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TOC Automotive College

  • Round 2 of the 2018 Pirelli Malaysia Superbike Championship (MSBK) went off without a hitch.

  • It was an exciting day as the riders and their teams showcased their effort and skill at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC).

  • Race 1 for all classes (except the TOC Desmo Cup) were held today. Race 2 is due tomorrow.

If there’s any indication of tomorrow, today’s (Saturday 28th July 2018) track action in the 2018 Pirelli Malaysia Superbike Championship (MSBK) Round 2 at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) demonstrated just how much excitement will be in store tomorrow (29th July 2018).

The morning started with another torrential downpour like the one during Round 1, forcing the riders to go out on Pirelli Diablo Rain tyres and getting fully drenched. They had to do so to gather setup data in case the rain continued throughout the day.

Of important note, SIC has revised the race program for the MSBK series, featuring Free Practie and Qualifying on Friday, Race 1 on Saturday and Race 2 on Sunday for all classes apart from the TOC Desmo Cup.

IDEMITSU ASIA TALENT CUP (ATC)

The ATC riders were the first to hit the track for Race 1 at 1pm. The rain had stopped by this point and the track was drying quickly.

Characteristic of the ATC, the teenagers fought tooth and nail from the green light. However, Mario Aji (#7) from Indonesia and Bill Van Eerde from Australia (#19) managed to break free of the chasing pack halfway through the race.

 

The pair then started trading the lead with some almost impossible and heart-stopping passes. However, Aji turned up the pace in the last few laps (recording his best on the final and 13th lap) to keep Eerde at arm’s length, to finish 1st and 2nd, respectively.

In 3rd was Malaysian Danial Sharil (#21) who did well to fight off the other riders and found space to ride a steady race to finish 5 seconds ahead of the 4th place man, Lucky Hendriansya (#13) also from Indonesia.

TOC DESMO CUP

This class is open specifically for Ducati owners to test their skills in a competitive environment. As mentioned earlier, the Desmo owners went out for Qualifying today. It was an awesome sight and aural pleasure to hear the Thundering Twins roaring around the Sepang International Circuit.

Syamsul Bakhtiar Esa (#14) on a Ducati 1198 recorded the fastest lap of 2:35.576 and astounding 8.166 seconds faster than 2nd placed qualifier Zulkiply Yahya (#12) on a Ducati 1098. 3rd fastest was Muhammad Danial Afiq Zamry (#98) on a Ducati 1198.

It was an important affair for both the Desmo Owners Club and TOC Automotive College as TOC supplied the technician workforce which consisted of their lecturers and students, allowing them to get their hands on racebikes as part of their education. Desmo Cup participants, on the other hand, have experienced lecturers working on their bikes.

The TOC Desmo Cup race will be held tomorrow.

SUPERSPORT

The big news prior to this weekend was Malaysia’s current Moto3 rider, Adam Norrodin would be racing in this 600cc class.

Moto3 Rider Adam Norrodin to Ride at MSBK

But Muhammad Helmi Azman (#32) had different plans as he blasted into the lead when the red lights went out, trailed by Adam and the rest of the field. As the race progressed, Helmi kept his blistering pace to open up a huge lead, which he held on to win the race.

Fakhrusy Syarikin Rostam (#66) had been shadowing Adam for many laps until he overtook the latter with a daring move into Turn One. The pair then started trading places until the last lap when Adam managed to capitalize.

Adam came home 2nd with Rostam less than 0.2 second behind him.

 

SUPER 250

It’s time for the ultra-competitive, hence ultra-entertaining Super 250 class in mid-afternoon. Competition is extremely close (and cutthroat) as the bikes are closely matched in terms of horsepower, meaning one has to work really hard to break away.

And fought they did, from even before they started braking for Turn One on the opening lap! The competitors banged fairings and elbows into Turns One and Two, almost causing a couple of crashes.

Championship leader, Indonesian Surya Narayana (#9) fought his way through to lead from Turn Two and held on to the finish, although he was hounded closely Jailani Kosma (#71) from Malaysia. Narayana kept his nerve and crossed the finish line as the winner with Kosma 0.5 second behind.

