motorcycle:

Opel to use motorcycle parts for their small car

General Motors has announced that it will build a cheap city car for EUR 8,000 using motorcycle parts. This measure will keeps costs down and also make it easier for the manufacturer to put the car together in the assembly stage. Tata Motors were also at some point of time, thinking along those lines during the Nano’s development stage, but the plan was subsequently dropped.

Opel is presently in the "discussion and examination phase" of the project and it will be long before the rear-engined, entry-level car rolls out of their factory. Opel will outsource the parts from either a scooter or motorcycle manufacturer and is also looking at Asian suppliers to help them out. The car is expected to carry a drive train similar to a motorcycles’ and will be ready within a few years time.

French motorcycle officers to come in California for training

If you get pulled over on a California highway next month, you might want to address the officer as "Monsieur le policier." That’s because 32 French motorcycle officers are trading the cold, gray Parisian winter for sunny, southern California for an 11-day-long training program. The initiative — the first of its kind between French and American motorcycle police units — starts Jan. 6, France’s national police said in a statement Friday. The officers belong to traffic units in (...)
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Cory Ness’s rubber mount Y2K

Jeff Goudreau was a longtime Softail rider, but after trying out one of Cory Ness’s rubber mount steeds, he caught the bug to build a machine with the smooth riding quality of Harley’s Dyna, only more stylish: a chopper. And that led him back to his old buddy with an idea-why not make a rubber mount chopper based on Ness’ Y2K frame? He started by bolting up the rolling chassis. Speedpoint wheels with Avon shoes and Ness/PM brake set ups were mated to the rear swingarm and for the front (...)
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Amazing: Japanese motorcycle cops

This is AWESOME! I have never seen a cop handle a bike like this... This is really impressive. But i do wonder. Are they really cops, or just moto racing drivers?
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Indonesia motorcycle sales up 51 pct

Motorcycle sales in Indonesia soared by 51.4 percent to 528,969 units in November from 349,365 units in the preceding month, local press reported today. Sales in 11 months ending November totaled 4.02 million, reported leading economic daily Bisnis Indonesia, quoting data from the Indonesian Motorcycle Industries Association (AISI). PT Astra Honda Motor, the local unit of Japan’s Honda Motorcycle, controlled 52 percent of the market share with 2.1 million units, down from 2.5 million in (...)
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Brembo is once again the choice of champions

A number of legendary companies will celebrate major motorsports anniversaries in 2007, but few, if any, will have achieved as much success as Brembo has in its relatively short history. Brembo and its racing subsidiaries are a fascinating success story just 30 years in the making. Although founded in 1961, Brembo began racing in 1975 when Enzo Ferrari entrusted the Bergamo-based, high-performance brake manufacturer with the task of fitting its most prestigious Formula 1 car. Since then, (...)
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Motorcycle club distributes gifts to needy children

For the sixth year, the 10 members of a motorcycle club in the area traded in helmets for Santa hats. The Iron Wheels Motorcycle Club will be helping 40 children and teens in Wexford County. The group raises money every year to buy toys and gifts for children between the ages of 20 months and 16 years old who are placed in foster care in the Wexford County area. Wednesday the group wrapped the gifts that they bought. “We raised between $1,800 and $2,000 and Wal-Mart gave us a discount so (...)
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New-motorcycle owners experience fewer problems with their bikes

Owners of new 2006 model-year motorcycles are reporting fewer problems with their bikes than they have in the past, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Motorcycle Competitive Information Study(SM) released today. The study, now in its 9th year, measures ownership experience with new motorcycles and examines the five major components of the overall ownership experience: product; quality; cost of ownership; sales; and service. Owners report an average of 159 problems per 100 (...)
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Motorcycle club members deliver gifts to kids

Motorcycle club members came bearing gifts of stuffed animals, puzzles, infant mobiles, DVDs, arts and crafts supplies, electronic trivia games, remote control cars, and even some Harley-Davidson “Mighty Bike” replicas. The contingent from the D.C. Eagles Motorcycle Club descended Tuesday on Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin-Fox Valley with a load of toys guaranteed to make even the sickest of patients grin. “We will be giving these things to patients and families throughout the year,” (...)
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Parents warned over unregistered motorcycle gifts

PARENTS should first consider safety and the law before giving their children motorcycles for Christmas, New South Wales police say. Officers have warned that unregistered bikes – particularly trail bikes designed for children, such as the smaller 50cc and 125cc models – ridden on streets and public property without permission will be seized. Anyone caught may face fines up to $2200 or two years imprisonment. Police said parents should also be aware some motorcycles are not built to (...)
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