Motorcycle clothing giant, Alpinestars has rolled out the next generation airbag system ever at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
The new product consists of new Tech-Air 10, Tech-Air 3 and Tech-Air Off-Road V2 autonomous Airbag Systems.
According to Alpinestars, the new Tech-Air 10 provides unrivalled body protection for road riders and track day junkies.
*Alpinestars Tech-Air 10
The self-contained and fully autonomous suit protects the riders shoulders, chest, full back and hips.
Meanwhile, the Tech-Air 3 is an over-the-jacket airbag system built specifically for daily riders that is also suitable for use in every weather condition.
*Alpinestars Tech-Air 3
The Alpinestar Tech-Air 3 can be easily folded and stored in a rucksack or under-seat compartment when not in use.
Alpinestars also presented the Tech-Air Off-Road V2, proven body protection for the rugged terrain and off-road enthusiast.
*Alpinestars Tech-Air Off-Road V2,
The company claimed that the airbag has been developed at the highest level, featuring at the last three Dakar Rally.
If there is one thing that Chinese bike makers have a reputation is, it is for being copy cats of great designs.
And that has been proven true once again by a Chinese motorcycle company called Colove, and its latest model called the Excelle 525X .
Truly, this is the Excelle and not a BMW F850GS, we kid you not! This is real. Check out the Youtube video below from a Youtuber called AutoWin.
The headlight (shown further below) may not be like a BMW, but it does look like it was inspired by Honda’s CBX models.
The design of the tank, the beak and the golden tubeless wire-some rims are curiously similar to the BMW.
But unlike the BMW on which it has obviously stolen its design from, the Excelle 525X supposedly costs a third of the asking price of the BMW.
The Excelle 525X relies on a 493.9cc engine that puts out 53.8PS at 9000rpm and 48Nm at 6500rpm. The engine is mated to a 6-speed gearbox that features a slipper clutch. A quick search on the internet reveals very little about where this engine originates from, or anything about the Excelle at all. A quick visit to the website of the Chinese bike maker shows that the website has been down for a while.
But if there is one thing that is impressive about the curious Chinese brand that has very little digital presence is that it comes with an impressive underpinnings.
It offers an adjustable KYB upside down fork with 195mm travel while the rear monoshock offers 200mm travel.
When compared to the bike it has based its design on, the BMW F850GS, the German bike costs more and even has inferior suspension made up of a non-adjustable fork, but with a fully adjustable mono shock.
As for the brakes, the Excelle uses Kailing callipers that grip on dual petal discs at the front and a single disc at the rear. There is no further information available about braking duties.
In terms of electronics, the Chinese manufacturer has loaded the 525X with an adaptive LED headlight, dual on-board chargers and a smartphone compatible instrument console.
Price starts from RM25,880 for the base model while the top end model that apparently features a single-sided swing arm costs about RM28,000 before Malaysian taxes.
There is no further information available regarding the Colove Excelle 525X, neither are there more photos.
Imagine having a scooter which you will never have to refuel again. All it asks is that you recharge it whenever needed, and will get you where ever you want in an urban setting.
We are talking about the new Kymco Like 125 EV.
With a near retro design, the Like 125 EV is capable of giving you a range of 199km on a single charge. It is powered by a 3,200 watt motor that gives the rider around 4.3 horsepower.
It has 27-litres of underseat storage, which is enough to store three batteries, which when combined, gives the 125 EV its spectacular range.
The batteries are from Kymco’s own Ionex battery technology, which the company claims needs just one hour to charge.
And if you wondering about battery fade, Kymco says each battery will be able to be charged roughly 1000 times over its lifetime.
What is the Ionex Battery?
Kymco introduced the Ionex as a response to Gogoro’s electric scooters complete domination of the Taiwanese market.
According to The Taipei Times in March of 2021, Gogoro sold 345,190 electric scooters as compared to Kymco’s 19,215.
This prompted Kymco’s president to announce that the Ionex will be a spin off brand to Kymco, much like Ducati’s Scrambler.
In Taiwan, the brand is known simply as Ionex, but around the world, it is known as Kymco Ionex.
One of the key factors to the success of both Gogoro and Ionex is the use of swappable battery stations. This is perfect to counter range anxiety, and is ideal for delivery riders who can simply walk in, swap batteries and get on their way again.
And so Ionex too has been rolling out swappable battery stations of its own, and plans to have 4,000 stations around Taiwan by the end of 2022.
