Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

It’s been nearly two years since BMW first debuted the M 1000 RR, its first motorcycle to carry the company’s high-performance M brand. We knew it wouldn’t be the first, though, after we broke the news that BMW had trademarked the name along with “M 1000 XR” and “M 1300 GS.” What we didn’t expect was for the next M-branded motorcycle to be based on the S 1000 R.

That now looks to be the case, as a new M 1000 R model has appeared in vehicle certification documents in Switzerland and Germany. The M 1000 RR isn’t alone, however, as the same documents confirm BMW will also be introducing an updated S 1000 RR with a revised engine.

The Swiss document lists the M 1000 R and S 1000 RR both producing 206.5 hp at 13,750 rpm. That’s not quite on par with the M 1000 RR’s listed 209 hp at 14,500 rpm, but a slight bump from the current S 1000 RR’s claimed 204 hp at 13,500 rpm and a sizeable jump from the S 1000 R’s claimed 162 hp at 11,000 rpm.

Peak torque is listed at 83.3 lb-ft. at 11,000 rpm. That’s the same as the current S 1000 RR, but differs from the S 1000 R’s 84 lb-ft. at 9,250 rpm. This suggests the M 1000 R’s 999cc engine will have the same tuning as the S 1000 RR, and not the current S 1000 R’s more streetable tuning. It also suggests the M model will adopt BMW’s ShiftCam variable valve timing system.

Last Sunday’s outpouring of love for the old Kawasaki Vulcan 800 was so unexpected and heartwarming, why not let’s revisit, for this Church of MO, the equally lovable yet completely forgettable 2002 Suzuki Intruder Volusia 800. Nine out of ten of them are probably still on the road, parked next to an old F-150 under a dusty carport in Palmdale. And the other one’s still on the Suzuki showroom floor, now known as Boulevard C50.

Has it really been 30 years since the OG Ducati Monster? Why, yes. Yes it has. Ducati is celebrating the birth of Miguel Galluzzi’s naked baby by introducing a special, SP version for ’23, with: Öhlins suspension, Brembo Stylema front calipers, Termignoni approved silencer, Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV tires, steering damper, and a lithium-ion battery. Buon compleanno, bambino Monstro!

Ducati Press Release:

Borgo Panigale (Bologna, Italy), 15 September 2022 – In the second episode of the Ducati World Première web series 2023, Ducati presented the new Monster SP: a version designed to enhance the fun, thanks to a perfect package of technical equipment for those who love sporty riding.

Presented in 2021, the Monster represents all the essence of Ducati in the most compact, essential and lightest form possible. The recipe is the original 1993 one: a sporty engine, but perfect for road use, combined with a Superbike-derived frame. Everything you need to have fun, every day. 

Motore

The thing about any of the electric motorcycle companies actually taking product development seriously is that, more often than not, each new model they introduce is markedly better than any model before it. Considering the EV market is still in its early stages, you expect a marked advancement with each new model. 

Editor Score: 85%

Sometimes, however, an OEM can even outdo itself. This is where we find ourselves with Zero’s newest model, the 2023 Zero DSR/X. It’s fitting to see Zero capitalizing on the booming popularity of the adventure bike market. Everyone’s doing it these days, but when you pause to take a step back at the greater motorcycle landscape, the ADV category has supplanted sportbikes as the new arena in which motorcycle manufacturers – no matter what method of propulsion is used – develop and implement the latest tech. It’s where engineers can really go wild. In Zero’s case, and I don’t think I’m going out on a limb when I say this, the DSR/X represents the pinnacle of what the company has produced so far.

Developing An Electric ADV

Development of the DSR/X started in 2018. The bike actually should have been on the market sooner, but there was some sort of global event that happened in 2020 that effectively shut the world down. You might have heard of it. Nonetheless, it was clear that entering the adventure bike market was the next step after producing two new streetbikes – the SR/F and SR/S – on all-new platforms. But entering the ADV market would be a daunting task, according to Zero CEO Sam Paschel, because the category is so big to begin with and there’s so much tech and innovation to keep up with. By definition, however, an electric motorcycle company, at the very least, should be able to keep up with the innovation challenge. Naturally, being an electric allows it to stand out amongst an already crowded field. 

