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LEAKED: Here is the 2016 Indian Chief Dark Horse

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Cruisers aren’t really our forté, here at Asphalt & Rubber, but breaking stories is…so, without all the typical fanfare, we bring you the first full photos of the upcoming 2016 Indian Chief Dark Horse.

The Stead is murdered out and visually appealing, with black engine covers, black fenders, black forks…hell, even the tires are black. Under the hood is Indian’s Thunder Stroke 111 engine, which is an air-cooled 1,811cc v-twin good for 73hp and 100 lbs•ft.

More technical features include ABS as standard, a keyless ignition system, cast wheels, and a solo seat. Our Bothan Spies suggest an MSRP of $17,000, and more accessories (all black, natch) than you can fit into the belly of a Tauntaun.

Expect to see the Indian Chief Dark Horse launch officially on February 13th elsewhere.

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Bikes

Technical Specifications of the MV Agusta Stradale 800

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Earlier today, we showed you the first photo of the MV Agusta Stradale 800. Essentially an MV Agusta Rivale with touring bags and a windscreen, the technical specifications of the MV Agusta Stradale tell a slightly different story though.

The biggest different between the Rivale and the Stradale comes from the 798cc three-cylinder engine, which is down 10hp, and thus makes 115hp at 11,000 rpm. The power disadvantage seems to come from a lower rev limit — a simple but effective way to differentiate the Stradale from the Rivale to consumers.

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Bikes

LEAKED: First Photo of the MV Agusta Stradale 800

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Our Bothan spies are hard at work, ahead of this year’s EICMA show, and thus we have another leaked photo for your viewing pleasure. Giving us our first glimpse at the rumored MV Agusta Stradale 800, we can see that Varese is borrowing heavily from Ducati’s playbook.

If the Rivale was MV Agusta’s response to the Ducati Hypermotard, then the Stradale is the company’s riff on the Ducati Hyperstrada, as our photo shows what appears to be a Rivale with bags and a windscreen attached.

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News

Ducati Scrambler Will Be “Made in Thailand”

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Almost four years ago, we reported on Ducati opening a new assembly plant in Thailand. The move, which peeved Ducati’s factory workers, would see bikes destined for the Southeast Asian market assembled in the Thai plant, thus side-stepping many of the region’s aggressive tariffs on motorcycles.

Nearing the end of 2014 now, and our Bothan Spies report that the Ducati Scrambler models will be the first motorcycles assembled in Ducati’s Thai plant that will then be shipped to the world market (sans the European market, which will get bikes still from Bologna, according to Moto.it) — a move that comes right after Ducati reached a new contract with its workers and unions, which sees the factory employees working fewer hours at higher wages.

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Bikes

LEAKED: First Photos of the MV Agusta Dragster RR

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MV Agusta had us guessing as to what the Varese company would be debuting at the upcoming EICMA show, though the latest video from the company seems to clearly show that a Dragster RR will be coming.

A built up version of the Dragster 800, the MV Agusta Dragster RR features Kineo wheels, new paint, and we presume some sort of launch control mechanism.

We expect the MV Agusta Brutale Dragster RR to officially debut a day before EICMA starts, as MV Agusta usually holds a press event on the Monday before the show.

You don’t have to wait that long though, as we have 18 high-resolution photos sent to us by our Bothan Spies, who seem to be busy little Bothans, as our friends at Nieuwsmotor also appear to have received these shots (some different, some the same).

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Bikes

Ducati 1299 Will Have “Tiptronic-Like” Shifting

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If there is a common thread for Ducati’s upcoming EICMA reveal, it is the influence and benefits of owner Audi AG. We have already seen the German car manufacturer’s variable valve timing technology find its way into the Testastretta engine, in the form of Desmodromic Variable Timing (DVT).

Our sources say that the all-new Ducati Multistrada, which will debut in just a few weeks’ time, will be the first model equipped with DVT. While Ducati ups its ante in the ADV market, our Bothan spies have tipped us off to another piece of Audi tech that will find its way onto a Ducati motorcycle, as the 1299 will received a “Tiptronic-like” gearbox that allows for touch-button upshifts and downshifts.

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Bikes

New Ducati 1299 Gets +100cc, While 1299R Gets None

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For 2014, Ducati is giving the Panigale a bit of a model update, and thanks to an ill-framed photo from the Ducati North America dealers’ meeting, we know that the new superbike will be called by the 1299 designation.

The upgrade in number caused some confusion though, as Ducati has a mixed history of matching designation numbers to actual displacement sizes. Hoping to clear up the confusion and speculation, we received some details from our Bothan spy network.

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Bikes

Variable Valve Timing Coming to the Ducati Multistrada

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For the 2015 model year, Ducati is bringing a brand new Multistrada, which will debut at the upcoming EICMA show in Milan, Italy. Not much has been said about the new Multistrada, aside from A&R breaking the news about the new model a few weeks ago, so we thought we would update you further on it.

Designed to look very similar to the current Multistrada 1200, the new Multistrada will keep the basic profile and design of its predecessor, despite being an all-new machine. Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the 2015 Ducati Multistrada though is the fact that Borgo Panigale has fitted variable valve timing (VVT) to the desmodromic valves of the Testastretta 11° engine.

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Bikes

KTM 1050 Adventure Outed by…KTM?

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At INTERMOT, we just saw the KTM 1290 Super Adventure — a model that KTM is calling “the safest motorcycle in the world” thanks to the machine’s use of the Bosch MSC “cornering ABS” module, and KTM’s robust traction control system.

Basically a 180hp off-road couch, the 1290 Super Adventure is the pinnacle of KTM’s ADV offerings. But, it seems another Adventure model is coming from zie Austrians.

Spotted by one of our readers on KTM’s website, the Austrian company makes reference to a KTM 1050 Adventure model in its owners manual download page. A KTM 1050 Adventure model has been rumored leading up to the INTERMOT show, so the reference is likely to be more than just a typographical error.

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Bikes

An All-New Ducati Multistrada Is Coming at EICMA

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We are only a week away before the new models for 2015 will begin hitting the internet, but already we are hearing whispers from our Bothan Spies about new motorcycles that are coming forth.

Traditionally Ducati has been a leaking sieve of information, though now under corporate control of Audi AG, the Italian company has been more cautious about letting information slip.

That being said, we’ve heard information from several sources now that suggest a new Multistrada model is coming down the pipe, and will debut at the EICMA show. Likely a response to the ever-crowding ADV space, which sees the addition of BMW Motorrad’s Multistrada-killer, the BMW S1000XR.

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Ducati Owners: You Are Not Ready for the 1299 Superbike

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You would have to be living under a rock not to know about the upcoming Ducati Scrambler, Bologna has made certain of that. But as we surmised in our analysis of Scrambler’s marketing, Ducati is due to update the Panigale as well for the 2015 model year. That educated guess, it seems has been proven correct, at least in part.

While Borgo Panigale will continue to sell its namesake Ducati 1199 Panigale, the Panigale R model will be replaced for 2015 by the new 1299 superbike.

As such, the 1299 will be Ducati’s consumer-facing machine for its World Superbike program — a project that has been greatly affected by WSBK’s intake restrictions for v-twins — thus race teams can expect an upgraded RS15 as well to be coming forth.

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