Honda Grom Racing Seems Pretty Amazing - VIDEO

We love the Honda Grom 125 here at Gas 2. Why shouldn’t we? Between a powerful, single-cylinder engine that you don’t need a special motorcycle license to ride (in many states), a real 4-speed manual transmission, top-shelf suspension and brake hardware, and aggressive, 7/8 scale street-fighter styling, and nearly 100 MPG fuel economy rating, what’s not to love? On top of all that high-quality Honda goodness, the little Grom seems a blast to ride on the street.

But, how is it on a track?

If the video, above, is any indication, then the little Honda Grom is a blast to ride on a racetrack, too. The race above is part of an event Texas Mini GP, which consists of classes that cover everything from 50 cc singles to 150 cc multis … and which, frankly, I’m appalled that I’m only discovering now!

I’ve reached out to the Mini GP guys, so we’ll have more coverage of those festivities soon. Until then, everyone keep buying Honda Groms, and stay tuned.

Honda Grom at the Texas Mini GP

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Source Images: x481x, via Jalopnik.

2015 Yamaha MT125 is Gunning for Honda Grom

You’re a young, exciting person. You’re an urban professional. You’ve been pedaling to work for a while, now, but you’ve put some money away and you want something a little- well, more. More speed. More power. More fun. What do you do? For a while now, the answer to that question has been, “Buy a Honda Grom.” For 2015, however, Yamaha hopes your answer will be “Buy a Yamaha MT125.”

The 2015 Yamaha MT125 is based, mechanically, on the sporty R125 learner-bike the company sells overseas, but Yamaha changed the seat, fuel tank, handlebars, and more to give the MT125 a more stable, upright riding position more suitable for commuter duty.

Even with its full-size look and feel, however, there is still some doubt as to whether Yamaha will bring the fight for the commuter market to the Grom in the US. Here, the MT brand isn’t all that well established, and- let’s face it- the Honda Grom is probably still too new and too awesome to be knocked off its perch by a bike that’s so … let’s say “conventional”, which is hardly the type of thing you’d have said about a bike like the MT125 two years ago.

Such is the state of things in a post-Grom world.

For its part, however, the non-electric 2015 Yamaha MT125 sports a powerful, 14 hp engine and a generous 3-gallon fuel tank that should take you nearly 300 miles between fill-ups. Combined with aggressive styling and an XL-friendly frame, it should be a thing. You can see more of the bike at Asphalt and Rubber, which has a full Yamaha press gallery, but I’ve picked out my favorite pics, below. Enjoy!

Source | More Photos: Yamaha, Asphalt and Rubber.

Dauphine-Lamarck’s 1998 Honda CG125

The most significant trend in today’s motorcycle industry is the shifting of focus away from the aging baby-boomer crowd of wanna-be Hell’s Angel accountants and orthodontists who fueled the last Harley boom towards the young, trendy urbanites who will, hopefully, catch the 2-wheeled fire and fan its flames for the next 30-40 years of their lives. It’s a smart, calculated move- but new bikes from major players aren’t the only indication that “what’s hot” is light, nimble, and small-displacement. Enter Dauphine-Lamarck and his sexy, street-styled 1998 Honda CG125.

Like many of you, I’m sure, 1998 doesn’t seem like it was 16 long model years ago to me. Even so, the Honda CG’s basic design came to us even earlier- in the 1980s- and continues, mostly, in the bargain-basement CG110 Honda sells in Nigeria and other developing nations. That “boring” bike gets a subtle, but effective restyling by Dauphine-Lamarck that puts the little Honda CG125 on level playing field with “store-bought” cafe racers from Triumph and Royal Enfield (even if those bikes would, admittedly, leave the Honda in the dust).

The crew at Paris-based Dauphine-Lamarck specializes in small capacity Hondas from the 1960s through 1990s, and works to provides accessible, affordable customs to those that appreciate their philosophy and approach. What they’d be willing to do for you and your Honda Grom 125, however, remains to be seen- but you can tell us what you think of their “philosophy and approach” in the comments section, below.

Source | Photos: the Bike Shed, via Motorpasion.

It’s Gonna Happen: Ducati is Building a Scooter in 2014

The motorcycle blogosphere has been talking Ducati scooter almost from the moment the company was bought by Audi back in 2012. At the time, I laughed at the idea of an Audi-run Ducati, but Audi’s ambitions of going toe-to-toe with crosstown rivals BMW seems to be pushing Ducati hard to improve sales and customer support, advance technology, and go into markets that compete directly with BMW’s 2 wheeled division.

