Hong Leong Yamaha Motor (HLYM) telah memperkenalkan varian terbaharu bagi model skuter 155cc Yamaha NVX mereka iaitu Yamaha NVX edisi GP 2018. Yamaha NVX edisi terhad ini dilancarkan sempena penyertaan mereka di dalam kejohanan sukan permotoran MotoGP. (more…)
When Honda innovated and used the “seamless” transmission it their MotoGP bikes a few years back, other manufacturers scrambled to produce their own. Now every MotoGP bike uses the transmission. We remembered when Yamaha was struggling to develop their own “seamless” gearbox during the 2014 Winter Test at the Sepang International Circuit. Jorge Lorenzo had pushed for his then team to debut it quickly as he was opinion that the system helped with stability during braking.
Well, now it’s Yamaha who had filed a patent for a similar system to be fitted to the YZF-R1.
The design for such a gearbox is complex but the idea is to deliver a seamless flow of power, even while shifting gears, hence the name. A quickshifters, on the other hand, actually interrupts power transmission momentarily when another gear is selected.
As an in-depth explanation will take something shorter than a thesis, we’ll be brief.
The seamless transmissions in MotoGP use a large number of pawls inside gear wheels that lock and unlock gears like ratchets, allowing two gears to be engaged at the same time. With the slower gear is freewheeling on the pawls, power from the engine is uninterrupted.
Truth is, there are a couple transmission systems on road bikes that transmit power without interruption – the CVT in scooters and Honda’s proprietary dual-clutch transmission (DCT) which is used in the Africa Twin, X-Adv, NC750, VFR1200 and Gold Wing among others. But these are different to the seamless gearboxes used by MotoGP bikes.
Yamaha’s design avoids the extra weight of Honda’s DCT and uses the normal hand-controlled clutch and foot-operated gearchanges. But just like its MotoGP counterpart, two gears are briefly connected during upshifts and downshifts. You may think it’s something like DCT but using gears instead.
While the benefits of seamless transmission may be negligible on the road except for bragging rights, it will may certainly benefit the Yamaha YZF-R1 in World Superbike racing.
The road technology is still in patent stage, so let’s hope to see it in production sooner or later.
The ever-popular Yamaha YZF-R3 (YZF-R25 in Malaysia) has been around for a few years and may well see a facelift for 2019, as photos have surfaced in Indonesia.
If Yamaha does adhere to the design the picture, the new bike’s styling brings it closer to the manufacturer’s other supersport models, namely the YZF-R6 and YZF-R1 besides the YZR-M1 in MotoGP.
Additionally, taking a cue from current industry standards, it may well feature full-LED lighting. Will it also have an updated instrument console? Perhaps. How about an upgraded chassis? Who knows.
But the biggest question would be regarding its displacement, of course.
The 250- to 400cc category is hotly contested, with Yamaha’s rivals Kawasaki now offering both the Ninja 250 and Ninja 400, while KTM has the 390 Duke and RC 390. Even Modenas has the Dominar D400. Hence, there has been much speculation that we may well see a sub-400cc R4 because how else could one compete if the others have higher capacities?
But there’s a problem if it goes 400. While Yamaha offers the R3 or the speculated R4 in other countries, we will be inadvertantly stuck with the 250cc version. This is the same with other manufacturers as well, except for KTM. It’s such a disaster that we won’t get to experience the bikes’ full potential due to riders who are resistant to upgrade their license to “full-B” hence small capacity bikes are stuck at the 250cc ceiling. But the silly thing is that these are the very same cretins who complain about not having bigger capacity bikes in Malaysia compared to our neighbours.
The new R3/R4 should break covers at the AIM Expo in Las Vegas, so stay tuned.
The mystery over which riders will join the SIC Yamaha Angel Nieto MotoGP Team from the 2019 season has been confirmed as 2017 Moto2 Champion Franco Morbidelli and Fabio Quartararo.
The rider line-up was confirmed by Yamaha Factory Racing Managing Director Lin Jarvis when he spoke to Simon Crafar during the Austrian GP over the weekend.
The satellite Yamaha MotoGP team would have been left vacant by the departure of the Monster Energy Tech3 Yamaha team to KTM next year. The move also brought riders Johann Zarco and Hafiz Syahrin in tow.
The interview with Jarvis confirmed that Yamaha does have a final say on who rides for the satellite team, since the satellite team also provides extra data to the factory: “They’re an Independent Team. Of course, any rider they select needs to be finally approved by us at being at the level and the capacity to ride the M1. So they’ve (SIC) chosen to go for Franco Morbidelli, who is a rider who is very interesting to us because he’s a World Champion, he’s an Academy rider and he definitely has talent. I think he’ll do better on the M1 than he is doing this year on the Honda so in the case of Franco there was no doubt at all from the beginning.”
