motorcycles styles: September 2009

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

NEW Honda Skydeck MPV with scissor doors

NEW Honda Skydeck MPV concept can seat 6 people in a three-row passenger configuration (2+2+2). Honda’s last 6-seater was the Honda Edix which has now been phased out, but that MPV had its 6 seats in a two row configuration, similiar to what Fiat did for their Multipla.

The styling cues are quite obviously inspired by the CR-Z, which leads me to believe this kind of look might become quite commonplace on future Hondas. The front doors
have a scissor hinge like a Lamborghini while the rear door is of the rearward-sliding variety. The powertrain is of course a hybrid but no further details have been revealed.

More will probably be disclosed at the Tokyo show next month, so stay tuned, but for now you can look after the jump for hi-res images.

Read more: http://paultan.org/#ixzz0Sf9D0Wax

Honda EV-N Concept: the retro-styled electric car

The Honda EV-N Concept is surprisingly retro-styled in a sea of very futuristic Honda concepts being released in the past 2 to 3 years. Like you can probably expect from its name, the EV-N Concept is an electric car, though for the moment Honda has not released any details on its motor and battery specifications. It’s probably got a pretty short range though, designed to be used for short commutes in cities like Tokyo.
The Honda EV-N Concept Photo
:

Subaru Impreza hatchback and sedan

Subaru Impreza hatchback and sedan -The latest model Subaru Impreza has been in our market for quite sometime now, but I don’t know about you but I have yet to see one on our road.
Perhaps I’ve just been in the wrong places at the wrong times. The previous generations on the other hand can be seen nearly once a day and it’s a joy to hear it burbling past, thanks to its turbocharged boxer engine.

Honda iCon thai style moding

2009 Frost Your Nuts Run. All you need to know right here. All Info. was verified W/ Mallalieu Bar in North Hudson, Wisconsin

Your

Question:

Does this involve running?

Answer:

I sure as Hell hope not, Cause I plan on riding me motorsickle.

It's a motorcycle ride Dummy!

Question:

When is the 2009 Minnesota - Wisconsin Frost your nuts run?

Answer:

Saturday, October 10th, 2009

Question:

Where is the Minnesota - Wisconsin 2009 Frost Your Nuts Run Starting Point?

Answer:

The run gathers in the morning. People start showing up to hang around pretty early; roughly 10:00 A.M. or earlier. The run leaves the Mallalieu Bar in staggard groups randomly as early as 10:30 A.M. t0 noon.

Question:

Where is the Mallalieu Bar?

Answer:

North Hudson, Wisconsin.

Google Map to the Mallalieu Bar, in North Hudson, Wisconsin

For those using GPS, wanting the actual Street Address of the Mallalieu Bar, it is:

414 Wisconsin St. N.

N. Hudson, Wisconsin

54016

Should you need to contact the bar, the Ph# is (715) 386-8165.

Motorcycling: Why I have a Kawasaki not a Harley

I really don't get asked this question very often by people who know me. But "Why don't I ride a Harley Davidson."? Instead I am currently riding a Kawasaki 900 Vulcan LT, which I bought at a store. I also own and sometimes ride two 1970 Honda CD175's, and sometimes I can be seen riding Mary Ann's Burgman 400 step-through. And, to be fair I have ridden Harleys, a couple that belonged to friends and one I rented in Florida. I don't have anything against riding a Harley, I just happen to ride something else that strikes my fancy more.

But the question is directed at the bike I currently would call my main ride, that Kawasaki Vulcan 900. It looks like a Harley, and sounds like a Harley, the only thing is, it is not a Harley and therefore I lose out on all the credibility that I might acquire by owning a genuine Harley, and for another it is unpatriotic to own a vehicle from a country that bombed us at Pearl Harbour.

