Your trusty Motorcycle.com news monkey is knee deep in four-wheeled madness helping out with our sister site Autoguide.com‘s coverage of the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show, but thankfully there are some two-wheeled goodies on display here in Germany as well.
One of the highlights is the special edition Ducati Diavel AMG, the latest product of the partnership between the Italian motorcycle maker and Mercedes-Benz’ performance arm. Look for a full gallery of pictures after the jump.
When Yamaha unveiled its 50th anniversary edition red and white livery for its M1 MotoGP machines in May, one question came immediately to mind: when can we get the special edition R1?
The red and white design was created to celebrate Yamaha‘s 50th year in Grand Prix racing. Yamaha factory racers Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies debuted the livery at the Assen round in June, which saw the American Spies nab his first a career MotoGP win.
According to the Britain’s MCN, Yamaha is set to reveal special editions of an updated-for-2012 Yamaha YZF-R1, a cosmetically updated YZF-R6, as well as an FZ8 and a YZF-R125 for the U.K. market. MCN is basing this news on new (but empty) folders found on Yamaha’s press site.
The marketing partnership between Ducati and Mercedes’ AMG division continues with a new special edition version of the Diavel.
The 2012 Ducati Diavel AMG Special Edition is equipped with AMG’s signature 5-spoke wheels, an AMG-style exhaust with engraved end-caps, an Alcantara-upholstered horizontally ribbed seat and carbon fiber radiator grills with aluminum trim.
The AMG special edition model will come in the same matte black color as the Ducati Diavel Carbon it is based on, but with AMG’s “Diamond White Bright” stripe and trellis frame.
Harley-Davidson is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its V-Rod line with a few updates as well as a special edition model.
First introduced in the 2002 model year, the V-Rod marked a new era for Harley-Davidson, with the V-Rod’s 1130cc 60-degree V-Twin Revolution engine, the Motor Company’s first production engine with liquid cooling and overhead camshafts.
The 2012 Harley-Davidson V-Rod line is equipped with the latest generation 1250cc Revolution engine with dual overhead camshafts, four-valve cylinder heads and fuel injection.
MV Agusta has revealed a special edition “Serie Oro” version of its upcoming 675cc supersport, the F3, for those who think owning a regular MV Agusta F3 isn’t exclusive enough.
Following with company tradition, the “Serie Oro” (Italian for “Gold Series”) F3 features several upgrades over the standard model, and will be produced in a limited run of 200 units to be released ahead of the regular F3.
Documents released by the California Air Resources Board reveal two new models from Harley-Davidson’s 2012 lineup: a 10th anniversary edition V-Rod and a new member of the Dyna family.
The CARB documents list motorcycles that have received approval for the state of California.
The Motor Company has received approval for several 2012 models including the 2012 Harley-Davidson Night Rod Special Anniversary and the 2012 Harley-Davidson Switchback.
The special edition Night Rod marks the 10th anniversary of Harley-Davidson’s V-Rod family, and is expected to feature a unique color scheme and badging.
The Switchback will use Harley-Davidson’s 103 cubic-inch (1688cc) V-Twin engine, which will also be introduced to the Fat Bob and the Wide Glide, and it will likely share the Dyna chassis as well. It is rumored the Switchback will be a touring version of the Wide Glide but with removable bags and windscreen, thus allowing it to “switch back” to a cruiser.
Also notable from the CARB documents is the omission of three models, the Softail Cross Bones, Softail Rocker and Street Glide Trike.
[Source: CARB via Cyril Huze Blog]
Triumph is celebrating the 500,000th motorcycle produced in the John Bloor era with a tour across the United Kingdom with English stand-up comedian Ross Noble.
The landmark motorcycle, a one-off Triumph Speed Triple, is the 500,000th unit produced by the modern Triumph Motorcycles company since Bloor revived the brand in 1990.
Carrying VIN number 500,000, the milestone Speed Triple features a special red, white and blue color scheme with the triple-cross of the Union Jack on the fuel tank. The paint was applied with a new production technique Triumph says it will begin adopting for other production models in the autumn. The special edition Speed Triple is also equipped with a matching fly screen, belly pan and seat cowl.
Noble, a popular British comic, will ride the 500,000th Triumph across the United Kingdom as part of his Sit Down Tour May 24-30. Noble will document the tour on his Twitter page, @realrossnoble. Following the tour, Noble will take the Speed Triple to the July 1 Goodwood Festival of Speed where it will be auctioned to benefit Riders for Health to help provide motorcycle transport to medics in rural Africa.
“Reaching the 500,000th bike in just twenty years is a terrific achievement and a credit to the hard work of everyone at Triumph and our dealer partners globally,” says Guy Masters, general manager of Triumph U.K. “To mark the occasion and also to celebrate our British roots, we wanted to do something that gave our customers a chance to get involved. We were delighted when Ross agreed to help us mark the milestone with his Sit Down Tour, which will involve dealers, riders and fans across the UK.”
More pictures and the official press release after the jump. Continue Reading »
It seems the idea that there is a “special edition” Honda Fury has achieved urban-legend levels.
Motorcycle.com recently spoke to Jon Seidel of American Honda to clarify some of the controversy generated in www.furyforums.com regarding a special edition Fury model.
According to Seidel, no mention was ever made to the media during the Fury’s press unveiling or in any press material or at any other time, “that any Fury color or specific Fury model was a special edition.”
Seidel stated that he also queried Honda’s product planning department about the existence of any special edition models and reported that no information had ever been released or implied from Honda Product Planning as to the existence of a Fury SE.
This is a strange time to release such a bike since the British motorsports site Autosport.com recently reported that the Japanese manufacturer will announce its withdrawal from MotoGP racing on Jan. 5, 2009, leaving John Hopkins and Marco Melandri without a ride. I don’t imagine they would be interested in shelling out four G’s of their hard earned cash to buy one of their own but my guess is that plenty of other people will be interested in living the dream.
