Motorcycle Industry Council Talks With Lawmakers About Access to National Forests
More Access to Land for Motorcyclists? Members of the Motorcycle Industry Council (MIC) and outdoor recreation industry leaders met with Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, Under Secretary for Natural Resources and the Environment Jim Hubbard and other officials. According to the press release, the goal of the meeting was to discuss improving access to lands managed by the …
Bridgestone’s New BATTLAX HYPERSPORT S22 Sports Radial Tires
The Sporty BATTLAX We recently reported that Bridgestone had some new adventure touring motorcycle tires, but now they have some new tires for sportbike riders, too. The company posted a press release released the BATTLAX HYPERSPORT S22 Sports Radial Tires. These tires are a continued improvement on the last tires in this line, the S21. The …
Suzuki Is Working on a New VVT for GSX-R1000
Say Goodbye to the All-Mechanical Setup Suzuki’s current GSX-R1000 has a variable valve timing system it got from the GSX-RR Moto GP bike. It’s an all-mechanical system and a darn good one. However, it seems Suzuki will drop that tried and true system for a new hydraulic VVT system, according to Cycle World. The publication spotted some patent …
Bridgestone’s New BATTLAX ADVENTURECROSS AX41 Tire
Ready for Action A new addition to Bridgestone’s adventure touring tire lineup, the BATTLAX ADVENTURECROSS AX41 is some seriously advanced rubber. According to the company’s press release, the new adventure touring tire provides better off-road performance and durability than other products available. The new tires will come in four different sizes for the front tire and …
Is Honda Working On Power Steering for a New Bike?
Power Steering on a Motorcycle? Power steering, while ubiquitous on automobiles, isn’t found on motorcycles. At least, not traditionally. It seems that Honda may add a new power steering system to one of its future bikes. According to MoreBikes, Honda recently filed a patent for a new power steering system. This system differs from the …
Redesigned Cardo Freecom+ Line Revealed
Better Than Ever Cardo Systems is a Bluetooth communications company that makes comm systems for motorcycle riders. Recently the company unveiled its new Freecom+ Line. The lineup consists or the Freecom 4+, Freecom 2+, and Freecom1+. The lineup delivers improved quality communications to various areas of the market. The Freecom 4+ is a four-way rider-to-rider …
Honda’s 2019 CB650R Pricing and Details
The Middle-Weight Neo Sports Cafe Honda’s dedication to its Neo Sports Cafe like of motorcycles is something you should definitely take note of. The new 2019 CB650R recently got its price of $8,899, which seems very reasonable to me. The bike looks great with a modern, naked bike appeal. The bike gets a 649cc liquid-cooled in-line …
Say Goodbye to Hot Bike Magazine
Bonnier Couldn’t Keep It Going The decline of traditional print motorcycle media continues with the announcement that Bonnier will halt publication of Hot Bike magazine. Asphalt and Rubber noted that the company will serve the v-twin and cruiser market through Motorcyclist and Cycle World. Those two publications have been the two that Bonnier seems the most …
Spy Shots Reveal Triumph’s 2020 Rocket III
Big Cruiser, Big News We recently reported that Triumph likely has a new 2020 Rocket III cruiser in the works. Well, now you can see it in all its glory thanks to spy shots showcased at Motorcycle.com. The shots show the new bike in all its hulking glory. The current Rocket III has been out …
Sara Garcia Seeks to be First Woman to Finish Dakar in Toughest Class
Breaking Barriers, Kicking Butt Sara Garcia is a Spanish rider competing in the Dakar 2019. She’s one tough lady and hopes to become the first woman to finish the race in the Original by Motul class, which used to be called the Malle Moto. The Original by Motul class is the toughest in the competition. Riders must …
Is a Honda VTEC Superbike Coming?
