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We Are in Love with the New Honda CB1000R

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When we first saw Honda’s Neo Sports Café concept, it was a bittersweet moment. We loved the design. It was bold, but understated. It was a clean and modern take on a motorcycle that each year fades further and further from our attention.

The design was so good, we were sure that the Honda Neo Sports Café concept would never see the light of day, and surely not as the new Honda CB1000R.

It is good to be wrong sometimes, because say hello to the very attractive 2018 Honda CB1000R, which brings the Honda Neo Sports Café concept to life, with very few changes.

If it feels like Honda is zigging while others zag, then you would be correct. While the streetfighter segment continues to be filled with uber-aggressive performance machines, Honda is looking to  take a more sophisticated approach with the new Honda CBR1000R, which plays to the bike’s strengths.

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The New Honda Africa Twin Adventure Sports Brings More Off-Road Goodness to the ADV Trail

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The Honda Africa Twin gets a sibling for the 2018 model year, as the Honda Africa Twin Adventure Sports debuted today at Honda’s pre-EICMA launch event.

As expected the Africa Twin Adventure Sports is a more off-road focused version of the Honda Africa Twin, and comes with a robust set of features that make it easier to go globetrotting on the plucky adventure-tourer from Honda.

Like on the now revised 2018 Honda Africa Twin, the Adventure Sports version comes with improvements over the original Africa Twin design.

This includes new foot rests, a new instrument panel, ride-by-wire throttle control with three throttle maps, seven levels of Honda’s traction control system, a new exhaust design, and a lithium-ion battery.

Internally there are some changes as well, like a modified airbox, which improves the mid-range response, as does a lighter balancer shaft. 

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XXX: The Ducati Panigale V4 with Its Clothes Off

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While on the exterior, there might seem to be a great deal of similarities between the Ducati Panigale V4 and its predecessor the Ducati 1299 Panigale, stripping away the bodywork shows that the relation is mostly skin deep.

Yes, the “frameless” chassis design remains, and yes the exhaust routing for the four-cylinder machine mimics that on the twin-cylinder bike, but there are noticeable, even critical differences between Ducati’s superbikes, which should translate to meaningful differences on the race track.

The most obvious is how raked back the Desmosedici Stradale engine sits within the Panigale V4 chassis, which measures at 42° from parallel – the same as the Italian company’s V4-powered MotoGP race bike. No coincidence there.

This allows for the “front frame” to become a much longer lever, and attach to the motorcycle in more conventional mounting points. Both of these factors can contribute to making the Panigale V4 handle better on the race track, and provide better rider feedback – a common complaint of the old design.

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Ducati Desert Sled Model Gets Worst Name, But Best Paint

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For the 2018 model year, Ducati is updating the Scrambler Desert Sled with another color option, one that the Italian brand calls “Shining Black”. As boring as that name sounds, it might be the best retro Scrambler paint job that we have ever seen from Borgo Panigale.

We know that up until this point, the Scrambler Ducati brand has been all about its bright green AstroTurf faux lawns, pristine giant yellow container boxes, and post-authentic marketing calls with skateboards, wide-brim hates, and semi-homeless millennials.

But, the new Desert Sled color scheme (we would have called the color “Shag Carpet Sexy” or “Dr. McNasty”) screams back to another part of the 1970s – a time when souping up passenger vans and living in them was an acceptable thing for non-creepy men to do.

Still, we love the effect that is done with the all-black paint, contrasted with the warm red/orange/yellow rainbow colors. It gets us excited about the Ducati Scrambler Desert Sled all over again.

Now, the only question is how hard would it be to wedge the Scrambler 1100’s engine in this off-road chassis? Not too hard, we think.

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Watch the Panigale V4 Go Full Beast-Mode at Mugello

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The reactions to the new Ducati Panigale V4 debuting at the EICMA show seem to be split, with some Ducatisti excited to see what the new V4 platform can bring to the table, while others are less-enthused about the movement away from Ducati’s v-twin tradition, and the V4’s very similar aesthetic to its predecessor.

Wherever you fall on that spectrum, the Panigale V4 looks the business on paper in terms of power, weight, and electronics. Helping whet our superbike appetites further, Ducati has posted a video of the company’s test riders flogging the 1,103cc machine around the Mugello circuit.

Get ready for the ripping and the tearing, because this is what 214 horses of desmodromic power looks like when its shredding Pirelli tires at speed (we can’t even fathom what 226hp looks like). Love it or hate, this looks like an epic bike to ride.

Oh, we through in some ultra high-resolution shots of the 2018 Ducati Panigale V4 S too, just for good measure. You’re welcome.

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A Closer Look at the Ducati Multistrada 1260 S Pikes Peak

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For the 2018 model year, we see one of our favorite bikes in the Ducati lineup getting the 1260 update. We are of course talking about the 2018 Ducati Multistrada 1260 S Pikes Peak.

The Ducati Multistrada 1260 S Pikes Peak takes its name from one of America’s oldest racing venues, and as a result it is the sportiest version of Ducati’s adventure-touring machines.

