MotoGP 2010 Expo

THE MOTORCYCLE EXPO: There were surprisingly few notable machines to drool over this year, Honda for example appeared to limit their display to 'new colour schemes'. Once again Kawasaki were a notable absentee...

HONDA: Always 'in your face' as one enters the Expo, Honda's display held few surprises. New paint and graphics appeared to be the order of the day.

HONDA FIREBLADE CBR1000RR:


THE LATEST HONDA FIREBLADE CBR1000RR, THE COLOURS AND GRAPHICS REMIND ME OF THE 'URBAN TIGER' FIREBLADE OF 1994/95.

HONDA VFR1200F:


UNIQUE STYLING, HUGE EXHAUST, OPTIONAL DUAL CLUTCH GEARBOX, I'M STILL NOT SURE ABOUT ALL THIS...

BMW: A manufacturer known for constant evolution of the trusty 'boxer twin' has certainly 'come out of the closet'. The S1000RR a staggering achievement and the soon to be released (2011) K1600GT and K1600GTL six cylinder hyper tourers, the mind boggles as to what BMW's designers will release next! Having stated that I was very impressed with the latest incarnation of the R1200RT, very nice indeed, then there was the 30th Anniversary Limited Edition R1200GS!

BMW R1200RT:


BEAUTIFUL LINES, SMART TECHNOLOGY, FOUR VALVE HEADS, IT'S ALL 'STILL HAPPENING' WITH THE BOXER!

BMW R1200GS: The 'thirtieth anniversary' limited edition model, very nice indeed!


A PURPOSEFUL MOTORCYCLE, STILL THE LEADER OF THE 'ONE BIKE DOES IT ALL' SOLUTION.

MOTO GUZZI: I could not fathom some of the items I saw 'attached' to the latest Moto Guzzi motorcycles on display.

Firstly the Moto Guzzi STELVIO 1200NTX, it appears to have an 'after thought' lightweight folded box around the sump area which looked more like a mock up than a production item. Then there is the matter of the Moto Guzzi Griso, a neat powerful looking motorcycle, however I was staggered at the location and flimsy protection given to the 'oil cooler' located under the right hand side engine pod. An oil cooler with the long axis vertical 'between rejigged headers' would have been brilliant, however...


MOTO GUZZI STELVIO 1200NTX, OK BUT THAT SUMP GUARD, YUK!		MOTO GUZZI GRISO AND THAT OIL COOLER!

YAMAHA: I had another look over Yamaha's answer to the BMW R1200GS and still came away slightly confused. Offering a modern take on the multi purpose long range large capacity semi off-roader, the Super Tenere surprisingly comes with petal brake rotors, upside down 'exposed' fork sliders and a spin on oil filter in a very exposed location, protected by what appears to be just a plastic shroud.


YAMAHA SUPER TENERE, PETAL DISC ROTORS, UPSIDE DOWN 'EXPOSED' FORK SLIDERS AND A VERY EXPOSED OIL FILTER.

MORE PHILLIP ISLAND MotoGP 2010 COVERAGE: Please continue my 'PI2010 MotoGP coverage' by selecting from the following pages...

I LOVE NEW TECHNOLOGY, TABLETS, LAPTOPS, DIGITAL CAMERAS, MOBILE PHONES/WIRELESS BROADBAND, GPS, ETC. ALL SO COOL AND 'PORTABLE'......