Euro Gossip January 2009

“Across Europe, 16% of all road fatalities are motorcyclists.” So says a recent report that is on our side!

The European Road Assessment Programme, commonly known as EuroRAP, is an international, not-for profit association, made up of members from motoring organizations, national and regional road authorities, and relevant experts. (It is a sister program to EuroNCAP, the independent crash test program that star rates new cars for the crash protection they provide to passengers and pedestrians. EuroNCAP demonstrates that well-designed crash protection can make family cars safer and easier to sell!)

The formal objectives of EuroRAP are – “to reduce death and serious injury on European roads rapidly through a program of systematic testing of risk that identifies major safety shortcomings which can be addressed by practical road improvement measures.”

EuroRAP aims to provide independent, consistent safety ratings of roads across borders. At the beginning of December they published a report entitled “Barriers to change: designing safe roads for motorcyclists” with some very worrying facts and statistics, along with some very positive suggestions to combat the not so pleasant ones.

It shows that crash barriers which routinely save the lives of car occupants, can cause traumatic death and injury to bikers. Apparently they actually account for up to one in every six rider road deaths. They can cause five times the severity of injury and in collisions with crash barriers riders are 15 times more likely to be killed than car occupants.

The report finds clear evidence to justify new and immediate guidance on the design and positioning of crash barriers, showing road engineers where motorcycle friendly systems should be fitted at new sites, and retro-fitted at existing high-risk sites.

To support its conclusions, EuroRAP points out that in France, where road designers have already introduced a lower rail on crash barriers at key locations to prevent bikers from sliding under or hitting support posts, authorities have seen a 50% drop in rider fatalities. Let's hope other countries throughout Europe take as much note of the findings as France and consider two wheels as well as four plus!

As you will see throughout the rest of the column, things have quieted down for the festive season as normal. However, we are starting to see even more effects of the worldwide recession, although it is not all gloom and doom and the general optimism of the motorcyclist continues to shine through. While 2009 might not be as bright as it could have been, at least having a motorcycle in garage means you have something to brighten up the gloomiest of news days. So just keep riding whatever the news or weather!

Austria

According to recently released figures, the 2009 KTM RC8-R could be the lightest bike in its class, even lighter than a Honda CBR1000RR. The factory claims 182 kg minus fuel, which means 191 kg with a full tank of gas, some 5 kg less than the CBR. Power is shown as 162 bhp in road-legal trim.

France

French firm Beringer are planning to launch a new disc brake set up claimed to be a lot lighter than current disc brakes, but 20% more powerful. The system uses a CNC machined hub made from alloy which has the 177.5 mm disc sitting inside the lip. This is then gripped by a three-piston caliper on the inner edge, rather than the outer edge as at present.

Apart from the extra braking power, the claimed advantages are that it reduces the rotating weight, thus reducing the gyroscopic inertia, making the bike turn quicker. Another big advantage is that all the components are out of harm’s way in crash situations, thus reducing repair costs.

However, the disadvantage is that the smaller disc would not be able to cope with the higher speeds of current sportbikes, so it is unlikely to be taken up by a major manufacturer as an OE fit on high-performance sports machines!

Germany 

BMW is rumored to be looking at building a three or four -wheeled machine as they have seen the sales success of the Piaggio MP3, despite its odd appearance. This would seem a logical step in its desire to move away from their previous 'staid conservative' image, although the sales flop of the enclosed C1 must still be fresh in their minds!

A source in the know reckons that we can see a finished version of the road going BMW S1000RR at the World Superbike round at Monza, Italy in May. It would seem many BMW tours from all over Europe are ending up there and will provide a very partisan crowd to reveal the finished item to as well as attracting good TV coverage!

Italy

Italy is perhaps the least likely place for a manufacturer to be considering a factory-built bike aimed at the disabled rider. However, Bimota has taken a 'Delerio' and adapted it to the point where it has been approved by the Italian Transport Industry for such use and is now seeking wider EU approval with the changes. Controls such as the throttle clutch, brake and gear selection have all been adapted to cater for a wide range of disabilities in order to allow a wide range of people to be able to ride, including those with only one arm.

Rumors from Bologna and the Ducati factory seem to suggest that the covers could come off the 848 to produce a naked smaller version of the 1098 Streetfighter in the near future. On the face of it, this does not really make sense as it will take away the wow factor of the larger bike, but maybe it has to do with offering a cheaper bike to get more sales in an ever-tightening market!

In a similar vein, Aprilia is rumored to be working on a naked version of the RSV4 in Tuono style. This one seems to make more sense given its now public announcement that they are soon to offer 12 new bikes to the market in the near future.

It seems that Moto Guzzi is pleased with the reception its V7 Café and Café Classic has been getting since its recent launch. So the 940cc Bellagio powertrain is being looked at to provide more 'stonk' for those who feel they need it!
 
