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2017 Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 Factory – Just Add Öhlins

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It goes without saying that if the 2017 Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 is getting a list of updates at INTERMOT, then the same must be true for the Factory version of the potent 175hp streetfighter.

This means that the 2017 Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 Factory takes the new fourth-generation APRC electronics package, Bosch-powered cornering ABS, improved combustion chamber, larger exhaust can, and adds to it the typical Factory-spec improvements like Öhlins suspension (including an Öhlins steering damper).

If you haven’t ridden the Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 RR or Factory, we highly recommend it. They’re so choice.

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Bikes

2017 Yamaha MT-10 SP – Putting the Europeans on Notice

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What you’re looking at is the 2017 Yamaha MT-10 SP, a new edition of Iwata’s crossplane-power streetfighter. Despite being just a few bolted-on parts, the Yamaha MT-10 SP is one of the more interesting machines to debut in INTERMOT today.

This is because it pits the Yamaha MT-10 directly against the streetfighter offerings from the European brands – something that was already occurring with the MT-10/FZ-10, even if it was unintended.

The Yamaha MT-10 SP though gives the Japanese a more proper machine to go toe-to-toe with the likes of the Super Duke R, Tuono V4 1100, and other models.

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Bikes

The Yamaha MT-09 Gets a Facelift & More for 2017

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Yamaha’s MT line runs with the tagline “The Dark Side of Japan” and promises edgy and affordable street bikes for urban riders.

Someone in Iwata, Japan must have thought that the current Yamaha MT-09 wasn’t quite edgy enough though, which is the only way we can explain the 2017 Yamaha MT-09, which debuted today at the INTERMOT show in Cologne, Germany.

Now with a “twin-eyed” LED headlight design, the Yamaha MT-09 feels a little bit more at home when parked next to the Yamaha MT-10 / Yamaha FZ-10 streetfighter. Other changes include an assist/slipper clutch, quickshifter, new suspension, and a redesigned tail section and fender.

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Bikes

Honda CBR1000RR SP2 – Big Red’s New Racing Platform

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The current state of the World Superbike Championship rules entirely encourage the adoption once again of “homologation specials” – production bikes whose sole purpose is to be used on the race track.

While none of the manufacturers have adopted a radical approach with their homologation special designs, this year’s INTERMOT show has already seen several such machines introduced, the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR, the Suzuki GSX-R1000R, and the Honda CBR1000RR SP2.

For Honda, the differences between the SP and SP2 aren’t terribly radical, but they are more purposeful.

The 2017 Honda CBR1000RR SP2 does come with several visual cues that are different from the CBR1000RR SP model: carbon insert panels, gold striping on the tri-color paint scheme, and the more obvious Marchesini wheels.

The real differences though are under the hood, and in the two race kits that will be available from Honda.

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Bikes

2017 Ducati SuperSport – The Sport Bike Returns

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The Ducati SuperSport is back for the 2017 model year, bringing a street-focused sport bike into Ducati’s motorcycle lineup once again. As you would expect, the 2017 Ducati SuperSport will come in two models, the SuperSport base model and a higher-spec SuperSport S model.

Both bikes use the 937cc, water-cooled, 113hp v-twin engine that’s found in the Ducati Hypermotard 939. Ducati has also used a steel trellis frame for the SuperSport, which looks very similar to the one used on the current Monster line. Obviously, the front fairing takes some cues from the Panigale superbike.

Ducati’s focus is for the SuperSport to augment its street lineup with something sporty that could go on the race track, but would be more at home on twisty roads, even with a passenger on the back.

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Bikes

2017 Honda CBR1000RR SP – Proving Patience is a Virtue

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The wait is over. The most anticipated motorcycle of the INTERMOT show is here, the 2017 Honda CBR1000RR SP.

We have seen the spy photos of this new superbike, we have seen leaked details on this superbike, and we’ve mused endlessly about this new superbike. And now, we can finally replace that conjecture with fact.

First off, the rumors were true. The 2017 Honda CBR1000RR SP sheds a massive 15 kilograms off its bulk, which translates into a 441 lbs mass at the curb. Power has also been increased by almost 11hp, for a total of 190hp at the crank.