First let me address the patriotic issue. Japan didn't bomb "us", Japan bombed the United States naval station at Pearl Harbour. The United States is a separate country that has not yet given me permission to vote, and I am not even allowed to visit because I don't have a passport. A lot of Canadians are confused on this issue, at the big Toronto bike show, Harley Davidsons are registered as "domestic" motorcycles while Kawasaki is "foreign". This is the same problem we have with movies, where we also don't understand the meaning of domestic or foreign. To rent the movie "Jesus of Montreal", you must look in the "foreign movies" section at Rogers TV. In case you were wondering, Montreal is in Canada, and the movie was made in Canada, by all Canadian people. Yes, we Canadians consider ourselves to be foreigners in Canada. But getting back to Harley Davidsons and patriotism, we have been bombed by the USA more than by Japan (who never bombed us), and we still get bomb threats from the USA, compared to none by Japan. So I will let the patriotic issue drop for now, although there is still a lot more to say on this issue.

Why does that Kawasaki have to look like a Harley? The Kawasaki Vulcan does not look like a Harley to someone who knows bikes, it looks more like an Indian. Of course that's splitting hairs. But for sure it doesn't look Japanese. I have seen bikes designed by the Japanese for Japanese people, and they do not look good to me. Honda and Kawasaki figured this out in the sixties, and decided to make their bikes look somewhat like British bikes, to boost sales. That's when British bikes were the most popular in America. Then, as the fickle western tastes changed in the eighties and nineties, the Japanese switched to making their bikes look like American bikes from the thirties.

The Japanese produce bikes that are shape-shifters. Essentially they can design a bike in ten minutes to look and sound like anything you want. Apparently we want bikes that look like Harleys, so that's how they make them. Inside, the Japanese bikes are completely different. The "look" is achieved by sticking plastic covers all over the engine to make the engine look old American style. Internally, under the plastic outer cover, the engine is actually very good: reliable and efficient.

So a recap: I buy Japanese bikes because they are slightly better bikes than Harley at about half the price. I don't worry if people think I am not a patriotic American, because I am not, I am actually Canadian. I am not a person who buys a bike for the brand recognition, as I need a bike to ride, not to attract chicks. I also worry about money, and I would rather rebuild a 35 year old Honda 175 with my own money and tools, than borrow money at no dollars down, zero percent financing to buy a shiny new Harley. I don't want to rebuild a 1970 Harley because it would still not be reliable, and I own metric tools and don't like the fractional measures of the SAE tools.

And that's the short answer to why I don't ride a Harley. The picture is a Photoshop of me getting a push on my Honda, which you can tell by the smile, is easier to push than a Harley.

Ducati Recalls 2008 Desmosedici RR for Tail Guard Fire Hazard

Ducati is recalling certain model year 2008 Desmosedici RR motorcycles.

Due to insufficient distance between the tail guard and the exhaust system, the tail guard could overheat.

386 units are affected.

Check out my Motorcycle Recalls feature for more details.

Ducati Recalls 2008 Desmosedici RR for Tail Guard Fire Hazard

Gambar Modifikasi Yamaha Mio Soul Full Color

Yamaha Mio Soul 2008 Modification minimalist concept with Fire Color, Create By Boim.

Gambar Modifikasi Yamaha Mio Sporty Drag Race

Modification Yamaha Mio Sporty 2008 tuning engine for drag race. Concept by Ib

Modifikasi Honda Supra X 2000 Red Color

Photos Modification Honda Supra X 2000 Concept Minimalist red Colour. Create Modification by Boim.

Gambar Modifikasi Yamaha FIZ - R minimalist Concept

Modification Yamaha FIZ - R minimalist with Custom Color and Double. Concept By Boim ( budi )

SOA review not done yet

In case some of yuo were wondering...I never even got to watch the show last night. Work got the better of me. I was up till around 11:00 P.M. doing paperwork. I recorded it though, and will try to watch it sometime today/tonight, and post something on it for recap-review tomorrow, or possibly later on today/tonight.

Till then,

later

The Danger of Texting and Driving

I saw on the news this morning, a "texting while driving" message. I thought we were still fighting the battle about cell phone use, and now before we can even get a law against that, along comes texting. Just to make my point clear, I consider texting while driving more dangerous than cell phone use, which is in my opinion more dangerous than talking to a passenger.

