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Yamaha MT-10 Tracer: New trademark confirms this beast exists?

Back in March of 2016, we ran a report that Yamaha had officially ruled out any hope of there ever being a touring version of the MT-10. Back then, our report and those circulating the grapevine said that any chance of there ever being a MT-10 Tracer was quashed when Yamaha introduced an option touring pack that included “a tall Tracer-like windscreen plus luggages, which should complement the MT-10’s standard-equipped electronic cruise control feature.”

Well, tides and markets are constantly changing – and now there are new reports around the net suggesting that a mysterious new trademark has revealed that a Yamaha “Tracer GT” is supposedly on its way to global markets.

Yamaha has never spoken of a “Tracer GT”, so there is a chance that it could be one of two things – a more extensive touring kit for existing Tracer models with panniers and taller screens perhaps?

Or it could just be the highly anticipated MT-10 Tracer? Why not actually? There is already the MT-07 Tracer as well as the MT-09 Tracer (above), so a MT-10 Tracer would fit right in? Right? Well, on the flip side, maybe not.

The MT-10 is based on the manic R1, so putting on a screen and slapping on panniers would in effect, as some online reports suggest, create a R1 Tourer.

But before we completely rule it out, consider for a second that BMW created touring version of the S1000RR superbike and called it the S1000XR and almost immediately the bike was selling better than the RR in some markets. And Ducati almost single-handedly created the Sports Touring segment with the Multistrada 1200S, so there is an established market for it already and Yamaha knows that.

The Japanese company has previously offered a MT-10 Tourer Edition early 2017. The touring MT-10, shown in the photos above and below, featured soft panniers, a pannier frame, touring screen, GPS bracket, hand guards and a comfort seat.

Having already tested the market with the Tourer Edition, it would come as no surprise then should a MT-10 Tracer appear. At this year’s EICMA perhaps?

Good-bye Panigale: Say hello to the next generation Ducati superbike, the V4!

Ducati has been making waves recently after it announced that it will be making a huge announcement coming July 7th at the Laguna Seca round of MotoGP (read what the big news is here).

There is no doubt that the time is up for the Ducati Panigale, and a replacement is right around the corner. UK based motorcycling media and all-round cool guys MCN (Motorcycle News) got their hands on these set of photos showing what could be the replacement to the Panigale.

There have been rumours flying around for awhile now that the next Ducati superbike will be powered by a V4 engine, just as the Ducati MotoGP race bike. It is no secret that the Ducati Superquaddro L-Twin has shown its limitations over the years in terms of power, efficiency and emissions. And Ducati needs to introduce something faster, gnarlier and all out better than the Panigale. A bike that does a better job at bridging the gap between race and road.

The report by MCN quoted Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali as saying, “I confirm Ducati is working on a four-cylinder engine project for a road bike,” a few months ago.

This is also huge news for the Ducati WSB team, who will also get the new V4 but not until 2019. Paulo Ciabati confirmed this, “We will race the Panigale for 2017 and 2018, so obviously we will keep developing the engine to be competitive.”

The next generation Ducati road bike will undoubtedly receive even more motorsport know how than the Panigale. Speaking about the new bike, Domenicali continued to say, “the engine development that we have made in MotoGP is exceptional – we have an engine that is very light, very reliable, and with a lot of very interesting technology. We are seriously thinking about making that available to regular customers because it is really a masterpiece of engineering – of course translated into something that can be sold at a reasonable, but premium, price – so it will not be exotic like the Desmosedici, but a more regular high-end sports bike. We would absolutely race this in WSB.”

So with that said, it is clear that the new V4 engine will be below the 1000cc mark due to WSB engine regulations, but bike makers usually create a special homologation edition. Just like the current Panigale, there could be a 1000cc V4 model carrying an R somewhere in its name. And just like the current Panigale, there will likely be two more models – a standard and probably an S model – which could be powered by a 1200cc V4 engine.

And the bike in these pictures is quite clearly a well developed test mule, and is most definitely the upcoming V4. Featuring styling that can be used both on road and on track, and quite obviously an evolution to the styling of the Panigale, and with news that the final edition Panigale is just a few days away from its global introduction, this is surely the next generation Ducati superbike.

