Motorcycle Blog on 2040Motos

BMW Reports Q2 2014 Financial Results

BMW reported an 11.2% growth in motorcycle sales revenue for the second quarter ended June 30, 2014, thanks to a new best-ever quarterly record of 42,259 motorcycles sold. The record sales quarter also led to a record of 70,978 motorcycles sold in the first half of 2014, the most motorcycles BMW has sold in a six-month period in the company’s 90-year history in the business. The second quarter sales result represents a 5.1% increase on the 40,209 motorcycles sold in the same quarter last year.

Cal Crutchlow Leaves Ducati for LCR Honda

Cal Crutchlow has signed on to race for the LCR Honda team for the 2015 MotoGP season. To make the jump, Crutchlow secured an early termination to his contract with Ducati. The switch comes as a bit of a surprise after Crutchlow had confirmed he would honor the final year of his contract at World Ducati Week.

Join MotoGP Stars In Saying Farewell To Colin Edwards In His Final USGP Appearance

This weekend’s Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix will be Colin Edwards’ final MotoGP race on American soil, and to commemorate the occasion, Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A., invites you to join a special “Farewell To The Texas Tornado” live event Saturday evening on the center stage at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The celebration begins at approximately 5:30 PM EST Saturday. “This is going to be a special evening that’s sure to bring lots of laughs, along with possibly a few tears of emotion, as we look back at the racing career of one of Yamaha’s most popular and colorful legends,” commented Bob Starr, General Manager of National Communications for Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A.

Indian Announces Removal of Brake Throttle Override

Today, Indian Motorcycle Product Director, Gary Gray, told us that, because of feedback from journalists and the riding public, effective immediately, the Brake Throttle Override (BTO) system developed to prevent unintended acceleration in its ride-by-wire throttle system will not be installed on any of the 2015 Indian models. Additionally, owners of a current Indian who wish to have the BTO disabled on their motorcycle can simply take it to an Indian dealer to have its ECU flashed with the new software. Although the BTO has been present on all Indian models since their release last year, we first noticed its effects on a group ride at the Roadmaster’s introduction.

Hollywood Electrics Adds Brammo To Its Product Lineup

If you’ve been following our electric motorcycle exploits on Motorcycle.com, you should be familiar with the name Harlan Flagg. Proprietor of Hollywood Electrics, Flagg has been involved in many of the exploits we’ve taken part in with various Zeros. From racing at Pikes Peak, competing in a 24-hour race, playing in the dirt, or giving supermoto a go.Through it all, he’s managed to run the nation’s largest Zero dealer.

Metzeler Launches “Risk Free” Guarantee For U.S. Motorcyclists

In a bold move, today Metzeler announced the launch of the ‘Metzeler Risk Free Guarantee’, a 30 day trial program that allows riders to return a set of Metzeler tires within 30 days of purchase if they are not satisfied with their experience. This major initiative marks another first for Metzeler for the US motorcycle industry, marking their commitment to riders within the North American region. What would tempt a tire company to offer such a thing? “The Metzeler Risk Free Guarantee shows how confident we are in our tires,” says Marco Zambianchi, Metzeler General Manager NAFTA.

Piaggio Group Americas Names Mario DiMaria New CEO

Piaggio Group Americas has named Mario DiMaria its new CEO. He will be replacing Roberto Colaninno in the position, a Piaggio representative revealed to Motorcycle.com today. DiMaria has been with the Piaggio Group since 2007, but his experience in the powersport/automotive industry is vast, first serving as Area Manager for Nissan in 1996.

Indian Teases A New Model Announcement

Indian Motorcycles is big on history. So, if recent history is applicable, we expect to see a new Indian model announced tomorrow at the 74th annual Sturgis Rally. The clues are everywhere.

Vespa Launches The 946 Bellissima

At almost $10,500, the Vespa 946 might be a pricey scooter, but boy is it good looking. Well, leave it to Vespa to up the purdy level even more with the 946 Bellissima. Limited to only 100 units, the Vespa 946 Bellissima offers exclusivity and distinction in unique Vespa fashion.

Sign Up Now For An Edelweiss Harley-Davidson Tour

Edelweiss Bike Travel has over 34 years of expertise in worldwide motorcycle touring and has created a range of once-in-a-lifetime touring rides for both new and experienced riders. The new Harley-Davidson Authorized Tours provided by the Edelweiss team include a breathtaking ride through the beauty of the Bavarian Forest and ancient Habsburg Empire, a spectacular journey through the rugged scenery of Scotland and an unforgettable adventure through the stunning landscape of Morocco on the African continent. Harley-Davidson Authorized Tours operates over 200 tours globally each year.