There was pandemonium as the riders fought each other hard, until Yokeshwaran K (#6) from India crashed hard just after the apex for Turn Two, causing the field to slow down and string out.

Malaysian Luth Harith B. Erwan (#38) picked up the final podium spot.

SUPERSTOCK

As opposed to Supersport, the Superstock class consists of 1000cc sportbikes.

Azroy Hakeem’s (#5) aggression worked well to allow him to decimate the field of 17 riders. He crossed the line a full 30 seconds faster than Amirul Hafiq Azmi (#80) of TOC-HKM Racing Team in 2nd.

Ahmad Khan (#66) came home in 3rd.

SUPERBIKE

With so many races lined up throughout the day, the premier Superbike class started at 6.15pm. The weather had cooled tremendously by this point, much to the relieve of the riders and tyres.

Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman (#25) of Chia PJ Kawasaki knew he had to contend with MSBK’s ex-champion, Rajini Krishnan (#67) who hails from India.

Indeed, the two rode in close formation at the head of the field from the start, with Rajini poised to capitalize on Azlan’s mistakes. Their teams and spectators held their bated breath as Rajini started to close the gap. The pass was going to happen soon.

But Azlan dug deep into his experience in the Asia Road Racing series and turned on his beast mode and started attacking every corner aggressively to open up an immense lead.

That forced Rajini to ride safe and he backed off his pace by the end of the race as he has a comfortable cushion over Jonathan Serrapica (#48) from Switzerland.

The trio completed the race in that order.

It was however, a day to forget for TOC-HKM Racing Team as both riders crashed in the race. Amirul Hafiq Azmi was holding on in 3rd when crashed heavily, destroying the bike. Fortunately, he was okay. His teammate and championship leader, Muhammad Jamalul Tarmizi (#89) was fighting for 4th place with Michael Muesel (#78) of Thailand when the former low-sided into the gravel trap. He was able to remount his bike and finished in 15th for a single point.

 

The 2018 Pirelli Malaysia Superbike Championship (MSBK) Round 2 concludes tomorrow.

 

  • Trusting your bike to a certified technician is a no-brainer.

  • There are great “traditional” mechanics out there but motorcycles are getting more complex.

  • A certified technician invariably means official training, discipline and knowledge.

Before we go on, surely you have experienced a horrific visit or two to a motorcycle workshop. You have ridden motorcycles for decades, but there always seem to be something to surprise you. (more…)

  • Our new column, TechTOC with Foreman Oh seeks to assist you with your technical questions or issues with your motorcycle.

  • The winning question earns the sender a complimentary session at Most Fun Gym (MFG) worth RM300.

  • Prizes are also available for 2nd and 3rd placed questions.

We have been featuring the TechTOC with Foreman Oh column for a couple of weeks now and we’ve received a few interesting questions. Please click here for the first and here for the second column.

We’ve received many enquiries from our readers and followers in the past and although we attempted to answer every question, we couldn’t answer all due to our heavy schedule and time constraints.

But we now have “Foreman” Oh Kah Beng, also known as “KB” among his friends and “Sifu” by his students (us included).

We’ve featured KB and his current Most Fun Gym (MFG) motocross school extensively, as we discovered that riding in the dirt has immensely improved our riding skills. Please click on the link below about MFG.

Mastering All Roads by Riding Where There is No Road

As we’ve also written before, KB was the very first Malaysian GP rider, who raced on classic race bikes such as the two-stroke TZ750 against other GP greats such as Wayne Gardner and Ron Haslam. And won. Please click on the link below to read more about KB.

Most Interesting Biker –Oh Kah Beng

To refresh, KB has now been appointed as the Motorsports Consultant at the TOC Automotive College (TOC) due to his racing, wrenching and coaching background.

Not only that, the riders and even the mechanics of the TOC-HKM Toyo MSBK team are undergoing MX training at MFG in order to upgrade their skills.

