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2010 Honda V4 Teaser [video]

Based on the concept model unveiled last October at Intermot 2008, the new motorcycle is expected to be a sport-tourer powered by a 1200cc V-4 engine with variable cylinder technology which can allow it to run on only two cylinders to conserve fuel.  There are also rumors that the motorcycle will have a semi-auto gear box which will give the rider the option of going manual or automatic. Honda has a dedicated website for the V4 where you can enter for a chance to win a spot to be one of the first to test drive the new bike, unfortunately, the contest is only open to Europeans. Hit the jump to see the new promo video (you can hear what the motorcycle sounds like!) and an interview with design project leader, Teofilo Plaza.

Bahrain track days

A few months ago, expat (and ex racer) John Beddall made contact to ask if I fancied doing some track day instruction out in Bahrain.  After thinking about it for two seconds, flights were booked and a plan was put in place to look after around forty riders for a day at the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC).  Young Taylor Mac was also recruited to look after any tasty riders that I couldn’t deal with   The Brits out there love their bikes, however, quite a few locals also turned up plus a few others from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.  Most were on high end Superbikes, like S1000s, Panigales and RSV4s but there was also a healthy number R6s and new 675Rs.   Although this fabulous Hermann Tilke designed circuit is around ten years old incredibly it has never hosted a bike race.  The highlight of the year there is F1 but being owned by the Bahrainian Royal family, there is no desperate need for the circuit to operate as a profitable business.  The track reminded me of Qatar but much more interesting as some great undulations have been built into its desert location. We shared the track with Supercars on the day (20mins on/20mins off) and as you might imagine it was betty swollocks for seven hours in the 30 plus temperatures.  As usual there was a few offs with poor old RS1000 Aprilia mounted Andy breaking his femur early in the day.  Two other buddies appeared to swap bikes mid air in another incident but fortunately escaped unhurt.In the evening everyone stayed for an al fresco dinner in the paddock with the craic going on for hours as the Fosters kept flowing.   All in all it was a brilliant trip and it has left me thinking there could be cost effective ways of getting Brits out there for track days next winter.  I'll keep you posted.Cape Town next to make my racing comeback at the Killarney 8 hour on a CBR150 Honda.  Hopefully I can manage the beast, I'll post a full report next week.

Honda Prototypes and Pre-Production Models for 2013 Osaka and Tokyo Motorcycle Shows

Honda will display a number of new motorcycles at the upcoming Osaka Motorcycle Show and Tokyo Motorcycle Show in addition to a new 400cc version of its 500-series models. Honda describes the new motorcycles as exhibition models or models planned for production. The new models include the previously announced-for-North America CTX700 and CTX700N, and the Thailand-bound CRF250M motard (pictured above).