F1, trickle-down, etc.

[Eric Bryant]

From: James Montebello <jamesm at lapuwali.com>
Subject: Re: F1, trickle-down, etc.


>Not missing that point at all.  First, not *all* 4-stroke racebikes are
>based on streetbikes.  The bikes used by the front-line teams at the
>Suzuka 8-hours are NOT streetbikes.  The rules are unique, and these are
>essentially 4-stroke GP bikes.  The first actual 4-stroke GP bikes are
>being developed around these bikes.

Funny - the bikes that I've seen (well, not in person) that run at Suzuka
(at least near the front) are based on WSBK designs.  Sure, there's probably
a few detail changes to increase durability over the standard WSBK setup,
but they're not ground-up prototypes of the sort we'll see in GP next year.

I'm having problems drawing too much of a line from Honda's current
WSBK/Suzuki V-twin and their upcoming V-5 design for GP racing.

> Second, anyone who really thinks
>there's much shared between the front-line Superbikes and what's on
>the showroom floor needs to wise up (all due respect).  Case in point:
>no Kawasaki streetbike uses gear-driven cams, but the last Kawasaki
>superbike did.
>

That's pretty clear by looking at one of these bikes up close.  Note that I
only mentioned the crankcase, head castings, and stock internal dimensions
as being "stock" parts - just about everything else on the bike (other than
the frame) is different that production parts.

Keep in mind, though, that many of the parts still need to be of stock
dimensions.  You might be able to do a lot of parts-swapping, but you'll
still be constrained by stock throttle-body size, bore and stroke, etc.

>No, not bad.  Still well below the F1 engines in specific output,
>however (245hp/liter v. 280hp/liter).  I'd still quibble with how
>"production-based" the front-line engines really are, however

Well, the RC45 is a lot closer to something that I can buy:)  I agree that
the front-line engines are pretty wild, but they're still something that you
and I would recognize.

>Rapidly, but the bulk of the models for sale still have carbs.  I still
>contend that bikes are well behind cars in the tech stakes, which was the
>original point.
>

I don't think I was disagreeing with you on this point, was I?  I was just
saying that there's reasons that bikes are behind cars in the technology
wars, and it had nothing to do with the numbers of wheels - there's a lot of
external reasons (race sactioning bodies, governmental regulations, etc.).

Eric Bryant                      Grand Haven, MI
mailto:eric at bryantperformance.com
www.bryantperformance.com



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