MOTORCYCLE NEWS

Suzuki GSX-R1000

So is it a concept bike? Or a production bike? If Suzuki has yet decided, the firm hasn't made it clear to the rest of the world. At the time of writing, it looks like this new GSX-R1000 is a-concept-bike-that's-got-every-intention-of-making-it-through-to-production-but-might-fall-at-the-last-hurdle (but-on-the-other-hand-probably-won't).

Touch-wood.

If it arrives at all, it'll probably be in the dealers in the spring of next year (2017). But Suzuki is at least promising a lot of extra bang for your buck, and like one or two other motorcycle manufacturers of late, the Big S is trying to keep things both high tech and simple, which is a nice trick if you can pull it off. The big engine news for this 76mm x 55.1mm, 999cc DOHC inline four is the Variable Valve Timing (VVT) design. VVT isn't new, but automotive manufacturers have tackled it through various approaches, much of it involving a lot of electronic and magnetic trickery. Suzuki, however, has taken another route and has deployed steel balls that yield to inertial forces which encourages the inlet cam to give more, or less, overlap. [More...]
 

2017 BMW RnineT Pure
 

BMW calls this new roadster model the RnineT "Pure". As in orange juice. Or romance. Or at heart.

P-U-R-E.

Which is interesting and timely because we've lately been scoping for a dafter name for a motorcycle than Triumph's new "Street Cup", and although this German-conceived moniker doesn't beat it, it comes pretty damn close.

PURE.

It's the cynicism that irks us (and we're master of that dubious inclination). What's happened is that BMW has taken the established and worthy RnineT platform, removed as many bits as it can get away with, splashed some different paint on it, held back on the finish, waited for Intermot and then served it up as "Pure".

We haven't got a problem with basic motorcycles, mind. We love 'em. Bring 'em on. The less mechanical stuff between the front and back wheels, the more we like it. We just just prefer to have our truths served raw so we can do our own bul$#!tting down at the pub with the boys. [More...]
 

Triumph's new Street Cup
 

We're still trying to find out why this new member of the 900cc Triumph Street Twin family is called a "Street Cup". There must be a reason, and it might well be that that reason is bleedin' obvious to everyone else. But in the meantime, it's a mystery to us.

Street Cup?

Regardless, this bike has just been launched at Intermot in Cologne and has received a generally good reception. It's marketed as a cafe racer/street tracker, and Triumph is keen to draw our attention to the "new distinctive urban sports features, including an authentic bullet seat and removable café racer seat cowl, racing inspired fly screen, and bar-end mirrors." Other treats include a ride-by-wire throttle, switchable traction control, up-to-the-minute ABS, a torque-assist clutch, Ace 'bars, a new Nissin twin-piston sliding front caliper c/w a floating front disc, unique RSUs (rear suspension units), and fork protectors. [More...]
 

BMW's new Cafe Racer

It's bold, it's basic, it's classic and it's cool. It's the new BMW RnineT Racer, the latest and (for us) the most stylish model on the RnineT podium. At a glance, this motorcycle looks as if it could have been built anytime in the 1970s through to the 1980s, but naturally it's very much up-to-the-minute, albeit in a simplified, no-frills way. The heart of this Beemer is the established 1,170cc air/oil-cooled boxer four-valve-per-cylinder flat twin engine that's been antiseptically cleaned and is now Euro4 compliant. That means that emissions-wise, it's all set for the next few seasons. BMW claim that this motor delivers 110bhp @ 7,750rpm. Maximum torque is 85lbs-ft @ 6,000rpm (but the redline is a comfortable enough 8500). To make that lump sing, or at least grunt in the Germanic tradition, some kind of valve has been deployed in the exhaust which, we're told, will make appropriately soulful sounds between the ears, but won't let it fail any noise test that happens its way. [More...]

Moto Guzzi Audace Carbon
 

For 2017, Moto Guzzi has introduced a new model to bolster its 1,400cc California cruiser family. This latest addition is the ... wait for it, Audace Carbon—as in fibre, rather than footprint. The Audace was introduced in 2015. The idea was to produce a "darker" and "meaner" cruiser to satisfy the sporting urges of the more irascible Guzzi California rider who needs to let rip once in a while during those long intercontinental jaunts. And certainly, our brief test ride showed that the factory had more or less achieved what it intended to achieve. The bike is, after all, just that bit more flickable and throwable than its forebears, and it's all cruiser at heart with a smooth ride courtesy of its elasto-kinematic mounts. But it's difficult to imagine many riders actually sidelining the more established California (or Eldorado) for this new arrival. Nothing wrong with the bike, mind. It's just got the feel of a more excitable teenager waiting to grow into a more measured adult. Then again, some guys (and girls) like their motorcycles sex straight and without the frills and toys. [More...]

New Fireblade for 2017

The Honda Fireblade is 25 years old, so it's only natural that the manufacturer might want to mark the occasion with something special. To that end, three new 1,000cc models are on the way; the 2017 CBR1000RR SP1, the 2017 CBR1000RR SP2 and a 2017 base model about which little is (so far) known. The SP1 and SP2 have been hyped with Honda's "Next Stage Total Control" philosophy, which is really all about stuffing the bike with more electronics than the space shuttle thereby increasing the redundancy of the rider. That said, it looks like this mobile video game has got all the right features and gizmos beloved of the current generation of techno bikers and control freaks. Check out the 5-axis Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) which neurotically measures every possible shift in time and space and forwards the data to whichever bit of kit wants to know. [More...]

2017 Honda CB1100EX
 

The Honda CB1100EX is to get a face lift for the 2017 biking season. As with the CB1100RS (main image above), the EX has just been been unveiled at the Intermot Show in Cologne, and isn't exactly leaping into the future, albeit in a retro way. However, it's got a few nips, tucks and tweaks that should keep its core aficionados happy (but probably won't do much to woo newcomers). The DOHC, 1,140cc inline, air-and-oil-cooled four is largely unchanged save for a revision to the intake and some minor changes to the exhaust, both designed to keep the bike on the right side of the emissionaries. The bore is still 73.5mm with a 67.2mm stroke. The compression ratio is 9.5:1. A PGM-FI electronic fuel injection system squirts the juice. Maximum power is 88hp (66kW) @ 7,500 rpm. The maximum torque is 67ft-lbs (91Nm) @ 5,000 rpm.  [More...]