Bikesrepublic

Amirul Azreen

Marc Marquez makes an appearance alongside new team-mate, Pol Espargaro during the 2021 Repsol Honda presentation.

However, the six-time world champion admits he will set to sit out from the Qatar Test pending recovery of his right arm.

The 28-year-old rider has undergone three operations so far after suffering a horrific accident during last season opener in Jerez and hasn’t been on track since last July.

After the online presentation, Marquez ruled himself out of the official Qatar testing next month.

“Now we just try to follow my body with the physio and doctor, increase the work at home. But I don’t know – and the doctors don’t know – when I will be ready to return. But the most important is that every week I feel better.

“It’s been 10 months without a bike and the first time I will ride the MotoGP again I will not be 100%. One thing is to be 100% on the bone side, another is to be 100% for the muscles and everything,” explained Marquez.

Moreover, Marquez admits it might take him a half-a-season to return to his best form.

“We’ll see if it takes one race, two races or half-a-season to be the same Marc as before,” he added.

After months of waiting, finally, the Milwaukee based company officially launched the 2021 Pan America.

The Pan America is available in two variants; the Standard comes in Vivid Black and River Rock Grey while the Special in Vivid Black, Gauntlet Grey Metallic, Deadwood Green and the two-tone Baja Orange and Stone Washed White Pearl.

Engine

 

The all-new Pan America is powered by a Revolution Max 1250 dual spark VVT that produces 150hp @ 9,000rpm and 127Nm @ 6,750rpm.

According to Harley-Davidson, the unit is built from the ground-up in an effort to improve the weight distribution.

Specifications

The Pan-America Special is packed with a beefy 47mm inverted fork with trick semi-active suspension, including Adaptive Ride Height adjustment.

The Adaptive Ride Height works by adjusting the seat height accordingly, which we think a very innovative move by Harley-Davidson.

The suspension automatically drops the bike down to 855mm once you come to a stop before returning to 890mm once you are on the move, simple yet practical for many.

The rear shocks are handled by a linkage-mounted monoshock with automatic electronic preload control and semi-active compression and rebound damping.

The braking is done by radially mounted, monoblock, 4-piston calliper at the front and dual rotor, floating, tower-mounted at the rear.

The standard and Special comes with a full colour 6.8″ TFT touchscreen display, full LED Light setup, cornering ABS, lean-sensitive traction control, cruise control and hill control which put the Pan America as the most technologically advanced motorcycle coming out of Milwaukee.

As far as an adventure motorcycle goes, Pan America offers a 21L tank with a weight of 258kg for the Special and 245kg for the standard.

BMW Motorrad received huge applause when they launch the retro-styled muscle cruiser R 18 last year.

The R 18 is powered by the biggest boxer engine ever built and offers a wide range of features and accessories.

BMW Motorrad did not stop there, instead, they introduced two more variants; the first debuted in October last year with tall windscreen and saddlebags, while the second variant was spied with a batwing fairing and expected to launch in a few months.

However, French publication Le Repaire des Motards had a chat with BMW Motorrad’s head, Dr Markus Schramm, regarding its future plans.

While Schramm evaded some of the more in-depth questions, he did disclose that it is logical to follow up the R 18 with a smaller size cruiser.

We have yet to get our hands on the new R 18 due to the current pandemic. Nevertheless, we are excited at how BMW Motorrad is pushing for a classic-styled cruiser.

The BMW R 18 Frist Edition is currently available in Malaysia for RM149,500.

To increase every ride safety, Ducati, in collaboration with Dainese, introduces the Ducati Smart Jacket, a revolutionary sleeveless vest with an integrated D-air® airbag.

The versatile jacket inflates in a uniform along the entire surface, thus creates a shield that wraps the rider’s body and guarantees protection during collision or accidents.

According to Ducati, the vest offers protection equal to that of seven Level 1 back protector.

The smart jacket is not just a ‘wearable’ airbag, it also comes equipped with an electronic control unit capable of reading data 1,000 times per second.

The electronic control unit detects autonomously dangerous situations such as sliding, high-siding of a rider, rear-end collision, impact with another object or stopped-vehicle impact, and activates the rider’s protection system.

The vest is available in both men and women version and easily foldable to be stored in a bag, and has a 26-hour battery life that can be charged via any USB socket.

Ducati Smart Jacket is priced at RM4,299 and available at Ducati Malaysia.

Aveta just launched the VS110, priced at RM3,588 (on-the-road) for budget-conscious customers in Malaysia.

