Mention the word Honda to anyone today and they will immediately know exactly what you are talking about. Today Honda is recognized as one of the biggest car manufacturers in the world and the biggest motorcycle manufacturer in the world. However Honda came from humble beginnings and is truly an inspirational story to anyone.
Mr. Soichiro Honda was a self taught mechanic and engineer developing his knowledge by working on cars and racing them. Through his self taught knowledge he designed a new piston and tried to sell it to Toyota however they were not interested. After much more work and being on the verge of bankruptcy, Toyota finally accepted his proposal and he developed a factory designed for the manufacturing of pistons, however it was lost in an earthquake. However he persisted and during World War 2 there was a lack of fuel for cars and this is when Mr. Soichiro came up with the idea of attaching a small engine to a bicycle and the rest was history from there on.
Today Mr. Soichiro’s legacy lives on and every Sunday morning thousands of his bikes can be heard tearing up tarmac throughout the world. Today there is a huge variety of bikes on offer from Honda but the most ferocious is most definitely the Honda CBR1000RR. Introduced in 2004 the new Honda superbike was developed by the same team that worked on Honda’s MotoGP bikes. It incorporates the very latest in technology developed from many hours spent racing and testing on circuits throughout the world. Through much refinement the CBR was developed from the spectacular RC211V race machine. The goal was to use a light state of the art chassis, a long swing arm and to have much of the weight as low down and as far forward as possible allowing for maximum power to be applied sooner. The main purpose of the CBR is performance, and a lot of it. When the CBR was introduced it featured an HESD (Honda electronic steering damper), radial mounted front brakes and an extremely powerful and compact motor.
Although the cosmetic changes from the 04 to the 07 CBR were minimal, there were significant mechanical changes. With the all new CBR an all new body was designed and the center up exhaust was replaced with the MotoGP style short pipe, aimed at centralizing the weight. The 07 CBR features lighter components, higher compression ratios, larger brakes, redesigned exhaust, new intake and exhaust porting, a higher redline and a new chassis geometry amongst other changes. The phenomenal specifications below:
| Make Model | Honda CBR 1000RR Fireblade |
| Year | 2007 |
| Engine | Liquid cooled, four stroke, transverse four cylinder, DOHC, 4 valve per cylinder. |
| Capacity | 998 |
| Bore x Stroke | 75 x 56.5 mm |
| Compression Ratio | 12.2:1 |
| Induction | PGM-DSFI fuel injection, 4 x 44mm throttle bodies |
| Ignition / Starting | Computer-controlled digital transistorized with electronic advance / electric |
| Max Power | 126,4 kW 172 hp @ 11250 rpm |
| Max Torque | 114,5 Nm @ 10000 rpm |
| Transmission / Drive | 6 Speed / chain |
| Front Suspension | 43mm inverted HMAS cartridge fork with spring preload, rebound and compression damping adjustability; 120mm wheel travel |
| Rear Suspension | Pro-Link single shock with spring preload, rebound and compression damping adjustability; 134.5mm wheel travel |
| Front Brakes | 2x 320mm discs 4 piston calipers |
| Rear Brakes | Single 220mm disc 1 piston calliper |
| Front Tyre | 120/70 ZR17 |
| Rear Tyre | 190/50 ZR17 |
| Dry-Weight | 176 kg |
| Fuel Capacity | 18 Litres |
| Consumption average | 16.5 km/lit |
| Standing ¼ Mile | 10.6 sec / 228.0 km/h |
| Standing 1000m | 19.3 sec / 266.7 km/h |
| Top Speed | 277.7 km/h |
The CBR is a fantastic bike to ride, yes the suspension is stiff for town riding and the rider position is not very comfortable in stop start traffic but once on the open road responsiveness and smoothness is evident. Keep your eyes on your speed though; this bike will accelerate from 0-100km/h in 2.7 seconds if you are an experienced rider. The new CBR however is even more smooth comfortable, powerful and nimble. An all new engine was incorporated with the new CBR and the changes are very evident. The MotoGP side exhaust features a flap which opens as the revs increase allowing for easier starts and more top end power. The all new 999cc motor is a cc larger than the previous CBR and the redline is now at 13000RPM instead of 12000RPM.