So, since TOC and KB are providing motorcycle-based training, who better to answer your questions than the legendary Foreman Oh Kah Beng himself.

But it gets better, because in the interest of training more riders the fundamentals of handling a motorcycle:

  • The winning question receives a complimentary training session at MFG, coached by KB himself. Don’t worry about the motorcycle and equipment, as MFG will loan you the appropriate riding gear from head to toe and put you on the bike corresponding to your skill level. The package is worth RM300. Yes, absolutely free!
  • The 2nd-placed question will win you 2 tickets to the 2018 Pirelli Malaysia Superbike Championship (MSBK).
  • The 3rd-placed question will earn you a coveted Most Fun Gym t-shirt.

Please send in your questions now (PM us at https://www.facebook.com/BikesRepublic/), but please be specific about the issue(s) you are facing, and include your full name and your city of residence. So, start typing!

  • TechTOC is a weekly technical column moderated by “Foreman” Oh Kah Beng (KB).

  • KB is now the Motorsports Consultant at the TOC Automotive College’s motorcycle racing venture and Principal Trainer at his Most Fun Gym (MFG) MX-school

  • Send in your technical questions, and the winner receives a complimentary session at KB’s Most Fun Gym MX-school!

We began with TechTOC last week, when “Foreman” Oh or as he likes to be called, “KB”, answered a reader’s query about engine operating temperatures (please click on the this link to read about it). This week, KB answers a good question about motorcycle suspension, namely the terminologies.

Question:

I always hear my friends talking about set up. Can you explain what is preload, compression and rebound damping?

— Wong Siew Seng, Selangor

Answer:

To answer your question needs to take up and entire article so I’ll try to be as brief as I can and cover only the basics.

The short answer is, preload is to adjust suspension sag. Sag (there are unladed and laden sag) is the name given to the amount of suspension travel used up when the bike settles under the bike’s own weight (unladen) and when the rider sits on the bike (laden). You alter its settings by rotating the collars or ramp clockwise, which loads the spring. It will cause the spring to push back on the collar, thereby reducing the sag and raising that end of the bike’s ride height at the same time. Move the collars up and the ride height drops.

But do not be fooled! The frustrating misconception is that altering the preload also changes your suspension’s stiffness (spring rate). This is totally wrong! You DO NOT change the spring rate unless you replace the spring. The suspension feels harsh when you add in too much preload as you have reduced the sag too much and the suspension sinks into its stiffer stroke. Think of sag as “freeplay.” However, too little preload is also a bad thing, as the suspension will have to much “freeplay” and compress all the way to its bump stop.

Before we proceed to the subject of damping, let us get this out of the way:

A spring if left to work alone (without damping) is prone “oscillations.” A compressed spring stores energy and when that energy is released, the spring will re-extend past its original length. When that happens, the elongated spring now stores potential energy and will recompress the spring when released. This process happens over and over again, the spring will “oscillate” until the energy turns translates totally to heat. You will feel the bike wallow up and down, like sitting on a motionless boat on a stormy sea – up and down, down and up, up and down.

Spring oscillation graph – hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu

This is where damping comes into play. Damping controls the movements of the spring.

Compression damping (marked as “COM”on the fork/s or shock/s) pertains to how “quickly” or “slowly” the wheel is allowed to push upwards when it contacts a bump. If you increase compression, the valves inside the fork or shock shuts off the flow of hydraulic oil or gas, thereby resisting the wheel’s upward movement. Conversely, if you decrease compression, the valves open up and oil or gas is able to flow more freely, hence the wheel comes up faster.

But DO NOT go to extremes. Just because you ride fast, it does not mean you need more compression damping. If you increase it too much, there will be too much resistance to the wheel’s movement, rendering it difficult to “soak” up bumps i.e. the suspension could not comply with road irregularities. This will cause the wheel to hop and lose traction. Additionally, a lot of bump energy is transferred to the rider. A bit less compression works for cornering at times, allowing the tyre to absorb the bumps and “dig” into the road (better mid-corner stability, too).

