Every year around this time, the evil geniuses of Honda, Ducati, Triumph, Yamaha and other motorcycle companies show off their latest deadly motor-sickles of death at two of the biggest shows: EICMA in Milan and the Tokyo Motor Show… in Tokyo.
Here are some of the machines that will have us slobbering like idiots for the next year or so.
Honda RC-E
This isn’t actually a new 2012 model. The RC-E is a concept bike that is almost definitely not going to ever be produced. That doesn’t mean it’s not interesting. Electric bikes are all the rage right now and we’re getting more and more new e-bikes these days. This one is dressed up in vintage 60s Honda racing livery (Honda Corporation began as a motorcycle company and its founder Soichiro Honda was heavily involved in grand prix racing from the very start). This bike has its LED headlight neatly hidden in the fairing. Best of all: zero emissions.
MV Agusta Brutale 675
MV Agusta is a tiny Italian manufacturer of exotic sportbikes. They’ve had a 1000 cc-sized Brutale for years now but the new smaller-engined version is all new. Peep the wild triple exhaust pipes peeking out by the rear tire. Word on the street is this model will be available for around 10 grand here in the U.S. I’ll believe that when I see it, but this is still a pretty exciting new bike.
Volta City Electric
Here’s another cool electric bike from a Spanish company named Volta. The company is saying the bike has a range of 45 miles before needing a charge. Personally I don’t think that’s quite enough. The public won’t embrace electric bikes until they hit the magic 100 number, but the design is so unique that it would be pretty neat rolling down the street on this thing.
Ducati 1199 Panigale
Panigale is the suburb of Bologna that is home to Ducati. It’s also the company’s latest superbike — now with a V4 engine for the first time. The top-of-the-line Panigale will cost £24,000, which is insane. Ducati customers are nuts anyway, so I don’t feel sorry for them.
Yamaha Y125 Moegi
Here’s another weird/interesting concept bike from Yamaha. This one has a 125 cc engine and 1950s looks. It’s probably not as fast as the Ducati above.
KTM Duke
KTM is an Austrian company that’s best known for its dirt bikes but these days has expanded its offerings to include street bikes, too. The Duke features a 690cc engine and ultra light weight. This thing is just begging to be hooned.
Oh, and I almost forgot: Italian girls on bikes!