A VTEC CBR1000RR Would be Nice Variable valve timing isn’t something that’s new to motorcycles. Ducati, Kawasaki, Suzuki, and BMW all have bikes with some form of the engine technology. However, it certainly isn’t commonplace. Honda could be adding a system to its next superbike similar to the ones used on its cars. According to …
Shoei Reveals the IT-HT Smart Helmet at CES
Innovated Helmet Tech Is Here The IT-HT is a new helmet that Shoei showed off at the Consumer Electronics Show in conjunction with a Japanese automotive technology company called NS West. The unique head-up display (HUD) is the IT-HT’s party trick. The HUD shows information like speed and route information. With this technology installed on the …
Shoei Reduces the Price of the VFX-EVO
Get It for a Little Less The Shoei VFX-EVO is a fantastic off-road helmet by all accounts. The brand is well-known for making quality lids, and the VFX-EVO is one of its best out there from what we hear. We have not reviewed it, but if you look around the web, it gets high marks. …
Indian Motorcycle Files Trademark for ‘Indian Renegade’
Another Future Indian? Indian Motorcycle has been on a trademark tear lately. Not too long ago we reported on the fact that it moved to trademark the name Raven. Now it seems the company has another name it wants to use at some point: Renegade. According to Motorcycle.com, the company filed with the U.S. Patent …
NOVUS Shows Off It’s Electric Carbon Motorcycle
Making the Harley LiveWire Look Inexpensive NOVUS, a German electric motorcycle company, revealed its new electric motorcycle at the Consumer Electronics Show. While there’s plenty of stuff to talk about, let’s hit the big thing first. It costs a whopping $39,500. If you thought Harley’s LiveWire was expensive … well, okay it still is. Forget the …
Ducati Demonstrates C-V2X Motorcycle to Car Communication at CES
Connecting Bikes With Everything As a part of the company’s Ducati Safety Road Map 2025 initiative, the company showed off its new motorcycle to other vehicle communications at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. The point of the new technology is to make the road safer by allowing vehicles to communicate with each other. Ducati used a Multistrada 1260 …
Is The Electric OSET 24.0R the Perfect Trials Bike?
A Silent But Deadly Racer Range is an issue for most electric motorcycles, but that’s not the case for trials bikes. Trials bikes don’t have to go quite so far, they’re purpose-built machines designed to be lightweight and have plenty of torque. OSET is a company that’s selling bikes that fit that profile perfectly. The …
BMW Showcases Riderless BMW R 1200 GS at CES
Rider? It Don’t Need No Stinking Rider I thought the point of motorcycles was to ride them. Maybe I was wrong. In all seriousness, though, BMW has a motorcycle at the Consumer Electronics Show right now that operates without a rider. It’s a BMW R 1200 GS, and it doesn’t need your hulking mass of …
Harley-Davidson Announces LiveWire Pricing and Two New Electric Concepts
The LiveWire is Now Truly Alive Harley-Davidson is in the process of turning a new leaf, and the company made a big statement at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES). The company announced pricing and pre-order availability for its LiveWire motorcycle as well as two new concepts. First, the important stuff. The Harley LiveWire has a …
Get Ready for the New Shoei GT-Air II
Moving Forward from the First GT-Air With 2019 now in swing, Shoei’s new full-face GT-Air II helmet will soon flood into dealerships across the country. That means as 2019 winds up you should keep an eye out for this advanced helmet should you need a new one. You should easily be able to grab one of …
Camouflaged KTM 390 Adventure Spotted in India
KTM’s Little Indian Adventurer The KTM 390 Adventure should be a fun little bike. The bike was spotted testing recently. This isn’t the first time someone snapped a photo of the little adventure bike, but the photos shared by the guys over at Adventure Rider give a very good look. The bike appears heavily influenced …
Zero Motorcycles Teases New Bike Called SR/F
All New Electric Nake Street Bike Zero Motorcycles recently teased a new model it’s calling the SR/F. The company posted a super short video to YouTube. With just eight seconds of footage, Zero sent a lot of motorcycle enthusiasts into a frothy electrically charged tizzy. The company didn’t say much about the model. Eight seconds isn’t …
KTM’s CEO Is Serious About Buying Ducati
Is VW Group Interested in Offloading the Brand? We reported last month that KTM’s CEO, Stefan Pierer, expressed interest in buying Ducati. It now seems that it’s little more than just a pipe dream. According to Cycle World, the CEO reportedly made an offer of $1.5 billion to VW Group for the brand. There is …
Web Bike World: Year in Review (2018)
The Times They Are A-Changin’ With another year under our belts, I thought it worth it to take a look back over the last 12 months at the changes in the wonderful world of motorcycles. 2018 was no joke. There were plenty of killer new bikes and gear offered and tons of newsworthy items worth …
Indian FTR 1200 S Gets Akrapovič Exhaust as Standard Equipment
Good Response Spurs an Equipment Change Indian Motorcycle recently reached out to us to let us know that the Akrapovič exhaust, specifically the low-mount one, that was an accessory will be standard equipment on the most premium version of the FTR 1200. Now, if you buy a 2019 FTR 1200 S with Race Replica paint, you’ll …
The Full 2019 Indian Motorcycle Lineup Announced
