Latest news with #CaleYarborough
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
The Coolest Paint In Motorcycling Is Only Available On The Yamaha R3 For Some Reason
Yamaha routinely has some of the prettiest motorcycles on two wheels. From great designs to fantastic liveries, Yamaha just knows how to make a bike look good. Occasionally, though, the company outdoes even its own high standard with a particularly cool bike like the XSR900 GP, the 60th anniversary R1, or... the 2025 R3? For some reason, Yamaha's smallest U.S.-market sportbike — and only the smallest — comes with the world's coolest bike paint scheme for 2025. This design uses two colors, Lunar White and Nebula Blue, and put together they make one of the most beautiful motorcycles I've ever seen — all on a 321-cc beginner bike. I don't understand the game you're playing, Yamaha, but I'm sure glad you're playing it. Read more: Cale Yarborough Won The Daytona 500 In A Show Car Borrowed From A Local Hardee's Restaurant Look at the way the white paint gets a warm sparkle when sunlight hits it, the way the purple shifts to a blue that's almost teal. This bike costs $5,500, and the paint is included in the same base price Yamaha charges for black or blue! If a luxury car offered either of these colors, the paint alone would cost more than this entire R3. This color even gets unique graphics that aren't shared by the other two hues. Yamaha's no stranger to purple — the recent run of retro dirt bikes showed just how well the tuning fork company can use the color — but Nebula Blue is on another level. It's iridescent in a K/DA ALL OUT way that I very much love, and for some reason it's only available on Yamaha's littlest sportbike. Is the market for good colors simply too small among buyers getting more serious machines? Are R1 owners boring? I don't understand Yamaha's plan here, but some part of the company's strategy gave us this color. For that alone, I'm thankful. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Kawasaki's First Superbike Had Violent Turbo Lag And Cost More Than Two Ford Pintos
When Kawasaki dropped the K1000 in 1977 it was already one of the fastest motorcycles of the era, making an incredible 90 horsepower and running quarter-mile times in the 11s. The more sports-focused Z1-R dropped the following year with cast wheels, slimmer bodywork, and a headlight fairing for the track. Not content to merely be powerful and stylish, Kawasaki USA wanted to grab headlines with the quickest bike ever offered to the public so it contracted a small turbocharger company to develop a power-boosting snail for the lightweight literbike. When the Z1-R TC fell into Kawasaki showrooms (sans warranty) the bike had gained an alcohol-injection system and 10psi of boost, but no other modifications, now pushing a stellar 130 horsey-ponies to the rear wheel. Did it run tens? You bet your sweet booty it did. Grip it and rip it, baby, you're going for a ride. The Z1-R TC, when tested by Cycle Magazine, was described as going "so damn fast that it is at best impractical and at worst unbearable." If you wanted to subject yourself to those kinds of forces, you'd have to pay a whole lot of money for it, however. A non-turbo Z1-R would have cost you about $3,695 in the late 1970s, while the turbocharged job was a little over $5,000. The bike you see here, however, is one of the three "Stage 3" kitted Z1-R TCs built for media to test. In order to stand up to the rigors of competition Kawasaki outfitted the Stage 3 bikes with upgraded welded and reinforced crank pins, improved valve springs, stronger clutch springs, better rear shocks, grippier drag racing rear tires, and traction bars. According to the seller, this bike cost just a tick over $7,100 brand new in 1978, or about $34,593 2025 dollars. The popular Ford Pinto compact car of the era started at $3,076, by comparison, though it only had 88 horsepower. Read more: Cale Yarborough Won The Daytona 500 In A Show Car Borrowed From A Local Hardee's Restaurant Okay, so now that you know this bike exists and if you're like me you probably want one, there happens to be one for sale right now on Iconic Motorbike Auctions with a barely-inflation-beating buy-it-now price tag of $37,450. Depending on who you listen to, somewhere between 500 and 519 Z1-R TCs were built before California emissions rules put a kibosh to the whole thing. This high-spec allegedly-one-of-three-bikes-like-it example has been meticulously restored by a guy who has at least ten more Z1-R TCs in his collection, so he probably knows a thing or two about them. If you want a motorcycle that runs 10s, and you're not interested in basically any liter bike on the market today with a warranty and a sub-$15,000 price tag, this might be the avenue for you. Who wants a boring Yamaha MT-10 anyway, when you could have this turbocharged monster from the age of disco for twice the price? Heck yeah. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
KTM Isn't Dead Yet
KTM has been circling the drain for some time now. The company has too many unsold bikes, too much debt, and too much going on to pull itself out of the $2.3 billion hole it's dug — things are looking dire. At least, they were looking dire, but yesterday's bankruptcy court appearance offered a glimmer of hope for the embattled motorcycle maker: The company only has a firm due date for 30 percent of its debt, an amount it realistically hopes can be raised with outside funding. Adventure Rider dug into the details behind the deal, finding that it managed to benefit both KTM and its creditors. This is rare in court hearings, where good compromises often leave everyone unhappy, but the KTM decision seems like a true win-win: Creditors get more money than they could squeeze from a bankrupt bike maker, and we get a KTM that still makes bikes. From Adventure Rider: The deal is this. For now, KTM AG must repay €548M by May 23, 2025. This is 30 percent of the money KTM AG owes; perhaps more will be repayed in the future, but it seems that the debt is written off. The creditors may not be happy with this, but reports from Europe say they would only have received 15 percent repayment, half of what they're actually scheduled to receive, if there had been no deal worked out. They could also have been required to wait as long as two years for any money to be repaid, while the current deal sees the debt settled in three months. Much of KTM's debt had been purchased by the US-based Whitebox hedge fund, who was pressuring KTM to pay back more than the 30 percent. Euro magazines report KTM AG's reps had been trying to work out a deal to make everyone happy until late Monday, and that it took five hours in court today (February 25) to finalize the details of the current repayment plan. Reportedly, several dozen parties were in the courtroom, representing financial interests from all around the globe. Read more: Cale Yarborough Won The Daytona 500 In A Show Car Borrowed From A Local Hardee's Restaurant KTM hasn't yet announced who it'll turn to for that funding, though Adventure Rider put forth both KTM's existing parent company Pierrer and Indian motorcycle maker Bajaj as options. Bajaj has long worked with KTM, handling assembly on the 390 line, and it wouldn't be unreasonable for the company to throw a few more dollars down for more return. Others have raised KTM collaborator CFMoto as a possible investing party, and even the company's big European ADV competitor: BMW. CFMoto and Bajaj make sense because they already manufacture KTM bikes — moving from collaboration to part-ownership wouldn't be a major impact on either prospective buyer's product mix. BMW, on the other hand, competes with KTM across much of its lineup. Sure, BMW doesn't make dirt bikes like KTM, but the Bavarians are already winning on ADVs and sportbikes. KTM doesn't benefit BMW the way it would Bajaj or CFMoto, who would get to keep selling their existing bikes under the Austrian brand's export-friendly name. KTM is down but not out, and with any luck we'll see some investment in the company — and likely more than a bit of restructuring — in its future. Hopefully, the Austrians will be back and ready to race soon. Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
The Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH Is The Best Sounding Race Car In At Least A Decade
Aston Martin's new Valkyrie AMR-LMH hypercar racer is finally hitting the track for the first time in competition next weekend at in Qatar for the 1812KM race at Lusail circuit. The naturally-aspirated V12 machine is the only car in its class to run without any hybrid systems, it is the only car in the Hypercar class to actually be based on a road-legal chassis, and matches the Cadillac effort as the only other car without turbochargers. Aston is banking on the car's lower weight and simplicity to help it with tire longevity, fuel economy, and longevity, even if it hasn't yet proved it can turn the fastest lap times. Paired with The Heart of Racing team, Aston Martin will field cars in both IMSA and WEC this season, though the Valkyrie proved it wasn't yet ready for the rigors of the 24 Hours of Daytona in January and sat out IMSA's opening round. We have yet to see whether the Valkyrie can prove itself in the crucible of competition, but it has already won the hearts and minds of many sports car racing fanatics, because the car's high-RPM V12 shriek sounds like heaven on earth. Read more: Cale Yarborough Won The Daytona 500 In A Show Car Borrowed From A Local Hardee's Restaurant Adrian Hallmark, Chief Executive Officer of Aston Martin Lagonda said: "This is a proud moment for Aston Martin. To be returning to the fight for overall honours at the 24 Hours of Le Mans exists at the very core of our values and marks a key milestone in our motor racing heritage. As the only hypercar born from the road to challenge at the top of sports car racing in both the WEC and IMSA, the Valkyrie is an embodiment of our enduring sporting ethos, one that has defined the brand for more than century." In early testing the car sounded a bit muted, as Aston's tracks of choice required a relatively low 90dB sound limit. Both WEC and IMSA allow for a bit louder 110dB from its hypercar and GTP competitors, though there is talk of IMSA allowing the Aston to run a little louder for the sake of fan enjoyment and engagement. According to Aston the car runs at about 140dB without mufflers, so running unmuffled wouldn't be an option without a rules change. Valkyrie testing at Sebring seems to be an unmuffled version that sounds truly incredible. I haven't been so aurally stimulated by a racing car since the death of the 20B rotary-powered Grand Am RX-8s over a decade ago. The World Endurance Championship recently posted the above video of the Valkyrie in race trim, and it's slightly quieter than it was in Florida, but not quite as quiet as the pre-season tests. Thankfully it still sounds incredible. Aston Martin hasn't won overall in a major international endurance race really since it took the Le Mans 24 laurels home in 1959. Its 2025 contender is a bit on the back foot in terms of power and acceleration without a hybrid system, but perhaps with some serious work, it can be a contender. But even if the car never finds so much as a podium or a fastest lap, it's already working its way into motorsport history simply by dint of how good it sounds. Racing hasn't sounded this good in ages, as every series on the planet rushes to embrace overmuffled turbocharged engines and fancy hybrid tech. Can an old-school speed machine like the Aston find its place in the modern racing landscape, or is it destined to be an also-ran that fans remember for years to come as sounding great but failing to turn in results. We'll have to see how the cookie crumbles, but we're getting our first indication in Qatar shortly. I'll be watching intently. Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
This Real Porsche 997 GT3 Race Car Is Running Lemons Down Under With A Korean Engine And Lots Of Ingenuity
Porsche is well known for building some of the greatest race cars in history, meticulously crafting its machines to take international victory on almost every stage motorsport visits. The German brand has more Le Mans, Daytona, and Sebring wins than any other manufacturer, and its production-based GT3 series of racers have been dominating all kinds of privateer circuits for decades at this point. This, however, will be the first time one of Weissach's finest GT3s has ever competed in the low-buck "Lemons" series. (Note: Antipodean Lemons is not affiliated with the North American 24 Hours of Lemons series.) When a grip of car geniuses in New Zealand stumbled upon a Porsche GT3 Cup in a junkyard with crash damage, they decided it was in their interest to bring the machine back to life. Porsche's lovely 3.6-liter flat six drivetrain was long gone, but they had a welder and probably a few pints of Speight's Original. The budget for this low-buck racing series, as you probably know, is far below the cost to build a real GT3 race car drivetrain — by an order of ten. So how on earth would you power a GT3 race car without a big race team budget? Easy, grab a wrecked Ssangyong Actyon Sports and get to chopping. Read more: Cale Yarborough Won The Daytona 500 In A Show Car Borrowed From A Local Hardee's Restaurant When I first heard about this project, I had to know more. I'm a sucker for low-buck fun and weird powertrain swaps, so I reached out to team boss James Dawson for more insight. Apparently the chassis is a real deal 911 GT3 Cup that competed in the Bahrain 12 Hour endurance race "when it was a Porsche." Luckily Dawson has a sense of humor, because he absolutely needed one to follow through on this fool's errand. Dawson went on to tell me that he uncovered the wrecked tub at a "Porsche wreckers" and when the shop heard about what Dawson had planned for the car, they just gave him the shell. The front was crunched and wasn't really worth anything more than scrap metal, so he was basically doing them a favor. James and his buddies got the car on a frame table and pulled it as straight as they could before getting to the business of figuring out how to mate the damn thing to a box-tube body-on-frame Ssangyong SUV chassis without making it twenty feet tall and even more terrible to drive. The front body panels for this car were obviously crunched in the crash that made the chassis useless. The team needed some front end panels, and pulled from another wrecked Porsche to make this one whole again. Apparently all of the front panels came from a wrecked street GT3, bought on the cheap. In a weird bit of serendipity, Dawson and his team managed to fit the Porsche with an engine from Stuttgart, by way of Korea. Ssangyong didn't have the kind of money to develop a smooth and reliable engine, so it simply bought 2.3-liter inline-fours from Mercedes-Benz. The E23 version of the venerable M111 engine was available in the C-class, E-class, and Vito across the 1990s, but you could get it in a Ssangyong product as late as 2014. The Actyon Sports pickup was one of those. In this application the engine made about 150 horsepower and about 130 lb-ft of torque. That's a few hundred shy of the 997 GT3 Cup's original engine, and it certainly doesn't sound as nice, but it still looks like a butt load of fun. Dawson figured out that he could cut up the Ssangyong chassis to create new front and rear subframes to mate with the Porsche chassis. At the front he welded in the engine cradle, and out back the differential carrier. Then a tunnel had to be cut through the floor of the Porsche to give somewhere for the transmission and driveshaft to go. The Ssangyong was right-hand drive, and they'd be using the steering and front suspension, so the GT3 had to be converted to right-hand drive as well. If you didn't already know a ton of effort went into this project, you should by now. If Dawson had set his mind to world peace instead of this wild hybrid Korean/German project, he might have achieved it by now. As an added bit of interesting lore for the car, Dawson's final message to me about the car was all about the brakes. "You may not believe this, but the front brake calipers are off my 2005 Ford GT, which was converted new to a GT3 Matech car." Okay, so this guy is the real deal, and so is the car. Hopefully one day I can hop a flight to NZ and see the ingenuity behind this car first hand. It hasn't raced yet but hopefully will hit the track soon, as they just got it running this week. Read the original article on Jalopnik.
