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Up-Close with the 2018 Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000R Suzuka 8-Hours Race Bike

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In all our coverage of the 2018 Suzuka 8-Hours endurance race, the name Suzuki has woefully not been in much of the conversation.

This isn’t to say that the brand from Hamamatsu wasn’t present at this prestigious event, but its level of involvement and readiness certainly wasn’t on par with the other three Japanese brands.

Fielding the Yoshimura Suzuki factory-backed team yet again, this year saw a big milestone take place, as Suzuki’s endurance efforts are now being conducted on the current-generation superbike.

This has caused some issues in the paddock, most notably in the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team (SERT), which is Suzuki’s factory-backed team in the FIM World Endurance Championship.

The winningest team in the FIM EWC – by a considerable amount – SERT struggled during the 2017/2018 season, finishing 6th overall in the championship. Surely as they sort out the new GSX-R1000R, SERT will once again be on top of the game.

In the hunt at Suzuka, it was the Yoshimura Suzuki team that was carrying the banner for Suzuki, finishing 10th – of note, behind the Suzuki team of S-Pulse Dream Racing – IAI, which finished 4th.

A man on a mission, Steve was able to get a bunch of shots of the Yoshimura Suzuki bike before it took to the track. You should check them out, and if you haven’t already, you should see his captures of the Suzuka race bikes from Red Bull Honda, Yamaha Factory Racing Team, and Kawasaki Team Green.

As you would expect from the name, many of the tasty bits have been made in-house by Yoshimura, including the full titanium exhaust. The pieces that catch our eye the most though are the crash protectors for the frame, which have been elongated and shaped to serve as an aerodynamic winglets.

We have seen winglets and aerodynamic bodywork playing a huge role in the MotoGP Championship as of late, so it is surprising that it has taken this long for the concept to trickle into superbike racing, thus far only at Suzuka, and in only a minor role at a solitary team.

Mark my words, this is a trend that is only going to gain steam. It is of note that the Yoshimura Suzuki team at the Suzuka 8-Hours is striking first blood.

Of course, one of our favorite things about the Suzuka 8-Hours race machinery is all the quick-change equipment, and the racing headlights that the different teams create, as the Japanese race finishes in the dark.

Looking at the Yoshimura Suzuki bike, it might be without the trick items like carbon fiber reinforced radiator hoses, prototype-spec suspension, and other one-off items, but this GSX-R1000R has it where it counts.

The swingarm has been replaced with a more rigid unit (check out the quick change hardware for the rear tire too), the fuel tank is larger and shaped for ergonomics, and the bike is capable of taking a tumble, the latter point being proved during the Suzuka 8-Hours qualifying session for the top teams.

Another item that caught our eye was the changes made to the throttle assembly. The new Suzuki GSX-R1000R finally brings ride-by-wire to the “King of Superbikes” (along with traction control and other rider aids), but Yoshimura Suzuki has swapped out the stock system for one that uses cables connected to a servo, closer to the throttle body assembly.

There are several reasons for this, crash survival being one of them, and experience with this system being another. This certainly isn’t the first year that Suzuki’s have had ride-by-wire at Suzuka, despite the road-going machines being without the technology for a considerable amount of time.

As you would expect, the Suzuka 8-Hours machine is shod in Bridgestone tires, the tire of choice for the top Suzuka teams. Öhlins is the suspension of choice as well, with Brembo handling the braking duty.

Though this year’s result wasn’t where we would expect to see the Yoshimura Suzuki squad finish – especially with Sylvain Guintoli, Bradley Ray, and Takuya Tsuda at the helm of the machine – we have a feeling that this is only the beginning of Suzuki’s return to Suzuka.

As more laps are put into the current-generation GSX-R1000R platform, look for Yoshimura Suzuki, SERT, and the other Suzuki teams to be fighting at the front of the pack.

Until then, we have a bevy of ultra high-resolution photos for you to drool over. Enjoy!

Photos: © 2018 Steve English – All Rights Reserved

Our Suzuka 8-Hours coverage is made possible by our A&R Pro members. If you like reading this unique race coverage on Asphalt & Rubber, you should consider supporting this content by signing up for A&R Pro.

