Breaking in your bike means preparing it for a long service.
Done correctly and your bike will return a long life of good service.
Done wrongly and you’ll be suffering soon enough.
Ask around about how to break in your new bike and you’ll come across 101 answers. Which correct? Which is wrong?
Let’s start with the owner’s manual.
It usually specifies that you shouldn’t ride above a certain RPM within the first 1000 km, while also mentioning that you should vary your engine speed, not ride at a certain speed for long periods of time, and drag the engine in a certain gear.
Honestly, there’s nothing wrong by what the manufacturer recommends, but the way it’s written seems to suggest that one should over-coddle the engine. One way to look at this is because the manufacturers want you to take it easy and learn the new bike’s traits. That’s true statistically, as most crashes happen to riders who have just taken delivery of their new bikes.
However, there are a couple of things one should do to really break the engine in correctly. All of us want the engine to last a long time, produce good power and not burn oil.
AT STARTUP
Idling the engine for many minutes is bad.
While it’s true that fuels these days are relatively low in sulfur, especially the Euro 4 RON 97M variety, some gaseous residue may be left over just as you shut off the engine. Left overnight, the combustion chamber cools down and a little bit of water starts to condensate on the metal parts inside the combustion chamber. This water will then mix with the sulfur gases and produce traces of sulfuric acid.
What does acid do to metal?
Idling will not produce enough pressure to blow this harmful mixture out. Plus, oil circulates better under load.
Additionally and contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to spend 10 to 20 minutes to warm it up since our climate’s ambient temperature averages 28o to above 30o C, unlike in Mat Salleh countries.
The best way, then, is to start up and ride off but do so gently. Remember, GENTLY. We’re breaking in the bike, not breaking it. To give it full throttle now will have your bike screaming “overhaul!”
VARY YOUR THROTTLE APPLICATION
Avoid using constant, droning throttle and speed for the first few hundred kilometres. Varying the amount of throttle will produce both positive and negative pressures in the combustion chamber to seat the piston rings properly.
Correctly seated rings will consequently provide a proper seal, reducing combustion gas blow by (leaking past the compression rings) and oil consumption (leaking past the bottom oil control ring).
I’ve personally met a couple owners who found their new bikes either 1) “eating oil” and smoking or 2) lacks power after breaking in. Both happen because they kept using constant throttle. Constant throttle will coat the cylinder walls with a varnish and couldn’t seat the piston rings. To address this, they will need to rebore their cylinders (overhaul!) and repeat the break in process.
EASY ON THE REVS
It’s easy to think about not over-revving but you’d need to remember to no under-revving it, too.
You could ride through the gears up to 50% of the redline (i.e. 5,000 RPM if the redline is at 10,000 RPM) for the first 100 km, then up to 75% throttle for the remainder is good practice, in line with varying the amount of throttle you use.
Additional point: There are veterans and experts who recommended that you could redline the engine for the last 100 km just before the first 1000 km service. You may also apply this technique to allow the oil to flush break in debris into the sump.
SERVICE!
Don’t ever miss the especially crucial first service, which is usually at 1000 km.
The oil will contain bits of metal shavings from the engine, transmission and clutch when they break in, which needs to be removed.
OTHER PARTS
Do also keep in mind that the brakes and tyres similarly need breaking in, too. Vary your speed and loads to break them in, just like the engine. However, do keep a safe margin for the first 500 km.
The new Havoline motorcycle engine oils are especially formulated for urban riding.
At the heart of some oils is the CORE Technology.
Caltex is also offering “Ride Strong” promotional package.
Subjected to extreme pressure and heat in the engine, coupled to variable operating and ambient temperature, fighting off affluent of the combustion process, resisting being oxidized by moisture, engine oils lead a hard life in order to protect, lube, cool, and clean the parts of an engine.
Racing is of course and activity that’s harsh on oils, but lugging the bike at slow speeds in traffic is just, if not worse.
At extra slow speeds like those encountered in inner city commuting, depending on the state of tune (in terms of valve overlap) an internal combustion engine may not produce enough positive pressure from combustion or negative pressure from the exhaust tract to evacuate the burned gasses, leaving behind residues that end up as carbon and so forth.
In the meantime, temperatures increase due to lack of airflow and it’s the job of the coolant (if the bike is liquid-cooled) and oil (especially critical if the engine’s oil- or air-cooled) to keep temperatures manageable. Oils break down quickly in this environment.
Yet, the oil has to avoid causing the clutch plates to slip while being sheer resistant to provide optimum protection to the engine and transmission. (This is why we should never use car engine oils in a motorcycle engine. Click on the link below for our earlier article on this subject.)
That’s the main aim of Caltex’s new line of engine oils, lead by the flagship Havoline Super 4T Fully Synthetic SAE 5W-40 for motorcycles and scooters. The family includes semi-synthetics and mineral grades, as well.
Caltex’s latest proprietary C.O.R.E. Technology was developed to address the concerns of today’s urban riders. The semi-synthetic range is further fortified with ZOOMTECH additive, to minimize clutch slip hence maximizing power transfer.
Lennard Kwek, Regional Marketing Manager, Asia Pacific, Chevron Lubricants said it best, “Motorcycles make up almost 46% of the registered vehicles on Malaysian roads and in start-stop city traffic and congestion, the vehicles are constantly under stress. For our consumers, our latest range of Havoline motorcycle engine oils with C.O.R.E. Technology and ZOOMTECH booster aims to give riders a reliable product that is especially suited for urban commuting.”
C.O.R.E. Technology stands for: Cleans and protects for a more efficient and cleaner engine to deliver superior performance. Oxidation stability provides heat protection against oil degradation. Reduces engine heat damage with superior oil stability for continuous protection. Enhances acceleration through improved clutch grip even under high loads.
