Meet Motus, they want to challenge Honda's VFR1200F

YOU MAY NOT have heard of Motus, but the American company is developing a new sports tourer and has its sights set on the established Japanese manufacturers.

Motus' new motorcycle is called the MST-01. The Alabama-based firm have teamed up with Katech, an established engine manufacturer who have built engines for cars that have won the Le Mans 24, Sebring and NASCAR series.

The 1650cc V4 engine is called the KMV4 and is the world's first direct-injected V4. It produces 140bhp at 7800rpm and 119ftlb of torque at 4500 rpm. In comparison, the Honda VFR1200F makes 95 ftlb.

Fritz Kayl co-founder of Kaytech said: “The KMV4 is an exciting project that fits well within our capabilities and experience. We incorporated technology from our race programs to increase durability, performance, and efficiency. We are ahead of schedule and are refining the KMV4 into the most reliable motorcycle engine made.”

Motus are determined not to produce another 'me too' motorcycle. “To create the ultimate sport tourer, we had to either work around the shortcomings of available engines or develop a purpose built engine for our application” said Brian Case, Vice President at Motus.

The specification shows it'll have a 1460mm wheelbase, a 787mm seat height, a dry weight of 238kg and a fuel capacity of 22.7 litres. The engine will be a stressed member in a tubular trellis chassis.

Sounds interesting. We'll give you more info as and when we get it.