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Business

BMW Motorrad Sales Drop 3.1% Worldwide for Q2 2018

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The second-quarter sales results from OEMs continue to roll in, and another brand is showing a decline, this time it is BMW Motorrad. Usually one of the stronger brands, in terms of yearly and quarterly growth, the Germans are reporting a 3.1% sales decline for Q2 2018.

In total, BMW Motorrad sold 51,117 units worldwide, compared to the 52,753 units it sold during the same time period last year. In terms of money, this sales drop means a corresponding 5.8% decline in revenue (€658 million) and a 6..8% decline in profits before tax (€174 million).

This is also translating into a 1.6% sales decline (by unit volume) for the first half of the year, with only 86,975 motorcycles and scooters sold to customers.  This has resulted in a 10.1% revenue drop (€1,182 million), and a profit decrease of 23.7% (€196 million).

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Podcast

Paddock Pass Podcast #78 – Suzuka 8-Hours

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Episode 78 of the Paddock Pass Podcast is out, and in it we see Steve English and Jensen Beeler on the mics, as they discuss both this year’s Suzuka 8-Hours endurance race.

Perhaps the most important race to the Japanese manufacturers, the Suzuka 8-Hours is seeing a return to its former glory, with several manufacturers putting together truly factory teams.

The show covers this new dawn for the Suzuka 8-Hours race, as well as the action on the track, of which there was plenty. It may have been eight-hours long, but this was a proper sprint race, with only 30 seconds separating first and second place.

On the show we are also joined by Jonathan Rea and Michael Laverty, who shed a ton of insight into what it’s like riding the Suzuka Specials, the differences in tires at the Japanese track, and what it takes to win this iconic race. You won’t want to miss those conversations.

All in all, we think you will enjoy the show. It is packed with behind-the-scenes info, and insights from teams and riders in the Suzuka paddock.

As always, be sure to follow the Paddock Pass Podcast on Facebook, Twitter and subscribe to the show on iTunes and SoundCloud – we even have an RSS feed for you. If you like the show, we would really appreciate you giving it a review on iTunes. Thanks for listening!

Source: SoundCloud

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Bikes

Up-Close with the Kawasaki Team Green Suzuka Bike

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The race-winner that could have been. Kawasaki Team Green was the Suzuka 8-Hours favorite coming out of Saturday’s Top 10 qualifying session, and the factory-backed Kawasaki team traded corners with Yamaha during the opening laps of Sunday’s endurance race.

What looked like an upset in the making, turned out to be a fizzle, largely because of a poor fueling and pit stop strategy, which saw Jonathan Rea first run out of gas, and then stay out on slicks during a rain storm.

As he tumbled down the asphalt, you have to wonder if the World Superbike champion saw his Suzuka fortunes tumbling with him.

The 2018 Suzuka 8-Hours endurance race was the biggest effort that we have seen from Kawasaki, which enlisted the help of its future WorldSBK team (Jonathan Rea, Leon Haslam, and part of the KRT pit box), to join the Japanese engineers and All Japan Superbike rider Kazuma Watanabe.

Part of the effort involved honing the specially prepared Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR race bike for the Suzuka 8-Hours, and this included a considerable amount of pre-event testing, with WorldSBK crew chief Pere Ribe overseeing the bike’s development.

Looking up-close at the Suzuka Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR, we can see that extensive changes have been made to the machine, from the headlights to the chassis.

As with our up-close galleries of the Red Bull Honda CBR1000RR and factory Yamaha YZF-R1, Kawasaki was less-than-eager to have its machine photographed.

Admittedly, the most interesting pieces on the machine are not Kawasaki, but instead are the suspension pieces brought by Showa to the Suzuka 8-Hours.

It is difficult to verify, but there was talk from Japan that the inner forks tubes are made from titanium, in an effort to reduce mass (of note, readers should also see the carbon fiber outer fork tubes that Öhlins has been developing).