CORE Technology is available in all products except for Havoline Ezy 4T.
The addition of ZOOMTECH in Havoline Super 4T Semi-Synthetic delivers a 13% improvement static friction index (SFI) when measured the JASO T903:2016 standard for better clutch grip over the Havoline Super 4T Synthetic Blend SAE 10W-40. The term “JASO” may sound familiar to you – that’s the certification for the MA or MA2 clutch grip standards.
The flagship Havoline Super 4T Fully Synthetic SAE 5W-40 with C.O.R.E. Technology is suited for high performance, large capacity motorcycles. To cope with the high revving engines which generate additional heat, this oil has been formulated to be 50% superior compared to the industry’s standard in oxidation stability. It means the engine will be better protected against heat damage, and last longer.
We presented a question during the Q&A Session on whether there’s a need for higher viscosity such as 5W/40 or 10W/50 in view of our climate’s higher ambient temperature. Caltex is confidence that the C.O.R.E. Technology addresses the issue since it’s formulated against high heat oxidation.
As for the scooter segment, Havoline’s scooter range has been upgraded to meet the latest API SN service standard, for both semi-synthetic and mineral grades. All products are JASO MB certified, as scooters do not use wet clutch.
“RIDE STRONG” PROMOTIONAL PACK
Chevron Malaysia Limited is offering a special bundle pack promotion in conjunction with launch. Customers will receive a free limited-edition microfiber towel with “Ride Strong” branding.
Eastern Bobber’s Bone-X will represent Malaysia at the AMD World Championship of Custom Bike Building at Intermot later this year.
We caught up with Omar Jumiran to view and photograph the bike more closely.
Follow this space as we will bring you more updates from time to time.
It’s probably an injustice if we looked at custom bikes without studying the elements of art and philosophy. Production motorcycles are also works of art, but being produced on the scale of hundreds and thousands, they are considered as being the products of certain templates.
Custom bike builders, on the other hand, operate on the philosophy of one: The one and only. The best one. The One.
That’s certainly what Omar Jumiran, the proprietor of Eastern Bobber, one of Malaysia’s premiere custom motorcycle builders, had in mind when he created his master creation seen here known as the Bone-X.
The Bone-X has earned Omar and Eastern Bobber a spot at the AMD World Championship of Custom Bike Building at the Intermot show in Cologne, Germany, to be held in October this year, after winning the competition at the Motonation event in early December. Motonation is sponsoring Omar’s trip there. (Please click on the link below for our report from Motonation.)
I had first met Omar two years ago when I covered the Triumph Malaysia-Art of Speed Invitational Bike Build-Off in 2015. Eastern Bobber had been one of the four finalists. Meeting him at his home again, there’s the signature Eastern Bobber Batbike and, the space-framed and girder suspended bike. There were also robot sculptures scattered around the yard.
“I had wanted to build something totally unseen before. So much so, I couldn’t even name the concept for Bone-X,” laughed the soft-spoken ex-metal welder and wrought iron artist.
It’s through this expertise that Omar bent and welded parts of Bone-X, without resorting to CNC machining. Almost every part of the bike is metal, save for the tyres and parts of the brake and clutch cables.
Everything on the bike is radical, starting from two large springs sitting on top of the miniscule rectangular gas tank which forms the bike’s backbone.
The springs are attached to the fore and aft upper suspension levers. Upon closer inspection, one half of each spring is double coiled. “The single coiled part takes care of compression damping, while the double sprung part handles rebound. The levers are long so it needs more spring strength to suspend each end of the bike,” explained Omar. The springs are laid down flat thus more spring tension is needed, compared to most production bikes whose shocks are mounted almost vertical.
Regardless, the springs contribute to something that looks like a rib cage.
Omar aimed for a symmetrical look on each end of the bike, using large diameter, 21-inch wheels. While the rear assembly forms a single-sided swingarm, the front results in a hub centre-steering suspension. The handlebar is attached to the front suspension’s upright link via a shaft on ball joints.
“I’ve always been fascinated by the hub-centre steering front suspension layout ever since I saw the Elf Honda GP race bike in the 80’s, ridden by Ron Haslam. I was just a kid back then.”
Omar opened up a little more, “In my opinion, forks have their distinct shortcomings, hence the single arm setup was explored to take its place. I liked the Yamaha GTS when it came out and I feel it’s a real shame that manufacturers have not continued down that route.” (You can read about the Elf Honda and Yamaha GTS here.)
Heading downwards, the 1967 AJS engine has been either been chromed or polished to fit the overall chromed theme. It’s impossible to miss the exhaust downpipe being routed through the frame’s vertical member.
There’s a vertical lever next to the left side of the engine. Everyone had first thought it was the gear shifter, but it turned out to be the lever for the centrestand, instead. “Ah, the handshifter is overdone and too mainstream now, so I wanted to do something different.”
The powertrain arrangement’s beautiful simplicity is set out in plain sight. A primary drive chain transmits power from the crankshaft to the dry clutch, whose shaft is also the input shaft to the gearbox. But Omar performed some modifications to the final drive. “The final drive chain exits on the left side originally, but I can’t let it run on the outside (left side) of the wheel. So I attached the final drive to an idler shaft to drive the sprocket on the right side.”
The rear wheel’s hub carries the rear sprocket and disc brake.
The result is an organic-looking bike. To Omar’s and his peers, the Bone-X looks skeletal, thereby earning its namesake. However, to the unitiated Joe Public, the bike resembles something inspired by H.R. Giger’s biomechanical concepts.