Power has obviously increased with the 2008-2010 CBR from a 124.7Kw’s to 131Kw’s The bike also feels a lot more compact and user friendly than the previous CBR and riders confidence quickly grows as the bike tends to be forgiving upon first impression, however start to open up the accelerator and the new CBR becomes a complete animal. It took the top 5 places in the superbike race at the infamous Isle of man TT. It feels as if you are sitting on a sidewinder missile, very compact with never ending power. It is also very nimble and the braking power is immense, there are a total of 9 pistons applying huge force to the cross drilled discs. The new Honda CBR also has the option of ABS. I would highly recommend this it is a R10 000 option but it is worth every cent on a bike with this much power. The new CBR is also friendly to the environment with a HECS3 system which monitors emissions and reduces the amount of harmful gasses. Honda also invested a great deal of effort to reduce the weight of the new CBR including lighter wheels, brake hoses, brake discs and battery. All this helps to centralize the weight allowing for more power to be applied when exiting the corner but also more maneuverability. The CBR changes direction with ease and can be tipped from right to left hand corners with the flick of the wrist.
The CBR has become easier to ride but don’t be fooled it is also a lot more powerful and nimble, although there is stiff competition in the 1000cc market, my money would most definitely be on the Honda because of their amazing dependency, high performance and respectable value. The new CBR has already proven itself in races throughout the world including the Citibike superbike championship in South Africa and Honda will be a force to reckon with once the 2010 MotoGP and world superbike season kicks off.
The specifications for the 2010 CBR1000RR below:
| Make Model | Honda CBR 1000RR Fireblade C-ABS |
| Year | 2010 |
| Engine | Liquid cooled, four stroke, transverse four cylinder, DOHC, 4 valve per cylinder. |
| Capacity | 998 |
| Bore x Stroke | 76 x 55.1 mm |
| Compression Ratio | 12.3 : 1 |
| Induction | PGM-DSFI electronic fuel injection 46mm Throttle Bore |
| Ignition / Starting | Computer-controlled digital transistorised with electronic advance / electric |
| Clutch | Wet, multiplate with diaphragm spring |
| Max Power | 175.6hp 131.0 kW @ 12000 rpm |
| Max Torque | 112.0 Nm @ 8500 rpm |
| Transmission / Drive | 6 Speed / chain |
| Gear Ratio | 1st 2.286 (32/14) / 2nd 1.778 (32/18) / 3rd 1.500 (33/22) / 4th 1.333 (32/24) / 5th 1.214 (34/28) / 6th1.138 (33/29) |
| Frame | Diamond; aluminium composite twin-spar |
| Front Suspension | 43mm inverted HMAS cartridge-type telescopic fork with stepless preload, compression and rebound adjustment, 120mm wheel travel |
| Rear Suspension | Unit Pro-Link with gas-charged HMAS damper featuring 10-step preload and stepless compression and rebound damping adjustment, 135mm wheel travel |
| Front Brakes | 2x 320mm discs 4 piston calipers, Combined ABS and sintered metal pads |
| Rear Brakes | Single 220mm disc, Combined ABS and sintered metal pads |
| Front Tyre | 120/70ZR-17 |
| Rear Tyre | 190/50ZR-17 |
| Seat Height | 820 mm |
| Wet Weight | 210 kg |
| Fuel Capacity | 17.7 Litres (including 4-litre LCD-indicated reserve) |
It is no surprise that the new Honda CBR was one of the most anticipated releases as Honda have developed a hugely successful racing history and other manufacturers will still struggle to overtake the CBR.
No comments:
Post a Comment