Adventure motorcycle helmets meld the features of on-road and off-road lids to provide adventure riders with a level of versatility that mirrors that of the machines they ride all over the great outdoors. Manufacturers of all sorts have jumped into the ADV helmet market to give us riders a smorgasbord of options to choose from. We’ve put together the list below to give adv-curious riders a one-stop article to check out the full range. From budget-minded to expensive feature-packed lids, these are the best adventure motorcycle helmets on the market in 2022, and there’s something here for everyone.

I’m a big fan of scramblers that can actually Scram, ya dig? When a production scrambler has the chops and capability to do what those customized rigs did back in the good ol’ days, well, that’s the real deal. Isn’t it? Royal Enfield has based this latest machine on its highly popular Himalayan ADV bike so, in theory, the new 411 should be nearly as capable as that machine while being imbued with its own style. A tweak here, some new paint there, a smaller front wheel, viola! Welcome to the Scram 411. 

Editor Score: 77%

2018 Royal Enfield Himalayan First Ride Review

2022 Royal Enfield Himalayan Review

The Royal Enfield Himalayan was an instant hit thanks to its rugged retro good looks, low MSRP, and overall accessibility when compared to other bikes in the ADV space. The Scram keeps the retro vibe but with a new stylish twist, and it looks to be even more accessible with a lower barrier to entry at $5,099. Aside from the smaller 19-inch front wheel and the reorganization of the windshield/instrument/headlight area, you’ll quickly understand why it says Himalayan slightly smaller than Scram 411 on the side panels. 

Honda announced plans for a carbon neutral future and a goal of introducing 10 or more electric motorcycles by 2025 including three mid-range models and a youth model for North America.

Until now, Honda has been very tentative when it comes to electrification, with its main focus being on developing swappable battery packs for electric two-wheelers. Its Japanese counterparts Yamaha and Kawasaki have outlined their own plans, while in North America, Harley-Davidson is days away from finalizing its LiveWire spin-off. Still, we’ve been waiting for the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer to show its hand.

We now know what Honda has in the works, following a press briefing with Managing Officer Yoshishige Nomura and Director and Executive Vice President and Representative Executive Officer Kohei Takeuchi. The executives discussed Honda’s plan to be carbon neutral by 2040 through the advance of electric mobility and cleaner internal combustion engines.

By 2025, Honda plans to launch 10 electric motorcycles worldwide. This includes a mix of scooters (what Honda calls “Commuter EVs”), mopeds and electric bicycles (“Commuter EMs and EBs”), and “large-size” electric motorcycles (“Fun EVs”).

Dear Bob,

Interesting. At first, I guessed Ducati’s Chief Engineer Massimo Bordi probably decided to use a dummy cylinder because he already had a stack of V-twin engine cases lying around, but that idea is quickly out the window when you remember the super lightweight Supermono in fact got its own cases, made from magnesium even.

For background, the limiting factor for most single-cylinder engines is rpm; one big piston rising and falling by itself is (was) hard to balance past 6000 rpm or so, which means debilitating vibration coursing through bike and rider just before something breaks. The easy solution of course, is more and smaller pistons. But for some reason, Sound of Singles got to be a really competitive series around about the late ‘80s, and Ducati wanted in.

Lighten up. Twenty years ago, MO was a wobbly start-up with no money, and a part-time job for most of us. Which doesn’t explain the brief haphazardness of some of the old content, but may excuse part of it. Do the Japanese even make cruisers anymore? Some of them weren’t so bad, including this 2002 Kawasaki Vulcan 800. I apologize for being so rude to it (probably because I was secretly attracted). Oh look, they DO still make a Vulcan 900; doesn’t look half bad really.

It’s happened to every rider. You get geared up, walk out to the garage, and flip on the ignition of your motorcycle, but when you thumb the starter button, you get the dreaded clickety-click-click. Now, your ride is in jeopardy. Well, our friends at NOCO have a solution for one lucky MO reader. NOCO has generously offered to give away one Boost Sport 500A UltraSafe Lithium Jump Starter and a GENIUS1 1-Amp Smart Battery Charger. With these, you can have both sides of the dead battery issue handled.