To our eyes, the Bone-X is as good as it gets, but in the eyes of the artist, there’s room for improvement. “Certain parts of the bike still need better finishing. It looks alright under the lights currently, but we are required to also display the bike outdoors in Germany. It’s during this instance when the imperfections will stick out like sore thumbs.”
“I do hope there are kind souls out there who sees the importance of a Malaysian bike actually competing at the international show. I wouldn’t want to embarrass Malaysia with an unfinished bike, and while it’s hard for me to say this, I will appreciate sponsors who could assist me in completing the Bone-X. it’s time we step out from being Jaguh Kampung,” hopes Omar.
Omar is fully dedicated to the Bone-X now, as The One bike for him. As for us and together with Omar, we hope Bone-X will be The One in the hearts of the international judges and peers in Germany.
Do follow this story all the way to Intermot in Germany.
All riders should learn motocross and dirt riding.
Dirt riding trains each rider the very core basics of motorcycle control.
We train extensively at Most Fun Gym (MFG), operated by Malaysian motorcycle legend, “Foreman” Oh Kah Beng.
Scenario 1:
20km outside Chiang Mai under the blazing sun, I started to feel groggy. I knew I should’ve avoided the heavy lunch, but how could one possibly resist authentic Thai food in Thailand herself?
Coming to a three-way junction, the bikes ahead turned right. Seeing it as an exciting opportunity to invigorate myself, I took a wider line into the corner without backing off. But as I soon as I flicked the Ducati Monster 821 in, the rear wheel kicked out to left, and sliding like a supermoto!
Chopping the throttle now would be a disaster because the if rear tyre suddenly regained traction, it’d pitch me over the bike in a high side.
Through MX training, I just kept the throttle pinned as I pushed on the ride side of the handlebar while pushing my left leg into the footpeg to lift the bike up slightly off its present lean angle. In a split second the engine power tapered off and both tyres tracked back in line.
Later that night, the Ducati bigwig in charge of the event proclaimed in both happiness and relief, “Best of all, we didn’t have any crash during the trip!”
Scenario 2:
A few months later I was riding in South Africa in the GIVI Wilderness Adventure.
We crossed an offroad section on the third day. A few participants had asked the marshals if the section was going to be tough, but they were confidently assured, “Nah, it’s a hard-packed dirt road so it’s super easy. Just relax and have fun. We’ll clear it in 30 minutes tops.”
Unfortunately, that hard-packed dirt road had become entirely different since the last time they recced it. It was now covered in ankle-deep sand!
I was right behind the Indonesian journalist when he dropped his bike in less than 1 km onto the trail when his front tyre hit a deep sand groove. Reacting immediately to the situation, courtesy of MX training, I stood up on the footpegs, relaxed my arms and just kept giving gas, instead of backing off.
Among the 15 participants, only the four marshals and I didn’t hit the ground on that day. The rest had dropped it at least once; one guy dropped it fifteen times and another suffered a broken ankle.
In the end, it took the convoy three-and-half hours to clear the section.
The above two scenarios were the most memorable so far in my 30-year riding experience, not to mention many more smaller ones on an almost daily basis.
I had met “Foreman” Oh Kah Beng (OKB) during the final round of the Malaysian Supermoto Championship at the end of 2014. During our conversation, he invited me to learn from him at his then fledgling motocross school, Most Fun Gym. Please click on the link below to learn more about “Foreman” Oh.
Since then, I had discovered a change in my riding. I no longer panic or freeze on the bike whenever I saw dirt, water and oil on the road. Apart from that, his offroad training had allowed me to break through my personal riding limit which had plateaued at a very low level. Needless to say, I am more comfortable with riding and enjoy it so much better now, not the least of being able to go a little bit faster than I could in 30 years.
This is not just a case of overpromising. Many have attended his school and came away as better riders. A great example was his nephew, Oh Jin Seng (JS), the son of Sunny Oh.
Although JS had been riding a BMW R 1200 GS for some time, he had not done much offroading. But he registered to participate in the BMW GS Trophy Malaysian Qualifier earlier this year anyway. JS started training with OKB in order to prepare for that prestigious event, and came away scoring the second highest number of points on the first day.
Apart from training, it’s also the place we headed to as soon as we received adventure of dirt bikes to review.
So, is dirt training really that good? Or more accurately, important for every rider? And why is it important?
The answer to the first question is the reason multi-time world champions such as Marc Marquez, Valentino Rossi and almost the entire MotoGP field train in the dirt during their free time.
It’s true that road- or track-based training also teaches the fundamentals, the core basics of riding a motorcycle, but dirt forces the rider to learn in a low-traction environment where the bike slides around all the time.
There are five basic points of total motorcycle control: Throttle control, steering, braking, vision and body control. All these individual skills need to come together as one skill set to allow you to ride better. Let’s analyze how dirt training could benefit those skills.
THROTTLE CONTROL
As we highlighted in an earlier article, throttle control affects the weight distribution, hence the tyres’ traction.
When you accelerate, the rider and motorcycle’s combined mass transfers to the rear wheel. Conversely, when you brake, that mass transfers to the front. Correct throttle control seeks to bring these two extremes to being as equal as possible when you’re leaned over in a corner, providing you optimum traction.
OKB instructing Sep on how to control the throttle
In a low grip environment on the dirt track, that forces you to control the throttle with more finesse instead of treating it as an on/off switch. Steady throttle manipulation is the ultimate goal in this exercise.
It also teaches you another very crucial aspect: What do you do with the throttle when the tyres start to slide?