A safe rule is to minimize time spent looking away from where the car or motorcycle is going. I like to keep it to less than 2 seconds, for example looking over my shoulder when changing lanes, I do not lazily crank my head around, then stare at the front door post for a while before I decide I can't see anything, then gradually turn my head back. I turn my head at about the same speed I might if I was playing a hockey game on a breakaway, and wanted to see if I had a teammate in the clear to pass to.

Some people might think it is silly, overdramatic, or whatever to make fast urgent motions while driving. Well, it's another problem if safety is seen as being overdramatic. I can remember when seat belts were like that. Putting on a seat belt was a sign that you were going to drive recklessly. Not putting on the seatbelt was a sign that you were going to drive cautiously. Maybe this came from the movies - I remember the car chase in "Bullitt" started with putting on the seat belt. Putting on a seatbelt in 1966 was about like putting on a helmet in a car in 2009. Too dramatic. Too scary.

When I grew up in Quebec, we didn't worry as much about being too dramatic. That's because the way we drove was actually kind of dramatic already. Lots of near misses while overtaking on the crest of hills, lots of corners taken on two wheels. And some missed, too. The driving itself was scary. So driving as if you were in a death sport made sense.

Then I started travelling to other places where the cars went slow because of speed traps. The first time I saw reading while driving was in Chicago, on a freeway in 1973. I was horrified. I never saw anything like it again for many years until the late 1980's, when the habit seemed to spread to Toronto. Once I even saw two consecutive cars driving on the 401, both drivers absorbed in a book. It was about the same time I first started seeing people driving while talking on the phone, which was another shocker for me. Today, out of every ten cars, I see two drivers talking on the cell phone. I don't think it's safe, and I explained why in this blog.

I watched a Dr. Phil Youtube video about a teenager texting while driving, some of her comments: "I don't think anything can stop me from texting while driving." I think getting rid of free texting might do that, and another thing might be a fatal accident. Another comment from her "I can get away with it because I'm a good enough texter". So now apparently some people think texting skill is more important than driving ability. And some of the other Youtube comments are interesting as well: "There are hundreds of people getting killed at gun point a day and we are worried and concerned about text messaging."

The last time I was threatened by someone with a gun was about 15 years ago, before gun control legislation. The last time I was almost run over by a texting driver was last spring, walking across a street. I'm glad the driver looked up in time. I had a clear walk signal at the light, the driver was turning left right into me.

Photo is taken off the internet, (funny it was a Minnesota website, but the driver must be in England) yes it's a woman, I do not think this applies only to women, men should not text and drive either.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Kawasaki KSR thai moding style

Making Sense of Kitchener and the Twentieth Century

The smoking remains of the twentieth century are barely cooled , and already I want to make sense of what happened. I live in the City of Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. The name of this city can practically sum up the entire history of conflict during the 20th century.

It used to be named the city of Berlin, due to the large number of German settlers in the area, but bad feelings caused by the Great War in Europe led to a name change to "Kitchener", who was an English military figure. Ironically, Kitchener had something to do with the alignment of Germany vs. England in the war. For that, we can go back to the very first war of the twentieth century, the Boer War.

The Boer War in 1899, was fought between the British Empire and the free Dutch settlers of the Transvaal, in today's South Africa. At the time, Britain was the "sole superpower" as they say today. The British Empire had prevailed during the nineteenth century and was unrivalled at the time, although the rising new country of Germany had been formed out of a group of kingdoms during the 1800's.

Germany's main resentment at the time was having been left out of the scramble for colonies in Africa, due to their late arrival on the scene.

Britain's performance during the Boer War was not unnoticed by the Germans. The German view of the war was that the valiant and honourable Boers had held off a British Empire, with a force one quarter the size, and only conceded defeat in the face of inhuman atrocities by the British. These atrocities included rounding up the Boer women and children in concentration camps, where 20,000 of them died. Also, the burning of all the grazing land to deny food to the Boer horses, as all the Boer fighters were on horseback. Also, the burning of the Boer towns, and a "take no prisoners" policy where all Boer wounded and prisoners were shot (denied by the British). The person implementing these policies was Lord Kitchener, the same one that my own city was named for.

