Innholdsfortegnelse for #361 19-07 i Just Bikes

Honda’s legendary Super Cub has arrived in Australia in an all-new form that pays homage to the original while an increased engine capacity and a number of modern features bring the iconic scooter into the new millennium. CUB HISTORY Put simply, the Super Cub is not just a motorcycling phenomenon, it’s a transport phenomenon, with over 100 million units produced since the first ‘Super Cub C100’ was released in 1958. No, that’s not a misprint; more than 100 MILLION Super Cubs have been built. The roots of the Super Cub go back to the mid-1950s, when Soichiro Honda and Takeo Fujisawa saw that a lightweight, quiet, reliable and affordable motorcycle could replace the bicycles being used for lunchtime meal delivery and light freight work in Tokyo and other urban areas…

While Australia won’t field a full-time rider in either the World Superbike or World Supersport class in 2019, there will be Aussie representation in the junior World Supersport300 category. Tom Edwards will continue in the class this year after making his debut in 2018 and finishing 21st overall. Tom Bramich’s planned ride last season didn’t eventuate, so he’ll essentially be a rookie this year, alongside category newcomer Jack Hyde. All three will be astride Kawasaki Ninja 400s, with Edwards one of three riders in the ParkinGO Team, while Hyde will partner Italy’s Kevin Arduini at 2R Racing. Bramich will be a solo entry, backed by DJ and bike fan Carl Cox under the ‘Carl Cox – RT Motorsports by SKM’ banner. Edwards and Bramich have done most of their work…

The concepts presented alongside the LiveWire at CES brought to life two of four renderings that were presented as part of the ‘More Roads to Harley-Davidson’ presentation last year. Those renderings consisted of a small capacity motorbike, a mountain bike and conventional bicycle, as well as a scooter, all with electric motors. The scooter and mountain bike renderings were presented in concept form and drew as much attention as the LiveWire. Virtually no details were provided on either concept, other than to say the pair are part of the new ‘Electrified’ chapter of Harley-Davidson and have been developed to “explore the potential of urban mobility and two-wheeled adoption”. With a USD front fork and monoshock rear, interesting features on the mountain bike include a belt drive and a compact electric…

Unlike some motorcycles that have been developed over a long period of time, the Yamaha FJR1300 has never lost sight of its original design brief, which is to offer sportsbike performance combined with all-day touring comfort. Born some 17 years ago, the current Yamaha FJR1300 is more of an evolution of the breed than a revolution, yet it still fulfils its intended function to perfection. This is a result of constant development over the years rather than wholesale changes for the sake of, well, change. And that development has ensured the FJR1300 is as relevant today as when it was launched back in 2001. Although light years apart mechanically, the FJR1300’s roots can be traced back to the FJ1100 sports-tourer of 1984. The FJ1100 was powered by a 125hp 1097cc…

Indian Motorcycle says overwhelming response to the Akrapovic exhaust system, originally announced as an accessory for the upcoming FTR1200 S, has led to this low mount slip-on system to be fitted as standard to the top-of-the-line FTR1200 S Race Replica when it arrives here in Q2. The premium variant of the FTR1200 range that was announced back in October, the FTR1200 S Race Replica carries a colour scheme inspired by Indian’s ‘Wrecking Crew’ racers that have dominated recent flat track competition in the US. Loosely based on the Scout, the upcoming FTR1200 takes that model and increases its DOHC 8-valve v-twin’s capacity to 1203cc (and around 90kW and 115Nm), adds a distinctive steel trellis frame and aluminium subframe as part of an all-new platform, trims the mudguards and bodywork to…

After success with the YZ65 Cup last year, Yamaha Motor Australia has expanded their support for grass roots racing by signing on as naming rights sponsor for the 2019 Australian 2-Stroke Nationals. Rebranded as the ‘Yamaha bLU cRU 2-Stroke Amateur Nationals’, the series is open to junior and senior dirt bike riders, with a number of sub-categories to cater to different machinery. The competing classes are divided into 65cc, 85cc and 125cc 2-strokes for the juniors, while seniors will be spilt into an All-Powers class and a Retro All Powers class for 2-stroke dirt bikes more than 20 years old. Yamaha Australia’s National Sales and Marketing Manager, Matt Ferry, says the series will be the perfect arena for young racers to compete at a national level. “During the 2018 MX…