Our first Survival Instinct (as Keith Code calls it) is to kill the throttle, to just chop it. It may not be something you choose to do, but your built-in instinct may react by thinking you’re going too fast and forces your hand to subconsciously slam shut the throttle or even grabbing the brake.
It’s not that bad if this happens in the dirt as you slide out due to the much lower speed, but on the road or track, it could very well you to overshoot the corner. Why? Because weight is transferred abruptly to the front wheel causing the bike to stand up while being leaned over. When a bike is straight up, the only way forward is straight ahead.
In a worst-case scenario, chopping the throttle when tyres slide (especially the rear) causes the tyre to slide even more, as all the weight has gone to the front. In extreme cases, an abrupt resumption of traction will send you over the high side.
This is one main cause to the spate of big bike crashes: Chopping the gas or over-braking in a corner.
With repeated training, dirt riding will teach your instincts to either roll out of the throttle smoothly or even to actually accelerate when the tyres slide. Doing so means you are in control of the slide, instead of the slide controlling of you.
It looks pretty cool too!
STEERING
Another common cause of crashes on the road is steering, or rather, ineffective steering.
It’s a normal reaction – another Survival Instinct.
You charged into a corner only to find self-doubt whether the bike will continue to steer through the corner. It’s usually caused by being surprised by a suspicious-looking patch on the road. You instinctively tense up and chop the throttle. The bike reacts by standing up and overshoots.
In the dirt, you’d be surprised that a bike could actually continue to steer even when it’s sliding, due to momentum. From this, you tie it in to throttle control.
How does this translate to road riding?
You lean your body into a corner on the streets. Coming up to a slippery patch, all you need to do is to keep your upper body leaned in, while you push on the outside handlebar (remember countersteering?) to reduce the bike’s lean angle. Since your upper bodyweight is displaced off the bike, your bike will still track through on your chosen line despite the reduction in lean angle.
This technique is very noticeable when racers accelerate out of corners.
Marc Marquez exiting a corner
Your Survival Instincts will soon learn to quiet down when this happens, allowing you to get around the corner with confidence and safety.
BRAKING
Brakes are often misused, treated no differently from a light switch i.e. ON/OFF. It should not be so unless you’re coming to a stop.
As we’ve mentioned earlier, applying hard braking in the middle of a corner will force your bike to stand up and head to the outside of the corner.
You need to learn that brakes are used to set your target speed when approaching a corner or rolling up to a traffic jam. But most of all, how do you react with the brakes when your bike slides around.
Again, without proper conditioning, our Survival Instincts will subconsciously cause your hand to chop the throttle and grab the brakes.
Dirt training teaches you to apply the brakes progressively (braking from soft to hard), and more importantly, to stay off the brakes when sliding. What if the bike is heading up the berm of going wide? Learn to apply the rear brake to tighten your line.
Apart from that, you’d learn on how to “feel the tyres” when you brake in low traction conditions. This means you’d discover how the tyres feel like depending on how much you brake in different conditions. This is most useful on the streets especially when it rains or if you encounter sand or oil in a corner.
OKB said it best, “Your senses will become finely tuned and you will know what’s the true limit. Not knowing your limits will either cause you to lose confidence and ride with fear, or riding too fast when it’s not safe to do so.”
VISION
As we mentioned before, you go where you look. Yes, we know that many of us know this very important law but what about when the tyres suddenly break traction?
Again, the untrained Survival Instinct will cause you to 1) Tense up with panic; 2) Chop the gas; 3) Jab the brakes; 4) Bike stands up and you don’t know how to steer; 5) Your vision tunnels down and is locked on where the bike is headed, instead of where it should be heading; and 6) Kablooie! (Crash.)
Dirt riding trains you to focus your vision on where you want to go regardless of what the tyres are doing. Your bike may be sliding and buckling around like a wild horse but your throttle control, steering, and braking actions WILL submit themselves to where you look.
The rider is Ahirine Aminuddin, as she trains for an MX race. See how she looks through the corner
Keith Code said in his video, “Whatever great skills you have is only as good as your visual skills.”
BODY CONTROL
You’ve may have noticed above that we kept mentioning about what bad will come by if the body tenses up when the tyres lose traction.
You must always remember to allow your bike to carry out its duties, including when it slides. A sliding or skidding tyre doesn’t mean that your next of kin can claim your insurance thereafter. No, what it means is that the tyres and bike are “hunting” for a stable position. Your job as the rider is to allow that to happen by not being tense.
Tied in with throttle control, steering, and vision it means that you are using those control inputs to assist the bike instead of wrestling with it.
Braking with a tense body is also unproductive as your senses will be fooled into thinking you’ve reached yours or the bike’s limits, when there’s actually much more to go. Tensing up will likewise undermine your ability to steer while braking. This is another common cause of motorcycle crashes.
Besides that, being tense will result in the bike transferring all the loads and bumps from the road to you. It will tire you out quickly.
Watch the motocross and supercross riders on TV and see just how relaxed their bodies are despite being trashed around like rodeo riders, and that’s exactly what dirt riding trains you to do.
OTHER BENEFITS
You will become a better skilled rider not only in terms of speed, but more importantly, how you take charge when critical situations arise. As a direct consequence of this, you are more confident and confidence breeds enjoyment. You will also see your riding breaking through to a new, higher level.
Another great aspect of dirt riding means you are truly exercising the majority of your muscles while doing what you love best: Riding. That’s why OKB’s school is called Most Fun Gym. Ask how much weight OKB’s apprentice, Ryan, lost by training in MX.
One last note. Learning motocross doesn’t mean you have to ride like a motocross pro. At MFG, you can learn at your own pace and you don’t have to jump if you don’t want to. You don’t have to ride fast to learn either. You’re there to learn how to ride a motorcycle that’s “not gripping” so that you may ride will full confidence on the road or track.
