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2024 will see a new team land in MotoGP - the independent Trackhouse Racing team . Partnering with Aprilia to run its RS-GP MotoGP prototypes ( with Portuguese rider Miguel Oliveira and Peruvian Raul Fernandez ), Trackhouse will be the first American team to line-up on the MotoGP grid since Kenny Roberts ' Team Roberts in 2007 . No American has raced in MotoGP since Nicky Hayden left the series in 2015 .

Former Dakar Rally racer Joan Pedrero Garcia is to challenge the Africa Eco Race ( run roughly parallel to the original Dakkar desert race route ) on an H-D Pan America . Working with Harley ' s Spanish subsidiary , he has already been running a 1250 Pan America against the lighter and more agile middleweights of the ' rally raid-style ' event scene for the past year . In 2021 , he finished the 1000 Dunas Rally on a largely bone stock RA1250 . The Africa Eco allows machines outside the rigid FIM classes ; the race starts on December 30 , 2023 .

For the first six months of its 23 / 24 financial year ( April-September ) Honda posted Group Powered Two- Wheeler ( PTW ) global unit sales of 9,266 (+ 0.7 %). Some 255,000 were sold in North America , 229,000 in Europe , the bulk being in Asia , where Indonesia ( 2.3m units ), India ( 2.2m ) and Vietnam ( approx . 1m ) are its largest markets . Honda sold 122,000 units in its home market .

BMW posted retail unit sales of + 3.5 % ( 164,908 motorcycles and maxi scooters delivered to customers worldwide ) for the first nine months of the 2023 financial year , however , citing a change in its model launch calendar ( in advance of the new R1300GS in the fourth quarter ), revenue arising in the third quarter ( July-September ) was -20.9 % at approx . $ 705m .

Italian giant Piaggio ( Aprilia , Moto Guzzi , Vespa etc .) posted sales data for the first nine months of its 2023 financial year down by -3.4 % ( at approx . $ 1.25bn ), but with net profit at a none-month all-time record (+ 20.9 %) and worldwide scooter and motorcycle sales + 11 % at 364,999 units .

Launch of its Desert Rally X and MX market entry were the big news with Ducati at around the time of EICMA , however , for the first nine months of it 2023 financial year overall , production ( -18.2 %, 45,987 units ) and sales ( -4 %, 47,867 units ) were down . Scrambler sub-brand production was -21.5 %. Sales in Europe were up at 59 % of total sales , with the USA up by 1 % to 14 %, with China and other markets down .

Honda ' s tradition of pushing radical new ideas in motorcycling is being upheld with a new development project for a future three-motor electric bike and with the E-Clutch system that reaches showrooms in 2024 . Patent applications have emerged showing a development of the radical Riding Assist-e electric concept bike , ( which debuted in 2017 with computer-controlled steering and a variable steering head angle to change the wheelbase ), allowing it to balance itself even without a rider aboard . The new development of the idea takes the concept of rider assistance a step further by adopting as many as three electric motors - two powering the rear wheel and a third driving the front - to create an unprecedented level of computer assistance while leaving the rider in control . On the face of it , having two motors powering the rear wheel , with one chain final drive on each side , seems illogical . After all , the wheel is going to turn at the same speed as it would with one motor and chain driving it . But Honda isn ' t thinking about the drive that the motors provide - the focus here is on the influence that they have on the bike ' s balance . Both motors are mounted longitudinally but turn in opposite directions . Anyone who ' s ridden a boxer BMW , a Gold Wing or a V-twin Moto Guzzi will know that the torque reaction of a longitudinal engine will try to tilt the bike as you rev it , and that ' s exactly the effect that Honda is using here . In normal use , both rear motors work together and because they counterrotate , they cancel out each other ' s torque reaction . However , Honda envisages using that torque reaction , modulating the torque from the two motors to help the bike tip into corners faster and to stand it back up again on the way out of them . The left motor , turning clockwise , will tug the bike over to the left if used on its own . The torque from the right motor , turning

counter-clockwise , tilts the bike to the right . So , by juggling the torque from both , the electronics can influence the bike ' s lean angle . The third motor , mounted in the front wheel hub , uses the same phenomenon . With both wheels on the ground , it helps spread the total power output across the two tyres ,

' E-clutch reaches production '

making the most of their potential traction , but Honda also believes it will be useful under hard acceleration when the front wheel lifts . With the wheel in the air , reverse torque is used on the front motor , creating a reaction that tries to bring the nose back down again , allowing the bike to accelerate faster without flipping over backwards . While that piece of drivetrain technology is clearly still years away , Honda ' s E-Clutch - introduced on the 2024 CB650R and CBR650R but likely to be adopted across many more bikes in years to come - will be available by the middle of next year . It ' s perhaps the simplest and cleverest attempt yet to make a semiautomatic transmission , using a computer-controlled servo motor to operate a completely standard clutch while retaining the normal barmounted lever and cable operation ,

allowing it to be overridden at any time or switched off entirely if you ' d prefer conventional clutch operation . Adding just 2 kg to a bike ' s weight , the E-Clutch features two small electric motors and a set of reduction gears , all mounted inside the clutch cover and attached to the conventional clutch linkage , allowing a normal cable or hydraulic clutch system to be retained . Pulling the bar-mounted lever overrides the electronics , leaving the rider in ultimate control , and gears are still shifted using the normal , mechanical left foot lever . When active , the E-Clutch is controlled by its own ECU , taking information from the bike ' s speed , revs , throttle position and gear position . A quickshifter-style load sensor on the gear linkage tells the system when you want to change ratios , and there are three settings - hard , medium and soft - to change how much pressure is needed on the manual gear shift before the clutch operates . Come to a halt and the clutch automatically dips to ensure the engine doesn ' t stall , and when the system is active pulling away from a standstill , it is simply a case of engaging first gear and opening the throttle . The E-Clutch does the rest , ensuring a smooth getaway and preventing any chance of a stall . Since the system is also tied into the engine ' s ride-by-wire throttles , the injection and the ignition , it promises to make up- and downshifts faster and smoother , and an on-dash display will show if you ' re in too high a gear and should change down . Simpler , lighter and cheaper than Honda ' s DCT semi-auto gearbox , and able to be fitted to virtually any bike without major changes to the existing transmission and clutch , there ' s every chance that the E-Clutch will be offered across a huge part of Honda ' s range in years to come .

16 AMD - JANUARY 2024

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