The alternative would be some sort of coating or treatment to increase the material hardness, which helps lower friction and initial stiction.

The rear shock looks the most interesting, however, and of note is how many battle scars are on it from extended use. Note the carbon fiber panels that shield the rear shock as well, possibly for aerodynamic streamlining.

Brakes are by Brembo, and include “T-bar” floating rotors up front. Unsurprisingly, the rubber is provided by Bridgestone. The exhaust is a full titanium unit

Go ahead and enjoy these detailed photos, we left them in their original resolution for you.

Photos: © 2018 Steve English – All Rights Reserved

Our Suzuka 8-Hours coverage is made possible by our A&R Pro members. If you like reading this unique race coverage on Asphalt & Rubber, you should consider supporting this content by signing up for A&R Pro.

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Racing

Come Watch the Entire Erzbergrodeo Hard Enduro Race

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What are you doing for the next 4 hours and 45 minutes? Take a break from your office-drone life and come watch the hardest single-day motorcycle event in the world.

That’s right, the entire Erzbergrodeo is up on YouTube (complete with a livestream chat feed), for your dirty-biking pleasure and two-centric practice of schadenfreude.

This year was the 24th running of the Erzbergrodeo, and this hard enduro hare scramble lived up to the hype once again. Only 23 riders finished this year’s race in the four-hour time limit (out of the 1,500 entrants and 500 qualifiers), and the clear winner didn’t emerge until the end of the course.

The “Iron Mountain” proved once again to be a great equalizer in rider skill and machine setup, which is why so many people flock to this old iron mine in Austria.

Over the years, thanks largely to the support of Red Bull, the Erzbergrodeo has become one of those iconic motorcycle races that lives a live of its own. Each year we see more top riders flocking to Erzberg, and this year saw the debut of the race’s first electric competitor: Ty Tremaine with Alta Motors.

We don’t want to give too much away, for those who don’t know the result and want to come into the stream clean, but it’s a worthwhile watch. Grab a beverage (or ten), turn off the phone, and enjoy!

Source: Red Bull via Motorcyclist; Photo: Erzbergrodeo

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A&R Pro

After Suzuka

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The 2018 Suzuka 8-Hours is in the books, and it was one to remember. In a lot of ways, this was Suzuka back in its heyday. Factory bikes, world-class riders, and a flat-out sprint race between the best of the best.

It was a shame that the weather interrupted what had looked set to be a classic 8-Hours. With Jonathan Rea hitting the deck in the treacherous conditions, it took a potential race-winner out of contention, and ended three and a half hours of toe-to-toe, bar-to-bar between Kawasaki and Yamaha.

For the first time since 2015, Yamaha was challenged, but Alex Lowes and Michael van der Mark weren’t rattled.

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Racing

F.C.C. TSR Honda Becomes the First Japanese Team to Win the FIM Endurance World Championship

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With the Suzuka 8-Hours completed, it is time to crown a winner in the FIM Endurance World Championship, and that winner is the F.C.C. TSR Honda France team.

The Japanese outfit went into the FIM EWC series finale just 10 points ahead of its nearest rival, the GMT94 Yamaha squad, which meant the series crown was still up for grabs heading into the Japanese round.

Suzuka isn’t a normal Endurance World Championship round, however, as there are a number of one-off teams that can steal points from the FIM EWC regulars, which made the 10-point deficit a tough challenge for the French team to overcome.

With circumstances playing into F.C.C. TSR Honda’s hands quite well, and the endurance team having the added benefit of being on Bridgestone tires, the tire of choice at Suzuka (eight of the top ten Suzuka finishers were using Bridgestones), victory was nigh.

Finally getting to taste the bubbly at Suzuka, F.C.C. TSR Honda became the first Japanese team ever to win the FIM Endurance World Championship, thanks to the riding of Josh Hook, Freddy Foray, and Alan Techer.

