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Dutch Transport Industry Association ( RAI ) commission consumer research found that motorcycles " appear to be the ideal means of transport to completely empty your head and relax ". Almost half of respondents ( 46 %) indicated that they " have a greater need to drive a motorbike since the corona crisis than before ." To inspire ( future ) motorcyclists to " throw a leg ", the RAI Association badged March as ' MotorMonth '.

The Moody ' s credit ratings agency Investors Service has raised its assessment of the outlook for the Piaggio Group ( PIA . MI ) to stable from negative . Its analysts said , " the stabilisation of the outlook reflects Moody ' s expectation that sales and earnings recovery during 2021 will support a sequential improvement in the company ' s profitability and gross leverage to a level commensurate with its [ improved ] Ba3 credit rating ." Moody ' s also noted that Piaggio has seen a " lower than anticipated of the coronavirus pandemic on Piaggio ' s financial performance in 2020 , as evidenced by the progressive rebound in sales and EBITDA in the second half of the year ."

Computer giant Lenovo has signed a multi-year deal to be Title Partner of the Ducati MotoGP Team . As an official technology partner since 2018 , " Lenovo has enabled Ducati engineers ' and designers ' rapid adoption of algorithms and racing bike technology for both race and road bikes . Lenovo and Ducati are committed to enabling ever smarter remote collaboration and performance workspaces focused on speed , flexibility and mobility ".

According to a recent patent filing , Honda is developing a bikemounted drone - a drone with four rotors that sits in a housing in the extended tail of a motorcycle . The idea is that it ' s a completely autonomous flying machine that can be released on command and return automatically to the bike when needing a recharge .

BMW has announced that the BMW Group Classic and its Grand Hotel Villa D ' Este collaborator have decided to postpone the 2021 Concorso d ' Eleganza Villa d ' Este ( again !) from the initially planned end of May 2021 date to the weekend of 1 to 3 October 2021 .

With motorcycle manufacturers all over the world rushing to show their dedication to an allelectric future - mostly without actually going to the expense of launching any electric bikes - Kawasaki is following the example of some car makers by planning a hybrid bike as an interim stage before going fully battery-powered . In the past , attempts at hybrid motorcycles have been few and far between . Piaggio made hybrid versions of the MP3 in 125 cc and 300 cc forms for a short while , and Honda more recently developed the PCX hybrid for sale in some Asian markets , but where car companies have wholeheartedly accepted the idea of combining battery and petrol power , bike firms have been largely uninterested in the format . Traditionally , the reason has been simple : fitting two separate powertrains into a motorcycle , where every cubic centimetre of space is at a premium , hasn ' t provided a convincing advantage over simply making a cleaner , more economical petrol engine . But with battery and motor technology improving and growing demands for vehicles capable of running in zeroemissions modes for city use , Kawasaki has re-evaluated that position and reached the conclusion that a hybrid might make sense after all . All the indications are that Kawasaki will show its hybrid later this year , although it ' s not clear yet whether it will be as a

production machine or simply a concept bike . The firm hinted at the hybrid with a brief video , released late last year , showing how such a bike could operate in petrol-powered mode out of town , switching to pure electric power in the city , and use both power sources when maximum performance was needed . Since then , multiple patents have emerged showing aspects of the firm ' s hybrid development . Unlike some earlier attempts , Kawasaki isn ' t making a scooter or a bike with a continuously variable transmission . Instead , the petrol engine is attached to a completely conventional multispeed manual gearbox . There ' s simply an additional electric motor that ' s also geared to the input shaft via a short chain . Because the motor doubles as the starter motor and generator , it offsets some of the additional weight and size that it brings , and it also means the petrol engine can be downsized , further reducing the packaging problems . Unlike a pure electric bike , the batteries do not need to be huge and heavy - the bike will only be expected to run in all-electric mode for a few miles at a time , and there ' s no concern over long charging times as the batteries will be topped up by the petrol engine , along with regenerative braking when the bike is cruising . The most detailed patents seen so far show a parallel twin engine , probably related to the motor in the Z400 and Ninja 400 , with the electric motor

mounted above the gearbox . The brief view of the bike in Kawasaki ' s teaser video backs this up - proving that the prototype also uses the Z400 ' s tubular steel frame . Interesting aspects of the design shown in Kawasaki ' s patents include a ' boost ' button on the throttle grip . A patent-worthy innovation in itself , since the switch turns with the throttle , so it ' s always under the thumb - the idea is that you can instantly call on the combined power of both the electric motor and petrol engine when overtaking acceleration is needed . Although Kawasaki showed a poorly received all-electric prototype in 2019 , the firm clearly stated that there were no production plans for the vehicle . However , the lessons learned from that electric bike project , which included the development of a bike-specific 20 kW drive motor , batteries , control software and regenerative braking systems , play perfectly into the development of the hybrid model that has been the follow-up focus for Kawasaki ' s R & D engineers .