Rebound damping is opposite to compression damping. It regulates how quickly or slowly the wheel returns to its normal position after compression. Too much rebound will cause the suspension to “pack up,” as in it returns too slowly and that end of the bike will feel loose as the wheel stays up too long from its optimal position. Too little rebound, conversely, causes the wheel to be pushed back down too quickly (“packing down”) and the bike will feel harsh.

Too little rebound can be confused with too much compression but pay attention to whether the “hit” is felt immediately when you contact a bump or just after it. If it is felt immediately when you hit a bump, it is due to too much compression (or a spring that is too hard). Conversely, if the bump is felt after contacting it, it is due to too little rebound damping.

So, adjust the preload to obtain the correct sag (30 to 40 mm or 1/3 of total suspension travel) and ride height, compression damping for bump absorption and rebound damping for how the wheel returns after bump absorption. Understanding this will do wonders to the handling of your motorcycle.

Although suspension settings are subjective as every rider has a different comfort zone and riding environment, personally, I always like to set both compression and rebound damping on the softer side, and work my way up, using the factory (stock) setting as the baseline. An overly soft setting is more forgiving than overly hard one, as the former is more pliant while the latter is harsh and unforgiving, which could lead to extreme occurrences such as tyre slides and tank slappers.

You can learn more about this in the TOC Automotive College’s Superbike Technician Course. Please visit TOC Automotive College’s Facebook page or their campus (map below) or call call (+603) 7960 8833 for more information. Likewise, you can find more information about the TOC Bina Bakat Program here, or email info@toc.edu.my. Please click on this link for further information on the TOC Superbike Technician Course.

You may also visit Most Fun Gym for off-road training, as it improves your riding skills for all riding conditions. Please call +6012-2072516 for more enquiries or to book an appointment.

  • TOC and SIC have partnered to develop talents through Bina Bakat program and Superbike Technician Course.

  • The announcement was made with Hafizh Syahrin, Adam Norrodin and Zulfahmi Khairuddin in attendance.

  • The partnership augurs well for both parties as SIC is actively expanding into motorsports.

As we’ve reported on previous occasions, the TOC Automotive College (TOC) is providing a loan for students aspiring to be certified superbike technicians through a program called, “Bina Bakat (Talent Development).” (Please click here for the full article.) Now, to provide graduates opportunities for greater job placement portfolios, as the college has announced their partnership with the Sepang International Circuit (SIC).

This augurs well with SIC as the world-class motorsports venue’s management has expanded their reach into two-motorsports by running their own MotoGP team next year, after SIC tied up with the Angel Nieto Team and Yamaha to run the manufacturer’s satellite team beginning 2019 (please click here to read the full news). Besides that, SIC has also set up a Talent Cup to develop young racers in Malaysia, managed by Zulfahmi Khairuddin.

This is on top of Hafizh Syahrin making the jump to the MotoGP premier class this year.

Dato’ Ahmad Razlan Razali, the CEO of Sepang International Circuit said that such expansion requires certified and skilled mechanics, who are disciplined in their work ethics. He is confident that these are the very sort of technicians who are produced by TOC through the Superbike Technician Course, which also encompasses motorsports as part of their syllabus.

Indeed, as part of TOC’s “Enriching Lives” theme, the college seeks to provide the best talent development program through Bina Bakat. The program builds the students’ development path through 80% practical work, preparing them for potential job placements after graduation. Obviously, SIC is an attractive goal for many students.

To rehash, Bina Bakat program offers 100% education loan to eligible student to follow the Superbike Technician Course. They will then repay their loans after they have found job placements.

The announcement was made during a special get-together event at the TOC Automotive College’s campus in Petaling Jaya. Present were Hafizh Syahrin (MotoGP), Adam Norrodin (Moto3), Zulfahmi Khairuddin (Team Manager), Dato’ Ahmad Razlan Razali, Oh Kah Beng (TOC Motorsports Director), Jeffrey Oh (Oh Kah Beng’s brother and co-ordinator for the Asia Talent Cup and British Talent Cup) and Habibtullah Fuad Mohamad (Moto2 Mechanic), among other dignitaries and well-known figures in Malaysian motosports.