Final Standings from the 2017/2018 FIM Endurance World Championship:

Pos Team Bike Country FMN FRA FRA SVK GER JPN Total
1 F.C.C. TSR Honda France Honda JPN MFJ 37 58 21 30 25.5 171.5
2 GMT94 YAMAHA Yamaha FRA FFM 60 31 24 21 22.5 158.5
3 Honda Endurance Racing Honda GBR ACU 42 40 19 8 18 127
4 WEPOL Racing by penz13.com BMW GER DMSB 43 38 – – – 81
5 MERCURY RACING BMW CZE ACCR 29 19 15 7 10.5 80.5
6 Suzuki Endurance Racing Team Suzuki FRA FFM 33 8 14 11 13.5 79.5
7 NRT48 BMW GER DMSB 32 – 17 19 3 71
8 TEAM SRC KAWASAKI FRANCE Kawasaki FRA FFM – 27 12 24 – 63
9 Bolliger Team Switzerland Kawasaki SUI FMS 4 35 13 1 0 53
10 Tati Team Beaujolais Racing Kawasaki FRA FFM 21 10 5 13 – 49
11 YAMAHA FACTORY RACING TEAM Yamaha JPN MFJ – – – – 45 45
12 Junior Team LMS Suzuki Suzuki FRA FFM 11 18 – 14 – 43
13 MOTO AIN Yamaha FRA FFM – 22 4 15 – 41
14 Red Bull Honda with Japan Post Honda JPN MFJ – – – – 36 36
15 Kawasaki Team GREEN Kawasaki JPN MFJ – – – – 31.5 31.5
16 YART – YAMAHA Yamaha AUT AMF – – 30 – – 30
17 No Limits Motor Team Suzuki ITA FMI 9 2 6 12 – 29
18 S-PULSE DREAM RACING IAI Suzuki JPN MFJ – – – – 28.5 28.5
19 Yamaha Viltaïs Experiences Yamaha FRA FFM – 5 11 10 – 26
20 3ART- MOTO TEAM 95 Yamaha FRA FFM – 24 – – – 24
21 Honda Asia-Dream Racing Honda JPN MFJ – – – – 21 21
22 MACO RACING Team Yamaha SVK SMF – 3 0 17 – 20
23 KYB MORIWAKI MOTUL RACING Honda JPN MFJ – – – – 19.5 19.5
24 Motobox Kremer Racing #65 Yamaha GER DMSB 5 3 0 9 – 17
25 YOSHIMURA SUZUKI MOTUL RACING Suzuki JPN MFJ – – – – 16.5 16.5
26 Team 33 Accessoires – Louit Moto Kawasaki FRA FFM 16 – – – – 16
27 Team KAGAYAMA U.S.A Suzuki JPN MFJ – – – – 15 15
28 Team R2CL Suzuki FRA MUL 6 9 – – – 15
29 Gert56 German Endurance Racing Team BMW GER DMSB – 7 8 – – 15
30 WSB-Endurance Kawasaki GER DMSB – 8 7 – – 15
31 Aviobike Yamaha FRA FFM 8 0 0 6 – 14
32 MOTOTECH EWC TEAM Honda BEL FMB – 5 3 5 – 13
33 BMW Motorrad39 BMW JPN MFJ – – – – 12 12
34 TECMAS – BMW BMW FRA FFM 5 7 – – – 12
35 ATOMIC 68 Suzuki FRA FFM – 1 10 – – 11
36 sarazin motorsport by hall moto 02 Yamaha FRA FFM 10 – – – – 10
37 Wójcik Racing Team Yamaha POL PZM – – 9 0 0 9
38 BMW?Financial?Services?135 BMW JPN MFJ – – – – 9 9
39 Mistresa with ATJ Racing Honda JPN MFJ – – – – 7.5 7.5
40 AMSS-TRB VIDRA TEAM SERBIA Yamaha SRB AMSS 7 – – – – 7
41 Team 18 Sapeurs Pompiers Kawasaki FRA FFM – 6 – – – 6
42 Titanium Power Racing with HOOTERS Yamaha JPN MFJ – – – – 6 6
43 TEAM FRONTIER Honda JPN MFJ – – – – 4.5 4.5
44 Team LRP Poland BMW POL PZM – 0 – 4 – 4
45 Exteria Eko Racing Team BMW SVK SMF – 0 1 3 – 4
46 ENERGIE ENDURANCE 91 Kawasaki FRA FFM 3 0 0 – – 3
47 Team April Moto Motors Events Honda FRA FFM 1 0 2 – – 3
48 Rac 41 Honda FRA FFM – – – 2 – 2
49 GIRLS RACING TEAM Yamaha FRA FFM 2 0 – – – 2
50 Team SuP Dream Honda Honda JPN MFJ – – – – 1.5 1.5
51 Zuff Racing Team Honda SUI FMS 1 0 – – – 1
52 National Motos Honda FRA FFM 1 – – – – 1

