese company has gone to in making the H2 more aerodynamic.

Our sources tell us this the “race” version of the supercharged Ninja H2, though what it’s racing, we are not sure — our bets are on either land speed records at Bonneville or the Millennium Falcon.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

2015 Suzuki DL650X V-Strom Adventure Outed with Beak

By 14 Comments

The Suzuki V-Strom 1000 was a big step for Suzuki and the V-Strom name, as the Japanese company put forward a very convincing offer on the ADV table. Now Suzuki seems set to deliver an encore to that production, in the guise of the company’s smaller V-Strom 650 machine.

Spotted by our Dutch friends at Oliepeil, Suzuki’s parts catalog shows a new model tagged as the DL650X, which features a new beak-like headlight/mudguard, dual-sport treaded tires, and wire-laced wheels. For those who don’t know “DL” has been Suzuki’s letter-based model name for the V-Strom series, since its inception.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

Leaked: Tech Details on the Harley-Davidson Livewire

By 58 Comments

Thanks to our network of Bothan spy tipsters, we posted today the still-unreleased photos of the Harley-Davidson Project Livewire. Details were light from our sources though, but Bothans are a tireless breed (note: for new readers, we sort of have this whole Star Wars motif on leaked stories…just roll with it, we already know we’re nerds).

While the consensus on Project Livewire seems to be that it’s a looker, the devil is in the details…and now we have those as well. Featuring a three-phase induction motor with 55 kW of power (just under 74hp) and 52 lbs•ft of torque, the Harley-Davidson Livewire is packing more power than both the Brammo Empulse R (54 hp) and Zero SR (67 hp). That’s the good.

The bad is that despite its hefty casing size, the Harley-Davidson Livewire motorcycle is a little light in the loafers when it comes to battery capacity. Our guesstimate on battery pack size, judging from Harley’s quoted charge time and parameters, is somewhere in the neighborhood of 7 kWh nominal, a bit less than the 9.3 kWh and 10.0 kWh of the Brammo and Zero.

That means the Harley-Davidson Livewire is good for just over 50 miles of mixed city and highway riding that is limited to 92 mph (we’re not really sure how Harley-Davidson came up with that figure). Expect to go 0-60 in around 4 seconds.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

Leaked: First Photos of the Harley-Davidson Livewire

By 39 Comments

The folks in Milwaukee didn’t invite Asphalt & Rubber to the Harley-Davidson Project Livewire launch and subsequent press embargo, so I’m not going to lose too much sleep over publishing the latest find from our Bothan spy network (for the record, A&R has never broken a press embargo that we were invited to).

That all being said, here are the first official photos of the Harley-Davidson Livewire electric motorcycle — the Bar & Shield brand’s foray into electric motorcycle scene — for your viewing pleasure.

Details are still spotty of course (update: you can read the tech specs here), so we will leave that bit of journalism to the publications that Harley-Davidson deemed worthy (maybe it was something we said?). For our part though, we can see a full-glass dash though, which is another first for Harley-Davidson, as well as an LED headlight.

The big kickers will be the price and range, of course. South of $20,000 and north of 100 miles would really make Project Livewire a strong contender on the market. It will remain to be seen if Harley-Davidson can get under/above those two metrics, respectively, though.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

Yet Another Look at the Yamaha YZF-R25

By 6 Comments

There is only a week until Yamaha reveals its 250cc sport bike, the Yamaha YZF-R25, but glimpses of the machine continue to make their way onto the internet. We skipped the completely unidentifiable tail light photos, but have already brought you some good looks at the YZF-R25’s front-end.

Today, we bring you an unfortunately low-resolution look at the R25’s profile, in its entirety. How will this Indonesian-made parallel-twin compare to bikes like of the Honda CBR250R and Kawasaki Ninja 250R? Only time will tell.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

Coming Soon: Honda Gold Wing F6C

By 14 Comments

The force is strong with the Bothan Spy network today, as we have received news that Honda is set to debut a naked-style power cruiser, named the Honda Gold Wing F6C — a noticeable nod to a similar Honda motorcycle, the Honda F6C Valkyrie.

Though we don’t know what the final form of the F6C will be like (the Honda EV 6 Concept is above), it is said to be the bridge between the Honda CTX1300 and Honda Gold Wing F6B, the 2014 Honda Gold Wing F6C is a light and low cruiser in style, similar to the CTX1300.

However Gold Wing F6C will also be like the Honda Gold Wing F6B in that it will be based around the Gold Wing’s 1,832cc six-cylinder engine, which will make and underwhelming 108hp at 5,500 rpm and an overwhelming 116 lbs•ft of torque at 4,000 rpm.

Keep Reading
By