The VS110 is the fourth budget motorcycle introduced after the DY90, RX110 and Ranger 110, with the manufacturing is done here in Bukit Raja, Klang.

Weighing at only 83 kilograms, the Aveta VS110 is powered by a 113cc single-cylinder, air-cooled engine that produces a respectful 6.5hp at 8,000rpm and 6.8Nm at 6,000rpm.

Other features:

  • 4L tank
  • telescopic fork
  • rear twin shock absorber

The Aveta VS110 comes in four colour options, Cyan Blue, Blue, Red and Black.

The Bimota Tesi H2 is already a stunning machine, but somehow the people in Rimini, Italy, decided to spice things up for 2021 by announcing a Carbon Edition.

The question is, what is the difference between the standard Tesi H2 and the Carbon Edition?

Like the name, it is the same mouth-watering motorcycle, but the Carbon Edition is limited to only 250 units, and it comes in a black colour scheme with carbon fibres features.

The limited-edition Tesi H2 still packs with the same 230hp Kawasaki H2-derived engine but looks more menacing with the carbon fibre trims.

If you have some money to burn and seeking excitement post-Covid-19, the Tesi H2 Carbon Edition is priced at GBP60,000 (RM339,675).

Last year, Yamaha announced their decision to discontinue the YZF-R6 due to the stringent emission rules.

The motorcycle instead continued to be sold as a non-homologated, track-only machine.

Nonetheless, rumours start to rife that Yamaha may be working on an MT-07 based Supersports, possibly called the Yamaha YZF-R7.

Japanese publication, Young-Machine even predicted the R7 before Yamaha decided to pull the plug on the R6.

The said motorcycle is rumoured to fill the gap between the beginner R25 and the 1000cc R1.

If the rumour is accurate, we are looking at a possible R7 powered by the same CP2 engine of the MT-07 that produces 74hp.

Even though the power is not up to par with the Aprilia RS660 or their Japanese counterpart, the Honda CBR650R, we can assume that Yamaha might tweak the engine to add more power.

The R7 might also retain the same chassis and electronics as you get on the MT-07.

Out of the blue, the Michigan-based Buell Motorcycle plans a big comeback after Harley-Davidson ousted the company in 2009.

The American brand continued to exist after the exclusion under Erik Buell Racing (EBR) in November 2009.

However, their struggle continues, and EBR filed for bankruptcy before they were bought out by ‘Liquid Asset Partners’.

According to the latest reports, Liquid Asset Partners has taken ownership of Buell Motorcycles and plans to release an all-new line-up with the help of investor Bill Melvin.

“Buell is back, and we are excited to bring Buell back with this incredible assortment of superbikes and performance motorcycles.

“We start with the fastest American production motorcycles, hand-built in the USA, so that’s a nice start!

“We’re building out those platforms for more touring & adventure models, and then we’re expanding our displacements to be competitive with other global brands. The passionate Buell Nation can grow and thrive again,” expressed Melvin.

It might sound farfetched to assume that Buell is trying to go head to head with Harley-Davidson considering the Milwaukee counterpart has established itself as a vital American brand.

Nevertheless, with Harley’s recent corporate and product restructure after disastrous Q4 sales last year, the return of Buell Motorcycles seems well-timed.

While other brands are taking a more cautious approach towards 2021 due to the current coronavirus pandemic, CFMOTO is going ahead with their plans to introduce a few new models.

What surprised us is that while other manufacturers seek to introduce small-displacement two-wheeler to reach broader demographics, CFMOTO is busy with larger-displacements products.

Three new motorcycles are expected to land this year with 2021 CFMOTO 650NK, 700CL-X and the 800MT.

2021 CFMOTO 650NK

The 650NK is a mid-segment naked motorcycle that features a liquid-cooled 649cc parallel-twin engine that produces 60hp and 56Nm.

The motorcycle also packs with a dual-channel ABS, all-around LED lights, telescopic fork and a rear monoshock by KYB, while the braking hardware consists of twin disc setup and a single rear disc with a pair of Pirelli rubber.

The 650NK also comes with a new 5″ TFT screen and a 17L fuel tank.

2021 CFMOTO 700CL-X

This excites us the most, as the 700CL-X is CFMOTO modern take on the scrambler/cafe racer motorcycle, apart from offering higher specifications than the 650NK.

The 700CL-X is packed with a 693cc parallel-twin that produces 73hp @ 8,500rpm and 68Nm @ 7,000rpm and paired to a slipper clutch.