As for me, I’m truly thankful for OKB’s persistence in training me. It’s saved my skin and limbs many times over.
Please click on the link below for more details of Most Fun Gym (MFG).
We’ve reached the final motorcycle in this collection. We’ve decided to leave out the older motorcycles prior to the 80’s and 90’s as they were too far back and most of the successful technologies and methodologies have been transferred to motorcycles in the following decades.
That doesn’t mean manufacturers have stopped researching and developing new ideas. Far from it, in fact. But manufacturers are more in tune to what the majority of potential buyers want these days to design bikes that don’t look totally out of this world, apart from a few.
Without much further ado, let’s check out this last bike.
BIMOTA TESI 3D
Truth is, any Bimota would be considered unusual compared to virtually any stock production bike, but that would mean all ten would be Bimotas in this article. Picking just one out from the Rimini, Italy-based company’s family isn’t easy either, like the 1998 SB8R and SB8 RS, DB3 Mantra.
Bimota Mantra DB3
For example, the YB4EI which come agonizingly close to winning the inaugural World Superbike Championship in 1988, ridden by one Davide Tardozzi. Tadozzi had won eight races that season but because of point scoring technicalities, Fred Merkel won on the Honda RC30 despite having just two victories.
Bimota YB4EI
Bimota only builds frames, chassis and other technologies around engines from other manufacturers. The first letter of a Bimota denotes where the engine was sourced from, for example: YB means Yamaha-Bimota, BB stands for BMW-Bimota, DB for Ducati-Bimota and so forth. As such, production is low volume. Only the Suzuki GSX-R1100 powered SB6 saw 1,144 bikes being produced from 1994 to 1996, while the next highest figure was just 600 bikes.
Bimota SB6 – Courtesy of totalmotorcycle.com
As such, one model, in our opinion which truly reflects upon that philosophy is the Tesi 3D which made its first appearance in 2007.
Remember we covered about the attempt to move away from hydraulic forks for the front suspension on the Yamaha GTS in Part 3? The Tesi was also developed in this vein. The concept of the Tesi differs slightly from the Yamaha GTS’s, however.
The Tesi 3D is the third iteration of this project, powered by the powerful Ducati 1098 engine. The engine is clamped between two machines aluminium plates, with all other components mated to these plates, including both front and rear swingarms.
The front swingarm mates to plate on both sides, with an Ohlins shock attached to the right in a cantilevered position. The handlebar’s shaft is connected to horizontal shafts on each side that steers the front wheel, for a hub centre steering setup.
Bimota is currently building the new Tesi 3D to celebrate their 40th year, called the Tesi 3D 40 Anniversario (pictured here). Only 40 examples will ever be built.
BONUS UNUSUAL PRODUCTION MOTORCYCLE
How could we leave out the Kawasaki Ninja H2 and its variants? Unleashed by Kawasaki in 2015 to be the bike to conquer the world, it’s supercharged.
The track-only H2R produces 300 bhp, while the road-legal version pumps out 200 bhp. Kawasaki had just announced the H2 SX and H2 SX SE sport-tourer. Still supercharged but made practical for daily riding and touring. (Please click here to know more about the H2 SX.)
More excitement is inbound with the reveal of the Kawasaki Ninja H2 SX.
Kawasaki has revised many aspects of the bike.
The H2 SX will be more practical for everyday riding and touring.
When Kawasaki unveiled the supercharged Ninja H2R at 2014 Intermot show and the Ninja H2 a month later, they went straight into history as the world’s fastest production motorcycles. Love them or loathe them, the duo will hold a special place in everyone’s hearts many years from now, just like how we still revere the 1969 H1 Mach III, 1972 H2 Mach IV, 1972 Z1, 1984 GPz900R Ninja, among many other Kawasakis.
The track-only H2R was nothing if not shocking with an engine produced 300 bhp. The street-oriented H2 produced 197.6 bhp, on the other hand. Both bikes were wrapped in a bodywork whose styling has never been seen before. Designed by the Kawasaki Aerospace Company, every wedge on the bike was to create more downforce.
However, the H2R and H2 were true sportbikes, so touring or commuting on them meant that the rider had to suffer. Many had pondered if the H2 could be made more practical.
Well, your prayers have been answered when Kawasaki took the covers off the H2 SX at the 2017 EICMA show. Kawasaki now has a supercharged sport-tourer, like how John McLain now has a machine gun. Ho ho ho.
Here are 5 things we’re expecting from the Kawasaki Ninja H2 SX.
1. Revised Ergonomics
What is a sport-tourer if not for its accommodating ergonomics.
The H2 SX’s steel trellis frame is based on the H2, but has been strengthened and and lengthened. Along with a new passenger seat, they are thicker and wider. The handlebar has been raised higher for a more upright riding position.
While the styling is still unmistakable shouts H2, it’s now rounder, larger and has a taller windscreen.
Higher Load Capacity
Another benefit of the revised frame is the ability to carry a passenger and luggage. The H2 SX has been rated to carry 195.5 kg. The swingarm has been lengthened by 15mm for added stability, while the steering lock angle has been increased by a substantial 30 degrees on both sides to ease low-speed maneuverability.
Refined Engine
The H2R and H2’s manic engine has undergone some changes make it easier for both street riding and touring. The objective was to provide more low- and mid-range torque.
The supercharger’s impeller was completely redesigned, with new intake chamber, cams and exhaust. The engine’s thermal efficiency was also increased by upping the compression ratio to 11.2:1 from 8.5:1; along with new cast aluminium pistons, cylinders, and cylinder heads. Both intake and exhaust cam profiles were shortened for the requirements of street riding.