To ensure it meets its target, Ionex has partnerships with four major local companies: President Chain Store, Chunghwa Telecom, Fubon Insurance, and Carrefour Taiwan.
All four existing companies have multiple locations around Taiwan, and provide the ideal location for Ionex swap stations to be built.
Back to the Kymco Like 125 EV
And it is this model that will ensure the success of the Kymco Like 125 EV, in Taiwan at least. But around the world, its good looks and feature packed body will increase its appeal.
The Like 125 EV weighs in at just 94 kilograms, and is able to connect to smartphones via an application to access information such as speed and battery levels. The display is of course fully digital.
As for its price, the Kymco Like 125 EV costs about 1,200 Euros, which is less than RM6,000, making it the perfect solution to urban mobility.
It is unlike that this model will be introduced in Malaysia since the charging infrastructure is still in its infancy, but for our readers based elsewhere – this is quite a good solution to electric urban mobility.
The all-new Honda ADV 350 is based on the Honda Forza 350 with the same eSP + engine, but with a twist.
Handling is managed by a 37mm Showa upside-down front fork with twin Showa rear shocks, while the ADV 350 also gets better ground clearance than the Forza 350.
There are also other amenities that add comfort and safety such as hand guards, a height-adjustable windshield, LED lights, a full LCD display screen.
There’s not all, there’s also a USB Type C charging connector, HSTC system and a RoadSync smartphone connectivity that displays all key information from your smart phone onto the LCD screen.
As for power, the ADV 350 is powered by Honda’s single-cylinder 330cc liquid cooled engine with fuel-injection. It also comes with Honda’s Smart Power + with Honda’s Selectable Torque Control (HSTC) and outputs 28.9 horsepower.
In typical Honda fashion, RideApart reports that the ADV 350 comes with three colours for starts – Spangle Silver Metallic, Mat Carbonic Gray Metallic, and Mat Carnelian Red Metallic finishes.
There is no news on whether it will make it to Malaysia as yet, but it could just be the case since this is the perfect opportunity for Boon Siew Honda to plug the gap in between the smallish ADV 150 and the pricey ADV 750.
Boutique performance motorcycle brand Brough Superior has introduced this uber cool bike called the Lawrence Nefud.
Costing over RM260,000 before taxes, the neo-classic is based on the Lawrence roadster shown above, which the Anglo/French company introduced back in 2021 as a nod to the company’s most famous customer – Captain T.E Lawrence or more famously known as Lawrence of Arabia.
The Lawrence Nefud is a limited-edition modern evolution of the iconic SS100 V-Twin introduced in 2014, which itself is based on the first SS100 first introduced back in 1919.
The Nefud is powered by the firm’s signature 997cc 102bhp liquid-cooled V-twin, titanium frame and a novel Hossack/Fior-style front suspension and conventional 19 and 17-inch wheels. It also features a new subframe and a new saddle to make it a two seater. The retro looks are further capped by the upswept exhausts and classic speedometer.
The retro styling of the Nefud is further accentuated by a more upright riding position with higher, trail-styled bars and lower foot pegs.
The semi-knobby tyres are Michelin Anakee’s and the entire design consist of blacked-out chassis components, a bash plate, fly screen, protective headlight grille with a special rust-red paint job inspired by desert sand.
If you are wondering what is up with that geeky name, we have already explained that it is sort of inspired by Lawrence of Arabia.
The Nefud name though is from the An Nefud desert in the Northern Arabian peninsular, which according to Brough, was much loved by Lawrence and is near the site of the Battle of Aqaba, one of Lawrence’s greatest victory during the Arabian revolt of 1917.
The 200kg Scrambler is unlikely to be seen anywhere in Malaysia or on any dirt roads, at its price it will most likely end up being a collectors item.
This is probably the most epic buy for collectors of rare bikes.
A 2016 Honda RC213V-S still in its original shipping crate is now the most expensive Japanese bike ever sold.
The street legal MotoGP replica has never been out of the crate and has just under 2 km on the odo meter. It has no signs of wear and tear or shipping damage anywhere.
Over 63 eager bidders lined up for the bike which could have resulted in the price being hiked up.
The RC213V-S is similar to the Honda RCV1000R that was raced in 2014 by the likes of Scott Redding.
The bike is powered by a 999cc liquid cooled V4 engine with an output of 215bhp.
There’s also a HRC Race Kit that turns it into a proper race machine with a supposed dry weight of just 170kg. The kit will add a further RM86,000 to the already stratospheric price of this Honda.