The GENIUS1 1-Amp Smart Battery Charger is one of NOCO’s most powerful, highest-performing, energy-efficient, and compact chargers available. The GENIUS1 is a 6-volt and 12-volt battery charger, battery maintainer, and battery desulfator rated at 1-amp for lead-acid automotive, marine, and deep-cycle batteries, including flooded, gel, AGM, and maintenance-free, plus lithium-ion batteries. Yes, you read that right, lithium-ion batteries, too. An integrated thermal sensor detects the ambient temperature and alters the charge to eliminate over-charging in hot climates and under-charging in cold climates. Charges dead batteries as low as 1-volt or even down to zero volts with the the all-new Force Mode.

The GENIUS1 is easy to use. Plug-in, connect to the battery, select a charge mode, and start charging your battery. A fully-automatic, worry-free battery charger for year-round use. It even detects sulfation and acid stratification and restores lost performance for stronger engine starts and extended battery life. The GENIUS1 can charge and maintain the batteries in all types of vehicles, not just motorcycles. The GENIUS1 carries a $40 MSRP.

Honda provided an update on the development of its new 2023 Hornet streetfighter, releasing test footage and details about its new engine.

The new Hornet will be powered by a 755cc Parallel-Twin 8-valve Unicam engine with a 270° crank. Honda claims an output of 90.5 hp at 9500 rpm, 55.3 lb-ft. at 7250 rpm, with “exhilarating top-end punch” and a “full-fat measure of mid-range torque.”

The Hornet’s development is led by Fuyuki Hosokawa, who was also in charge of the CBR1000RR-R Fireblade project.

“The Hornet has always been a very special motorcycle for Honda. Exciting, engaging performance has always been matched to lithe, agile handling,” says Hosokawa. “Before starting this project, we thought long and hard about what kind of performance we wanted to give to the rider. We knew that it was essential to keep the classic Hornet top end power ‘hit’ and at the same time, as a new generation Hornet for modern times, we wanted the engine to have a really strong torquey feel and ‘throbbing’ sensation at low to mid rpm. Our aim has always been to match these to the lightest, most agile handling possible, to make every ride – even in town – as engaging and fulfilling as possible.

“To get the kind of performance and lightweight handling we wanted, we knew we had to develop an all-new short-stroke twin-cylinder engine, with a 270° crankshaft. This would not only deliver that top-end rush, but also the sporty low-down torque, ideal for riding in urban environments and powering out of corners on the open road.”

These days, any manufacturer with pretensions to being a global player at whatever level in the marketplace has to have a dual-purpose Adventure model in its range, and MV Agusta is no exception. Italy’s most historic trophy brand – the so-called Ferrari of motorcycles, with 270 Grand Prix road racing victories and 75 World Championship titles in its locker, including 17 successive 500GP crowns – actually has a notable off-road heritage, too. Company founder Count Domenico Agusta’s dirt demons won successive Italian MX/Enduro titles in the 1950s and ’60s, as well as equipping the Italian team in ISDT events abroad. But after the Castiglioni family acquired MV 30 years ago, their focus for the brand was exclusively on the hard stuff – a focus which the company’s current owner Timur Sardarov is now in the process of changing.

At last November’s EICMA Milan Show, Sardarov personally unveiled two new dual-purpose models which represent a twin-pronged attack on the Adventure bike sector on the part of his Varese-based company. But rather than label them as MV Agustas, he’s instead established a completely new brand called Lucky Explorer, so named after the tribute model to the works Cagiva Elefant 900. That bike was powered by a Ducati V-Twin desmodue engine – the Castiglionis owned both brands at that time – on which Edi Orioli defeated his Suzuki and Yamaha-mounted closest rivals to win the 1990 Paris-Dakar Rally. He repeated that victory in 1994, this time against a phalanx of KTM and Honda riders, as one of a six-man Cagiva team on updated versions of the same bike. Cagiva’s main sponsor both times was cigarette company Lucky Strike, so for by then already inevitable reasons, the customer lookalike street version launched in 1991 was called the Cagiva Elefant 900ie Lucky Explorer, but minus the Lucky Strike logos. Hence Sardarov’s resurrection of the name, complete with a color scheme for its bikes that’s heavily reminiscent of Orioli’s race winners.

