Motus American V4 Sport Tour 2011 - California (wheelie)

[Stivans13]

As a Yamaha BT1100 (Buldog) rider and after two previous chain driven bikes, never again chains. A good shaft transmission gives no problems whatsoever. All tales about gyroscopic steer are based on longitudinally rotating masses of the engine and gearbox, nothing to do with the shaft. The only alternative would be a belt, chains are mechanical masochism.

[vintageautosupply]

Can't wait to get to ride one....excited.

[hank185h]

53秒他說"加油"



[uhjeen70]

@ TheOKTerrificate

I do drive a K1300S, before i had the 1400GTR, so both with a cardan shaft drive. Both work great. I before also thought that there could be problems but i will never ever again buy a bike with a chain. Chains are not state of the art anymore, they are just dirty as hell in compare with a cardan. And my experience with cardan shows that it is possible to have a drive with a cardan which is as smooth as with a chain! (for tourers, of course, not for sportsbikes!)

[TheOKTerrificable]

@uhjeen70 I currently have chain, but looking to go back to shaft for my next bike. Unless I could afford a Motus though. :D

[thefreem35]

met the guys in philly. bike revs past 10 and the torque curve is straight. and the point of the chain is to give a more immediate pick up and the sportier feel. and its not mentioned in any of their vids but everything is top of the line STANDARD and fully adjustable.

[uhjeen70]

If it only had a cardan shaft ...

Nice bike, but not an alternative with a chain, sorry!

[TheOKTerrificable]

@uhjeen70 I think that's intentional. Shaft drive has allot of drag on a bike, the rationale could be the o ring chains are much more robust than chains of old. That and there could be a possible factor with handling with the gyroscopic force of both the engine & shaft rotating the same way. I noticed that when I test rode a Griso it would lurch into the left lane if I just revved it hard.

[RedgardH]

so Americans want to make a European motorcycle - one that is fun to drive but also practical

[TheOKTerrificable]

@RedgardH That, but it will also start & run. A lil' nut a few Euro bike haven't been able to crack.

[RedgardH]

@TheOKTerrificable I don't understand...

[TheOKTerrificable]

@RedgardH Point being as fashionable as it is to shit on anything American Workers do, a number of European bikes are by no means the pinacle of reliability.

[RedgardH]

@TheOKTerrificable ok.

[scojoseattle]

@TheOKTerrificable

Come, come lad! Stiff upper lip. turn the other cheeck and all that rot! The Honda Goldwing, made in Marysville, Ohio (ah... er was sob, sob-made there), one of the most reliable bikes ever!

Don't let 'em see you flinch son!

[TheOKTerrificable]

@scojoseattle Saw one of the new Wings @ the dealer yesterday with a great big "J" on the vin #. And they STILL want $28K for it. :P

[scojoseattle]

@RedgardH Er, don't you mean a JAPANESE m/c??? (wink wink)

[ReidHenderson]

god that thing sounds so fucking sweet



[RossABQ]

There were also OHC engines in the 1920's. Pushrods make a great deal of sense for packaging, and with hydraulic lifters you'll save several hundred dollars compared to any DOHC jap bike, every what? 30,000 miles?

You can't argue with results.

[UnkeptJMC]

I love my Moto Guzzi V11 Lemans, but if they offer ABS on the new Motus, and the price is right I may have to pick one up.

It has all of the benefits of the Guzzi, but with a little more punch! I also would like to have a more "faired" motorycle, but the Norge just doesn't have that "looks" I'm aiming for. The Motus does!

[Motoguzzi750]

Love the look and sound of the bike. I ride a Guzzi, and thats my lifetime bike, but this is a fine machine by the look of it and I wish them all the best.

[scojoseattle]

Maybe you didn't read MY comment. I ride a Goldwing... Pushrods are over 100 years old. Whats wrong w/ 20th or 21st century???

[voxveho]

@scojoseattle I think we are talking past one another. Your Goldwing is awesome. I won't deny it. And it's superior to any other American made touring motorcycle currently available to the public.

But the fact that pushrods are old technology is completely beside the point. Does it make good power? Yes. Is it reliable? Yes. Is it cost effective? Yes. Is it easily serviced? Yes.

I think that's about all anyone needs to know to make an informed decision.

[scojoseattle]

@voxveho

Yeah, I guess I've been told the same thing by several people and I need to reassess my opinion. I think HD when I think pushrod. It DOESN'T HAVE to be pushrod tech from the 1890s. I repent!

[Philscbx]

@scojoseattle

Funny, you must have just read my review saying the exact same thing.

Why would anyone even consider pushrods.

If it's actually true it has 161hp, then with 4 valves per cylinder, it would be 225hp.

You other guys, go google a view of a M5 engine.

This is high performance farm machinery, by Wisconsin.

Cheers

[DirtCrazy110]

Was not sure what to think of this bike when I first read about it in CW magazine, but after watching this video it instantly went up in my list of bikes id like to have in my garage. That V-4 puts out an amazing sound.

