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A total of 4,169 summons related to rempits (road hooligans) were issued by the authorities throughout Penang as of April this year.

State Youth, Sports and Health EXCO, Daniel Gooi Zi Sen said, 150 operations were carried out during that period involving 14 identified ‘hot’ locations.

“Among them are the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway, the Bayan Baru roundabout, Jalan Tun Dr Awang, Padang Kota Lama, the Butterworth Outer Ring, the North-South Expressway Project (PLUS) Sama Gagah Expressway and the Penang Second Bridge.

“Other locations are Jalan Bukit Gambir, Jalan Mayang Pasir, Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah, Butterworth-Kulim Expressway (BKE) and Taman Ilmu located in Seberang Perai Selatan.

“In this regard, the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) has carried out an integrated operation together with the Road Transport Department (JPJ), the Department of Environment (JAS) and the Local Authorities,” he said.

In the same development, he insisted that all parties take it seriously and are committed to working hand in hand in curbing and eradicating the problems involving mat rempit or street thugs.

“This includes inspection of shop premises that modify motorcycles and other enforcement in accordance with the provisions of the law in addition to conducting integrated operations every weekend, traffic patrols and roadblocks,” he explained.

There are three new colours for the 2024 Yamaha EGO Avantiz.

The Yamaha EGO Avantiz automatic scooter soldiers on since its launch way back in 2016. There were several revisions, but all constrained to cosmetic updates.

Its engine is still the 125cc, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled, SOHC unit which produces 7.0 kW (9.4 hp) at 8,000 RPM and 9.6 Nm of torque at 5,500 RPM.

As aforementioned, the chassis, suspension, bodywork, brakes remain untouched.

The three new colours are called Sky Blue, Dark Blue, and Purple.

The 2024 Yamaha EGO Avantiz is already available at authorised Yamaha dealers from 28 May 2024. The recommended selling price is from RM 5,998, excluding registration fees and insurance cover.

2024 Yamaha EGO Avantiz Photo Gallery

The Zontes 703RR sportbike is going into production. Finally.

It has been five years since we visited the Zontes factory in Guangzhou, China, where we spotted their engineers designing a three-cylinder engine. But the boss told us to keep it a secret so we did not publish about it until it became official a year afterwards.

There was plenty of news about the engine since then, but nothing tangible came out until EICMA 2023, when the Zontes 703RR and Zontes 703F concepts were unveiled.

Why did it take so long? Well, it is because the philosophy held by Zontes’ President to build almost everything in-house rather than outsource components elsewhere. Building in-house means they can control the quality of their components and finished products, as well as cutting the red tape to get problems solved.

Back to the Zontes 703RR, the bike’s type approval document have been sighted along with its performance figures.

Its three-cylinder engine is homologated to 101 hp. The bore and stroke dimensions are 70mm x 60.6mm, giving it a 699cc displacement (“70” means 700cc, “3” mean three cylinders). The crankshaft is space at 120-degree intervals, like all other three-cylinder engines, except the T-Plane crank in the Triumph Tiger 900.

A top speed of 230 km/h was cited in the said documents, putting the bike in the same region of the Honda CBR650R, Aprilia RS 660, Triumph Daytona 660, while beating the Yamaha YZF-R7. However, the CFMoto 675SR may be higher.

It is a great move for Zontes when the 703RR is launched because it has allowed them to break out of their single-cylinder rut. Still, they had better launch this quickly as many more manufacturers, including Chinese rivals that have or will launch their own sportbikes.

The CFMoto 500SR’s 500cc four-cylinder engine has been revealed.

Hot on their surprise unveiling of two SR sportbikes last September – a 675cc and a 500cc – CFMoto has filed the patent for the latter’s engine. The 675cc sportbike, on the other hand, uses a three-cylinder engine.

The patent’s drawings show several elements of the powerplant, including the cooling system which is designed to get the engine up to working temperature quickly to lower emissions. It is because the catalytic converter is only truly functions when its elements reach 400-deg Celsius.

The drawings also shows an engine that is fully CFMoto’s own design, and now “inspired” by other 500cc engines. There is no 500cc inline-four in the market these days, anyway.

As such, the company does it the conventional way, such as chain-driven DOHC, with the cam chain located at one end of the crank. The cam lobs act directly on buckets, rather than the current trend of finger followers. Also, there are four individual ignition coils for each spark plug.