Although Britain had the ability to put a happy spin on the war for their own people back home, the rest of the world took a horrified view of the nature of the conflict. The amorality, and the greed for resources, which at this time seemed to include the rich gold and diamond deposits near Johannesburg. Also, the British Empire had put on a display of weakness as well as cruelty.

World opinion turned against Britain, you might say similarly to the second Bush war in Iraq. (Interesting note: Like Iraq, there were also two Boer wars, the first one being more successful for Britain). Britain decided to shore up their tattered image by forming an alliance with France. The Germans seemed to feel more sympathy for the Boers, given that the Germans themselves had few colonies in Africa, and that the Boers were seen by Germans as being almost like them. The language is quite similar, and the Dutch homeland shares a border with Germany. Also, the Boers were seen by Germans as heroic freedom fighters, while the British saw them as stupid and racist farmers.

Not long after, World War One pitted Germany against Britain and France, with the British portraying the Germans as a violent and warlike race. At the same time, the Germans kind of saw the British as a weakening evil empire that they were helping bring to an end. The British Empire was personified by Lord Kitchener, who was by that time, Britain's Secretary of State for War.

You know most of the rest of the history, Germany losing WW1, then losing the rematch in WW2, but by then the Germans had begun to believe the only way to win was by taking the evil route themselves, including the British idea of concentration camps. Following WW2, the entire African colonial system was broken up.

There are a couple of recurring themes to this history, leading to the current Israeli Palestinian conflict, which most obviously arose out of the holocaust of WW2. In 1899, Jewish diamond and gold agents in Johannesburg were blamed with stirring up the war against the Boers. Both Kitchener and Jan Smuts (a Boer Leader) had involvements in the Holy land. And both South Africa and Israel have been accused of apartheid policies.

The picture is a famous WW1 recruiting poster depicting Lord Kitchener.

Chemical engineering

I have a little secret most of you probably didn’t know about me. I don’t mean to boast, but felt it was time to share with some of you who have been reading my blog quite some time now that I started studying this quite early on in life and have been fortunate enough to have gained a chemical engineering background.

With this being said; One of the things I enjoy most is converting beer, wine, whisky, brandy, and other similar liquids into a chemical compound mixture of H₂O (NH₂), ₂CO (urea), NaCl (sodium chloride), and a number of other dissolved salts and organic compounds, which is my friends, "Urine".

Good day and cheers mates!

“Pee”.S.,

I’d stay and chat, but I gotta go, gotta go, gotta go right now.

Is it Friday yet??

Monday, September 28, 2009

MotoCzysz E1pc motor hybrid

E1pc is MotoCzysz motor racing with the power that will make its first debut on June 12 in the UK and will be followed by another electric motor 3.For electric motors, E1pc can reach speeds up to 192 km in 7-8 seconds using power from batteries 10. What is interesting here, in part dashboardnya iPhone is a phone that is used to control several existing instruments.

Honda Scoopy i Big Wheel

Honda Scoopy i big wheel modding

How to Power your motorcycle GPS, iPod, radio, etc.

If you prefer not to run your GPS, satellite radio, iPod, etc. from batteries, we've got you covered! We now offer what we feel is the best cigarette converter on the market. We also have a mini-USB kit for GPS with Mini USB, as well as Apple iPod- and iPhone-specific power options.

To see all the options, click here and scroll to the bottom of the page.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Suzuki Jelato mini Wheel

Suzuki Jelato mini Wheel by oeigi@the-cycle.com

Moto Guzzi MGS-01 Corsa Picture Gallery

Moto Guzzi MGS-01 Corsa Picture

Moto Guzzi MGS-01 Corsa Motor Sport

Moto Guzzi MGS-01 Corsa Front View

Norton 961 Commando Picture

Norton 961 Commando

Norton 961 Commando Engine

Norton 961 Commando Picture

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Honda Click Green

Ducati Recalls 2010 F1098S Streetfighter Motorcycles for Engine Stalling

Ducati is recalling certain model year 2010 F1098S Streetfighter motorcycles.

