New rules for exhaust design

PIAGGIO

THE RECENT FLOODING THAT DEVASTATED parts of the Emilia Romagna region in northern Italy was so bad that at least 17 people were killed, 50,000 were displaced from their homes and the Imola F1 race was abandoned. To help the victims, the Piaggio Group, via Aprilia, donated nearly £200,000 raised from a special charity auction held at the Aprilia All-Stars event at the Misano circuit, plus a donation from the entrance fees from the event.

PIRELLI

PIRELLI IS CELEBRATING TWO DECADES of being the sole tyre supplier for the WSBK world superbike championship. Since the first deal was signed in 2004, the firm has provided the rubber for 1438 racers to cover nearly three million racing kilometres in the championship.

DUNLOP AND HARLEY

HARLEY-DAVIDSON IS 120 YEARS OLD THIS year, and to celebrate the occasion is holding a series of special events. Dunlop – Harley’s long-standing tyre supplier since 1983 – is also joining in, providing support at the events. Following events in Prague and Rome, the biggest European celebration took place in Budapest in June, where the HD120 event saw Dunlop take a massive exhibition stand with tyre servicing, advice and fun events.

ACEM, the European Association of Motorcycle Manufacturers, has produced a new set of guidelines designed to make it harder to remove baffles or other noisereducing parts from type-approved aftermarket exhausts. The aim is to reduce noise complaints about motorcycles caused by end users altering their exhausts, particularly by removing “dB Killer” outlets or other mods.

The rules, aimed at aftermarket firms, recommend that baffles be permanently fitted and unable to be removed with everyday tools without cutting, drilling or grinding. Welding, glueing, steel rivets or breakhead bolts are all recommended, and the guidelines also say that removing sound-reducing parts should cause permanent/ irrecoverable damage to the assembly.