America’s First Motorcycle Company Sets Its Latest Lineup Indian Motorcycle solidified its lineup for 2019, and soon those bikes will be rumbling to dealerships across the nation. The company breaks its lineup down like this: FTR 1200, Midsize, Cruiser, Bagger, and Touring. There’s further delineation from there. The FTR 1200 line consists of the standard FTR 1200 …
5 Motorcycle Industry Predictions for 2019
Let the New Year Begin As 2019 kicks off, I thought I’d put together a list of predictions for the upcoming months. Most of these are pulled straight out of my noggin without much to back them up. With that said, I pay attention to the motorcycle industry closely, and I think they may have …
The Suzuki GSX-R750 and GSX-R600 Are Not Long for This World
Well-Known Machines Will Meet Their End When most people think Suzuki sportbikes, they automatically think the Hayabusa, but the GSX-R750 isn’t far behind in their mind. That may change in the future. The motorcycle company will have to kill the GSX-R750 and GSX-R600 soon due to stringent emissions standards and mandatory ABS as stated by …
Vespa Scooters Retain Over 72 Percent of Their Value After 3 Years of Ownership
The Scooters Retain Their Value Better Than Anything Else Can you think of a vehicle that would retain 72.1 percent of its value over three years of ownership? According to data from J.D. Power and Associates, Vespa scooters do just that. This year was the first year that J.D. Power tracked resale value and published …
Arcimoto Snags $4.5 Million Investment for Electric Trike Production
You May See Some of These Ugly Trikes on the Road Soon Arcimoto has an electric trike it thinks will be the future of transportation. The company just received $4.5 million to make its vision a reality. Arcimoto calls its fully electric trike a Fun Utility Vehicle (FUV), and it will start ramping up production in …
Etergo Gets €10 Million Investment for Battery-Swapping Scooters
A Simple Solution to Range Anxiety Etergo is a Dutch scooter company. It just landed a huge investment to the tune of €10M (roughly $11.4M) to build a modular scooter that can swap out batteries on the fly. Range anxiety is the number one reason I would hesitate to buy an electric motorcycle or scooter. With charging …
Motorcycle Helmet FIM Safety Standard Will Eventually Make it Off the Racetrack
Add Another Helmet Safety Standard to Your List There are several helmet safety standards that motorcycle helmets are evaluated by. Their thoroughness and effectiveness vary. However, a new motorcycle standard that seeks to help better protect MotoGP racers will likely impact the consumer market eventually. That standard? Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). All Grand Prix …
Cake Hopes to Sell 70,000 of its Electric Motorcycle Annually
An Off-Road Electric Motorcycle and a Commuter? Electric motorcycles provide zero emissions, instant torque, and plenty of opportunities from a design standpoint. Cake’s electric motorcycle is one of the more interesting out there. The bike targets off-road riders, but the CEO of Cake also sees it as the future of commuting. Stefan Ytterborn, Cake’s CEO …
Bugatti’s 3D Printed Brake Caliper and Its Implications
The Future of Automotive and Motorcycle Manufacturing? I grew up around tool and die makers, machinists, and other people working in the trades. When I think of building or manufacturing things, I think of taking a piece of raw material, reducing it down, bending, and crafting it into the desired item. Additive manufacturing, which is …
AMA Names Travis Pastrana the 2018 Motorcyclist of the Year
Pastrana’s Actions Help All Motorcyclists Every year, the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) selects a motorcyclist of the year. This year, the association picked Travis Pastrana. The AMA had many reasons to select Pastrana, including the fact that he completed three jumps inspired by Evel Knievel. “Few things or people in motorcycling today capture the fascination …
Get Excited for New Arai Corsair-X Graphics
New Graphics Keep the Corsair Looking Fresh Arai recently announced a new set of graphics for its popular Corsair-X full-face helmet. The Corsair-X is one of the best helmets out there, but it has been out for a while now and Arai has to keep it looking fresh. Its most recent effort to do so …
Could a Kawasaki W800 Street Accompany the Cafe in 2019?
More W800 Versions are Welcomed Kawasaki has already committed to selling the W800 Cafe in the U.S., but not the W800 Steet. With that said, Motorcycle.com reported on some California Air Resources Board paperwork that suggests Kawasaki will sell the Street version of the bike in the States. It is a slightly more laid-back version of the …
Lightning Motorcycles to Move Into New Headquarters
Electric Power, Crazy Fast There are a lot of innovative startups in the motorcycle industry, but most of these companies are more or less a joke. One of the legit ones is Lightning Motorcycles, which builds top-of-the-line electric motorcycles capable of truly high speeds. The company recently announced it’s moving to a new San Jose, …
Motorcycle News Roundup: Week of 12/16
This week has been full of interesting motorcycle news from a customized 180hp Kawasaki GPz750 Turbo to Triumph Factory Custom bikes and rumors of a new Rocket III power cruiser. We’ve covered most of it and rounded up the news that somehow slipped through the cracks. Check out all of this week’s top stories in …
BMW’s Head of Design Discusses the Future of Motorcycle Design
A Design Evolution Is Coming Edgar Heinrich, BMW Head of Design, discussed how BMW’s new S1000RR changed and how electric bikes could change the future of motorcycle design in a recent interview. Motorcycle News talked with Heinrich, and he had some pretty interesting things to say. His focus began on the new S1000RR. He first discussed …