These changes still yield the exact same 197.6 bhp and 101 Nm of torque.
Further Range
Another important aspect for a sport-tourer is range, for you can’t expect to tour in a realistic manner if you have to stop for fuel every 200/250 kilometres.
The H2 SX now has a 19-litre fuel tank. The revisions to the engine’s character has resulted in a fuel mileage figure that matches the Kawasaki Ninja 1000 (Z1000SX) and Versys 1000.
New Electronics Package
The H2 SX will feature a new 2-mode LCD display.
Apart from that, it also utilizes electronic cruise control, all-LED lighting, 3-mode Kawasaki Traction Control (KTRC), Kawasaki Intelligent ABS (KIBS), engine brake control, three power modes, together with a 5-axis Bosch Inertia Measurement Unit (IMU) with an extra sixth-axis (yaw) calculated by Kawasaki’s own software developed in World Superbike.
The H2 SX SE adds full-colour LCD, LED cornering lights, a larger windscreen, Kawasaki Launch Control Mode which controls wheelie and wheel spin, quickshifter for both up- and downshifts, braided steel brake lines, heated grips and centrestand.
Both models are suspended by fully adjustable 43mm KYB forks and 40mm rear shock with revised Uni-Trak linkage.
Brakes are 320mm discs up front, squeezed by 4-piston calipers, although they aren’t Brembos.
Conclusion
We expect there’s a lot more than just specs when the H2 SX and H2 SX SE makes its appearance in Malaysia. Here’s to getting there quick so you’ve more time to enjoy your destination.
Thieves are now targeting ByBre calipers in addition to Brembos.
They are also removing the entire set including the master cylinder.
It’s no longer a secret that there’s been a whole spate of motorcycle brake calipers being stolen.
It started with lahanats targeting Brembo calipers, then moving on to especially Brembo Monobloc calipers, to the calipers and master cylinder, and just lately, Bybre calipers. (Click on the link below for our recent report.)
We don’t have say how troublesome if you lose the calipers, since you don’t have brakes, obviously. But there’s also the cost of money and time to source for a replacement, not to mention the unfathomed level of stress.
The thieves who were spawned at the bottom of the genetic cesspool notwithstanding, brake calipers are attached in a method to allow for easy detachment when the pads need changing or servicing the calipers. We hope that motorcycle manufacturers will look into ways to make it more challenging for thieves to remove the aforementioned parts, or offer tamper-proof bolts and nuts as options.
We’ve put together a few tips here that may help you secure your bike’s brake calipers and master cylinder. But do note that we said “may” because NOT ALL solutions are 100% foolproof. However, thieves usually act on opportunity, meaning that they target easy prey. They just want to remove the parts and cabut, rather than sticking around to borak-borak about where to ride to for the best nasi briyani gam. Unlike robbers, they don’t look for challenges.
Please be very certain that the replacement bolts and nuts are not only compatible in terms of tread depth and length but also that they are of the same or stronger strength. We don’t have to remind you that a lot of stress goes through those bolts and nuts holding the calipers in place.
1. Fill with putty
I came across this simple solution when I picked the 2017 Triumph Street Triple RS to review.
The ST-RS’s calipers are radially mounted, meaning the bolts screw right into the brackets on the forks’s lowers. Triumph Motorcycle Malaysia’s service crew got creative and filled the hexagonal socket space of the bolts with putty.
The would-be thief would have to dig some of that putty out before he could insert a hex key to turn the bolt.
This method is simple and cost next to nothing, however, it’s still relatively easy to defeat.
2. Custom bolts
Google “bolt and nut suppliers” and give them a call to see if they could customer a batch of bolts and nuts for you, complete with the unique key. Best to have a different bolt (and nut if applicable) on each mounting point to present a real challenge.
3. Anti-tamper bolts
Failing finding a company to customize bolts and nuts for you, you may google for tamper-proof or security bolts and nuts.
These fasteners feature “patterns” unlike those that are commonly available in the market, thus they need special keys to tighten and remove them. We came across many companies that offer this solution, however, most of them also sell the drivers openly.
More searching revealed an American company which makes fasteners that are unique only to each customer. Although the fasteners are based on certain templates, there are differences that make them accessible only to the customer who has the correct driver.
Again, mix the type of bolts and nuts to bring security up another level.
4. Grinding off the bolts and nuts
One of the safest way is to grind away the bolt’s socket/box pattern and/or nut’s box pattern. This results in having to tap or chiseling off the remainder of the fastener. However, we don’t recommend this method as grinding away the bolt or nut may weaken them.
5. Soldering the bolts and nuts
Apply some solder to bottom of the bolt head and tighten. It’ll make the bolt more difficult to turn once the solder solidifies, but it’s also relatively easy to beat.
This is another desperate method.
6. Befriend you neighbours
Don’t be friendly only to pretty girls or parents with pretty daughters.
This is especially important if you live in a condo, apartment or flat. If you hadn’t made friends with your neighbours plus the people closest to where you park your bike at night, this is the right time. Similarly, if your place is guarded, be friends with the security personnel.
Your friends and neighbours could keep an eye out on your bike. Imagine if they happened upon someone working on your bike:
Neighbour: “Hey, what are doing to that motorcycle?”
Lowlife: “I’m repairing my friend’s bike here.”
Neighbour: “Where’s your friend, the bike owner then?”
Lowlife: “He’s left me to work on it. He’s busy. Don’t worry, he trusts me.”
Now imagine if your neighbors don’t know you, or don’t like you because you appear langsi to them? Can you blame them?
