Of Crossbreeds And Concept Hybrids
OF CROSSBREEDS AND CONCEPT HYBRIDS
ROUNDUP
IS EVOLUTION AT WORK in the realm of the standard-style motorcycle, or are these new-age adventure/megamotard standards the work of Dr. Frankenstein? Whether this is a case of only the strong surviving or a careful mixing of parts from similar creatures, the resulting
motorcycle gene sequences appear to have what it takes to make it in an ever-changing two-wheel world.
The Honda FMX1000 (above) is the work of a computer illustrator, while it is clear that the spy photos of the all-new Triumph Tiger are of a real man (with blacked-out eyes to protect the guilty test rider?!) and machine.
The virtual Honda megamotard presents an attractive combination of pieces. RC51 V-Twin power ensures narrowness for comfort and flickability, while the 110120 horsepower would be more than enough to ensure an endangered driver’s license, especially if dry weight were kept in the vicinity of 400 pounds. Couple these qualities with a CBR1000RR swingarm and full-on sportbike-quality damping and you’d have a bike that would be quite a match for KTM’s awesome 950 Supermoto or Ducati’s forthcoming Hypermoto.
Is a big-Twin motardinspired standard from Big Red a possibility? Well, Honda’s XR-L-based Europe-market FMX650 Single has been a hit over there, but all American Honda would say about the computer illustration of this hypothetical FMX1000 or the 650-in-America possibility is, “We are always looking at what models we produce globally that would make a good fit in the U.S. lineup.” Ah, well, I guess that means we can dream...
The grainy-photo dose of reality was caught during final testing in England, when spy shots were snapped of the all-new 2007 Triumph Tiger. As you can see, the unfinished half-fairing has a familial resemblance to that of the new Daytona 675, while there is little doubt that power comes from the latest 1050cc three-cylinder engine. It seems more likely that the Tiger will get the more mellow, 123-hp tuning of the Sprint rather than the edgier 128-horse Speed Triple version, but in either case the old 105-hp 955cc mill is out. The 43mm inverted fork and radial-mount front brake calipers look to be mighty similar to the Speed Triple items, while the singleshock rear suspension attaches to a braced swingarm inspired by the lovely piece fitted to the Daytona. Wheels are 17-inch front and rear, rather than the current model’s 19-front/17rear combo, definitely taking this bike in more of a Ducati Multistrada rather than BMW R1200GS direction. Based on the performance of Triumph’s recent models, this promises to be a fun motorcycle.
While Triumph has gone in a street-oriented direction with the adventure-touring Tiger, there is no doubt that BMW is already working on an F800GS based on the new parallel-Twin platform used in the F800S and ST (see “German Renaissance,” July). The possibilities of such a machine are inspirational.
This narrow, torquey engine is the perfect platform for a lighter-weight adventure bike. Even better, imagine a limitedproduction version built along the lines of the dirt-oriented HP2! Because the GS line is such a mainstay in BMW sales, it seems hard to imagine that the company wouldn’t introduce an F800GS for the ’08 model year.
While this is all a bit of weird science mixed with real progress, it is clear that a mixing of the dirt/motard/adventure bike genes improves the breed. -Mark Hoyer
