Husqvarna and parent company BMW are showing off at Milan, and some of them are pretty eye-catching.
Take the Husqvarna MOAB, for instance. This concept bike is inspired by their Nuda 900R street bike, but it points to the company’s dirtbike roots, with a visual look that dates straight back to desert sleds from the 1960s.
The bike is powered by a 650cc single; some rumours have the machine entering production soon, as company execs actually fired it up at the show. Wheels are 17-inch, shod with semi-knobby tires, and the paint scheme is based on the Husqvarna H400 that Steve McQueen immortalized on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
Husqvarna’s parent company, BMW, also unveiled some new machinery at Milan, including an F800R with new bodywork, a new variation of the R1200GS called the Rallye and a hot-rodded HP2 version of the K1300S.
Critics had long panned the previous F800 as being ugly, ugly, ugly. Of course, that’s all subjective, but somebody at BMW must have been listening, because they’ve made some updates to the bodywork – check out the picture. They left the mechanical side of the bike unchanged, though.
The R1200GS Rallye sports alpine white bodywork with BMW Motorrad Motorsports graphics, a red subframe, and black and graphite trim on chassis components.
Other features include saddlebag mounts, an onboard computer, Enduro ESA suspension and heated grips. It retains the 100 hp boxer twin, and uses tubeless spoke wheels as opposed to the standard model’s cast wheels.
BMW’s K1300S sport tourer gets a sportier edge with a dose of HP2 treatment.
Carbon fibre items include the front fender, and airbox, clutch and passenger seat cowl. It also benefits from an Akrapovic exhaust and electric shift assist, racy footpegs, as well as ESA II suspension and automatic stability control.
It also comes with a rear race stand. We’ll let you know on its availability in Canada as soon as we can confirm it.
BMW also unveiled two new maxi-scooters, the C600 Sport and the C600 GT.
These aren’t your grandma’s scooters – they both put out 60 bhp at 7,000 rpm, with max torque of 60 nm at 6,000 rpm. They put that power to the ground by combining a 647cc parallel twin engine with a CVT transmission.
BMW says these scooters have been designed to offer the outstanding riding properties of a motorcycle; with that in mind, they tipped the front cylinders 70 degrees forward, to lower the center of gravity. They also fitted 40mm upside-down forks in front, and twin disc brakes in front, with a single disc in the rear.
The main difference between these scooters is their seats; the C600 Sport has you sitting higher, for better handling, with footboards and handlebars designed to sit you in what BMW calls an ergonomic triangle.
The GT is designed for comfort, or even touring purposes, with greater passenger capability, adjustable backrest for the rider, a taller handlebar, and a larger windscreen.
[…] in BMW’s press release, they mention their C600 Sport and C650GT maxi-scooters (we told you about these machines last month, when they were introduced at Milan). While they might not grab your attention the same […]
Please make the MOAB!!Â