Currently in France
motorcycles are limited to a maximum of 100 bhp. Now the European Union
is considering of following France’s footstep and impose this limitation
to cover the whole of Europe.
If this ruling is implemented
and then followed by others like US then it will be likely that Japanese
and Italian
manufacturers may just
produce motorcycles with less than 100 horses.
Several
motorcycle groups all
over Europe has sent in protests demandingt hat the plan be dropped as
there is no link that increase in horsepower will lead to increase in
road mishaps.
Apa ada pada nama? Ya jika nama itu nama saya atau andamemang tidak ada apa-apa. Tetapi jika nama anda Marlon Brando, iamempunyai karisma untuk memikat walaupun si empunya nama sudah lamameninggal. Triumph baru-baru ini telak mengikat kontrak lumayan denganpewaris Brando untuk mengguna nama pelakon ‘The Wild One’ iniatas jeket-jeket keluaran Triumph. Jeket yang dicadang dikeluarkanadalah replika jeket yang diguna Brando dalam filem tersebut. Dalamfilem itu Brando menunggang motosikal Triumph.
Ossa, satu jenama yang begitu popular dahulu dan menghentikan pengeluaran motosikal dalam tahun 70an kini kembali semula di dunia motosikal. Ramai yang tidak menyangka kedatangan Ossa kali ini. Ossa kini mula mengeluarkan satu model TR280i untuk kegunaan trial.
1,250 buah dijangka dibina tahun ini dan untuk tahun depan ini mungkin ditingkatkan ke 3000 buah. Ossa juga bercadang mengeluarkan model kedua iaitu model enduro tidak lama lagi. Mungkin Ossa akan mempamerkan prototype di pertunjukan EICMA tahun ini?
Baru baru ni kami ada membawa berita bahawa syarikat Bajaj dari India akan mengambil alih syarikat KTM dengan pembelian saham.Nampaknya ini tidak akan berlaku kerana keengganan syarikatberkepentingan dalam KTM iaitu CROSS Industries tidak bersetuju untukmelupuskan saham mereka. Mungkin Bajaj kena tunggu lebih lama lagi
Rumours that Bajaj is to takeover KTM
of Austria is set to be realised. Bajaj has been offered to take over
90% stake in KTM..
However Bajaj has yet to finalised
the offer. Bajaj is said to take up 51% state initially and when the
final takeover will materialised is yet to be announced.
Earlier we carried the news that
Harley Davidson will be
closing the Buell plant. Now we hear that liquidation sales of all
parts and equipment at the plant will be held on 28th January
2010. Since production began 26 years ago Buell had produced 130,000
motorcycles. Fans will be sad to see it all go. If you want a piece of
history then you need to head to the US and make a bidding for anything
youfancy like
tool, equipment,
engines, mudguards , tanks, computers and special testing equipment. In
fact they are just too many to list.
The liquidation sale starts January 28th at the Buell Factory at
2815 Buell Dr, East Troy, WI. It is open to the public everyday
until everything is sold. Hours of operation are 10am till 7pm Monday
thru Saturday and 12noon to 5pm on Sunday. Buyers may view photos and
inventory online at www.LiquidAssetPartners.com.
The six founding members of ASEAN impose zero
tariffs on 7,881 goods traded amongst themselves recently which may be
a sign of better economic prospects both producers and consumers.
The elimination of tariffs by Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the
Philippines,Singapore and Thailand means a step closer to an integrated
ASEAN economy. The other ASEAN members will impose zero tariffs in 2015.
Zero tariffs means products can be imported/exported amongst
themselves at no cost. Whether it will mean a free flow of goods and also
whether we will see cheaper bike prices are yet to be seen.
Can
you guess how many motorcycles are produced yearly in India? EIGHT
MILLION yes 8,000,000 motorcycles a year. But the motorcycles are not
the superbike types as first choice amongst Indians are economical, long
lasting and price. Without surprise Honda launched the Honda
Twister which has an
attractive look but yet give up to 164 miles per gallon or about 70km
per litre.