Now fitted with Ducati’s Testastretta DVT 1262 engine, the Multistrada 1260 S Pikes Peak makes 85% of its torque below 3,500 rpm on the v-twin engine. That is a good thing, because Ducati says the bulk of Multistrada owners rarely get above 6,000 rpm on their machines.

This makes the 1,262cc engine the perfect candidate for low-revving excursions, like the ones you would take down a dusty fire road. For the sports-focused Pikes Peak model, the choice is a little bit more curious, but we won’t scuff at the 158hp on tap.

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Bigger Is Better, So Says the New Ducati Multistrada 1260

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For the 2018 model year, the Ducati Multistrada gets a bevy of updates, and thus becomes the Ducati Multistrada 1260. As the name change suggests, the new Italian ADV machine features the 1,262cc DVT engine, previously found only on the Ducati XDiavel.

The changes for the 2018 Ducati Multistrada 1260 extend beyond just the motor though, and if you look closely, you will see that Ducati’s engineers have made several tweaks and changes to the Multistrada 1200’s steel trellis chassis.

Of course, what people are really going to talk about is the much anticipated Testastretta DVT 1262, which makes 158hp in its Multistrada 1260 form.

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Ducati 959 Panigale Corse Debuts for 2018

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What you are looking at is the Ducati 959 Panigale Corse, a special edition version of the Italian brand’s “middleweight” superbike, which is coming for the 2018 model year.

Debuting today, just ahead of the 2017 EICMA show in Milan, the new Ducati 959 Panigale Corse draws an obvious visual line to Ducati’s MotoGP program with its matching livery, but it also comes with a few smart upgrades as well, making it worth more than a second glance.

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That 226hp Ducati Panigale V4 Speciale Though…!

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While today’s big reveal at the 2017 EICMA show was the new Ducati Panigale V4, what will surely be in our dreams tonight is the the limited-edition version of Italy’s new superbike. Say hello to the Ducati Panigale V4 Speciale, and its big fat 226hp peak horsepower figure.

Now, the 12hp bump over the Ducati Panigale V4’s 214hp crank figure comes courtesy of an included Akrapovic titanium exhaust, which means the entire Panigale V4 line can reach this amazing horsepower number, but the real beauty in the 2018 Ducati Panigale V4 Speciale comes in the details.

With its optional magnesium wheels installed (you’re gonna want to buy the wheels), the Ducati Panigale V4 Speciale tips the scales at 164kg dry – that’s a full 10kg (22 lbs) lighter than the base model Panigale V4.

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Ducati Scrambler 1100 Debuts in Three Flavors

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We already got a good look at the 2018 Ducati Scrambler 1100 ahead of this year’s EICMA show, but now we have all the details on Ducati’s new heritage motorcycle. Surprisingly, it’s not just one motorcycle, but in fact three flavors of the Ducati Scrambler 1100 have debuted.

As such, there is the new Ducati Scrambler 1100, the Ducati Scrambler 1100 Special, and the more premium Ducati Scrambler 1100 Sport for the 2018 model year.

All three machines are built around Ducati’s venerable air-cooled v-twin engine design, which comes in a 1,079cc format and makes 84hp and 65 lbs•ft of peak torque.

The top of the food chain model for the Scrambler Ducati family, the Scrambler 1100 models all come with Bosch’s cornering ABS as standard, dual 320mm brake discs up front, which are mated to Brembo 4.32 calipers and a hydraulic master cylinder.

Ducati has also added 10-level traction control to the new Scrambler 1100 model, as well as a ride-by-wire throttle and an LED headlight. With an 18″ wheel up front, and a 17″ wheel in the back, the Ducati Scrambler 1100 series continues to sport the Pirelli MT60 RS tires.

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Ducati Panigale V4 – A New Generation of Ducati Superbike

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If you are a hardcore Ducatisti, you will probably mark today down in history, as Ducati has moved on from its v-twin superbike design, adopting its first production four-cylinder superbike*.

Today, the 2018 Ducati Panigale V4 officially debuted in Milan, Italy for the EICMA show, and the new 1,103cc machine boasts some impressive figures: 211hp (157.5 kW) at the crank, 88.5 lbs•ft of peak torque, and a paltry 384 lbs weight when dry (436 lbs at the curb).

Considered more of an evolution of the Ducati 1299 Panigale superbike design by the Italians, the big changes to the new Panigale is its “Desmosedici Stradale” engine, which has a 70° crank pin offset and a “Twin Pulse” 0-90-290-380 firing order for its pistons.

This makes the Desmo Stradale V4 engine more like two v-twin engines mated next to each other – a bid to make the power and character of the Panigale V4 more recognizable to loyal Ducati owners. A nod to Ducati’s MotoGP program, the Desmosedici Stradale engine is counter-rotating as well.

Of course, Ducati doesn’t leave the changes to just the engine, as the Ducati Panigale V4 is truly an all-new machine beneath its fairings.

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