2012 Yamaha Super Tenere

The U.S. adventure-touring segment expands next year with Yamaha’s decision to import the on/off-roading Ténéré for the American market. And not too soon, as adventure-touring fans in the U.S. have clamored for over a year for this machine.
Powering the Ténéré is a fuel-injected, liquid-cooled, DOHC, four-valve-per-cylinder, 1199cc Parallel Twin with an 11.1 compression ratio. The Twin also uses a 270-degree crank firing order. A two-axis primary balancer helps smooth vibes inherent in the Parallel Twin configuration. The engine is fed by a downdraft twin-bore fuel-injection system utilizing 12-hole injectors. The exhaust is a 2-into-1, 2-step expansion system ending in a short, elliptical muffler.
Engine power is routed through a wide-ratio six-speed transmission to a shaft drive system using a hypoid rear gear to ensure everything is as compact as possible. The Ténéré's engine crankshaft is kept low and close to the footpegs in order to keep the bike's center of gravity low.

A steel frame holds the Twin as stressed member. Yamaha touts steel as a good frame material for quelling vibes as well as offering a good balance between rigidity and flexibility.
Suspension on the Super Ténéré is fully adjustable. The 43mm fork has a little less than 7.5 inches of travel (same for the shock) and is adjustable for preload; compression and rebound dampening round out fork adjustments. The shock has a remote dial for preload adjustment, and also offers rebound damping.

If you hope to compete against BMW's adventure-touring benchmark GS, then you’d better bring some whiz-bang gadgets. The Super Ténéré uses Yamaha’s YCC-T (Yamaha Chip Controlled-Throttle) fly-by-wire technology, first introduced on the 2006 R6. An all-new three-stage traction-control system that works in conjunction with YCC-T regulates ignition timing and fuel injection volume based on rear wheel spin. The rider can disable T-C.
The bike also employs Yamaha’s D-MODE engine mapping. T-mode for Touring (and general riding) softens engine response while S mode allows unbridled access to the Ténéré’s claimed 108 crankshaft horsepower at 7250 rpm and 84 ft-lbs at 6000 rpm.

Anti-lock brakes and Yamaha’s own version of linked brakes, the Unified Brake System (UBS), haul the Ténéré’s claimed 575-pound wet weight (504 lbs for the GS) down from speed. The linked brakes allow the rider to operate front and rear brakes together by simply pulling the front brake lever, while applying the rear brake overrides UBS to provide traditional separate front and rear brake control. Front 310mm wave-type rotors are attached to an aluminum 19-inch front wheel (110/80 tire), while a rear 282mm wave-type rotor spins with an aluminum 17-inch rear wheel (150/70 tire).
Long miles seem possible with the Super’s 6.0-gallon fuel tank, and the 34.25-inch seat height is adjustable to lower height 1.0 inch.
Nearly everything about the Super Ténéré, from displacement to seat height(s) to wheel and tire size to electronics, is a frontal assault on BMW’s A-T segment-dominating R1200GS. And if the below pricing info is accurate at this point, even the Ténéré’s MSRP is designed to undercut the 2010 GS’s base price of $14,950. Furthermore, the Beemer’s base price doesn’t include many of the trick electronic features, like traction control for example, that are standard on the Ténéré.
The 2012 Super Ténéré will be available through a Priority Delivery Program (like FJR1300s) at Yamaha dealerships nationwide beginning in September, with customers placing advance deposits of $500. Deliveries begin in May of 2011. The Super Ténéré has a starting MSRP of $13,900 and will be available in Blue as pictured as well as Raven.

Sparta Launches Cyclechex

Sparta Commercial Services, Inc. is excited to announce today the public launch of its new subsidiary, Specialty Reports, Inc. (SRI), DBA Cyclechex. SRI intends to offer online access to detailed product ownership and usage reports for various classes of previously owned assets. SRI’s first commercial product release, available now, is Cyclechex.

