Intermot Motorcycle Show 2018
Intermot 2018 was a Slice of Motorcycle Heaven
The International Motorcycle Fair, better known as Intermot, draws thousands of enthusiasts to Cologne, Germany for five action-packed days every two years. Just ahead of EICMA in Milan, the Intermot 2018 expo is a motorcycle lover’s dream come true. A veritable cornucopia of motorcycle culture was on display: from groundbreaking production bikes to stunning custom machines, Intermot 2018 showcased nearly every corner of the sport.
Seemingly endless event halls displayed everything from MotoGP bikes to priceless artworks, with stunt shows and test rides on offer outside. Vendors brought a vast array of gear, accessories, aftermarket parts, and high-tech wearables, like the latest LiveMap augmented reality helmet prototype and pairs of CeraCarbon ultralightweight forks. The mainstays of Intermot 2018 were emergent preproduction and production-ready motorcycles, including first appearances by several long-anticipated models.
Today we’re going to focus on the exciting touring, adventure, and dirt bikes in attendance at Intermot 2018.
New and Improved
At Intermot 2018, nearly every major motorbike brand displayed new or improved versions of their flagship motorbikes. The KTM 1290 Super Duke GT was revised for 2019, and the new 790 Adventure offers all the excitement of the smaller Duke with the off-road capabilities of a BMW.
Speaking of BMW, Intermot crowds were drawn to the redesigned R1250GS and venerated F650GS adventure machines. Yamaha continues to set the standard for Japanese sport touring machines, and at Intermot 2018 Yamaha debuted its Tracer 900, a 3-cylinder 847cc model with 115 horsepower and 87.5 Nm of torque.
Honda arrived at Intermot 2018 with several impressive models, including the stalwart CB1000R road bike and the CB650R neo-retro, the latter replacing the CB650F for 2019. Ducati displayed three new styles of Scrambler, while Triumph introduced improved Street Twins and Street Scramblers, their horsepower and torque increased across the board, alongside the road-going Daytona and Speed and Street Triples.
Titans of Industry
Among the most lauded new motorcycles in attendance at Intermot 2018 were the Husqvarna Vitpilen and its sibling, the Svartpilen, both offered in 701 and 401 varieties. Husky also displayed a full lineup of dirt bikes, including the FC450, the FC350, the FC250, and the TC125, all redesigned for the 2019 model year.
In the world of street bikes, Suzuki embraced a daring style with its 2019 Katana 3.0, a neo-retro with a distinctive square headlight, while Kawasaki introduced an updated 2019 Ninja H2 producing 31 more horsepower than before. That brings the figure to 231, besting the Ducati Panigale V4 and officially making the Ninja H2 the most powerful road-going production bike ever made.
This latest stride comes courtesy of several improvements carried over from the sport-touring H2 SX, indicative of the ongoing relationship between off-road motorbikes and their roadgoing counterparts.
New Year, New Parts
If it seems like Intermot 2018 has everything a motorcycle enthusiast could dream of, that’s because it did. Your next chance to experience the world of Intermot will be in Cologne in 2020, when a fresh batch of two-wheeled dream machines will be displayed on the world stage.
You don’t have to wait until 2020 to enjoy the finest aftermarket parts for your motorbike. From Husqvarna, BMW, and Triumph to Suzuki, Yamaha, and Kawasaki, AS3 Performance offers high-performance parts for motocross, adventure, and road bikes of all sorts. Bring in the new year in style with quality parts from AS3 Performance.