According to Asphalt and Rubber, Audi also “would like to see the ~44,000 unit (Ducati) bump its figures into the six-figure territory”, which would certainly help establish Auducati as the go-to brand for German 2 wheelers. Maybe.

Regardless of sales goals, the real question seems to be about what, specifically, an Audi-developed Ducati scooter would look like. Would it be a fun, sporty urban runabout like the Aprilia SR50 or a big, comfy cruising scoot that has more in common with BMW’s massive C series maxi-scooters? Given VW/Audi’s historically ego-driven decision making, I’d expect it to be something closer to the latter- but, who knows? Ducati may do something smart and offer a product that has more in common with the old 125 cc Ducati cafe racers of years gone by and give Honda’s hot-selling Grom something to worry about. Something like this …

… a concept, by the way, that Honda has already proven could work – and look like a million bucks! – on a scooter-sized Grom 125 frame.

What do you guys think? Is Ducati going to shock the world with a product we might actually want, or will they simply do what they’ve done better than anyone for the last few decades: play catch-up to BMW? Worst case, they slap a Ducati-looking headset and boy-racer exhaust on an old Vespa frame – and even that may be better than another giant-sized scooter that nobody asked for, right? Let us know what you think, in the comments, below.

Source: Asphalt and Rubber, original image from Gas 2.

2014 Honda CG110 is a Nigerian Prince Worth Having Around

The 2014 Honda motorcycle line-up is shaping up to be one the brand’s best in decades, and the over-arching trend is clear whether you’re looking at the 1800 cc Honda Valkyrie or the diminutive Honda Grom 125: the future is small-displacement motorcycles. With that in mind, it could be argued that the most significant new 2014 Honda motorcycle isn’t the trimmed-down power-cruiser or the hot-selling and genre-defying Grom, but is, instead, the new-for-2014 Honda CG110, set to debut in Nigeria early next year.

Honda’s new CG110 is built around a durable, air-cooled 110 cc single with corrosion-resistant drum brakes, easy-to-fix wire wheels, and readily-available headlight, turn signals, and “universal” looking mirrors. All of that serves to make the bike a solid investment in a third world country, where the 460-ish Euro asking price (about 630 USD) represents a significant percentage of a customer’s yearly income.

As a go-most-places, do-most-things commuter bike, the CG110 seems like a great buy- especially with Honda quality and at that price. It’s a pity, then, that Honda will probably never bring this 55 MPH, 100-ish MPG motorcycle stateside … even at twice the price. Which raises the question: if they did, would you buy one?

I think I’d be a player on a US-market CG110, especially with this oh-so-eighties aesthetic in play. If they kept the price around $1499, I’d probably buy two! What do you guys think- will this little commuter bike play in Peoria, or is this a third-world only sales move? Let us know what you think, in the comments.

Source | Photos: Honda, via Motorpasion.

To Mr. Santa Clause - Please leave me a big ole' Honda Ruckus

Dear Santa,

You’ve been very good to us already this year, what with the new turbocharged, 4-cylinder 2015 Ford Mustang and the 50 MPG Honda Accord- not to mention the slick little Motoped 50 that just reached its Kickstarter goal … but let’s get serious.

What we really want for Christmas isn’t a Harley-stomping Honda Valkyrie or even a roughnecked little Grom. What we really want for Christmas is the same Sam Gilmore and the guys at Grape Street Garage want for Christmas: a 150 cc Honda Ruckus with VTEC and a 13,000 RPM redline.

SO SWEET

Sam describes the thing as a Honda F1 motor in a Ruckus- or, maybe a single Honda F1 cylinder, but that’s close enough, right? Surely you can make a few up from spare McLaren MP4/4 parts and make something happen in the next week or so, yeah?

Thank you, Santa, in advance. Also: when you get to my house, in lieu of cookies and milk I will leave whiskey, prostitutes, and fine cigars- as per usual.

Image: Sam Gilmore, via Grape Street Customs.

Genuine Scooters’ 2014 Hooligan 170 Leaked on Facebook

The Honda Grom 125 may be the little 130 MPG bike that’s taking America by storm, but it won’t be the only “bad boy” mini-moto on the scene for very long. Suzuki is firing back with a DP-style electric monkey bike due in sometime in 2015, while Chicago’s own Genuine Scooter Company is fighting back with a scooter that combines some of the Grom’s “bad boy” attitude with an extra helping of power and several helpings of practicality besides. That bike, supposedly called “Hooligan 170″, was leaked on a Genuine dealer’s Facebook page- as you can see, above.

While we can’t tell much from the Facebook post’s original image …

… we can play with the lighting, highlight a few of the “Batman looking” Hooligan’s details, and get a pretty good sense of what Genuine’s new-for-2014 bike will be like when it finally hits the road next spring.

