Modesty might be the name of the game so far for Honda’s 2016 lineup, as Big Red announces its lesser models for next year, ahead of the 2015 Tokyo Motor Show, where we expect to see some interesting machines.
One of those models getting a modest refresh for the upcoming model year is the Honda NC700X, Honda’s other road-hobbled adventure-touring machine. The big change for 2016 will be “exciting new styling”, though other changes are afoot as well.
Yamaha says it will have a new leaning multi-wheeler (LMW) concept at the Tokyo Motor Show, which is funny because Honda will have a leaning three-wheeler as well at the Japanese trade show as well.
Kawasaki has already shown us the Concept J three-wheeler, back in 2013, and the Yamaha Tesseract has been making the rounds on the internet since 2007.
Add into the mix the popularity of the on-road snowmobile that is the Can-Am Spyder, and the surprising surge of sales with the Polaris Slingshot, and clearly OEMs are considering making unique play toys for public streets.
Like the Spyder or Slingshot, they might not be motorcycles, but these leaning multi-wheelers tap into the same fun-factor that comes with riding a motorcycle.
Astute readers will realize that if there’s a Yamaha PES2 electric concept at the Tokyo Motor Show, then surely there must be a Yamaha PED2 concept as well, as the two electric concepts were two-sides of the same coin, back in 2013.
Yes Virginia, there is a PED2 concept, and while it looks closer to being production ready than its predecessor, Yamaha seems content to simply call this electric motorcycle a concept…for now.
Back in 2013, Yamaha debuted two electric motorcycle concepts: the Yamaha PES1 street bike and the Yamaha PED1 dirt bike. This was a big deal, because Yamaha said it planned to bring an electric motorcycle to market by 2016.
Well, here we are just a few weeks from the 2015 Tokyo Motor Show, where 2016 models from the Japanese manufacturers would typically debut…and it seems Yamaha has more electric motorcycle concepts for us.
The Yamaha PES2, as the name suggests, is an evolution of the PES1, though it does look slightly more ready for production than its predecessor.
The internet motosphere is buzzing right now with the idea that we will see some more supercharged models from Kawasaki for the 2016 model year.
The wave of news is really just the parroting of a report from Japanese publication Young Machine, which has a hit-or-miss record with predicting new models from the Japanese OEMs.
And as usual, some publications are mistakenly taking Young Machine’s photoshop renders as the genuine article, so we should dismiss this tom foolery out of hand, right? Not so fast.
We couldn’t make this story up if we tried, but Yamaha Motor Corporation is using the internet meme “LOLcats” to promote its product launches at the upcoming Tokyo Motor Show, complete with a kitten-written speech and internet-generated cat-meme photos.
Apparently this all started because in Japan, cats say “nya” instead of “meow” – this of course lead to the name “NYA-maha”…a ham-fisted bit of word play that should have never evolved beyond witty water cooler banter, or the best scene from stoner-favorite Supertroopers.
We seriously don’t know who pitched this idea, or how they fit their giant cojones in that conference room, but they must have been the voodoo master of marketing pitches, because here we are. You win Yamaha. You’ve robbed us of our innocence, but you win.
You cannot un-see this dedicated website, which has a prominent link on Yamaha’s global website. You also can’t un-read this “President’s Address”, or un-see the “product descriptions” for the Tokyo Motor Show, shown after the jump.
It’s all like looking at a solar eclipse of catnip, while getting Rickrolled by a giant multi-national motorcycle corporation that also happens to sell pianos.
The Honda Grom has been a huge success for Honda, with the unassuming pocket bike basically selling out in its inaugural year, and it is still selling strong to this day.
With two Grom concepts debuting alongside two other concepts of the Honda Super Cub, it is easy to draw some parallels between the iconic Cub line, and its modern-day equivalent, the Grom.
Pint-sized, lovable, and affordable…come on, you know you want one. If you don’t, well first off, we think you’re lying, secondly you should see what Honda is set to show off at the Tokyo Motor Show.
In addition to the Honda EV-Cub concept, which surely means that the venerable Super Cub scooter is set to get an electric variant, Honda has also sent us photos of the Honda Super Cub concept, which shows us a modern scooter design based off the iconic Cub model.
The Honda Super Cub is the best selling motorcycle ever, and in the United States its known best as the poster child for the “You Meet the Nicest People on a Honda” campaign. It is a motorcycle that has transcended the motorcycle industry.
Obviously Honda is taking a big risk by changing its most famous creation, but we think that this modernized Super Cub concept is a fitting successor to its namesake.
We’re not really sure why Honda is debuting the EV-Cub concept again at the Tokyo Motor Show, but it is. Taking the iconic Honda Super Cub design, and adopting it to a new electric platform, Honda is making an obvious play with one of the “nicest” machines it ever created.
Unlike Big Red, we won’t rehash the idea again, other than to say just build it already, Honda – electric scooters make a lot of sense, especially in dense urban environments. The Honda Super Cub is the best selling motorcycle of all time, and we’re sure the EV-Cub will continue that heritage.
It seems that the Japanese are really exploring the idea of leaning multi-wheel concepts. First was the Yamaha Teseract, with its four wheels of leaning fury, which gave rise to the production of the Yamaha Tricity scooter, and the Yamaha 03GEN-f & Yamaha 03GEN-x concepts.
Team Green has explored this space with the Kawasaki J Concept, Piaggio has its MP3 500 maxi-scooter (and supposedly has the lockdown on patents for this innovative design), and now Honda has its Neowing – a gas/electric hybrid leaning three-wheeler.
Unlike the Honda “Light Weight Super Sports” concept, which gives a clear indication as to the cut of the Japanese manufacturer’s jib, the Suzuki GSX concept leaves a bit more to the imagination.
We know that the Suzuki GSX-R line is woeful need of an update, and our best information pegs the Suzuki GSX-R1000 finally getting a refresh in mid-2016, as an early 2017 model.
Other rumors suggest we’ll see something interesting from the Suzuki brand at the upcoming Tokyo Motor Show, and hopefully that doesn’t mean just this GSX concept.