Archive for June, 2008

BMW signs Ruben Xaus for 2009 World Superbike series

June 26th, 2008

BMW ramped up the excitement level on the 2009 World Superbike series yet again today by announcing that Ruben Xaus will be one of the riders to take the new BMW S1000 RR into the heat of WSBK racing next year.

The 30 year-old spaniard is an 11-year veteran of top-level motorcycle racing, from early attempts at World Supersport and 2 seasons in MotoGP to 6 seasons with Ducati in World Superbike including finishing second overall to teammate Neil Hodgson in the 2003 series.

The bike itself sounds exciting, with BMW hinting at an in-house traction control system and possibly the first set of pneumatic valves to enter WSBK.

Here’s hoping Xaus has as much fun on the BMW as he did at the Ducati Hypermotard launch (gratuitous kneedown one-handed powerslide pictures after the jump, in convenient desktop sizes). (more…)

Honda’s brake-by-wire system for sportsbikes - Combined ABS

June 11th, 2008

So Honda has announced that future supersports bikes will carry a new electronically controlled braking system that adds antilock braking to an evolution of the Dual Combined Braking system in an effort to prevent brake lockup and allow maximal braking power with less of a tendency to pitch forward.

The new Combined ABS system will certainly be an evolution in terms of rider aids and safety equipment - and it’ll probably be a technically elegant system - but is anyone really asking for this on a sportsbike? Honda claims it’s designed to add minimal weight, given that it’s a supersports-focused innovation, but even the old hydraulic Dual CBS system on the old Blackbirds and VFRs doubled the number of brake lines and made for a generally more complicated and harder-to-fix motorcycle. (more…)