The crankshaft follows the 180-degree convention, hence not a “crossplane” or “Big Bang” arrangement.

The gearbox is a conventional six speed item, but the drawings did not show a quickshifter. The engine’s oil sump is offset for exhaust down-pipe routing.

This new CFMoto 500cc four-cylinder engine is expected to produce somewhere in the regions of 80 hp, hence placing in between CFMoto’s 100hp 675SR and 50hp 450SR. It will also rival the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-4RR and Kove 450RR.

The 500cc bike, which should be named the CFMoto 500SR, looks to have the ergonomics of a street-biased sportbike like the Ninja ZX-4RR, such as higher placed handlebars compared to track-going sportbikes. The prototype showed some aerodynamic elements such as the covers underneath the front brake calipers to channel airflow around the bottom fairing.

The CFMoto 500SR is expected to be launched later this year.

The Ducati CR241 and Ducati RR241 concepts were shown off at the Bike Moto Show Shed, in London.

Both concepts are based on the Ducati Scrambler (or Scrambler Ducati), certainly to showcase Centro Stile Ducati’s capabilities. Thus both utilise the Scrambler’s 803cc air-cooled 90-degree V-Twin.

Ducati CR241 concept

The Ducati CR241 presents an evolved version of the cafe racer, despite maintaining the design cues of 1960s racers such the fairing which mounts to the fuel tank like the Pantah and 750SS. It is then given a modern twist like the colour scheme, flow of the lines. Ducati says it is meant “to stir the emotions of the most nostalgic and passionate fans of ‘60s British rockers iconography.”

Other key key elements include the 17-inch front rim with road tires and clip-on handlebars with bar-end mirrors. The saddle can be converted into a single-seat unit, thus recalling the classic “panettone” saddles of 1970s sportbikes.

Ducati RR241 concept

Over to the Ducati RR241 model, meanwhile, gets a post-apocalyptic treatment with its minimalist aesthetics: two wheels, a tank, an engine, and handlebars.

All the aluminum parts are left exposed, while the tank is stripped of its covers and replaced by a frame to which riders can attach a tank bag for the essentials. The pillion part of the saddle is also removable to create a luggage rack, and a high-mounted Termignoni exhaust completes the look.

The knobby Pirelli Scorpion Rally tires on 18- and 17-inch rims and a high front fender says it is ready for the apocalypse. All it needs now is gun holder and instructions on how to refine petroleum into gasoline.

Are they going into production?

Both concepts were displayed at the London Bike Shed Moto Show, from 24 to 26 May. Unfortunately, Ducati did not say if they are doing into production. We will have to wait until Intermot or Ducati Days at year end when they traditionally launch new models.

The new 2024 Benelli TRK552 adventure bike has been unveiled.

The TRK552 is the successor to the rather popular Benelli TRK502 which made its debut in 2017. The model had gone through several updates, although nothing substantial. However, the 400cc to 500cc adventure class has hotted up since, with several new players entering the arena including the KTM 390 Adventure, CFMoto 450 MT-X/Ibex, Royal Enfield Himalayan, Fantic Caballero 500, et al. So, it is high time that Benelli kick the middleweight TRK up a notch.

Highlights:
  • The old TRK502’s engine was pretty anaemic amongst its competition. So, the new 549cc parallel-twin engine bumps it up to 61 hp at 8,500 RPM and 54 Nm at 6,000 RPM.
  • Even better, the new engine uses a 270-degree crank to mimic the firing order of a 90-degree V-twin, ditching the old 360-degree crank which had both pistons rising and falling together.

  • The old bike was also very heavy for its category, so Benelli has brought the TRK552’s wet weight down to 226 kg (5 kg less). Dry weight should be around 215 kg.
  • LED lighting all around, replacing the archaic halogen and incandescent bulbs.

  • Adjustable Marzocchi suspension, front and rear, and a new aluminium swingarm.
  • J. Juan brakes with dual-channel ABS. J. Juan is now owned by Brembo.

  • New TFT screen with smartphone pairing (dumping the old poorly lit LCD).
  • There are no rides modes, however.

The 2024 Benelli TRK552 is currently on sale in China, so you can bet that the local distributor, MForce Holdings will bring it here soon. Watch this space.

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