And the second rider? It will be Quartararo, confirms Jarvis:
“In the case of Quartararo he will be a rookie, but he’s young – only 19 – and he’s definitely talented. He lost his way maybe for a year or two but he’s showing promise again this year. But I think he could be one of the very good riders for the future. I think the case of Syahrin has shown that sometimes you can take a choice and if the guy’s got talent and is brought in without expectation, he can deliver. So we’re quite comfortable with the choice.”
Finally, on the equipment the team will be supplied by Yamaha, Jarvis was more coy. Will it be something like Tech 3 or more than that?
“It will be something like Tech 3 or more than that,” replies the Yamaha Factory Racing Managing Director.
We complained in Part 1 of this series about how boring new motorcycle names have become, but in Part 2 Ten Motorcycles Named after Racetracks, there is one current bike in production which is named so and thankfully, it goes as great as its name. Can you guess which one is it?
5. Moto Guzzi V50 Monza
Moto Guzzi was clearly in financial problems in 1973 when De Tomaso took over with the backing of the Italian government. The management decided that smaller, less expensive bikes was the solution, resulting in the 500cc V50 and 350cc V35 in 1976. They were less than popular, so Moto Guzzi created a more powerful version of the V50 called the Monza in 1980. V35 also went through a similar makeover and was named the Imola.
4. Yamaha RD400F Daytona Special
Named after the infamous Daytona track, the 1979 RD400F Daytona Special commemorated Yamaha’s successes at the track and also the last of street-legal two-strokes in America. When the RD350LC introduced, it was only sold in Europe but imported in the States as a competition-only motorcycle.
3. Triumph Daytona 500
When American racer Buddy Elmor won the 1966 Daytona 200 aboard a Triumph Tiger 100, it was the first victory at the track for Triumph. Triumph then launced a 500cc, twin-cylinder roadster called the Daytona to commemorate their feat (there was also a Tiger Daytona in 1967). Moving forward to the current Triumph Motorcycle Ltd era, the Daytona name was used specifically for the Hinckley-based manufacturer’s sportbikes. The Daytona lineup were universally praised for its performance and sublime handling until being phased out in 2017.
2. Moto Guzzi Le Mans
Moto Guzzi build the 850 Le Mans Mk I from the iconic 1971 750cc V7 Sport, which was the first production motorcycle to feature a five-speed gearbox and hit 200 km/h. Guzzi upped the displacement to 850cc, as well as adding new disc brakes. It was the world’s fastest and best handling motorcycle of its time. Guzzi called it the “Le Mans” after the infamous racetrack in France. The 1976 Moto Guzzi 850 Le Mans Mk I is most collectible Italian motorcycle today (sorry, Ducati).
1. Triumph Thruxton/Thruxton R
In 1965, Triumph hand-built 52 bikes as homologation specials in order to contest in the Thruxton 500 mile (800 km) production endurance race. Many enthusiasts believe that it was this series of races that created the café racer era as standard production motorcycles were modified for extra performance.
In 2004, John Bloor’s Triumph Motorcycles Ltd. produced the new Thruxton 900 as the café racer of the new modern classic Bonneville lineup. In 2016, the Thruxton was revised and featured the new 1200cc liquid-cooled engine. A “hotter” R version was also added which featured Brembo brakes, Ohlins shocks and Showa BFF forks.
The result is the new Thruxton R is the best factory café racer in the market.
Honda Motor Co. and Yamaha Motor Co., are confident in promoting hybrid scooters in Thailand as global attention shift to such motorcycles.
Honda has plans to launch the PCX Hybrid in August while Yamaha released the Yamaha Grand Filano Hybrid last week in the Kingdom. Both models are incidentally the first hybrid motorcycles for each manufacturer.
The 150cc PCX Hybrid is equipped with a 48-volt lithium-ion battery, boasting fuel economy of 52.3 km/liter, and will sell for less than THB 120,000 baht (RM 14,600).
A.P. Honda Co., Honda’s Thai sales arm, is confident in selling 2,000 units of the PCX Hybrid per year.
On the other hand, the Yamaha Grand Filano starts at THB 55,500 (RM 6,700). Thai Yamaha Motor Co., plans to sell 7,000 units per month, on merit of a more competitive pricing.
The Thai domestic motorcycle market has around 2 million units, with A.P. Honda accounting for 80% share, and Thai Yamaha at approximately 15.2 percent, in the first half of this year.
The Thai government intends to shift the tax base for motorcycles from cylinder capacity to carbon dioxide emissions following a similar change for automobiles implemented in 2016.
The duopoly’s hybrid model launches could raise awareness of eco-friendly vehicles in the country.
Surapong Paisitpattanapong, a spokesman for an automotive group at the Federation of Thai Industries, said that demand for hybrid motorbikes in Thailand is expected to gradually grow, like hybrid passenger cars, as manufacturers need some time to raise recognition about the new technology.
Honda released the PCX Hybrid in Indonesia early this month and will start selling it in Japan on Sept. 14, while Yamaha plans to launch the Grand Filano in Vietnam.
Boon Siew Honda had just released the new PCX 150 in Malaysia a few weeks ago, but we are also waiting for either the hybrid or electric model.
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