The
Twister is a 110 cc
motorcycle churning out 9
hp and is priced at Rp 42,000/- or about RM3100/-. This new bike has a
six sopke cast wheel and a bikini fairing and its design is years away
from the Rajdoot and Enfields which India’s motorcycling public is so
used to. The gear box has a 4 speed transmission.
With such a low power I am sure aftermarket suppliers will be rushing to
market upgrades for the bike. Wonder if Honda will introduce this model
into Malaysia. Reminds me of the Honda S90 days.
Harley is recalling some 111,000 motorcycles and trikes of
their 2009 and 2010 model. The problem it seems is the front petrol tank
mount which can distort on impact and may cause leakage.
FIM , the controlling body for motorsports has
announced that for the 2012 season the maximum capasiti for MotoGP is
1000 cc with a maximum of 4 cylinder and a bore of 81mm ( 4 cylinders).
Further details will be made known soon.
Were the MotoGP not running a 1000 cc limit a few years back? Yes , it
was 1000 cc before the FIM decided to change to 800 cc maximum. Among
the reasons then was that tyre was a problem.
I am not sure if that’s not a problem anymore
or why the change upwards. We will have to wait for further details.
Qianjiang Motors Puts Another $26
Million Into The Italian Brand
Qianjiang
Motors from China , which in 2005 acquired Benelli, is now investing
another US $26 million into Benelli.
Haimei Yan who is Qianjang Motors general manager was reported as
saying that they are in Benelli for sure even though it is no turning a
profit just yet.
The cash infusion will mean Benelli can now continue their R & D
on new and future products.
Haimei Yan hinted that a 600cc in-line four
supersport bike maybe in the pipeline. With this Benelli can hope to
turn a profit within 2 years.
Yan regard the Italian way of doing business as the main obstacle to
Benelli’s growth and development.
Though
Bajaj is not much known here it is however a
motorcycle producers to
be reckoned with. Bajaj manufactured about 2 million two wheelers in
2008. This is by no mean small. Whilst total figures has been increasing
scooter sales is dismal thus Bajaj is reported to be planning to drop
scooter manufacture by March next year.
Bajaj scooters as most Hindi movie fan will
recognize are the Vespa look alike. However with sophistication Bajaj
began producing more modern designs. With improved economic standing of
the average Indian, the masses has move from scooters to motorcycles and
small cars.
Bajaj will now concentrate on
motorcycle manufacture
such as the Honda Hero, Pulsar and Discover models. Plan to produce
Kawasaki Ninja 250is also on the table.
Bajaj by the way has a considerable share in
the Austrian
motorcycle manufacturer
KTM. Bajaj bought into KTM in 2007 with 15% share but by February 2009
this was increased to 31.7 %.
KTM and Bajaj are said to be working to
develop a water-cooled4 stroke 125 and 250 engines.
Not many recognized the name Harry Hurt. To
those who do not know Harry Hurt was the author of the
motorcycle safety study
now referred to as the ‘HURT REPORT’. Hurt, who was 81 died of a heart
attack on Nov. 29 2009.
The ‘Hurt Report’ is considered by many as the most comprehensive
study ever carried out on motorcycling safety. His study though first
released in 1981 is still referred to by many with regards to
motorcycle handling,
motorcycle safety,
motorcycle crash
analysis and also on helmet safety and performance.
Hurt’s study was accepted by many and his findings were incorporated
into products and regulations that has eventually prevented crashes and
save lives.
Hurt was born in 1927, he grew up and began riding as a kid in
Texas. His first
motorcycle was a
worn-out Cushman scooter that he brought back to life.
Hurt graduated from university in 1950, and became a US navy pilot
during the Korean War. After the Korean War, Hurt rode his1947
Harley-Davidson to
California to enrolled for a master's degree in aeronautical engineering.
In the 70’s, increased
motorcycle sales led to
an increased crashes, and the US Highway
Traffic Safety
Administration issued a contract to study
motorcycle accidents.