MV is now somewhat better financed than it was thanks to Harley-Davidson, its new owners. As a result it now seems that the three-cylinder middleweight sports bike we have mentioned here before may well get the green light. Insiders claim it is all-up and ready to go, it just needs a positive decision by management.

Lost amongst the more high profile launches at the recent Milan show was the Gilera 850GP Corsa scooter. This large capacity prototype machine is their idea of what a racing scooter should be and has Ohlins inverted forks, a race rear shock and Brembo radially-mounted calipers, not to mention a twin upswept exhaust system. The styling is similar to an Aprilia RSV and it looked as though it would not take too much to become a production machine!

United Kingdom

A new Triumph has been seen endurance testing that could be a 900cc version of the Daytona 675. If this is correct we could well see this appear in the middle of next year as a 2010 model.

According to the MCIA (the industry's trade body), registrations were down 16% last month, despite being 4% up in October. A total of 7517 mopeds, scooters and motorcycles were registered in November, compared with 8947 in the same month last year. Over the first 11 months of the year, registrations are just 2.4% down, with 133,009 new powered two-wheelers (PTWs) registered. This still compares favorably with the UK car industry, which announced that new car registrations fell 36.8% in November, and 10.7% year to date.

As you might expect, added to this, average transaction prices of used motorcycles have taken a hit as retailers make an effort to shift large numbers of undesirable machines through a number of promotional sales. Dealers are undertaking a significant level of clearance activity in an attempt to make space for more saleable models and to release cash tied up in the plentiful number of less sought-after machines which remain unsold in showrooms.

A well-established British firm which has been working in the truck and other transport industries is now turning its attention to the motorcycle market and is already attracting a lot of interest. Zeroshift is a privately owned British company, specializing in the development and application of power transmission and electronic control solutions.

One of their products is a gear-change system that works instantaneously and has been very successful in the racing world where split seconds without power can mean the difference between a win and second place.

Zeroshift technology is a seamless and instantaneous means of changing gear ratios without interrupting the engine torque to the wheels. This has now been adapted to fit within the much smaller confines of a motorcycle gearbox (an integral part of the crankcase) and works because it retains many of the original components.

Surprisingly, it features very little changes. In fact, the input and output shafts and the selector barrel and forks remain, as does the standard clutch. The sequential change pattern also remains the same. What is added is the ZS hub that goes between the odd and even gears. When activated it performs three tasks in one movement taking just 50 milliseconds to complete them. First it disengages the current gear, selects the new one and pre-selects the next gear.

As a result it gives a seamless feel and is even faster than a conventional quick-shifter used in racing, because thanks to its construction and operation, drive is never actually disconnected. Apart from the speed, useful for racing applications, the company claims it gives better fuel consumption as well. Apparently one motorcycle manufacturer is seriously looking at it as a standard fit, while others are looking at the potential for racing.

Just over a year ago a British firm revealed details of a sportbike with the potential capability of 240 mph - the Ecosse Spirit ES-1, which we profiled here. Revolutionary aerodynamics place the rider lower in the bike than ever before to reduce the frontal area of the motorcycle, the main problem in gaining speed. Allied to this is a low weight, using composite materials and means that the bike can be powered by an existing one-liter power unit producing 170 hp. The only slight problem is that the chassis design means the drive needs to come out of the center of the engine rather than one side as at present, preventing the designers from taking an existing proprietary engine unit off the shelf.

The reason is that it has to drive a jack-shaft mounted on top of the swing-arm before this transmits power by chain to the rear wheel. This is to enable the rider to have his legs closer together within the envelope of the bike, while the bike still retains ground clearance. The bike has been created by Dick Glover, mechanical director of McLaren's road car division and Andy le Fleming, a designer with Honda's troubled F1 car team.

Despite having a full scale mock-up and plenty of computer work to back up their designs, they now need to build a running prototype to test their calculations. However, cash is in short supply and the project awaits a cash injection to take it forward!

The Norton revival we mentioned last month continues with the announcement that they will take part in the Isle of Man TT races in 2009. The bike will be ridden by Martin Dunlop, the son of Robert Dunlop who previously rode one of the rotary-engined bikes at the TT.

Japan

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. has recently announced that Honda's cumulative worldwide motorcycle production has reached the 200 million-unit milestone at the end of September 2008. This milestone has appeared in the 60th year since the company began motorcycle production in 1949 with the Dream D-type.

However, on a less favorable note they have also announced that it now expects a net loss for the second half of fiscal 2008 due to the yen's rapid appreciation and the sharp decline in car sales, particularly in North America. The company expects full-year group net profits to fall 69% from the previous projection of a 19%!

And finally!

A Happy and Healthy (if not prosperous) New Year to all readers.