KTM to Enter MotoGP World Championship in 2017

KTMannounced plans to enter the MotoGP World Championship with a brand new V-4 prototype to be called the KTM RC16. KTM would be the latest major manufacturer announcing plans to enter the series, following the current ongoing projects by Aprilia and Suzuki. Chief Executive Officer Stefan Pierer announced the news in an interview with Swiss site Speedweek.com, saying the company plans to reveal the RC16 in fall 2015 and spend 2016 developing it.

GearBrake Introduces Automatic Brake Light Module

We know we’re preaching to the choir, here, but motorcycles suffer from a visibility problem out on the mean streets of the world. With car drivers having an ever-increasing number of distractions fighting for their immediate attention, riders need to find ways to reach through the visual clutter and grab drivers’ attention. Brake light modulators have been around for a while and have provided many variations of pulsing and flashing the brake light and/or turn signals.

Indian Unleashes Sturgis Event Schedule

Indian’s recently introduced Roadmaster may be stealing all of the headlines, but the motorcycle company isn’t stopping there. The Indian event schedule for 74th annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is packed with events designed to capture the attention of Indian owners and possibly create some new Indian owners. As one would expect, Indian will have its entire model line available for the public to lust for and fondle at the Indian Motorcycle Display at 3rd and Lazelle.

Harley-Davidson Hitting Sturgis In Full Force

Harley-Davidson is kicking off the 74th Annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in the Black Hills of South Dakota with a full arsenal of activities and events that will electrify all motorcycle enthusiasts. The highly anticipated rally runs from Saturday, August 2 through Saturday, August 9. With activities, rides and demos scheduled throughout the week, Harley-Davidson created a free mobile app to help attendees navigate all the action.

Dream Ride Experience To Benefit Special Olympics, Aug. 16-24

For the 13th year running, The Dream Ride Experience will pack 1,900 miles of riding into a week-long adventure. All to raise funds and awareness for the special olympics. Started by Mike Bozzuto, CEO of Bozzuto’s Inc., one of New England’s largest food wholesalers; it grew from his dream to raise funds and awareness of intellectually challenged children and adults and to make a substantial contribution to Special Olympics. The ride turned into an international fund raising effort that now spans three countries and 12 states, all for one cause: to celebrate with Special Olympic athletes and to recognize their achievements and efforts to overcome intellectual challenges.

Honda Reports Q1 2014-2015 Sales Results

Honda reported sales of 4.137 million motorcycles over its first quarter ended June 30, 2014. That represents a 2.0% increase over the results of the same quarter the previous year, which doesn’t sound like much. But then you remember that 2.0% still represents an additional 83,000 motorcycles (including ATVs), such is the scale involved in a company like Honda.

Colin Edwards’ Gear Being Auctioned For Feed The Children

While Colin Edwards may no longer be a factory Yamaha racer these days, he still enjoys a close bond with the tuning fork brand. So much so that Yamaha has announced a unique opportunity to bid on a historic set of road racing leathers, boots, gloves, and helmet as worn by Edwards during this, his final season in MotoGP. Proceeds from the auction will benefit the Feed the Children, which is Yamaha Motor Corporation’s official corporate charity.

Patented: The Motorcycle Urinal

We truly live in a marvelous age in motorcycle technology, with wonders such as semi-active suspension, ABS and traction control that works in corners, and 134 hp electric sportbikes. And then there’s the motorcycle urinal. Patented by inventor Anthony J.

2015 Honda COTA 4RT260 Trials Bikes Announced

American Honda surprised almost everybody when it announced it would offer a trials bike earlier this year. The Repsol-colored 2014 Montesa Honda COTA 4RT was only offered in limited numbers for the U.S. market, but if you missed out on that initial batch, there’s good news, as Honda will again offer it in 2015, with some new updates.

Harley-Davidson Confirms Project Livewire Will Appear In Avengers Movie

From the “Unless-You’ve-Been-Living-Under-A-Rock” department comes Harley-Davidson’s announcement today at the San Diego Comic-Con, that H-D’s first electric motorcycle, the Livewire, will indeed be used in Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron movie as the ride of choice for Natasha Romanoff (a.k.a. Black Widow) played by Scarlett Johansson, in an epic scene with Captain America in the film. Of course, if you’ve been following Motorcycle.com for a while you’ll have known this already, as we brought you the scoop about Livewire.

CycleAT Lets You Monitor Your Tires In Realtime + Video

As the only pieces of your motorcycle (or bicycle) actually in contact with the ground, tires play a vital role in your safety while on two wheels. With the proper care and maintenance, tires can last a long time and perform at their best. However, not everyone remembers to take care of their bikes.