The USC
Traffic Safety Center
where Hurt was the professor got the job.
Objectives of the study were
1. Determine the causes of
motorcycle crashes.
2. Analyze the effectiveness of protective gear like helmets
3. Determine ways to prevent crashes and reduce injuries.
Hurt's
team, all of whom were
experienced motorcyclists, went to
motorcycle accident
scenes, day or night, for over two years. The
team collected
exhaustive data on more than 900
motorcycle accidents,
and interviewed 2,310passing motorcyclists and studied 3,600 police
reports from the same area. Numerous recommendations flowed from the
study regarding protective apparel, riding practices and rider training.
When asked to sum up his report Hurt said "There is no magic bullet
other than getting
smart."
Despite the law requiring that turn signals be
in colour, we still see many cars and some motorcycles with
colored lights for the turn signals.
The US NHTSA did a study and found that
turn signals are 5.3%
more effective (read that less likely to be rammed from behind) than
turn signals at preventing involvement in two-vehicle crashes where a
lead vehicle is rear-struck in the act of turning left or right, merging
into
traffic, changing lanes
or entering or leaving a parking space.
Dr.Moto believes that ‘One color does not fit all functions’, that is
to say an
colored lights should be
the used exclusively
for turn signal, red for rear lights and when brighter for brakes. A
blinking
light may be interpreted as a faulty rear lights.
Vehicles decorated with multi coloured lights like a Christmas tree
must be stopped before the menace gets bigger.
Harley Davidson has
been in the businessof making motorcycles for a very long time and they
have been through ups anddowns in their profits and losses. They have
been through it all thus its nosurprise to read about their latest move.
With profits diving Harley Davidsonis
a) Planning to stop its Buell range of motorcycles. The lower
thenexpected figures apparently made Harley decide to stop the range.
b) Planning to sell off its MV Agusta unit. It was July 2008
whenHarley-Davidson bought MV Agusta for $109 million in a bid to lift
its presencein Europe and enter the popular performancebike segment.
Anyone with more than a hundred million US$ can call Harley
to make theiroffer. Malaysiacan just gawk with our mouth open because
just a while ago MV Agusta was soldby Proton for a mere ONE EURO.
Italian
motorcycle manufacturer
Moto Morini has gone into voluntary liquidation after failing to pay
staffs and suppliers.
Voluntary liquidation is normally done prior to its assets gets
broken upand sold. It can also trigger a rush to buy
the firm.
The news shocked many as Morini has to date sold 15% more bikes then
it did for the full year in 2008. It is said that work on new models is
still ongoing..
It will be a sad day if Morini is to disappear from motorcycling as
it is one of the older motorcycling company in existence today.
Motorcycle journalist
Alan Cathcart set two FIM world records in the1,000 cc
normally-aspirated Twin-cylinder unstreamlined class on astreet-legal
Triumph. The Thruxton. set a mark of 152.678 mph
(244.2848km/h) on the flying mile and 152.770 mph (244.432 km/h) on the
flying kilometer wo-way runs. Cathcart also set an unofficial one-way
speed record of153.150 mph (245.04 km/h) on the Thruxton.
Cathcart then went on to set another two more FIM world records
in the 1000 cc forced induction twin cylinder unstreamlined class on
a Bonneville. In the flying mile he recorded 165.405 mph (264.648 km/h)
and 165.672 mph (265.075 km/h) for the flying kilometer. The Bonneville
recorded 171.624 mph (274.598 km/h).
Mention Vespas and the first thing that comes to most
peoples’ mind is a 2-stroke 150 cc scooter. It has been like this for so
long that competitors too dare not try other capacity options. Thus 150
cc is quite a standard capacity for most scooters.
Now Vespa has decided to come out of the cocoon. They
have introduced the GTS300 – a 278 cc scooter ,
Said to be the biggest and fastest Vespa in history. Vespa
describes the Super as the fastest and most technologically
advanced Vespa ever.
