MotoGP is to get a head start on the implementation of LED flag panels for the remainder of the 2021 MotoGP season, starting with this weekend’s Portuguese GP at Portimão.
The panels, which will be made compulsory by both the FIM and FIA from 2022, are to be transported from track to track by LED panel manufacturer EM Motorsport, and used for each race.
A study commissioned by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has found that automobile drivers are 24% more likely to speed when using the adaptive cruise control (ACC) feature on their car.
While the study didn’t look at motorcycles equipped with the feature (currently the Ducati Multistrada V4 is the only bike available in the United States with the feature), one can presume a similar trend for the technology in a two-wheeled application.
If you have read Asphalt & Rubber long enough, then you surely must now our rabid affection for airbag equipped motorcycle gear. I’ve even gotten a little snobby about it.
To reiterate, airbags represent a new generation in safety equipment, and they dramatically reduce the injuries a rider can sustain during a crash or accident.
Right now though, airbag safety technology is limited to motorcycle jackets and racing suits, with protection only available on the torso.
What about south of the belt line though? Truthfully, the current state of airbag technology covers only half of our bodies, leaving out legs (and arms) exposed to harsh impacts.
This is where French upstart CX Air Dynamics hopes to disrupt the space, as they are working on an airbag-equipped set of pants.
One of the nuggets buried in Kawasaki’s 2021 model year motorcycle debut was the work that the Japanese brand is making on the front for alternative drivetrains to internal combusting engines.
Having already shown us work on its electric motorcycle designs, now Kawasaki is teasing some info from its hybrid-electric two-wheelers.
After a bit of teasing, we finally get to know the details of Ducati’s newest engine, the V4 Granturismo. This is the four-cylinder motor that will power the new and upcoming Ducati Multistrada V4 motorcycle.
The engine is based off the Desmosedici Stradale motor that is found in the Panigale V4 and Streetfighter V4 motorcycles, but with some obvious and core changes to suit it for touring and ADV riding uses.
Innovation comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes, so it is interesting today to see some progress made on an often overlooked item: the motorcycle chain.
BMW Motorrad is touting the first maintenance-free chain ever for a motorcycle, calling the product the BMW M Endurance chain. In reality, the product is made by Regina, with BMW claiming first rights to the product and rebranding it.
The BMW M Endurance chains is similar to other X-ring chains in that it has a permanent lubricant filling between the rollers and pins, enclosed by X-rings.
What is completely new however is Regina’s design, in that it does not require additional external lubrication, nor does it require retensioning over time.
Here is an interesting concept that has us thinking about the future of transportation: inflatable vehicles.
It sounds strange to consider, but some students at the University of Tokyo have an intriguing proof of concept (dubbed POIMO), and the aerospace has already proven out these ideas further.
The concept is basic, the body of the vehicle (think: frame, bodywork, seat, etc) is actually an inflatable bag that when pumped with sufficient pressure, becomes a rigid structure.
The year is 2020, and at best, the climate control systems for motorcycles are rudimentary. Only a handful of motorcycle models come from the factory with heated grips or heated seats installed, but if you want to cool down, the options are even more scant.
The best bet for motorcyclists who want to cool down is to look to the apparel market, where vests made from freezer pack border on our best option…unless you want put a backpack sized A/C unit on your passenger seat, and run a hose into your jacket.
Thankfully, the eggheads at Indian Motorcycle have been thinking about this very issue, and have developed a pretty clever solution to tackle motorcycle air conditioning.
It was teased at the EICMA show in Milan, with the Japanese brand saying nary a word about the electric motorcycle chassis it had on display near the back of its booth.
Just one of the many surprises that were quietly shown to the public, this electric motorcycle showed a green steel tube frame, a modest battery pack, and what appeared to be mock engine cases.
Beyond those details, and the fact that this bike existed, there was not much else to say about the prototype, until now.
There has been no shortage of rumors about the “new” Honda CBR1000RR superbike. It is a story that pre-dates even the start of this publication, ever since Honda updated its liter bike offering for the 2008 model year.
And now, we seem finally set to see a new chapter in the Fireblade story, with the 2020 model year widely tipped to see the introduction of a new superbike from Big Red.
The machine has been rumored through movements in the WorldSBK Championship, the FIM Endurance World Championship, and other domestic series, and those stories have been supported by a series of patents found worldwide.
Now today, the eagle eyes of Ben Purvis at Cycle World have spotted another patent, one with an intriguing proposition – active aerodynamics.
For the 2020 model year, the standard for motorcycle interfaces will be rich-color TFT dashes, and this is not a new trend.
Sure, there will be a few “heritage” models that will employ analog gauges, but gone are the days of LCD dashes that share more with a Timex timepiece than the smartphone that is in every rider’s pocket.
I have no doubt that a few brands will still fail to get this memo, as there seems to be just about every year, but that number is shrinking rapidly. The motorcycle industry is slowly getting hip to this 21st century thing.
But now, we get word that some seemingly 22nd century tech is on its way, as German automotive parts supplier Bosch is touting the arrival of 3D dashboards for motor vehicles.