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The rumor is about that Kawasaki intends to update the Z1000 for the 2010 model line up. No facts yet on what the bike have technically, but good rumor doesn’t have a concept photo? Moto Revue have whipped up a little photoshop diddy of what they hope the bike will look like.
It is a well established fact that all bad things either come from German or Florida. In an effort to fix this rule of thumb, German design agency Zoom has invisioned a “hobby racer” that the firm hopes to build after securing financing. Called the Rih (arabic for wind), the concept bike will incorporate a few very interesting technologies (like lungs), while at its core, there is an Aprilia RSV4 motor.
Last week, we leaked the fact that the Ducati Streetfigther has begun to arrive at US dealers, who are obliged to keep the bike under wraps until its official unveiling. The Streetfighter might be the most anticipated bike this summer, with the Bologna factory finally bringing a naked version of its 1098 Superbike.
Oberdan Bezzi, taking the next logical step in Ducati’s progression, has put pen to paper on what a Desmosedici based streetfighter might look like. The result is menacing, but we’ll wait for the carbon frame version.
News surrounding the new VFR have been swirling around the internet, with various concept drawing and CG renders making the course. Fueling the fire, Honda has been keeping their cards close to their chest when it comes to the new VFR, which is rumored to come out in 2010.
Now we have the latest image to hit the net, done by Vanjey Design. The render looks clean, and influenced with Honda’s current design progression with the 1000cc CBR. There is speculation that the new VFR will see a bump in displacement to 1000cc, up from its current 782cc. However, there has been no indication so far from Honda that this might be true. As always, time will tell.
Source: Visordown
According to Mark Wells, Senior Partner at Xenophya Design, the goal of the EV-0RR was to create an evocative and exciting concept that would inspire sponsors to buy into the electric sportbike concept.
The electric bike is slated to compete in the Time Trial Extreme Grand Prix being hosted at the Isle of Man on the 12th of June this year. The EV-0 RR features a monocoque chassis, supported by its carbon-fiber fairings, a single-sided front and rear suspension, and twin electric motors.
The engineers behind the EV-0RR claim it will have the power, weight, and speed of a 600cc sportsbike, which makes this a serious electric replacement to the standard gasoline-powered sportbike.
Could Ducati be building a street cruiser to compete against the likes of Harley-Davidson? That’s the rumor behind the so-called Ducati Vyper, which was started by a statement made by Ducati boss Claudio Domenicali, who revealed that Ducati is looking to branch out into a wider market. The 1400cc 170hp prototype is said to be already in running form, and has started preliminary tests at the Bologna factory.
The Vyper will feature a stroked version of the company’s Testastretta engine, and house it in Ducati’s signature steel-trellis frame. A 240 rear tire mounted onto a beefy hollow-section swing-arm is also believed to be on the new machine. Luca from Bar-Design has made some exclusive renders of the Ducati Vyper for Asphalt & Rubber, and if the original looks anything like this, we might just be believers in the Italian chopper concept.
Victory describes the Core as the following:
“Core is a concept motorcycle designed and built by the Victory Motorcycles Industrial Design team to show what a performance cruiser of the future could look like. It consists of only the essentials: engine, frame, wheels and front suspension — no rear suspension. Its unique cast aluminum frame was made by pouring molten aluminum into a sand core, which was removed when the casting was complete.”
In other words, the future will be filled with huge displacement bikes that have no suspension, a wood seat, and be air-cooled…not to mention produced by century old techniques. Someone should remind Victory that time moves forward, not backwards. Never-the-less, we find the Core to be aesthetically pleasing to look at, and would gladly take it around the neighborhood to setoff car alarms.
Sometimes you have to express yourself by making a motorcycle, and this is what the Core is. We can appreciate that.
What is orange, black, white, and has well-defined edges? Just about everything KTM makes, and that would include the concept vehicles made in collaboration with industrial design students at FH Joanneum University. The Austrian company has shown its desire to expand from dirtbikes in streetbikes, and now into Superbikes and track-ready cars. In total, the effort produced 6 concept vehicles with unique purposes. Continue reading to see the pictures and descriptions of the proposed concepts.
Designers from MOTOrepublic have released a more developed render of their electric bike concept: Beta. While the bike is more an exercise in aesthetics than function, the designers hope to have a fully running prototype built some time soon in the future. The concept bike is reported to include composite bodywork, which will also double as the bike’s frame, lightweight wheels, and of course an electric motor.
There seems to be some fanciful thought in the design, as far as packing batteries and a drive train into the otherwise spartan layout. We’re also a little dubious about the bodywork being stress-bearing, but MOTOrepublic gets points for originality and vision. Someone has to push the envelope, it might as well be them. Good on yah boys, let us know when we can take the prototype out for a spin.
Spanish magazine Solo Moto has gotten word that Harley-Davidson has put together a plan to revive the Cagiva brand. Cagiva, like many Italian marks, has struggled the past years because of poor financing and business management. In its deal to acquire MV Agusta, Harley-Davidson also acquired Cagiva with that hopes that the American company could provide a remedy to these problems, and has recently laid out its plan on how it is going to achieve those goals. Read more about their road map for Cagiva after the jump.
It’s easy to make Polish motorcycle jokes, and we could easily make a few more here if we were so inclined to pick-apart every little mistake a bike builder inevitably makes along the way, but we won’t. Read for more to see how the lastest version of this 4 cylinder, X-pattern motor is coming along.