Cyclechex is the first and only online service that will provide detailed motorcycle history reports to consumers, retail dealers, lenders, and insurers, enabling any interested party to have critical information about any motorcycle prior to a purchase, the granting of a loan, or the issuance of insurance coverage. Cyclechex will offer, for a fee, a historical report that may include information about accidents and crash report data, along with title information, documented last recorded mileage, lemon law status, and the number of previous owners. The Cyclechex system tracks the motorcycle’s history through its Vehicle Identification Number, a seventeen character unique identifier for every production vehicle in the world, regardless of the country of origin. A similar system has been available in the automotive industry for a number of years, and is widely used by auto dealers and consumers throughout the country. Commenting on the launch of Cyclechex, Jeff Dobish, Executive Vice President of Marketing for the new Sparta subsidiary, said, “According to Powersports Business there are now four times as many pre-owned motorcycles being sold in the U.S. versus new. These statistics make the value of a Cyclechex report self-evident, whether you’re a consumer looking to purchase a used motorcycle from a private party, a dealer who routinely takes in used units as trade-ins, or a dealer who wants to offer an additional level of assurance to customers wanting to purchase a pre-owned vehicle. The Cyclechex history report will provide a comfort level never before available. For a lender considering a loan on a given motorcycle, or an insurance carrier contemplating the issuance of coverage, the critical information provided by a Cyclechex motorcycle history report can make the decision about a specific vehicle easier and more reassuring.” Anthony Havens, Sparta’s CEO, said, “We’re very enthusiastic about Cyclechex, and we believe that this product will be very well received by the powersports marketplace. We’re convinced that Cyclechex is perhaps one of the most significant contributions to the industry in many years, and we’re looking forward to a highly successful and profitable future for this new entity. Sparta will continue to add innovative products and resources to its offerings to ensure that it can fill gaps in the marketplace, meet the needs of its customers and dealer network, and enhance shareholder value.”

2011 Yamaha FZ8 First Look

Yamaha’s sporting line of motorcycles grows with the introduction of the new 2011 Yamaha FZ8 street bike; a streetfighter-style machine that offers European styling and a conventional riding position with a sporting engine and chassis character. At an MSRP of $8490, it slots in directly between the FZ1 and FZ6R, Yamaha’s two current streetfighters. Beneath the 4.5-gallon fuel tank lies a liquid-cooled and fuel-injected 779cc Inline-Four. The engine uses the same cases as the pre-crossplane crankshaft-equipped Yamaha YZF-R1, but gets an entirely new crankshaft and top end. The engine operates with a conventional engine firing order, unlike the current R1, while the powerband has been specifically tuned for the rigors of urban riding with more low-to-mid rpm torque output. Each piston slides within a cylinder that features a 68.0 x 53.6mm bore and stroke. Fuel is squeezed at a 12.0:1 ratio and the bike uses a 16-valve cylinder head, actuated by dual overhead camshafts. Power is transferred back to the rear tire through a manual cable-actuated clutch, 6-speed transmission and chain final drive.

The engine is suspended within a black cast aluminum frame mated to a swingarm of the same composition, with its handling emphasis put on moderate-speed agility. Front-to-rear weight bias is claimed to be 51/49; suspension includes a 43mm inverted fork and a spring preload-adjustable shock absorber. The FZ8 rolls on 17-inch cast aluminum wheels that feature a 5-spoke design. The wheels are paired to Bridgestone Battlax BT-021 sport touring tire in sizes 120/70 front and 180/55 rear. Braking components consist of a pair of 310mm discs clamped by 4-piston calipers up front and 267mm rear disc with a double-piston caliper out back. The cockpit of the FZ8 is similar to the FZ1 and is designed to be a balance between sport and comfort. It makes use of a standard, upright aluminum handlebar that is said to be positioned 4mm forward as compared to its elder sibling. The footpegs have also been positioned down 10mm and back 15mm. Seat height is measured at 32.1 inches off the ground and with a full load of fuel the bike is claimed to weigh 480 pounds. Visually all of the bikes major components are painted black and the engine is hung out in the open without any fairings or plastic body panels covering it. The FZ8 is available in one color, Raven, and will be available in dealers December of this year.

Cycle News Closes

The state of the motorcycle industry has taken a toll as one of the original print giants has fallen victim in to these tough economic times. While certainly not the first publication to fold, Cycle News is without a doubt the most prominent casualty to date. After 45 years of service to the motorcycle industry, sources close to the publication are reporting that Cycle News magazine has closed its doors and will no longer produce its weekly motorcycle magazine. Since 1965 the Clayton family has provided coverage of everything from the Carlsbad US Grand Prix to the Italian MotoGP to the local Hare & Hound series, along with editorial support and an inside look that set the standard for all publications who call themselves a news site. As an alumni of Cycle News myself, it’s with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to one of the few publications who directly influenced the way the industry receives its news and does business. The three years I spent there and nearly 150 issues that I had the pleasure of helping to produce did so much for my career as a moto-journalist that I will forever be thankful. It was a pleasure to work for such a company and it's hard to see them leave our industry in such a manner. The writing has been on the wall for quite some time, as the magazine has grown thinner and thinner over the past couple years with advertising budgets becoming tighter. Cycle News is now history, as they say, but it was a long and impressive history at that. We will bring more details and information as they become available.