Source: FIM Endurance World Championship

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Recall

MV Agusta Recalls F3 800 & Dragster for Axle Issue

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MV Agusta USA is recalling a grand total of 22 machines, because their fork axle carrier may have damaged threads, which can cause excessive play of the wheel clamping screw.

The recall affects only the F3 800, F3 800 RC, and Dragster 800 RC models from the MV Agusta 2018 model year lineup.

To remedy the situation, MV Agusta USA will notify affected owners, and MV Agusta dealers will inspect the threaded holes in the fork axle carriers, and if necessary replace the fork leg, free of charge.

According to the recall documents, the MV Agusta production line reported excessive play of the axle carrier wheel clamping screw of some forks during motorcycle assembly. Quality Control then identified the defective batch of axle carriers that have damaged threads.

This issue has the same effect as if threaded axle carrier holes are of a larger diameter compared to the design specifications, hence causing the clamping screw to have excessive play.

This recall has already started, as of July 20, 2018. Concerned owners may contact MV Agusta customer service at 1-215-781-1770, and reference MV Agusta’s number for this recall, which is 18RC02. As always, the NHTSA is also available at 1-888-327-4236 and safercar.gov.

Source: NHTSA

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Racing

Up-Close with the Suzuka-Winning Yamaha YZF-R1

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This is it. This is the biggest, baddest, meanest superbike on the Suzuka 8-Hours grid. Setting the high-water mark in Japan FOUR YEARS IN A ROW now, the Yamaha YZF-R1 from the Yamaha Factory Racing Team is the pinnacle of the sport.

You may not have known it, but things didn’t quite go Yamaha’s way this year at the Suzuka 8-Hours though, with Katsuyuki Nakasuga having to sit out the race because of injury.

This left Alex Lowes and Michael van der Mark to carry the load between the two of them, a tiring job at Suzuka.

Winning by only 30 seconds in an eight-hour race is still called winning though, and in doing so the Yamaha Factory Racing Team showed the depth and talent of its team. This is a high-level, high-functioning, endurance racing outfit, and it comes straight from the factory in Iwata, Japan.

And while the Yamaha YZF-R1 is a motorcycle that you can pick up at any dealership in the United States (so long as it isn’t for a Superbike Deathmatch), the machine on the Suzuka Circuit this past weekend is anything but ordinary.

I sent our man Steve English down to the pits to get some shots of this mysterious machine, and the Japanese team was being “very Japanese” about letting us taking photos, as Steve puts it.

That didn’t stop us from getting some photos though. Go ahead, go get a towel before you continue further. We’ll wait.

If there is one common theme to the Suzuka Yamaha YZF-R1 race bike, it is carbon fiber. The Japanese brand must own stock in a composites factory, as the Suzuka 8-Hour race-winner is absolutely dripping in the stuff.

First, there is the typical bits you would expect to be made out of carbon fiber: the bodywork, various guards, a cover or two. But Yamaha takes things to a whole new level with carbon fiber switch housings, and other simple items that surely must equate to ounces saved, not pounds.

What really caught my eye though was the carbon fiber pieces on the cooling system, and I am not quite sure that I have figured them out.

Are they moulded carbon fiber pieces to replace the hoses for the radiator? That doesn’t seem likely (and a poor material choice for the job), though I would wager that there is some weight savings to be found there.

Crash protection for the engine hoses maybe? That would make more sense, and if pressed that would be the answer I would give, especially in an endurance racing environment.

