American Honda announced it will be a partnering sponsor for the 2013 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb while also entering the competition, racing in nine different classes (well, seventh, plus “Exhibition” entries in both car and motorcycle categories).

Honda R&D staff, engineers, test riders and drivers will compete in car, motorcycle and ATV categories. Honda will field a record ten entries in all, with nine different vehicles including the CBR1000RR, CBR600RR, CRF450R and CRF250R. Honda IndyCar team Schmidt Hamilton HP Motorsports driver Simon Pagenaud will also compete, though his vehicle and class will be announced at a later date. Continue Reading »

The Honda NSS300 Forza scooter has received approval from the California Air Resources Board. The 279cc scooter was first announced at the 2012 EICMA show for the European market and Canada, and it looks like it will be available for sale in the U.S. The Forza still needs to get a certificate of conformity from the Environmental Protection Agency, but that should not be difficult after getting the O.K. from CARB.

The Forza is powered by a liquid-cooled fuel-injected 279cc single-cylinder engine based on the engine used in the SH300i. According to Honda, the Forza’s engine produces 25.5 hp at 7500 rpm and 19.2 ft-lb. at 5000 rpm. Honda also claims fuel economy of 72.4 mpg which, with a 3.06-gallon fuel tank, should translate to a range of about 222 miles between fill-ups.

The chassis consists of a steel underbone frame with a lower floating link for the engine mount to improve rigidity balance and reduce vibrations. The Forza has a tw0-level seat with separate fold-out footpegs for passengers. The rider’s seat is positioned at a fairly low 28.2 inches above the ground and lifts up to reveal a compartment Honda claims will hold two full-faced helmets. Continue Reading »

Endurance racing and superbike racing have a lot in common. Both types of racing use similar machines and often feature the same riders. Some endurance races, the Daytona 200 perhaps the most notable of them, are included as regular points-scoring rounds in championships that otherwise feature rounds that are a quarter the length. But there are also some key differences such as functional lights, swapping riders and, of course, the overall length of a race. One of the most important differences, and one that plays a vital role in team strategy, is the pit stop.

The 2013 FIM Endurance World Championship kicks off this weekend, April 20-21, with the Bol d’Or 24-hour race at Magny-Cours in France. To mark the start of the Endurance racing season, the Honda TT Legends team released a new video breaking down its pit stop procedure. The team’s race manager Russell Benney talks us through the many steps involved in a standard pit stop. Continue Reading »

The Tech3 MotoGP team put the Circuit of the Americas‘ emergency systems to the test after a small fire broke out in the team’s garage. Tech3 says the fire should not affect its participation in this weekend’s Grand Prix of the Americas race.

The fire, which ignited some time overnight, was quickly doused by COTA‘s sprinkler system. The fire itself did not cause any serious damage, though fire retardant and water from the sprinkler system damaged some of the team’s computer equipment. Tech3 says the fire was caused by an electric starter that was plugged in and recharging over the night.

“We have suffered quite a lot of damage and of course it is not ideal preparations but thankfully the fire prevention measures undertaken by the Circuit of the Americas and the assistance of the local Fire Department were invaluable in limiting the damage,” says Herve Poncharal, Tech3 team manager. “The sprinkler system was immediately activated and fire crews on scene promptly and I am grateful for that” Continue Reading »

Honda‘s work developing its second-generation dual clutch transmission appears to be paying off, at least in Europe. According to Honda, customers have purchased more than 12,500 units with DCT since the technology was first made available on a production motorcycle with the VFR1200F in 2010.

The Japanese manufacturer now offers four models in Europe with optional DCT: the VFR1200F, the NC700X, the NC700S, and the Crosstourer. Honda also produces the Integra scooter (which shares the same platform as the NC models) but it is only available with DCT as standard. But for the models where Honda offers a choice, more and more consumers are choosing to go with the DCT system. Continue Reading »

Honda announced it is bringing the CRF250M supermoto to Europe. We first heard about the supermoto version of the CRF250L in January, when it was announced for Thailand. Though nothing official was said, it seemed likely at the time Honda would introduce the CRF250M to other markets. American Honda has not yet announced whether it would offer the CRF250M, but we hope it will.

Like the CRF250L, the M version uses a liquid-cooled 250cc Single engine based on the powerplant introduced with the CBR250R. The CRF models share similar power and torque figures, claiming 22.8 hp at 8500 rpm and 16.2 ft-lb. at 7000 rpm. Honda claims the CRF250M can get about 80 miles on the gallon. Combined with a 2.0-gallon fuel tank, the CRF250M should have a range of about 160 miles. Continue Reading »

Dorna Sports announced there will be a MotoGP test at Argentina’s Circuito Internacional Termas de Rio Hondo in July to allow teams to prepare for the track’s expected addition to the 2014 MotoGP calendar.

Argentina was actually supposed to join the MotoGP tour this season, but the round was scrapped because of a dispute between the country and Spain after the Argentine government seized control of a Repsol subsidiary. Repsol is, of course, a prominent sponsor of several teams including Honda‘s factory team.

A number of teams will take part in the test, which will take place July 1-5 following the TT Assen in the Netherlands. Dorna has not said which teams will take part in the test, only stating representatives of Ducati, Honda and Yamaha will be taking part. MotoMatters however reports the Repsol Honda factory team, the LCR Honda team as well as the factory Yamaha team will not be present. Continue Reading »

Ryan Villopoto captured his fifth-consecutive AMA Supercross win and sixth in seven rounds with a victory in the main event at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas.

The Monster Energy Kawasaki rider passed holeshot-taker Mike Alessi on the opening lap and led the rest of the way for the win. Alessi, riding the Motoconcepts Racing Suzuki RM-Z450, remained in the hunt for the first few laps but soon gave way to a group including Team Honda Muscle Milk’s Trey Canard, Red Bull KTM‘s Ryan Dungey and Yoshimura Suzuki’s James Stewart.

With Villopoto uncatcheable, it was up to that trio to provide the drama. Canard sat in second for most of the first seven laps until a Dungey pass on Lap 7. A couple of laps later, Stewart made a challenge on Dungey but crashed in the attempt, damaging his front wheel. Continue Reading »

 

In order to use footage from a Dorna-sanctioned MotoGP test session — say, for marketing or promotional reasons — a team must receive approval from Dorna. The process is tedious, and even if permission is granted, there are strict limitations as to what the material may or may not be used for. So when Honda decided to conduct its own private test (which Yamaha also joined), at the Circuit of the Americas, it was free from any and all Dorna mandates.

Rest assured, Honda took full advantage.  Continue Reading »

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Some MotoGP teams including Repsol Honda, LCR Honda and the Factory Yamaha squads tested at the Circuit of the Americas track in Austin, Texas to gather crucial data leading up to the race there April 19-21. Ride along with Dani Pedrosa and his Honda RC213V as he takes you around for a lap of America’s world-class racetrack.  Continue Reading »