2000 Yamaha Road Star on 2040-motos

Moto blog

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).

Yamaha to Cut Motorcycle Production in 2009

With mounting inventories coupled with a drop in demand, Yamaha will be cutting its motorcycle production in Japan by 24 percent this year or to about 260,000 total units; one newspaper reported this would be a 40-year low for the manufacture. Yamaha plans to cut production for motorcycles and other products by 30 percent in the Americas, 20 percent in Europe but will maintain production levels in Asia where demand has not dropped off. The company is forecasting its group sales to fall 22 percent with an operating loss of about $300 million.

Charges Laid Against Suspect for 185 mph Yamaha R1 YouTube Video

Remember that video on YouTube about the rider going 185 mph on a highway in Canada? The video went viral and eventually led to the seizure of a Yamaha R1 and $1,449 (Canadian) in traffic tickets issued to its owner. In April, police in Saanich, British Columbia believed they had enough evidence to seize the R1 and issued tickets to the registered owner for speeding, operating without due care and attention, and operating without insurance.