Top Gun

Hero MotoCorp announces streetfighter juxtaposed to Harley-Davidson X440

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Hero ‘Maverick’ is the upcoming streetfighter, positioned against Harley-Davidson X440. It will also go up against the popular Yamaha MT lineup. Hero and Harley-Davidson are working together but who will win in their respective sales volumes? Hero MotoCorp is the exclusive distributor and service provider for Harley-Davidson in India. Together they built and launched the X440 last year to good pre-booking numbers. The forthcoming Hero Mavrick will share identical foundational elements, such as the trellis frame and the 440 cc oil-cooled, single-cylinder engine. However, it will undergo several modifications to distinguish itself more distinctly from its American counterpart. While Harley-Davidson X440 is categorized as a roadster, the forthcoming Mavrick will be positioned as a streetfighter. It all starts with a cool name. That’s how marketing and branding works. I bet Hero MotoCorp will sell a lot more of these Maverick bikes than H-D’s X440 bikes—- no doubt inspired from a ‘Top Tom’ movie of the same name. If Hero MotoCorp don’t show an advertisement featuring airplane pilots, aspiring owners will probably be disappointed. These will also compete well against existing Yamaha lineup including Yamaha MT-15. Bajaj Pulsar is still a well-known common model and Hero now has its Karizma ZMR as well as Maverick to rival Bajaj. * * * * Subscribe to be in the loop of all things on two-wheels, click to roll. Free weekly newsletter. Once a week, no spam, nothing but motorcycle related content.

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Top Gun-Inspired Federal Moto FED-016 “Danger Zone” Isn’t Your Average Kawasaki

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by Mircea Panait from https://www.autoevolution.com Back in April, news broke out about Top Gun: Maverick. One of the most anticipated movies of 2020 has been pushed back to December 23rd instead of June 24th, morphing from a summer blockbuster to a Christmas blockbuster. As opposed to the lovely GPZ900R from the 1986 original, Tom Cruise – or should I say Maverick – switches to a different Kawasaki in the sequel. To the point, he’s riding the Ninja H2 supercharged supersport motorcycle. In keeping with the Kawasaki and Top Gun themes, Federal Moto came up with a one-of-a-kind motorcycle that started life as a GPZ1100. Named “Danger Zone” after the Kenny Loggings song, the bike has been treated to 3D printing and water-jet cutting to create an awesome-looking roadster. The Chicago-based garage told Bike EXIF that “the commission came from an ‘80s kid. He’s based out of Ohio and only swears by Kawasakis and KTMs.” Regarding the four-cylinder engine of the custom sportbike, Federal Moto didn’t cut any corners. The nut-and-bolt rebuild includes 3D-printed top covers, stainless-steel velocity stacks, and no fewer than four Mikuni carburetors from a KZ1000. Cone Engineering “Big Mouth” stainless-steel mufflers are also featured. If you think the fuel tank looks familiar, that’s because it was transplanted from a Honda CB1100. The front forks are sourced from a Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa while Cognito supplied the steering stem, upper triple tree, and custom front-rim hub. Finished in glossy black and Kawasaki Green, FED-016 as it’s also called, further flaunts a bite-the-back-of-your-hand beautiful seat. Dyna electronic ignition with Motogadget m.lock remote ignition, the m.unit control box, m.switch push buttons on the clip-on bars, and a Motoscope Pro gauge are also worthy of mention. Custom fabrication includes the steel seat pan, the rear subframe and supports, along with the tail

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Could Kawasaki Be Planning A GPz900R Comeback?

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by Justin Hughes from https://www.rideapart.com It’s wild speculation time. Retro bikes are all the rage these days. As a GenXer whose first several bikes were UJMs from the early 1980s, I appreciate it. I am the market these bikes are trying to tap into. While the Suzuki Katana is one of the first to apply the retro formula to a true sportbike, I suspect that there may be another one potentially on the horizon: a remade Kawasaki GPz900R. The original GPz900R became famous in the original Top Gun as Tom Cruise raced an F-14 Tomcat down the runway. The trailer for Top Gun: Maverick shows him riding the same bike (albeit without a helmet, which is not only a bad idea but something the Navy would never allow him to do in the real world). We also know that he’ll be riding an H2R in the movie, so clearly Maverick isn’t against upgrading his ride while staying loyal to the Kawasaki brand. Kawasaki has also found success with the Z900RS retro naked bike. It has classic 1980s styling, yet packs all the performance and safety features you want in a modern motorcycle. I absolutely loved the Z900RS I rode last summer at a demo day. So did Kate, who would opt for the Z900RS Cafe. The standard Z900 is also a great bike, but the retro version is what speaks to me. With Suzuki throwing down the gauntlet with the Katana, there may be room out there for a competing retro sportbike. The Katana has a larger 999 cc engine, and Kawasaki would have to choose between competing against it with a Ninja 1000-based literbike or remaining true to the original GPz900R’s displacement. Either choice could be a winning proposition, particularly with Top Gun: Maverick providing a perfect opportunity to

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This is the motorcycle used in the new Top Gun: Maverick

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by Christopher Weston from https://www.hitc.com/ The eagerly-anticipated Top Gun sequel is shaping to be something spectacular. The new Top Gun: Maverick trailer has fans pumped and wanting a motorcycle! Tragically, director Tony Scott passed away back in 2012, but he left behind a surefire cinematic legacy. His greatest achievement arguably remains 1986’s Top Gun, yet he also gave audiences the likes of True Romance, Beverly Hills Cop II, Man On Fire, The Last Boy Scout, Enemy of the State and more. There has long been talk of Tom Cruise’s Maverick returning to the big screen in an adrenaline-fuelled sequel. However, after the unfortunate departure of Scott, it looked incredibly slim. Nevertheless, it’s clear the team strived to get the follow-up made, with Joseph Kosinski (Tron: Legacy) taking the helm of Top Gun: Maverick. With new and familiar faces set to make an appearance, we simply cannot wite to dive into this one… “His exploits… are legendary.” The highly-anticipated Top Gun: Maverick is set to be one of the biggest Summer blockbusters of 2020 and the new trailer has given us a sweet taste of what to expect. It’s packed with brilliantly shot and orchestrated aerial sequences – it is Top Gun after all! The technology now at our disposal is clearly being utilised very well, with the film boasting a slick and glossy look, even when tracking some seriously impressive stuntwork. All eyes are on Tom Cruise, which is a given, but with a film of this calibre, there is inevitable stress on the vehicles and machines which make it all possible… Almost immediately, the motorcycle being ridden by Maverick at the start of the trailer has us attentive. Look familiar? It should! The motorcycle he’s riding is a Kawasaki Ninja GPZ900R, which he rode in the previous film in

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