7. Park the bike in the living room
This is the best solution. And the dream of almost all motorcycle owners, we suspect. There’ve been cases of thieves entering houses’ car porches and stealing motorcycles parked there.
Just lay down some newspaper on the floor in the house and push your bike in. Your spouse or housemates will understand. If they protest vehemently, make them sign an agreement to reimburse you should parts and accessories go missing. That’ll change their minds quick, trust me.
This works best for those living in landed properties, we understand. Most condominiums and apartments do not allow transporting a motorcycle in the elevator, so this is where you have to be friendly with your neighbours and fit tamper-proof fasteners.
8. Park the bike next to you
What if you ride somewhere and have to park the bike?
Do some research to see if you could park the bike within eyesight or right next to you. Malls are the worst when it comes to this, unless you pay for valet space.
Courtesy of H1K HP4 Malaysia
Conclusion
Whether you find these tips useful or otherwise, do remember to not take your bike’s security for granted. It doesn’t matter if your bike is a shiny new fastest production bike or a beat up and dirty daily commuter, being safe now is better than regretting it later.
Honda had pulled out of motorcycle grand prix racing in 1967, only to re-enter in 1977. Two stroke machines had taken over the entire field in their absence, but Honda has always preferred to develop and race four-stroke bikes.
Honda knew that they’d be beaten by two-strokes and there was no allowance for bigger capacity four-strokes to compensate. The rules had stated 500cc engines with a maximum of four-cylinders, regardless if they’re two- or four-strokes.
Honda engineers worked around this by creating a high-revving V-4 engine, but with oval pistons. The oval pistons looked like two pistons being joined as one (think of a burger oblong).
With two conrods and eight valves per cylinder (yes, eight, for a total of 32 valves!) the engine gave the impression of a V-8. The engineers hoped that the bigger piston area would provide a higher volume air/fuel mixture, resulting in more power.
Honda unveiled the NR500 (NR stands for New Racing) in 1978 but the bike only made its debut in the 11th round (British GP) of the 1979 racing season. However, both bikes retired. The engine was overly complex. But Honda kept developing the bike and engine and came away with 130 bhp at over 20,000 RPM, matching the two-strokes.
Yet, the bike wasn’t competitive and Honda ultimately went on to develop the NS500 two-stroke tiple in 1982, ridden by Freddie Spencer, Marco Lucchinelli and Takazumi Katayama.
Still, Honda kept plugging away and came up with the NR750 endurance race bike. The technology was finally transferred to a road bike in 1992. Built in limited numbers, the NR (also known as the RC40) made 125 bhp at 14,000 RPM in the standard configuration. Priced at US$50,000, only 300 were built.
The NR featured many other innovative technology, including a single-sided swingarm, side-mounted radiators (a la NR500), and underseat exhausts, among other things. It’s also no secret that Massimo Tamburini was inspired by the Honda NR when he penned his iconic Ducati 916.
BONUS TRIVIA:
One of the engineers who worked on the oval piston project revealed that while trying to reduce the number of valves to the more conventional 4 valves per cylinder to improve combustion and power in the low- and middle-RPM range. That development led to one of Honda’s most famous technology and was first featured on the CB400 Super Four.
The VTEC.
So, the VTEC wouldn’t have been possible if not for the oval piston research and development.
Wait a minute… This isn’t a motorcycle. It isn’t a car either. It’s a trike but two wheels are in front. So, that makes the Can-Am Spyder a reverse-trike, which means it’s a motorcycle.
Since Can-Am is a subsidiary of Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP), it fashioned like a snowmobile for the road: Tyres in place of a caterpillar tread behind and skis in front. There’s a large trunk space up front.
The bike… err… trike is built around an ATV-like chassis, called Surrounding Spar Technology (SST). But just a car, the front suspension features double A-arms with anti-roll bar. There’s Dynamic Power Steering, too.
There are four models, called the F3-S, F3-T, RT-S and RT Limited, powered by either a Rotax 998cc, liquid-cooled, V-Twin or a Rotax 1330cc liquid-cooled, fuel-injected, inline-Triple. Both engines utilize electronic throttle. Other electronics include ABS, traction control and stability control.
Besides that, the Spyder’s brakes are linked front and rear. There are also four types of transmission, 5-speed manual with reverse, 5-speed semi-automatic which uses paddle to shift, 6-speed manual with reverse, and a 6-speed semi-automatic with shift paddles.
First launched in 2007, the Spyder’s variants had sold more 100,000 units worldwide. They’ve found a large audience here in Malaysia too.
Ever wonder why bike shops don’t sell car engine oils?
Using a car-specific engine oil for motorcycle engines is bad.
But worse are those who don’t listen.
I used to hang out with a bike club many years ago and the last TTS (teh tarik session) with them was in 2012.
The group consists of the more senior crowd, from their mid-30’s and up. A few guys have been riding for a long, long time. Although I had been (legally) riding for 25 years up to that point, there were two guys who started riding even earlier.
I’m usually the quiet one, sitting silently in the corner, always enjoying my tomyam ayam kurang pedas while mosquitos fed on me in return. Symbiosis with nature, albeit in a stupid way.
One night, they started discussing about engine oil. Now, that’s one subject I’d abstain from because no other topic has the kind of passion to create an animosity just short of a new world conflict. Brader X (not his real name nor pet name), who’s the group’s “mechanic” spoke the loudest. He proudly proclaimed that he’s now using Mobil 1 for cars, which he has plenty around his car workshop anyway. (There’s a Mobil 1 for motorcycles but this guy was using the one for cars.)