Here’s the re-touched image, below …

… and this is what (I think) we can expect from Genuine’s 2014 Hooligan 170.

1. Stacked HID headlights, which is new for Genuine.
2. High-quality, NCY-style disk brakes (for stoppies).
3. Clever luggage hooks under the floorboard to make securing groceries and backpacks easier (never seen this before- but LOVE it!).
4. A sturdy rear grab bar suggests that an accessory line is already in the works- expect some flat-black luggage to match the bike, then.
5. If the “170″ in Hooligan 170 refers to the same 170 cc engine currently used in Genuine’s Buddy 170i (which is, I think, a safe bet), we can expect an advanced (in the scooter world) computer-controlled fuel injection system and a top speed well over 60 mph with a 90-ish MPG EPA rating.

Will more power, an automatic transmission, clever cargo management, and highway-capable speeds make the Hooligan 170 a Grom-killer, will the Bat-scoot snatch a few sales from convenience-minded Grom shoppers, or will the bike find its own audience? Let us know what you think in the comments section, below.

Source | Photos: Scooterworks Chicago, via Facebook.

Check Out This Custom Honda Grom Cafe Racer

When is a Honda Grom not a Honda Grom? When it’s a Mike Hailwood-inspired, one-off custom Honda Grom cafe racer like the one Honda rolled out in Thailand a few days ago. The bike was built by Honda to demonstrate the little Grom’s potential for customization – something that’s critical to a bike’s success in the bike/scooter obsessed countries of Southeast Asia.

That potential for customization is fully realized in the Grom Cafe Racer, which features a hand-formed aluminum fairing and historical details like the green number signs, the tank cutouts for the rider’s knees, and the general shape of the exhaust – all reminiscent of the RC166 that Hailwood rode to the 1966 250 cc Grand Prix title. Clip-on handlebars and a cafe racer-style seat round out the custom touches,

What do you guys think? Is this custom Grom cafe racer this just the thing for chasing down Yamaha Zumas at the next Mods and Rockers ride in your town? Should you just buy a Royal Enfield Continental? Would you be better off building a cafe racer out of a boneyard CB200, like that super-awesome 10 year-old, Zeke, did? You can let us know how you’d set up your Grom in the comments, below. As for the rest of the market?

Judging by the Honda Grom’s envy-inducing sales figures, I think the market has heard Honda’s message loud and clear.

Source | Photos: Honda Thailand, via Motorcycle.com

Of Course it is: Honda Grom 125 is Selling Like Hotcakes

Surprising absolutely no-one who was paying attention to what the cool kids were riding, Honda’s Grom 125 new-age monkey bike is sold out. The Grom is so hot right now that, not only have dealers sold out, there are waiting lists. In some cases, waiting lists 40 buyers deep, with many would-be buyers offering to pay more than Honda’s $2999 asking price – which is, itself, a bit more than what most 125 cc scooters currently go for.

As I said, this should surprise absolutely no-one.

When photos of the 2013 Honda Grom 125 first surfaced, I immediately lost my mind. I squee’d and squealed at the little bike, calling it “the most fun you can have without an overwhelming karmic retribution getting portioned out by the cosmos” and craving, desperately, to get my grubby little mitts on one.

Here we are, months later, and the closest I can come to riding a new Honda Grom 125 is sit in the waiting line with – well, probably not 40 other similarly-minded bike nutters. Hopefully not, anyway.

As for all those “no surprise” comments up there? It really shouldn’t come as any surprise that a bike like this is successful. Sure, it’s not a big-bore chopper or blistering sport-bike, but that’s stuff for old guys, anyway. Like, “baby boomer” old guys – and Honda gets that. “We need this market to grow,” says Bill Savino, manager of American Honda MC Press. “The boomers are going out. We need new riders coming in.”

Those new riders are buying scooters, small-bore sport bikes, and vintage UJMs – sometimes to cut into Cafe Racers, sometimes to restore, and sometimes just to ride. The big cruisers? The bullet-bikes? They’re cool, I guess. Maybe my dad will buy one.

As for Honda, they got the message loud and clear. At Huntington Beach Honda, owner Greg Guthrie sees a broad appeal for the little Grom 125 as a go-anywhere, traffic-carving super-fun machine that defies the various motorcycling stereotypes and cliques of my youth in the 90s and 00s. “Every day we have three or four people asking about it,” he explains. “I’ve been in the business 25 years, and I can’t remember a unit that has had a wider cross-section of buyers. There is no demographic for this bike. It’s everyone. That’s the demographic.”

