Royal Enfield is a brand that doesn’t get a lot of action on the pages of Asphalt & Rubber. Despite its inroads into the US market, the machines from the Indian manufacturer just never seem to strike our fancy. That is not the case today.
Now granted, what you are seeing here is the work of pixel manipulation, and not a bonafide real motorcycle, but it shows the transformative work that can be done with a motorcycle as mundane as even the Royal Enfield Continental GT 535.
Not too many changes are coming to the Honda Super Cub 125 for the 2022 model year, save for one important one: a rear seat.
The addition of a rear seat comes to the European market (no word yet for the North American markets), though the two-up option has been prevalent in Asia already.
The added seat precipitates the for rear footpegs and new suspension settings.
Suzuki’s lineup of “new” motorcycles continues to be iterations on established machines, and the 2022 Suzuki GSX-S1000 does not deviate from that plan.
That being said, the updated streetfighter brings a number of refinements to the GSX-S1000 name, along with some distinct styling choices.
Long-time readers of Asphalt & Rubber will know my love of endurance racing motorcycles – there is something about these purpose-built race bikes that have to perform reliably hour-after hour that strikes my fancy.
So, upon hearing that the Suzuki Endurance Race Team (SERT) won the 24-Hours of Le Mans this weekend, it was all the excuse I needed to post up some photos of the Yoshimura-backed squad and their Suzuki GSX-R1000 race bike.
It is curious that we don’t see more customs based on the Suzuki SV650 motorcycle.
There are no shortages of the middleweight-twin in the used market, the bike has good bones with what is becoming an iconic motor, and the platform is well-suited to a variety of purposes.
Take for instance here the Stoker STR SV650, which we spotted on Bike EXIF, as it is an attractive flat-tracking custom from Finish builder Antti Eloheimo.
I am not sure why Ducati is calling this Diavel 1260 S the “Black and Steel” model – since all of the Diavel’s tend to be black in color and made from steel frames… But hey, sure. Why not?
Accented with a yellow frame, yellow undertail, and yellow racing stripes, the Ducati Diavel 1260 S Black and Steel makes for a visually fetching addition to the Diavel lineup, and it is inspired by the Diavel “Materico” concept.
Team Classic Suzuki is known for making some impressive vintage-inspired machines, but today’s example might be the pinnacle of their prowess.
With racing basically non-existent during the early days of COVID, the team found itself with an abundance of time on their hands…and idle hands are the Devil’s workshop.
So, taking an ex-Alstare Racing WorldSBK-spec Suzuki GSX-R1000 from the garage, Team Classic Suzuki created this very attractive (and potent) Katana.
It is easy to peg the Aprilia Tuono 660 as simply the “naked version” of the fully faired Aprilia RS 660 sport bike, but the more and more I think about this Italian middleweight-twin, I feel that distinction is a misleading way to regarding the smaller Tuono.
The better way to think about the Aprilia Tuono 660 is to regard it as Aprilia’s road-focused 660 offering, whereas the RS 660 is geared more towards track enthusiasts.
As one can see, the Aprilia Tuono 660 doesn’t really have a lack of fairing, just more of a bikini approach, in contrast to the RS 660’s one-piece design.
What do you say about the Aprilia RSV4? The past 13 years have seen a number of changes come to the RSV4 (and seen a number of letters come and go, as well), as Aprilia has been consistent in its effort to keep the RSV4 at the pointy end of the liter-bike spectrum.
The 65° V4 engine has grown from 999cc from its debut in 2009, now to 1,099cc in 2021. Similarly, the electronics package has gotten smarter and faster. And of course, the design has (debatably) improved with the latest trend of aerodynamic aids.
This constant unyielding iteration is unseen elsewhere in the motorcycle industry, which instead prefers to succumb to the ebbs and flows of more clearly defined model generations.
This unique approach has allowed Aprilia to constantly keep the RSV4 at the pointy end of the liter-bike segment, but has it paid off for the 2021 model year RSV4 and RSV4 Factory machines, though? That is the topic of today’s story.
To find the answer to whether the Aprilia RSV4 has gotten better with age, and remains at the top of the superbike pile, we took this motorcycle to one of the most iconic tracks in the United States: Laguna Seca.
We were not disappointed in the result. Let me explain.
Something we have been hinting about the Aprilia RS 660 just came true today, as the middleweight-twin sport bike is now officially ready for racing duty, and being offered through Noale’s Aprilia Factory Works program.
What does that mean? A factory equipped ready-to-race bike that has been honed by the same hands that touch Aprilia’s MotoGP and WorldSBK projects.
The result is a 105hp machine that tips the scales at 337 lbs (153 kg) dry, which by our math should be good for 370 lbs when fully fueled and lubricated.
For the 2021 model year, the venerable Aprilia RSV4 gets another update to its 13-year-old platform.
The RSV4 has evolved considerably in that timeframe, and over that period, this production motorcycle lays claim to being the first with an IMU, the first with ride-by-wire, and the first with winglets.
While the differences between the model years of the RSV4 can be subtle at times, the 2021 model sees a revamp of the superbike’s aesthetic, especially in terms of how it handles aerodynamics.