Yamaha has released two new colours for their retro-style XSR900 naked for 2019. While ‘Garage Metal’ (grey) was part of the colour range for 2018, the addition of red detailing on the tank and contrast colour stitching on the seat ups the retro quotient. ‘Vintage Blue’ is an all-new colour option for 2019, said to be inspired by Yamaha’s iconic 1970s models. These colours replace the Racing Red, Midnight Black and non-stripe Garage Metal colour schemes offered on the XSR900 in 2018. The XSR900’s other retro styling features, like the aluminium tank covers, hand-polished aluminium trim pieces, aluminium front and rear mudguards, stitched seat, circular instrument pod, circular tail light and retro-style headlight, all carry over unchanged for 2019. The XSR900’s 847cc liquid-cooled triple-cylinder engine, based on the powerplant used…

There’s always plenty to look forward to at the season-opening round of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship at Phillip Island, but this year, there’s even more to get excited about because the Victorian seaside circuit will debut what’s arguably the biggest change in the production bike category’s 30-year history. TRIPLE TREAT When the World Superbike and World Supersport circus kicks off Down Under this 22 to 24 February, it’ll do so with a new three-race format for the World Superbike class. As reported in JUST BIKES #358, Dorna and the FIM announced in October that, after running a two-race format since the category’s inception in 1988, a third race will be added to the World Superbike programme for this year, and presumably beyond. The third race will take the…

Just as four-wheel drives have become popular in the automotive world, dual-sport bikes have been finding favour with Aussie motorcyclists who can see the potential for long-distance adventure travel to far-flung destinations. While the bikes themselves are better than ever, there’s still room for some tailoring and improvement, and if you want to head to the Red Centre or up The Cape, you’re going to need the right gear… for both you and your bike. As the popularity of adventure riding increases, so too does the range of specialty equipment and riding gear on the market. Here’s a rundown of some of the stuff you’ll need for ‘the big trip’. THE BIKE TYRES: To ride both on the road and off it, your bike will need to be armed with…

Yamaha have released the 2019 version of their premium R1 supersports bike, with the only changes for the new model year being a tweaking of the colour palette. The Yamaha Racing-inspired ‘Yamaha Blue’ version from last year now features a predominantly black lower fairing, but the front section below the windscreen is now blue, as is the front mudguard. An ‘R1’ graphic in blue is reversed out of the black (the opposite of last year’s treatment), while the blue tail section and blue rims are unchanged for 2019. The other colour choice for the new year is ‘Tech Black’, which is similar to last year’s Matt Grey, but ditches the subtle red highlights on the rims and brake discs for an all-over black treatment in a mix of satin and…

It’s quite surprising that the adventure-bike market didn’t really take off in Australia until recently, especially when you consider all the wide-open spaces ripe for exploration on this massive continent of ours. In Europe, however, adventure bikes have been popular since the 1980s, thanks in no small part to the Paris-Dakar Rally, in which manufacturers such as BMW, Cagiva, Yamaha and Honda spent countless dollars in an attempt to turn race victories into sales success. And it worked… Yamaha won the first couple of Paris-Dakar Rallies, in 1979 and 1980, with a modified version of its XT500, which went on to become one of the best-selling trailbikes of all time. Then BMW had success with its twin-cylinder R80G/S throughout the early 80s, which also went on to become a huge…

1 KAWASAKI WSBK CHAMPIONSHIP T-SHIRT Kawasaki Australia  kawasaki.com.au Jonathan Rea had to win four World Superbike Championships to get one of these t-shirts, but you don’t have to work nearly as hard! This limited-edition Kawasaki ‘Four of a Kind’ t-shirt carries the “aces” of Rea’s championships on the front and lists the four successive championship years from the Kawasaki star on the back. Made from 100 per cent cotton and available in black (only) with white and gold print. In stock at Kawasaki dealers – and also at the Kawasaki expo stand at the Phillip Island WSBK round this February – available in S-3XL plus 5XL sizes, priced from $45.00 RRP. 2 SBK TEAM MANAGER APP Digital Tales S.r.L., Dorna Sports S. L. Apple app store, Google Play The first…