The Electronic Control Unit ground screw may have been improperly tightened during production which can cause the engine to stall.

247 units are affected.

Check out my Motorcycle Recalls feature for more details.

Ducati Recalls 2010 F1098S Streetfighter Motorcycles for Engine Stalling

2009 Norton NRV588 Race Wallpapers

2009 Norton NRV588 Race Rear Angle

2009 Norton NRV588 Race Action

2009 Norton NRV588 Race

Friday, September 25, 2009

Buggywhips and the Green Car Challenge

Jay Leno is back on the air, and I'll admit I usually like listening to him. Last night, though, his guest was Rush Limbaugh, one of the most widely listened to radio hosts in the USA, who also (in my opinion) is an ignorant right-wing ass. OK now I got that out of the way, I will make my own comment on the appearance, as I finally decided to watch, in a very close decision.

Jay took issue with Rush's criticism of Obama for bailing out the auto industry. Jay's point was that he wanted cars to be made in the USA. Rush's point was that you had to let the market take its course, and Rush was certain that whatever the market did would be good. I am not sure that sending all the manufacturing jobs to China would be the best outcome, which is exactly what Jay was worried about too. Jay Leno represents the average American with general knowledge who can also use reason. The Rush came back with an analogy of the type that I love because it is so easy to turn around against the perpetrator.

Rush said that the car industry today is like the buggy whip industry of a hundred years ago. Let it fail, something better will come along if you just leave the free market alone. What Rush appears to not understand about this analogy is that buggy whips are not like cars. Buggy whips are so easy to make that even I could make one. And if you really need to hit a horse, maybe a long stick would do in a pinch. The buggy whip industry died a natural death. But manufacturing a car is complicated, and involves many different processes. From making steel to developing electronics. If manufacturing moves away from the USA, all that will be left is an unskilled and almost defenseless country with no domestic manufacturing. When the factories have gone, they do not come back.

Rush's highly paid job is not a productive one. Rush is more like a parasitic disease on America society - destroying knowledge with disinformation, building up senseless fear and promoting class warfare. If the free market had any say, Rush would be broadcasting only to some county of Oklahoma where nobody knows the name of the first president of the USA. It is the lack of free market competition that allowed Clear Channel Communications to buy out all the competitive radio stations and replace them with the sea-to-sea drone of Rush Limbaugh's ignorant rants.

What Rush has done to radio, he wants to do to the American car industry - destroy it.

But nothing illustrates Rush's lack of character more than the "Green Car Challenge" Jay has set up a race track with obstacles, and he wants some of his guests to drive an electric Ford Focus around the track as fast as possible. Last week, Drew Barrymore was a good sport and did a nice job, missing the cutouts of Al Gore on the second lap. Rush seemed quite a poor driver to me, and refused to wear the helmet. He gave up on the last lap and simply ran back and forth over the cutout of Al Gore, then said he lost on purpose. Jay kept up his cheerful demeanor, but I think I know how he felt.

Motorcycle Pictures of the Week - Sarah and Mayabb

Here are my Pictures of the Week as displayed on the Motorcycle Views Website. These are taken from the Moto Pic Gallery. See Sarah with her 2009 Harley-Davidson Sportster Nightster. Also see Mayabb on his 2001 Suzuki Volusia. For details, see Motorcycle Pictures of the Week.

If you'd like to see your bike as Picture of the Week, submit a picture of you and your bike along with a description of the bike.

Motorcycle Pictures of the Week - Sarah and Mayabb

Customer Kudos for Leader Motorcycle Accessories Service

"Thanks for getting me the correct part so quickly. I am so pleased with the quality of your products. The fit and finish is outstanding. Your customer service is the best!" - Michael R.

"I received my new cup today, and just want to say thank you. In this day and age you just don't see customer service like that anymore, and thats a shame. So thanks again and have a wonderful summer." - Don G.