Well said, Greg. Well said.

Source | Photos: LA Times | Honda.

New-Age Monkey: RideApart Tests the 2014 Honda Grom

When the 2014 Honda Grom was first announced, to say that I was jazzed would have been an understatement. I said that “the new Honda Grom promises to deliver the most fun you can have without an overwhelming karmic retribution getting portioned out by the cosmos.” Ride Apart’s Wes Siler recently got to ride the little bike, and proclaimed that “First gear wheelies are easy and consequence free. You feel like a hooligan, then start wondering why cars are passing you and look down to realize you’re only going 20mph.”

Honda’s new-age monkey bike sounds like big fun, indeed!

The short version of Wes’ test ride is that the 2014 Honda Grom is set to retail for 2999 USD, has a 125 cc engine with a 4-speed manual transmission, a 56 mph top speed, and gets an EPA certified 130 mpg. For riding impressions and more great photos of the Honda Grom in action, head on over to RideApart’s original article. Enjoy!

Source | Photos: RideApart.

Introducing the 2014 Honda Grom - VIDEO

The 2014 Honda Grom is available in Pearl Red or Metallic Black for $2999.

This is Honda’s newest bike – the 125 cc, supermoor-inspired Honda Grom. I think it’s safe to say that it’s the best thing ever, and that we (all of us) need to hunt down the men and women responsible for creating the Grom and immediately begin harvesting their DNA in the hopes of breeding a superior new race of genius transportation designers before – we all end up Tweeting at each other from inside one of those awful Rinspeed cube things.

With top-shelf suspension components, brakes, and high-end tires backing up the bikes diminutive 125 cc dirtbike engine and 4-speed semi-automatic transmission, this little Honda should be gobs of fun. Scratch that …

The new Honda Grom promises to deliver the most fun you can have without an overwhelming karmic retribution getting portioned out by the cosmos.

… beyond that, the little Honda Grom also promises squeaky-clean emissions and an MPG rating that would have put it near the top of last month’s “13 best fuel-efficient motorcycles for 2013” list … and I like it better than
most of those, too.

You can check out the official Honda Grom press release, as well an epic video showcasing the little Grom’s innate awesomeness, below.

Enjoy!

More All-New Models Join the 2014 Honda Lineup – 05/14/2013 – Torrance, CA

The exciting 2014 model year continues as American Honda introduces four brand-new models that clearly demonstrate the incredibly wide reach of Honda engineering; this is the kind of innovation Honda enthusiasts have come to expect over the years. In addition to these all-new models, this announcement also includes a number of successful and favorite returning models.

“This is really a fun time for Honda fans, as we unveil these four incredibly cool all-new machines for 2014 that reach out to entirely different segments of the market,” said Powersports Press Manager Bill Savino. “This introduction serves as a perfect example of what 2014 is going to be like for Honda, as we continue to bring diverse and completely new concepts to riders, no matter what kind of machines they might favor.

“Earlier this year we introduced the first of our new side-by-side Pioneer line, the 700-4, and now we’re announcing our second model to the Pioneer line: the tough and hard-working Pioneer 700 side-by-side that’s fully featured and will be priced competitively. Next up is the friendly and fun-loving Grom, an easy-to-handle package that makes you grin when you see it and keeps you grinning as you ride. And we have the impressive new Forza scooter, a very able 300-class machine with strong performance and economical operation for solo riding or two-up travel. We also have an awesome all-new motocross machine, the CRF250R, which has been completely redesigned for 2014 along the lines of the new-generation CRF450R.

“These four new models along with more Honda favorites returning for the new model year demonstrate that Honda is on the move for 2014. We’ll be bringing you even more exciting news in the coming months, so keep your eyes on Honda.”

Grom

Okay, admit it: When you first look at the sporty and compact Grom™ you just have to smile. And no matter how long you’ve been riding, you just want to throw a leg over this bike and twist the throttle. It’s an excellent fit for both new and experienced riders, but to Gen Y buyers in particular the Grom carries a bit of attitude while promising fun times: the compact frame size, low seat, inverted front fork and hydraulic disc brakes make this the real deal. The fuel-injected 125cc engine delivers lots of torque, the 4-speed manual transmission works just like any other full-sized bike, the maneuverability and handling make it a joy to ride, and there’s even room for a passenger. Factor in its efficient size with an affordable price, and there’s just no way you can pass up this chance to get out and ride. Because no matter who you are, the Grom will keep you smiling, ride after ride. Colors: Pearl Red, Metallic Black;

Price: $2999; Availability: August (2013)

Source: Honda, via Autoblog.