The guests were given a guided tour of TOC’s facilities and they signed autographs for their fans after the press conference.

Please visit TOC Automotive College’s Facebook page or their campus (map below) or call call (+603) 7960 8833 for more information. Likewise, you can find more information about the TOC Bina Bakat Program here, or email info@toc.edu.my. Please click on this link for further information on the TOC Superbike Technician Course.

PICTURE GALLERY

  • If you’re reading this then there’s a pretty good chance you wouldn’t mind getting paid to work with superbikes.
  • There has been a recent rise in demand for superbike technicians, amid the lack of qualified technicians in the market.
  • TOC Automotive College is now offering a Superbike Technician Course that aims to equip technicians with the proper qualification. Get more info here.
  • The course includes working with a full-fledged race team in order to get the necessary experience from real-world scenarios.

The world of motorcycle racing or any other motorsports for that matter is all about one thing; TEAMWORK. Racers can’t win by themselves and bikes can’t be maintained to their optimum performance without all of the team members and crews.

This is where a dedicated group of individuals comes to play. From team bosses, pit crews to race mechanics and technicians, each person has a huge role to play in obtaining the best possible results during race day.

For superbike technicians, there’s nothing like witnessing your motorcycle racer crossing the finish line and finishing on the podium. Despite the celebrations, all of the work that has been put through in order to achieve the results for your riders however, does not start the night before. Here’s a look into a day in the life of a superbike technician during race day.

After at least a week’s worth of preparation prior to the race weekend, teams as well as their race machines and racers make their way to the track on Friday or Saturday depending on the race series format. Witnessing them functioning as a well-oiled singular unit is nothing short of amazing.

After scrambling through practice and qualifying sessions, it’s time for race day. People often mention the ‘calm before the storm’ but it’s only a temporary silence before the race bikes are fired up and superbike technicians are seen getting everything ready in an organised manner despite all the chaos.

The TOC HKM Racing Team currently competing in the 2018 Pirelli Malaysia Superbike Championship is a great example of how superbike technicians are trained and develop their skills in the art of motorcycle racing.

It’s all down to one thing and one thing only; getting the bike at its most optimum performance for the rider. From getting the right tyres, fitting the tyre warmers, checking fuel and fluid levels, and everything else in between, it’s a breathtaking sight once you see that high-performance machine ready to blast down the straights and carve through corners as fast as the rider can ride it.

As most of you may have heard, the TOC Automotive College has recently launched their first-ever Superbike Technician Course and part of their program is to get future superbike technicians involved in motorcycle racing as part of their curriculum.

Race days are not just about getting the race bikes ready to battle it out on the track but also provide real-world situations to the superbike technicians from swift maintenance to emergency parts replacements. Maintaining a cool head in a stressful environment will make any person grow and if they are able to practice their craft in the scenario, the results are certainly impressive. This is what the TOC Automotive College is all about.

In other words, TOC’s involvement in motorcycle racing will broaden their students’ knowledge as well as motor skills where some things can’t be obtained by working in garages and workshops. Their recent collaboration with the Malaysia Speed Festival also gave birth to the MSF Motor Racing Study Course which further elevates their dedication in bringing nothing but the best for future superbike technicians.

When it comes to becoming the best Superbike Technician, TOC Automotive College provides the best program catered to any passionate individuals wanting to start their career with motorcycles whether at the workshops or race track.

To know more about TOC’s Superbike Technician Course, CLICK HERE!

  • Dengan binaan motosikal masa kini yang semakin rumit, keperluan untuk juruteknik yang lebih pakar amat diperlukan.
  • Lebih rama pemilik yang menghantar motosikal mereka ke bengkel rasmi oleh kerana kerumitannya.
  • TOC Automotive College menawarkan Kursus Juruteknik Superbike yang memenuhi matlamat tersebut.

(more…)

  • TechTOC is a new weekly technical column moderated by “Foreman” Oh Kah Beng (KB).