Honda says that these two figures combined mean a 14% increase in the Honda CBR1000RR’s power-to-weight ratio. That’s pretty astounding, when you consider that under the new fairings is still mostly last year’s bike.

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Bikes

The All New 2017 Suzuki GSX-R1000 Finally Debuts

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We have had to wait nearly an entire year for Suzuki to finalize and release its new superbike, after first teasing us at the 2016 EIMCA show with it. But today at INTERMOT, the 2017 Suzuki GSX-R1000 is finally ready for primetime.

Because Suzuki already teased us the new GSX-R1000 a year ago, much about the machine is already known. But, for a proper plot twist, there will in fact be two variations of the Suzuki GSX-R1000 for 2017, with a higher spec 2017 Suzuki GSX-R1000R debuting as well.

For the 2017 Suzuki GSX-R1000 base model, of course everything is brand new. The inline-four engine on this liter-bike features a variable valve timing (VVT), a first in the superbike segment. Peak power is just shy of 200hp, with Suzuki claiming 199hp and 86.7 lbs•ft of torque.

The crown jewel of the electronics package is a six-axis IMU, which brings a 10-level traction control system, riding modes, cornering ABS, launch control, up-and-down quickshifts to the once “King of Superbikes” (the latter three items being on the GSXR-1000R).

With a wet weight of 441 lbs, the 2017 Suzuki GSX-R1000 is in the hunt to reclaim that crown, making this a strong return for the Japanese brand in the superbike segment.

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Bikes

The 2017 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR Earns that Extra “R”

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Before INTERMOT this year, Kawasaki USA sent out a cautionary email that Kawasaki bikes debuting at trade show in Germany would be for the European market only, and that those bikes coming to the USA would debut later next month.

So, we can’t say for certain for our North American readers that the 2017 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR will be crossing the pond, but for our European compatriots, here is a new superbike that should get your motor really running.

A byproduct of the World Superbike rules, the 2017 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR is a homologation special, of which only 500 units will be made for public consumption.

To get that extra “R” on its name, the folks at Kawasaki have taken their already stout ZX-10R superbike, and massaged in some pretty choice engine, chassis, and electronic upgrades.

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News

Skully Sued by Flextronics for Owed Money

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Things keep getting worse motorcycle helmet startup Skully, as its production partner Flextronics has filed suit for money and materials allegedly owed it.

According to court documents, Flextronics is demanding payment of roughly $2 million dollars – $505,703 in past-due bills, $514,409 in unpaid bills, and another $1.5 million in what Flextronics calls “materials and inventory related to the Skully project.”

This lawsuit is the second legal action taken against Skully since the company laid off its workforce and shut its doors for lack of funding.

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Bikes

Erik Buell Racing Working on New Bikes for 2017 & Sub-$10,000 Platform for 2018

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After the American company’s drawn out receivership proceedings, Erik Buell Racing seems like the brand everyone has forgotten about. Posting a press release to its Facebook page today though, EBR says it has some interesting projects in the works.

To unveil for the 2017 model year, EBR is teasing an urban street bike that is “quick, dark, and low”; meanwhile for the 2018 model year, EBR says it will debut a sub-$10,000 motorcycle platform.

There also seems to be some movement on the 1190 platform, presumably with model updates to the RX and SX sport bikes, and the 1190AX adventure bike could finally be coming to market.

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Rumors

Report: Apple Looking at Acquiring Lit Motors

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I had to check the A&R archives to see if we have even mentioned Lit Motors before, mostly because the the San Francisco startup has been slow to develop its self-balancing motorcycle, and I’m not terribly bullish on the project.

That doesn’t mean the concept is without merit though, and its apparently caught the interest of Apple. If that sounds strange to you, then you need to understand that Apple, along with a bevy of other tech giants, is working on an autonomous car for the masses.

This “Project Titan” as it’s called, has already seen Apple poach a couple of Lit Motors’ personnel, and now the most valuable company in the world is looking at acquiring Lit Motors, and/or other automotive entities, according to the New York Times.

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