 

Like the 650NK, the suspension setup is handled by KYB with an adjustable 41mm upside/down fork and monoshock.

It also comes with ride-by-wire technology, riding modes and cruise control, and LED lights with DRL.

2021 CFMOTO 800MT

The 800MT is CFMOTO attempt to penetrate the adventure segment with an all-new dual-purpose motorcycle in partnership with KTM.

As a result, the same KTM LC8 799cc parallel-twin powers the 790 Adventure is injected into the 800MT.

The 800MT is expected to come in two variants, spokes and alloy rims, based on leaked photos.

The 800MT is expected to come with a TFT display, four-piston brake callipers, ride-by-wire, riding modes and cruise control.

There is a new motorcycle brand emerged from Austria, and the name is Motron Motorcycle.

According to reports, Motron Motorcycle is a brand new motorcycle division from the KSR Group after Lambretta, Brixton Motorcycles and Malaguti, which aimed at the entry-level and mid-range market.

Motron Motorcycle offers both the conventional combustion and electric motorcycle in the form of scooters and minibike.

During the new brand launched, Motron also introduced several models with Whizz, Cubertino, Volz and Vizion (all-electric motorcycle) to hit the road in 2021.

Meanwhile, six combustion engine motorcycle, X-Nord 125, Revolver 125 and Warrior 400, will land in Q2, including three scooters, Breezy 50, Ventura 125, Ideo 50 and 125.

Currently, Motron Motorcycle will only be distributed in Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Greece.

As far as middleweight naked bike goes, the latest 2021 Triumph Trident 660 is certainly one of the most highly anticipated motorcycles for the coming year.

Officially launched today, the Trident offers class-leading tech and impressive handling at a very competitive price package.

For the Malaysian market, the Trident is available from RM43,900 for the Crystal White dan Sapphire Black colour options while the Silver Ice/Diablo Red dan Stealthy Matt Jet Black/Matt Silver Ice comes at RM44,900.

In terms of firepower, the all-new Trident comes with a 660cc three-cylinder DOHC liquid-cooled engine that produces a respectable 80hp at 10,250rpm and 64Nm of torque at 6,250rpm.

This package offers a punchy power delivery throughout its rev range together with a unique triple-cylinder soundtrack.

A six-speed manual transmission handles all the power delivery to its rear wheel and that is further enhanced with the presence of an assist/slipper clutch. There’s also the addition of a ride-by-wire throttle, selectable riding modes, and switchable traction control for even greater riding efficiency across the board.

As for its looks, the 2021 Triumph Trident 660 is definitely a bike that would be turning heads. A minimalist roadster paired with Triumph’s iconic triple muscles is contemporary yet timeless at the same time.

This whole look is tied together with its five-spoke wheels (17-inch aluminium), elegant swingarm, and many more.

Other highlighted specs include:

  • 14-litre fuel tank
  • Front Showa 41mm upside down separate function forks (SFF)
  • Rear Showa monoshock RSU, with preload adjustment
  • Front 310mm twin discs + Nissin two-piston sliding calipers with ABS
  • Rear 255mm single disc + Nissin single-piston sliding caliper with ABS
  • Multi-function instruments with colour TFT screen
  • My Triumph Connectivity System (turn-by-turn navigation, GoPro, phone & music control via Bluetooth)
  • Handlebar mounted switch cubes
  • 189kg (kerb weight) + more

There are over 45 dedicated Triumph optional parts and accessories to further elevate its riding experience, which also includes a bi-directional quickshifter. Service interval? Every 16,000km. Very impressive, indeed.

The Bimota Tesi 3D made its appearance in 2007 and quickly garnered attention due to its unusual design scheme.

When the Tesi 3D production came to a close, Bimota celebrated the event by producing a Naked Edizione Finale version limited to 45 units.

However, three limited-edition units are now up for sale in England with the price of GBP31,995 (RM179,000).

Not only that, but the used motorcycle dealership also offering a two-year, unlimited mile warranty with every purchase of the Tesi 3D includes a certificate of authenticity.

The mighty Ducati 1098 engine powers the Tesi engine with the unit, clamped between two machines aluminium plates, with all other components mated to these plates, including front and rear swingarms.

The front swingarm is mated to the plate on both sides, and an Ohlins shock attached to the right in a cantilevered position.

The handlebar’s shaft is connected to horizontal shafts on each side that steers the front wheel, for a hub centre steering setup.

The Limited Edition Tesi 3D will surely be a great addition to every collectors and motorcycle enthusiast.

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