Michelin Launches Motorcycle Tire Review Site

Michelin’s Two-Wheel business has launched a new online tool designed to capture consumer feedback about the performance of Michelin motorcycle tires. The site, located at mototirereviews.michelin.com, represents a continued effort to seek consumer feedback in an effort to provide products to meet the needs of today’s motorcycle riders. The site highlights consumer feedback of products with a five star rating system as well as allowing users to provide their riding profile along with their motorcycle’s year, make and model, share their personal experience with Michelin motorcycle tires, and upload two favorite photos.

Energica Partners With Chargepoint

Energica, the Italian manufacturer creating buzz in the electric motorcycle world for its Ego model, has partnered with Chargepoint, to provide riders access to over 18,300 EV charging stations worldwide. If you aren’t familiar with the Energica Ego, E-i-C Kevin Duke rode the prototype in Italy some months back. He also took a spin on a production unit here on home soil just last weekend. Click here to see what he thought about it.

Danny Gray Introduces Independent Suspension Line Of Motorcycle Seats

Danny Gray Enterprises, the Santa Ana, Calif.-based designer and manufacturer of custom motorcycle seats, recently introduced the IST (Independent Suspension Technology) line of motorcycle seats, designed to eliminate the compression and shock the body receives from riding on a traditional solid seat pan while providing the hand-crafted look, quality and performance of an aftermarket seat. Sitting on a traditional motorcycle seat, the shocks and bumps of the road transmit into the rider’s hips and up their spine. This “whole body vibration” often leads to pain and fatigue, ultimately shortening the amount of time a person can ride comfortably.

SMEC To Promote Supermoto Events In North America At All Levels

The East Coast based company – Supermoto East Coast (known as SMEC) – was formed to organize and promote Supermoto events at all levels starting with a local series to a National Pro series. SMEC has dedicated themselves to provide racers with a professional racing environment and the highest level of competition over the last one and a half seasons since SMEC was created. Having extensive knowledge of the European SuperMoto market, Co-founders Marco Pedde and Jay Kliger have made it their mission to build a similar structure and race atmosphere in North America.

Kevin Schwantz To Serve As Embassador For AIMExpo

The American International Motorcycle Expo (AIMExpo) has announces that 1993 500cc GP champ Kevin Schwantz is the 2014 “AIMExpo Champion.” Schwantz will play an integral role in pre-event publicity and promotion, will be a focal point of several of AIMExpo’s festivities, and will share his stories and experience with attendees. “I feel truly honored to be selected as this year’s ‘AIMExpo Champion,’” says Schwantz. “This event has completely changed the landscape of the motorcycle industry and provided a much needed jolt of energy for the business in North America.

Harley-Davidson Launches Denim Line For Men

Harley-Davidson has just released new denim styles to supplement the existing line of jeans offered as part of its Harley-Davidson MotorClothes collection. The two new styles offer a variety of washes, waist size and inseam. Highlights include a slimmer fit, darker washes and features developed specifically for riding.

Arrow Exhausts Introduces 2014 Yamaha FZ-07 Fitments

New fitments from Arrow exhaust are now available from SpeedMob, Inc. for the 2014 Yamaha FZ-07. The new exhaust applications include Arrow Street Thunder and X-Kone silencers, both of which are designed to work in conjunction with a full stainless steel racing collector (headers), much the same as Arrow’s 2014 FZ-09 fitments.

Built For Speed Art Exhibit To Be Displayed At Sturgis Buffalo Chip

“Built for Speed – Race Inspired Motorcycles and Art” is the title of Michael Lichter’s 14th annual “Motorcycles as Art” exhibition in Sturgis this August, which for the second year in a row, will be jointly curated by Michael and Paul d’Orleans of the Vintagent. ‘Built for Speed’ is sure to impress visitors with a beautiful and thought-provoking display of motorcycles and related art, the race-inspired theme making connections between motorcycle racing and custom bike designs inspired by racers. Each custom bike in ‘Built for Speed’ reflects a branch of racing; Speedway, Flat Track, Drag Racing, Board Track,  Grand Prix, Land Speed Record, and will be displayed beside the racing machines suggesting the origins of each style.

Kevin Schwantz To Race Goodwood Aboard Norton Featherbed

If you didn’t already notice, Kevin Schwantz has a full plate this year. At 50 years young, the 1993 500cc World Champion will be competing at the prestigious Suzuka 8-Hours in a few weeks, and he’s followed that up with the announcement he will be making his Goodwood Revival debut during the September 12-14 event on an iconic Manx Norton ‘Featherbed’. Schwantz, last raced on UK soil during the 1994 British 500cc Grand Prix at Donington Park, but will tackle the daunting Goodwood Motor Circuit this year in the Barry Sheene Memorial Trophy, which will be run for bikes of 1951-54 period.