[scojoseattle]

I'll bet my $20k is closer than your $14-16k. If I remember correctly (no promises) someone in Portland , Ore tried to revive Norton. It seems they wanted $40k for their bikes. They did build a few. I don't know if they even got to market. Chain more reliable than shaft??? Hardly!! Granted pushrod is cheaper and more reliable. However, pushrods are limited in max revs. High performance engines use ohc, dohc. Even my old 1200 Goldwing uses OHC with hydraulic lifters for a max at 7,500

[voxveho]

@scojoseattle I didn't say that chains are more reliable than shafts. Those are your words. Go back and reread. I said it chains are way, way cheaper than shaft drives and that they are reliable. Those are my words, and they are undeniable.

Anyway, the whole point of pushrods is that you don't need high revs to make power. No one is building bikes that rev high just for the sake of being able to rev high. If you want a Beemer, you should buy one. If you want something different... MST.

[TommyKress88]

@scojoseattle I ride a GL1100 and it is a great bike, but that doesn't mean pushrod engines aren't any good. I've seen Chevy's rev higher than my GL. Really, small displacement 4 cylinders only have to rev high because they can't make power at lower RPMs. If you can make that power without having to rev to the moon you are better off. Another HuGE benefit for bikes-OHV engines are lighter, more compact, and have a lower COG than equivalent DOHC engines. Pushrod = better HP:Weight/Complexity

[Kabgnimmelf]

Not bad 4 a 1st effort..!

[agnelkurian]

More videos please!! I've watched this one about 30 times. We want more of this stuff.

[Shawnallenkitchen]

This is a far better video than the earlier, upside-down efforts put out by Motus. This looks more like a company wanting to be taken seriously.

[8m293]

1:17 Was that a stop sign he ignored?

[voxveho]

@8m293 It's probably a closed road. Lots of these shoots are done that way.

[scojoseattle]

Nice to see some more diversity in US bikes.Though some of the Hondas are made here,like my old Goldwings,its a hard argument to call them US bikes, however, it never stopped me from calling the Goldwing "The best bike made in the US!" Send the hate mail to the page below! Price? Unfortunately,we have seen new start ups having to cover design, tooling etc causing new bikes to have to be way over priced. Pulling a number out of a dark and stinky, place I say well over $20k Chain? Pushrod? Why?

[voxveho]

@scojoseattle Your question answers itself. Chains and pushrods are way, way cheaper ways to make good power and ensure reliability. Making it a DOHC, high revving, shaft drive would ensure a sticker price nearer to its German rival. I'm guessing the touring model will come in at around $16k and the MST-R will be around $14k.

[wbedient]

GREAT video. This is what we've been asking for. Engine noise, information about the bike (rider impressions) and I enjoyed the music too.

[pridayr]

530 wet, ready to ride.

[TheReapersSon]

What is the curb weight of the sport-touring model? It's a shame they'll probably price this out of my budget :(

[boris135]

Please make it affordable! $15,000-$17,000 would be nice. The sound is so pleasing, thank you Motus & Harley for making such pleasing sounding bikes!

[GeorgeInDallas]

My next bike. I'm 64, so let's get crackin' on the release date. :)

[johnzilla313]

The motor sound is killer.  Bike looks great, I like the red valve covers (it would be great if a couple colors were options, like red, blue, black). Can't wait to ride one. I am hoping and hoping MSRP is in the $15,000 range. $20,000 is too high for a lot of people. Think ST1300, FJR1300 and Concours-14 range, not BMW range.

[guybwheatley]

The motor is desperately trying to make beautiful music. We NEED some better sounding pipes. I do like the red valve covers. I think this is an incredible bike. CBR performance, in a cruiser styled engine that has the potential to sound so sweet.

[MeanMogy]

You guys really need to test ride these bikes in Australia. Conditions here will soon showup any problems - and, oh did I mention, should you need a test rider here in Oz, I'm ya man :)

Can't wait to hear more about these bikes - good luck.

[lmj301]

And what was the MSRP of the Motus and MotusR?

[GTbrunO]

@lmj301 Only seen one person mention $30k in passing on a message board, and they are not a Motus employee so who knows where that number came from.

[lmj301]

@GTbrunO

It will be interesting for sure. I am hoping for less of course. I will be in the market for a $17-$20k bike in 2013. If they are priced similarly to a Duc Multi, then I will buy one. If not, I guess the Multi wins for now. I see this as a great sport tourer, It does not seem to be a tech bike with all the bells and whistles. I won't pay an extra $10K for 30 # ft of torque and 10HP! Sounds Awesome though!

[topdog25608]

@lmj301 This bike is one you can work on yourself if need be. Try that with a Ducati.

[lmj301]

@topdog25608 You can work on any bike yourself. It shouldn't void warranty depending on state law as long as you keep records and reciepts. It may or may not change your resale value. The issue is that bikes like the Diavel, MTS1200 and most beemers you need an electrical engineering degree to figure out the problems due to complex fuel mapping and the different "modes". I just want a powerful simple machine that starts everytime. I am 3 hours from the nearest city, so dealers are scarce

[HDridr2000]

Ok.. I gotta ask.. the video was shot in California, right?. Then why all the footage shot with the bike on the wrong side of the double yellow?

Regardless.. nice bike.. I hope Motus is more successful than Norton at getting bikes on the streets on this side of the pond.

[AMPSHOWS]

Congratulation for finding all my favorite So-Cal roads and canyons! I'm very much looking forward to swinging a leg over a Motus!