  • KB is now the Consultant for the TOC Automotive College’s motorcycle racing venture.

  • Send in your technical questions, as the winner receives a complimentary session at KB’s Most Fun Gym MX-school!

Malaysian GP legend and now motocross instructor, “Foreman” Oh Kah Beng is no stranger to most of us. He was the very first Malaysian to have ridden in international GP events on 500cc 2-stroke machines in the 80’s, before moving over to the automotive industry where he was the head of Lotus Cars Malaysia and Driving Instructor for the Lotus community’s Performance Driving Program.

Growing up at his father’s motorcycle shop, he had learned about wrenching on a motorcycle from an early age. In fact, all his brothers are well-known technicians, too, including Sunny Oh and Randy Oh.

Most Interesting Biker –Oh Kah Beng

Lately, he is the operating his own motocross and off-roading as the Principal Coach, to teach riders the finer points of motorcycle control at his facility, Most Fun Gym (MFG). His students start from as young as four-years-old.

As TOC Automotive College makes a foray into two-wheeled education and racing, in addition to auto racing, it was only right that KB (as he likes to be called) plays the role of consultant to the racing project.

Please click on this link to visit TOC Automotive College to know more about their new TOC Superbike Technician Course. https://www.facebook.com/TOC.edu/

TOC Automotive College introduces new superbike course – Learn to be a qualified superbike mechanic!

Here, we kick off the first installment of TechTOC, where readers such as you can send in technical questions regarding your motorcycle and KB will answer them. The best question earns a complementary riding session at Most Fun Gym! So get typing!

Kah Beng (far left) with Sebastian Foo and the TOC Automotive College MSBK Malaysia Superbike Team

Question:

I own a Harley-Davidson and a Ducati 1299 Panigale. What would be the ideal operating temperature for these bikes? I also own a scooter for my daily runabout, should the same temperatures apply to it as well?

– Muhammad “Don Ducati” Anis, Kuala Lumpur

Answer:

Motorcycle engines need to operate at a certain temperature range for the optimal thermodynamic efficiency. At this optimal temperature, the fuel-air mixture is in a state which is easier to burn efficiently. This efficiency translates to better power production, fuel efficiency and lower exhaust emission.

Courtesy of www.explainthatstuff.com

As an example, you may have noticed that familiar exhaust smell from a cold engine as it heats up. That is because the engine has not reached it working temperature.

Now, over to your questions.

The operating temperature range of a motorcycle depends on what type of motorcycle, which brand, whether it is Japanese or “continental” and if it is liquid- or air/oil-cooled, so please note that this is a general statement.

An air-cooled Harley-Davidson engine’s operating temperature correlates to its oil temperature. From what I understand, that is around 90o to 120o C on a 32o C day. It is okay as long as it stays below 150o C. The only way to tell is if you install an oil temperature gauge, sold by Harley as an accessory. (It’s a dispstick-like device which fits in the place of the stock engine oil filler cap.)

As for the Ducati 1299 Panigale, the operating range for Ducatis, including my Monster is around 90o to 105o C. Ducatis, Cagivas and most Italian bikes have traditionally run temperatures up in this range. Our TOC BMW S 1000 RR racebikes could hit close to 100o C in the heat (pun intended) of competition.

What scooter do you own? May I safely assume that it is from a Japanese manufacturer? The Japanese manufacturers adhere to lower engine operating temperatures, usually between 70o to 80o C, conversely.

  • More and more certified superbike technicians are in demand right now thanks to a growth of a multitude of bikes here in Malaysia.

  • The TOC Automotive College has specially developed a program called “Superbike Technician Course” to assist in the demand.

  • The TOC STC is made up of three levels of academic and career development, and all one needs is a minimum Form 3 education to apply for this 18-month course.

The motorcycle scene in Malaysia has been growing steadily over the years, with more and more bikes of all sizes and makes taking to the road, there has never been a time when so many new superbikes from various bike-makers have been introduced in rapid succession. (more…)

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