But then again, this isn’t an endurance machine…it is a Suzuka machine. Any crash by the Yamaha Factory Racing Team riders during the Suzuka 8-Hours means defeat. Coming in second, third, or God forbid off the podium, is defeat in this winner-takes-all affair.

I would be curious to hear thoughts in the comments section from the mechanical experts on our site. This is a new one on me, for sure. We don’t see this kind of use for carbon fiber even in the MotoGP Championship.

Other differences from the street bike abound, but it is most interesting to see where the Suzuka 8-Hours factory Yamaha differs even from the brand’s “factory” World Superbike machine.

One such place is in the swingarm, which is beefier than the stock unit, but has a considerably less under-bracing than the WorldSBK-spec machine. There is a balancing act being done here between rigidity and weight, and the determining voice is also different.

This is because the Suzuka 8-Hours Yamaha YZF-R1 was built around the preferences of Katsuyuki Nagasuga, Yamaha’s All Japan Superbike rider and MotoGP test rider.

The Japanese rider is Yamaha’s ace in the hole at Suzuka, so it is of note not only what he wants from a machine, but also worth realizing that Yamaha is still capable of winning without him.

In terms of race partners, Yamaha has an interesting list. Of course, the Yamaha Factory Racing Team runs Bridgestone tires – if you don’t know why, read our A&R Pro story about Bridgestone and Suzuka.

Also, the Iwata factory made the interesting choice to use Kayaba (KYB) suspension. You will note an Öhlins steering damper still found its way onto the machine, though.

Both the front forks and rear shock have high-speed and low-speed settings for compression, and we can see that Yamaha made a slight preload adjustment ahead of the Suzuka 8-Hour race start – an interesting tidbit and insight into the team’s workings.

Brembo brakes complete the package, and are a more standard fitting in the Suzuka 8-Hours paddock, unlike the peculiar choice of Nissin for the factory-backed Red Bull Honda outfit. As far as I can tell, the Suzuka 8-Hour YZF-R1 uses the same braking package as the PATA Yamaha WorldSBK machine.

Take a moment to realize the throwback red and white livery that all the factory Yamaha teams used at Suzuka, giving nod to the 20 years of history being achieved by the YZF-R1 model.

The original liter bike, the R1 has changed the game, and 20 years later, it is still the bike to beat in Japan.

With the crossplane crankshaft design, and “long band” firing order, the Yamaha YZF-R1 is known as a gas-guzzler, so that has to play into the factory team’s strategy.

Where we saw the second-place finishing Red Bull Honda extending its stints, and doing two-less pit stops than the Yamaha Factory Racing Team, the tuning fork brand was able to reclaim the time lost in the pits with its time on the track.

This can only be done with outright speed, and Yamaha very much made the 2018 Suzuka 8-Hours look like a sprint race – an even more impressive feat considering the team only used two riders.

You can bet that planning for the 2019 edition of the race has already begun, perhaps in earnest back at the technical center, or maybe more casually on the back of a napkin.

But, Yamaha surely wants to make this five-in-a-row, and the boys from Iwata now have a giant target painted on their backs. Until next year, my friends.

Wide Shots: Yamaha; Close Shots: © 2018 Steve English – All Rights Reserved

Our Suzuka 8-Hours coverage is made possible by our A&R Pro members. If you like reading this unique race coverage on Asphalt & Rubber, you should consider supporting this content by signing up for A&R Pro.

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Electric

Harley-Davidson Outlines Its Future Electric Lineup

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The biggest announcement from Harley-Davidson today wasn’t its adventure-touring motorcycle (though it looks interesting), and it wasn’t its new Streetfighter or Custom models either (one of these I like, the other not so much).

The big news wasn’t the Livewire getting closer to production, though that is close to the mark, and where this story is ultimately headed.

All of these announcement would have been worthy of their own day in the press cycle, but the real news from the Bar & Shield brand is a look at Harley-Davidson’s upcoming electric lineup, which is coming across as very robust, and shows a decisive plan for the future.

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