Some inevitable confusion was already sown by Ducati’s simultaneous launch at EICMA 2021 of its DesertX Adventure bike that’s now beaten the MV – sorry, Lucky Explorer – into production, and with a near identical paint job, too, since each company reckons it’s got the intellectual rights to this particular piece of Latin heritage. So why not call it a Cagiva, then? Apparently there’s a dispute between Sardarov and MV’s former owner Giovanni Castiglioni as to who exactly owns that name, too….!

Suzuki announced updates for the V-Strom 1050, as well as a new off-road oriented version for 2023. The new 2023 Suzuki V-Strom 1050DE replaces the 1050XT model, and adds new features to make it a more capable off-road machine such as a 21-inch front wheel, longer -stroke suspension, and a larger aluminum bash plate.

Both models remain powered by a 1037cc V-Twin engine, but for 2023, Suzuki introduced new hollow sodium-filled exhaust valves, claiming reduced temperature in the combustion chamber, and thus improved efficiency and durability.

The six-speed transmission and the bi-drectional quickshifter were also updated for smoother shifting.

The Suzuki Intelligent Ride System (SIRS) electronics package returns with some updates including a new 32-bit engine control module, and a lighter, more compact Bosch anti-lock brake unit.

In a move further supporting my argument that R1s are purpose-built racebikes with lights and mirrors to make them legal on the roads, for 2023 Yamaha is introducing the R1 GYTR – an R1 prepared specifically for track duty, without any of the homologation pieces for roadworthiness (don’t worry, the standard R1 isn’t going anywhere). Yamaha similarly does the same thing with the R6, offering it for sale exclusively as a track-only model.

The catch? It’s only available in Europe.

Nonetheless, it’s worth talking about anyway, as a non-homologated motorcycle from a Japanese manufacturer is a big deal, and this model could eventually make its way to North America someday.

For the track enthusiast, the R1 GYTR (Genuine Yamaha Technology Racing) starts life as the basis for any track build. It takes the standard road bike, deletes the non-essentials, and leaves you with a blank canvas on which to modify. Except in Yamaha’s case, they go a step further and add on the bits you’re likely going to start buying anyway. The most noticeable change is the complete race bodywork finished in white, ready to accept your wildest (or mildest) livery design.

While motorcycling is filled with a variety of herds, many of us, myself included, primarily ride alone. I always have, despite working in the industry and having tons of friends who ride. However, riding alone has its issues. How do I send for help should I have a mechanical issue or an accident when there is no cellular reception? Then there are the people on the other side of the riding equation, who are wondering where I am when I’m overdue. While cell service is much more ubiquitous than it was a decade ago, rides still frequently take us out of range of cellular towers. Regardless of whether we are alone or in a group, the situation can arise where we need to reach out to someone unexpectedly. That’s why GPS trackers, which used to be the province of backpackers and other remote explorers, crossed over into motorsports. Originally, these devices only sent out their location and preset messages. Now, the ability to send and receive custom messages has entered the market. Unlike many of the other two-way message satellite communicators, the Garmin inReach Mini 2 packs this capability into a small, easily carried package. 

MO Tested: SPOT Gen3

Seven long years ago, we tested the Spot Gen 3 on our Ultimate Sport-Touring Adventure Shootout and shared our location with you MOrons throughout the trip. When the Spot Gen 4 was released, my wife gave me one, and I’ve been happily using it on all of my solo rides (along with some MO group rides) ever since. However, on a recent solo camping trip, a family situation made me need two-way communication, and I had to ride over 10 miles from my campsite to the nearest WiFi a couple of times to communicate with my wife. That gets old really quickly – even while I was grateful to have the luxury of WiFi close enough to access. Consequently, when I returned home, I began researching satellite trackers that offer two-way texting. 

GPS trackers rely on a couple of constellations of satellites orbiting the Earth. Garmin’s inReach system utilizes the Iridium network of 66 satellites in constant motion around the globe and is largely considered to have the most coverage. Spot uses the Globalstar network, which has fewer satellites and excludes some polar and ocean regions. What matters to motorcyclists is that the satellites offer a telecommunications window into the remote areas that we travel. However, because of the expense of building, launching, and maintaining this network, transferring data is expensive, which explains why the services that we, as average people, can afford consist of text messages and location information.