Yamaha Y125 Moegi

Call us jaded, but these days, there are few vehicles at the average auto show that can stop us in our tracks. Yamaha has proven there's still something to get excited about on the show floor with its Y125 Moegi. The design study has all of the grace and elegance of a bicycle with the all important element of internal combustion lifted from a small-displacement motorcycle. The 125cc fuel-injected single cylinder engine likely has just enough power to whirr you around town.

Yamaha didn't release any actual figures for horsepower or torque, but we do know the bike weighs a scant 176 pounds soaking wet. It wouldn't take much to propel the machine through the city streets. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like Yamaha has any plans to bring the sexy contraption to market. That's a shame, but it's at least good to know that the company's designers are throwing an eye towards elegance. Hit the jump to check out a video of the Y125 doing what it does best.

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Spyshots: Codename FT-86

Toyota has been stealing all of the limelight with its interpretation of the company's forthcoming collaboration with Subaru recently. What with news that the car may actually cost more than $25,000 and show up under the Scion banner, the interwebs have been alight with talk of the 'Yota coupe. Meanwhile, word of the Subaru half of the equation has been left to a scant few spy photos and little else.

Well, we can add yet another smattering of shots of the Pleiades-badged coupe to the mix. Our camera-equipped spyshot ninjas have managed to nab a few more pics of the Subaru mule our for testing, and this time, it appears that the engineers are hard at work playing with an STI variant. Why do we say that? Feast your eyes on that bulging hood and front-mounted intercooler. Those two pieces all but scream hi-po, and they are our first indication that the flat-four powered, all-wheel drive coupe will be available with a powertrain offering something north of 300 horsepower. As of right now, it's anyone's guess as to when we can expect to see either the FT-86 or its Subaru equivalent on the scene, but early reports are saying 2012 is a good possibility. Get excited.

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1199 Ducati Fan Dream Come True

I often get lambasted in the comments section for being pro-Ducati here on Asphalt & Rubber, and that’s fine by me, because I am. It’s hard not to like a company that has basically defined the modern aesthetic for motorcycles, or a company that continues to grow despite being in the worst recession since The Great Depression. It’s also not hard to love a company that continues to release, year-after-year, new compelling motorcycles, as is the case today with the 2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale.

Teased ad nauseam, the Ducati 1199 Panigale shouldn’t disappoint the discerning sport bike rider with a strong appetite for Italian food, as the latest v-twin from Bologna sets many firsts for the superbike market segment. As we predicted last year, the Ducati 1199 Panigale drops 20lbs off the Superbike 1198′s design (22 lbs actually), while making an extra 20hp over its predecessor. Not only is the 1199 Panigale the lightest production superbike on the market, with its 361 lbs dry weight (414 lbs wet), it’s also one of the most powerful with its 195hp peak power figure, courtesy of the Superquadro motor.

Other firsts include a revolutionary monocoque frame, the first full-LED headlight on a motorcycle (another story we broke), the first electronically adjusted suspension on a sport bike, the first engine braking control system, as well as the first GPS-assisted data acquisition system for a production motorcycle (the DDA+ package is an optional equipment item for the Panigale). While traction control comes standard, ABS brakes will also be an optional item for the Ducati 1199 Panigale.

Available in April 2012, as we expected the new Ducati 1199 Panigale has gotten a price increase over the Superbike 1198. Accordingly the base model will cost $17,995, the “S” will cost $22,995, the “S” with ABS will cost, and “S” Tricolore will hit the wallet at $27,995 MSRP.

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