Honda CB Motorcycles in Galloway, page #55

Moto blog

Metzeler Z8 wins Motorrad award

METZELER'S Z8 Interact sports-touring tyre has been classed as the best wet weather sports-touring tyre by the German Motorrad TestCenter. Metzeler decided to develop new compounds for the Roadtec Z8 Interact precisely to meet these needs, tyres with the specific goal of providing riders not only the most recent technological solutions available in the area of wet performance, but also the possibility of having a tyre with a wide range of use that represents the new standard in terms of performance in any weather conditions, from wet and cold to hot and dry. The criteria considered in the wet test by Motorrad TestCenter have been: steering precision and characteristics, line holding during acceleration, ease of handling, grip at lean angle for front and rear tyres, grip during acceleration, limit range characteristics, feedback at lean angle, braking stability during full braking with ABS.

Mick Doohan NSR500 art sculpture

How do you best immortalise the great Mick Doohan and the big bang Honda NSR500 with which he dominated Grand Prix racing in the 90s? An Australian artist has answered this by creating an art installation that sees a hand-created replica of the bike exploded and suspended from the ceiling. The Doohan piece is appropriately titled 'The Big Bang' and as artist Eamon O'Tootle describes, "It is a complex sculpture comprising thousands of parts joining to make up a whole and symbolic tribute to the true inherent nature of art and sport – the creativity of design, where the mechanical is modified to suit the needs of man." Eamon added: "The way the Doohan piece came about was that one of the bikes Mick rode had an engine configuration called the Big Bang.

Frog eBike – the Electric Successor to 1985 Frog FZ750 Concept

San Francisco-based Frog Design released images of a new electric motorcycle concept, just as its influential Yamaha FZ750-based Rana concept gets enshrined at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Frog designer Jin Soek Hwang prepared the Frog eBike concept as an expression of how electric motor technology can influence motorcycle design. In a post on Frog’s blog, the designer says he was inspired in part by Frog’s 1985 FZ750 Rana concept (pictured after the jump).

Honda Metropolitan Returns for 2013

Honda is bringing back its 50cc Metropolitan scooter for 2013 after a four-year absence from the U.S. market. Previously offered in the U.S.

2013 Honda PCX150 Announced – Scooter Now Freeway-Legal

Honda has updated its PCX scooter for 2013 with a larger 150cc engine. The 2013 Honda PCX150 replaces the previous version’s 125cc engine with a 153cc powerplant. Honda hasn’t stated how much of a performance boost the larger engine has over the previous one, though the new displacement means the PCX is now freeway-legal in many states.

Teaser: 2012 Japanese Literbike Shootout – Video

The last time we assembled the superbike offerings from the Big Four Japanese manufacturers to determine the alpha male model was 2009. The CBR won that confrontation, but a lot’s changed since then. For 2012 Honda revamped the CBR1000RR, Yamaha added traction control to the R1, the GSX-R1000 lost a muffler and last year Kawasaki introduced an all-new ZX-10R.

Honda Zoomer X Prototype – New Ruckus Concept Revealed in Thailand

Honda Thailand unveiled a new prototype at the 2012 Bangkok International Motor Show showcasing the next generation of the Ruckus scooter. Known as the Zoomer in other markets, the Honda Ruckus is probably best known for its non-traditional scooter styling, with the usual tiny tires and wasp-like body replaced by a fat rubbers and exposed tube frame. The Honda Zoomer X maintains the original’s rugged-looking tires but instead of the exposed tubes, the Zoomer X has a boxy-looking structure, though like the original the space under the seat is exposed to the elements, so if you want to store something there you might have to break out the bungee cords.

AMA Supercross: 2012 Toronto Results

Ryan Villopoto moved one step closer to repeating as AMA Supercross Champion with his seventh win of the season at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada. With his chief rivals not making the trip north of the border due to various injuries, Villopoto can clinch the 2012 championship as soon as next weekend’s race at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas, if they continue to be out of action. The Monster Energy Kawasaki rider has 271 points with five rounds remaining.

Ashley Fiolek Featured in Vogue Magazine

We can’t say for sure but this likely a first: a motocross racer featured in Vogue magazine. Fact-checking aside, we’re proud to report three-time Women’s Motocross Champion Ashley Fiolek will be the subject of a four-page feature in the upcoming April issue of the noted fashion magazine. The feature looks at how Fiolek finds success on the track while facing the challenge of being deaf in a sport where hearing is important.

McGuinness Tests Mugen Shinden Electric Race Bike

Isle of Man TT veteran John McGuinness recently got a chance to test the new Mugen Shinden electric rice bike to prepare for the 2012 TT Zero. The test took place at the Twin Ring Motegi in Japan, a world-class racing circuit but perhaps not-coincidentally, a track built and owned by Honda, further fueling the belief the Mugen effort is a front for the Japanese manufacturer. The Honda-contracted McGuinness put the Shinden through its first big test, helping the Mugen team gather data on the electric racer.