The others took interest for some inexplicable reason. Maybe it was a full moon night, or Jupiter was aligned to the Earth, I didn’t check, but no one spoke up about using automotive engine oil in a bike! Or maybe it’s because Brader X can patch a tyre leak while we’re out riding.
So, out of helpfulness, I broke my code of silence and offered, “I’m not a major in this subject, but I’m very certain that we shouldn’t use a car’s engine oil for our bikes. None of us is using a bike with dry clutch, and even if we did, we should best stick to a lubricant for bikes.”
“Car lubricants are different because they contain friction modifiers and is not shared with the clutch. All our bikes are the wet clutch, which means the engine oil goes there too. A car’s engine oil will cause the clutch to slip and ultimately wear out the plates,” I explained.
I continued further, “That’s why we need to use oils that are either JASO MA or JASO MA2 certified. Those aren’t found on car engine oils for that very reason. You might just as well use minyak masak Saji (Saji cooking oil) if you want to use car oil!”
I swear to you that I said that not because I had bad childhood thus I craved attention, credit and affirmation. Instead, I did that because I just wanted to help, so I didn’t expect any “Thank you.”
But I didn’t expect to get lambasted either.
Mr. A (for a word which starts with that letter and ends with an “e”) straight up accused me of “supporting a petroleum brand that’s bankrolled by Jews.” Brader M said, “All engine oils are the same, their only job is to ensure the engine doesn’t seized solid, anyway.” Brader S, our group’s leader said, “We should just try it.”
Still, I protested, “Please. Don’t.” “Just get back to your tomyam and let the old men talk. We’ve been riding since you were just a kid,” Mr. A castigated me.
Fine. I shrugged and ordered another teh-o ais limau.
I missed the next entire month’s TTS as I was busy and rejoined them after that.
Again, I ordered my favourite tomyam and sipped quietly in the corner. But my curiousity got the better of me and I decided to ask, “How’s the oil in your bikes?”
They half-turned to me and then Brader M pulled out his phone abruptly, stuck his face into his Facebook newsfeed as if another 9-11 happened. Mr. A suddenly got Mr. S’s attention and interest in a lawn bowl telecast on TV (who the heck watches lawn bowl anyway?). Mr. X was missing, he’s never missed a TTS.
It was only when I was leaving that Mr. S said, “You were right, the oil caused our clutch to slip. My new bike’s (a Z1000SX) clutch is gone.”
I just nodded and left, never to see them ever again.
Certain parties weren’t happy about our recent review of the Honda CRF250L and CRF250 Rally. We called it as it was, “soft.” It has also to be said here that “we” here included Oh Kah Beng. So if you’re reading this, go ahead and tell off the legend if you’re not happy.
Why did I open with the above “intro?” Because in that same review, I mentioned that sometimes manufacturers aimed for too many segments in one model and ended up with a product that’s diluted at best (read: neither here nor there).
Take this bike, for instance. Honda meant the DN-01 to be a cruiser. Or more accurately, a cruiser/sportbike crossover. And a big scooter.
Courtesy of paratamoto.com
Firstly, the DN-01’s bodywork’s weird in anyone’s book, and wasn’t appealing to either the cruiser folks or sportbike fanatics. The ergonomics also took a bashing as was the lack of wind protection at speed, needing the rider to to hang on using the handlebar.
Customers were also unsatisfied due to the ridiculously low load capacity of only 147 kg. That meant if each the rider and passenger weigh 75 kg, their total weight of 150 kg has already overloaded the bike by 3 kg. That’s without figuring in luggage.
Wait, what luggage? There isn’t any storage space on the DN-01!
The transmission, however, was a different story. The continuously variable transmission (CVT) – marketed by Honda as “Human Friendly Transmission” – uses a hydraulic pump which varied the amount of fluid being pumped, changing the gearing as demanded. (It may sound the similar to the DCT in the current X-ADV, VFR1200X and CRF1000L Africa Twin, but no it isn’t.)
However, that brilliant CVT was mated to a 680cc engine (sourced from the Shadow) which produced an wheezing 43 bhp, which (sort of) propelled the 268kg DN-01 from 0 to 100 km/h in 7.41 seconds, and a quarter mile in 15.41 seconds at 140.7 km/h. Top speed? 182.0 km/h. Yawn.
Adding insult to injury was the US$15,599 asking price in 2009.
In 2000, MTT, Marine Turbine Technologies’ President Ted McIntyre appointed Christian Travert, a former motorcycle racer and custom motorcycle builder to head the motorcycle venture. Turbocharger? Supercharger? V8?
Nope.
Called the Y2K, MTT chose the Rolls-Royce-Allison Model 250-C18 gas turbine to power the bike. Oh, the gas turbine is just another name for a jet engine. However, it was a turboshaft, the variety used in helicopter. It made 320 bhp at 52000 RPM (not a typo) and over 400 lb. ft. of torque. Good news was, it didn’t require jet fuel to run; it burned kerosene, diesel or Bio-fuel.
MTT showed off the Street Fighter variant at the 2006 SEMA show in Las Vegas. The model marked the switch to the more powerful (as if 350 bhp on a motorcycle isn’t enough) Allison 250-C20 engine.
Last year, MTT announced the new 420RR, which they called, “New (Race Ready) Superbike.” The spec sheet reads like a it was put together by a mad scientist, more significantly, the 420RR is named so because the engine blows out 420 bhp @ 52000 RPM and 680 Nm of torque from just 2000 RPM. The fairing is carbon fiber and so are the wheels.
Each MTT 420RR is handbuilt to specific specifications of the buyer and only five are produced each year.
Jay Leno owns the first production Y2K and remarked that it’s his favourite bike despite being scared half to death. He also said the bike melted the bumper of the car behind.
