2012 Aprilia Shiver on 2040-motos

Moto blog

Church of MO: 2010 Literbike Shootout

An Italian and a German walk into a bar… wait, Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. Ten years ago, two serious new players from Europe appeared on our shores, intent on upsetting the 1000 cc Japanese applecart. “Inhaling slower bikes like the way an ’84 Seville’s radiator grill consumes flies,” these intoxicatingly fabulous sportbikes – especially the winner of this epic contest – reset the course to where we find ourselves today, which is to say, without a Literbike Shootout.

BSB 2012; Mystic Mac investigates

In my opinion, the smartest move in the BSB off season has to be Michael Laverty moving from Swan Yamaha to HM Plant Honda. With a ban on electronics for 2012, and in particular traction control, WFR's Graham Gowland has already proved to Laverty how competitive an EVO spec Fireblade can be - so I’m tipping both these riders to be bang on the money at the Brands Hatch season opener in April. Unlike BMW, Kawasaki and Yamaha, Honda have deliberately developed their road-going Superbike without electronics to give a user friendly feel with good mechanical traction, so it’ll be interesting to see how the opposition copes with their high-tech trickery stripped off.

Aprilia SR Max Touring Scooter Unveiled

Aprilia has unveiled a new touring scooter, the Aprilia SR Max, available in 125cc and 300cc configurations. Okay, perhaps “new” isn’t the right word for it, as the SR Max is a rebadged version of the Nexus from Aprilia’s Piaggo Group stablemate, Gilera. It’s also not clear if Aprilia will import the SR Max to North America, but the scooter is more likely to pop up here, where Aprilia already offers the SR 50 scooter, with its new name, than it would as a Gilera.