Think decent service is a thing of the past? Not here! We are a family-owned business and WE CARE (as our customers can tell you)!

Motorcycling: Is 200 km/l possible?

About 19 years ago, I had my first fuel economy challenge. Mary Ann told me her Toyota Tercel got really good gas mileage, and asked my what kind of gas mileage I got on my Honda CBX. We did a trial run of about 300 km, and I lost. OK the CBX has 6 cylinders to the four on the Tercel, and I went faster because I can't drive as slow as Mary Ann (or at least I couldn't then - now I'm older, more mature, and I have a Kawasaki Vulcan).

In 1985, at Laguna Seca, California USA, the winner of the Craig Vetter Fuel Economy Challenge acheived 470 miles per gallon (US), with a motorcycle. Is this practical for the street? I want to go through some of the techniques and give my opinion on whether it is practical or not. I do not have the full explanation from the video, unfortunately which must be ordered on the web site, but some things are obvious from the rest of the web page.

First, although the web page talks about normal street speeds and conditions, this particular effort was a closed race track performance. Traffic and normal rules of the road would reduce this fuel efficiency. Speed was not mentioned on the web page, but probably reasonable, as streamlining was useful.

http://www.craigvetter.com/pages/470MPG/1985%20Fuel%20Economy-main.html

This was a relatively low budget effort, starting with normal street bikes. A manufactured design would do much better than this, but there would have to be a mass market for it, which there is not right now.

The motorcycle was a 1980 Honda XL125 displacing 185 cc. The engine was modified adding a neutral between 5th and 4th to allow the rider to drop into neutral and coast easily. Another modification was increasing the stroke to get 185 cc.

All grease and oil was removed and replaced with lightweight machine oil. This would not be good for long service life, though. This includes grease in the drive chain and wheel hubs. No wonder this guy won! Not because of this change alone, but just an example of the thoroughness of the preparation.

Lightweight valve springs were used to reduce internal friction, unfortunately this would permit the valve to float at high rpm and possibly cause engine trouble. At the very least to hamper performance.

Overall gearing was changed, I assume to reduce engine speed. Which of course would mean torque (or acceleration) at the rear wheel would also be reduced. High air pressure in the tires, makes a bit of a hard ride, but otherwise not difficult to put up with.

On a personal note, and you can judge the practicality of this for yourself, the rider's clothes were duct taped to stop power-robbing flapping.

The rider had to assume a low crouched position, which would be uncomfortable to hold for any length of time. I will do this on my CD175 just to get into a wind or go up a hill, but it's too uncomfortable to hold unless it was a serious competition.

One important modification was the addition of a streamlined body. I noticed some pretty small foot holes, meaning the average rider would fall down a lot at stop signs, unless there was training wheels. Which of course would add to the wind drag. In this competition, a pit crew could probably help you get started and stopped.

This winning machine was crushed by Honda in 2006, from that I assume they had something to do with building it.

That was the last official Vetter Fuel Economy run. Today, Craig is still working on fuel mileage. His latest challenge is a bike that gets 100 mpg at 70 mph into a 20 mph headwind, carrying three bags of groceries. To me, that seems like a high bar to set, maybe we could make do with 60 mph with no headwind? And a bag of Doritos? Anyway, streamlining is the answer. He is nowhere near 470 mpg though, more like 64 mpg. Although that is actually pretty good for a 20 mph headwind! One thing about a headwind is that it is much worse than doing (70+20) mph, because at 90 mph you are at least going somewhere at 90 mph. With a 20 mph headwind, you have the drag of 90 mph, but moving at only 70 mph, which really hurts your gas mileage. That's why I would suggest forget the headwind aspect of the challenge.

http://www.craigvetter.com/pages/470MPG/Last%20Vetter%20Fairing.html

So far, for a lot of reasons, 200 km/l seems out of reach, even for a motorcycle. But 50 may be possible if people were interested in going for streamlining, and a manufacturer would take the risk of mass production.

Picture: Matzu Matsuzawa Honda XL125

NOTE: This blog entry was recreated from a backup after Google lost the original