So what is known about this bike? Well firstly it ditches the Panigale’s monocoque ‘frameless’ design for a conventional twin-spar cast frame. It is around half the size of a normal frame. Also the design of the new bike is obviously different but similar, stalkier than the Panigale but different to the Ducati race bikes, the new Ducati sports bike is a lot beefier than ever, and similar to the width of four-cylindered Japanese bikes.

The lights too are completely different and the headlamps together with the sidelights have been repositioned inside the air intake ports, apparently given away by one of the LED headlamps seen in the photo below and above. The photos also show that the rear shock has been repositioned and is now placed behind the rider’s left ankle.

We will bring you the latest on this bike as news hits the internet.

UPDATE:
Sister site to MCN, Australian based AMCN (Australian Motorcycle News) has released the rendering below of the upcoming Ducati V4 Superbike. It is not known how close it is to the real bike, but it looks pretty damn good!

Story and photo credits: MCN

HJC Helmets introduces new Spider-man and Iron Man helmets

HJC Helmets is back again with its superhero themed helmets, and this time the helmet maker salutes two Marvel superheroes – Spiderman and Iron Man – with two awesome new helmets.

The Spider-man themed helmet is called the CS-R3 Spider-Man and distinguished from the previously released RPHA 11 helmet with its digital, blue and red suit from the new movie. The previous helmet featured the old classic, comic Spider-Man graphics.

The Iron Man themed helmet is known as the RPHA 70 ST model, and features refreshed graphics that highlight the sophisticated, metallic theme from Iron Man’s new movie. This helmet is designed for Sport Touring and comes with an internal, drop-down sunshield.

Both these helmets were made in conjunction with the new Spider-Man: Homecoming movie, and the Spider-man helmet will be available in the USA in July while the Iron Man helmet will be available in the third quarter of this year.

The Spider-man themed helmets starts from RM650 before taxes while the Iron Man helmet starts from RM2,621 before taxes. There is no news yet on whether or not these helmets will be available for purchase in Malaysia, for now.

Visit HJC Helmets Malaysia’s Facebook page for more information.

False Neutrals – What are they & why do they happen?

False neutrals happen whenever your bike shifts into a state of neutral other than the true neutral positioned between first and second gear.

False neutrals are dangerous as it robs the bike of its forward drive as well as the super important mechanical grip.

This article will explain on what are false neutrals, why they happen and how to avoid them from ever happening.

Have you ever been in a situation where you’re shifting through the gears while ripping through the mountain roads feeling like a street version of Valentino Rossi when suddenly your bike seems to shift into what seems like neutral but not the intended position between first and second?

(more…)

TESTED: 2017 Modenas V15 – “The New Kid on the Block”

 
Watch our video review and listen to the engine of this impressive entry-level 
'cafe racer'.

The 2017 Modenas V15 was introduced back in May together with the Modenas Pulsar RS200 sports bike and NS200 naked bike.

The retro-styled V15 offers something different and unique to the 150cc category in the Malaysian market.

The cafe racer inspired motorcycle offers great styling, impressive fuel mileage and affordable pricing which are all the things most people look for when wanting to purchase the perfect two-wheeler.

In our Malaysian market packed to the brim with small capacity mopeds, kapcais and scooters, most of them seem to look like they were produced out of the same mould over and over again with just minor changes and upgrades to keep things slightly more interesting. This is especially true when referring to motorcycles with 150cc capacity and below. (more…)

These are the leaked specs of the final Ducati Panigale R!

July 7 is the date where the world will see what could possibly be the final final final Ducati Panigale. Ducati has sent out tease after tease (see video below) and has even let the world know that July 7 is an important date.

July 7 is also the date where the MotoGP circus heads to the legendary Laguna Seca, and that is where Ducati will drop the covers on one of the most anticipated superbikes of this year. It is also an important date because apparently the new final final final Panigale R will be the last Ducati superbike featuring a L-Twin engine. Ducati will be switching over to an all-new engine format, back in January of this year, CEO Claudio Domenicalli had confirmed that the Italian bike maker will be ditching the much loved L-Twin for a more mainstream V4 engine.

The next generation Ducati superbike will no longer feature the iconic L-Twin, and will instead revert to the aforementioned V4 format, which is favoured by Japanese bike makers like Yamaha and Honda for being rich in torque, and incredibly smooth.

But for now, what will the final final final Panigale R be like compared to the flagship Superleggera? Well, apparently a Ducati dealer had leaked some information on to the internet, and this is what we have found out: