Tops Speed

Ducati is recalling certain 2009 1098R, 1198S, and F1098S Streetfighter motorcycles.

The right fork may have possible cracking a deformation at the right-hand side fork bottom wheel axle pinch bolt area.

732 units are affected.

Check out my Motorcycle Recalls feature for more details.

Royal Enfield is recalling certain 2009 Bullet Electra E-5 EFI, Bullet G5 Classic EFI, G5 Deluxe EFI, and G5 Military EFI motorcycles.

These motorcycles can experience third gear galling on the clutch shaft due to lack of lubrication. This condition can allow the gear to seize to the shaft, causing rear wheel lock up.

196 units are affected.

Check out my Motorcycle Recalls feature for more details.

Piaggio is recalling certain 2005-2008 BV 500 and X9 500 motor scooters.

The fuel hose connecting the fuel filter to the fuel pump may come loose. If this fuel hose connection is loose, or has become completely disconnected, then there will be a drop in, or loss of, fuel pressure to the engine.

2428 units are affected.

Check out my Motorcycle Recalls feature for more details.

MV Agusta Motor S.P.A. (MV Agusta) is recalling certain model year 2010 F4 motorcycles manufactured from February 10 through April 19, 2010.

These motorcycles are equipped with an air filter frame, P/N 8000B4061, which may lift out of position, allowing intake air to bypass the filter.

66 units are affected.

Check out my Motorcycle Recalls feature for more details.

Polaris is recalling certain model year 2009-2011 Indian motorcycles for the Body Control Module (BCM) which can cause the headlight to turn off in some circumstances.

If the headlight switch is slowly moved from one position to another (high beam to low beam or low beam to high beam), both beams may be on momentarily and the BCM interprets this as an overload condition.

The number of units affected is 699.

Check out my Motorcycle Recalls feature for more details.

The 2011 MotoGP Championship heads to France this weekend for the French Grand Prix at Le Mans, which will occur May 15. At the Le Mans (French) GP, Bridgestone, the sole tire supplier in MotoGP, will introduce a new asymmetric rear slick tire. Bridgestone says the soft option rear is Bridgestones first soft asymmetric offering, and features soft compound rubber in the right shoulder with extra soft compound in the left side. The MotoGP tire was initially schedule to make its debut at the Japanese Grand Prix, which was postponed due to the March 11 Earthquake. Bridgestone says the MotoGP tires provide better initial grip and warm-up performance and will provide better performance in the cold conditions that can be expected in France. The nature of the Le Mans circuit is also slippery which demands softer compound rubber to generate good grip.

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Asymmetric rear slicks are required to provide good durability and stability through the nine right-handed MotoGP corners at Le Mans while not sacrificing warm-up performance in the left side of the tires, which is only used five times each lap.

Bridgestone says Le Mans can be called a stop-and-go MotoGP circuit, which is to say that rather than being a flowing lap it is punctuated by a succession of heavy braking points followed by hard acceleration.

Heavy braking places emphasis on the center section of the front tires, while the hard acceleration out of corners means good edge grip is important. Having said that, with its smooth tarmac and low temperature Le Mans is the least severe circuit of the 2011 MotoGP year for tires which is why the soft and medium front and rear slicks have been selected by Bridgestone.

The weather in the region is unpredictable and whilst last year was dry, in recent years the race has been interrupted by rain so Bridgestone have selected the soft wets for the fourth time this year in MotoGP.

Hiroshi Yamada (Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Department) says: "The French GP is always popular with fans and is a large and important race for Bridgestone and our local sales companies too. Im also pleased that we have developed a new tyre over the winter that we are using for the first time at Le Mans. It shows that we are not resting on our laurels and still working hard and constantly developing our MotoGP tires, listening closely to the riders in an effort to provide them the best possible tyres in terms both of performance and of course safety."

Hirohide Hamashima (Assistant to Director, Motorsport Tire Development Division) says: "Le Mans is a slippery and smooth circuit, and run early in the year when the track temperature is low, so softer compound tires are required to generate grip and this is why we will use our new soft asymmetric rear tire in France. We developed the extra soft compound at the end of last year and used it in Portugal and Valencia, but over the winter we have incorporated it into a soft compound asymmetric tire which is totally new. It is designed to work when the conditions are colder to warm-up faster and provide riders with better feeling in the first stages of use.

"The circuit has quite a stop-and-go nature, although the last part of the lap is high speed. Lateral loads placed on the tyres are relatively low but good stability under braking is crucial, especially into turns three and nine which come at the end of the two straights. The circuit has an asymmetric layout that uses the right shoulders harder, hence our choice of asymmetric rear slicks."

Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Soft, Medium. Rear (asymmetric): Soft, Medium