Test rode the new speed triple.

Originally Posted by yorkie_chris

I doubt it, IL6s were a bit of a flash in the pan.

I reckon they need to make smaller turbo engines like 250/400s

Superchargers? Surely they would be better for throttle control on a bike?


Ahhh id love to have a go at that! 250V2 with supercharger... 60bhp is pretty easy to get id bet!

[yorkie_chris]

Turbo is simpler and the idea is, in my mind, to keep losses and excess power at the bottom end down to save fuel.

But a blower would be cool too, though if using one why not just use a bigger engine? If you want bottom end torque there's no replacement for displacement.

Originally Posted by Dicky Ticker

Never said I didn't appreciate the views of others but more to the complete derail that ensued

Not really a derail since the subject was basically "I'm looking for a new bike, have test ridden an S3 and now for some other stuff..."
Seemed to stay pretty much on the topic of the OP to me...

You just didn't like it wandering away from triumphs

charger would be good but theres no problem spinning a bike engine up to high revs so a turbo will make for a better solution i would have thought? now that would be awsome!

Charger gives you power from the off where as a turbo kicks in at higher revs and is capable of sustaining higher revs than a supercharger which tends to tail off as the revs increase[in general terms]
Chargers tend to be cumbersome where a turbo can be more discrete and easier to fit with in the confines of the engine bay/placement

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDCgw...B40A804BCFF547

Superchargers are pretty easy to hide, well with a V2 they are, just put it between the V, if the engine is specifically bult to have one then it would be even easier!

As you can see from the video there there is no tail off, it makes most power at the red line. The Rotax Superchargers allow higher RPM compressors (similar to speeds of turbo's), which was typically where Superchargers fell down. There are the twin screw Superchargers which also seem to work AMAZING, but they are bigger most of the time.

I suppose a turbo would be more economical if you get limited boost at lower end (less fuel needed), but then I guess you can with some work just make it so the supercharger boost ramps up with throttle, i.e. wastegate lowers pressure for low rpm/low throttle work. Guess thats getting more complicated though?

Also, smaller bike is cheaper to tax

[kaivalagi]

That VFR certainly has a nice sound

This all got me to thinking why oh why can't Norton start thinking about the 588 rotary in a production bike....I loved watching that bike at Snetterton when I was a kid and by all accounts it was/is a great engine isn't it? I can't recall anything bad about it but could be wrong....? Fuel economy maybe an issue...?

Here's hoping after the cafe racer stuff they'll get thinking along these lines....

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by ThEGr33k

i.e. wastegate lowers pressure for low rpm/low throttle work. Guess thats getting more complicated though?

And wasting power, what's the point of compressing gas just to bleed it off?

Originally Posted by kaivalagi

That VFR certainly has a nice sound

This all got me to thinking why oh why can't Norton start thinking about the 588 rotary in a production bike....I loved watching that bike at Snetterton when I was a kid and by all accounts it was/is a great engine isn't it? I can't recall anything bad about it but could be wrong....? Fuel economy maybe an issue...?

Thirsty,* unreliable.

A guy who builds rotaries for UAVs told me "these have a bad reputation and they deserve it, there's no such thing as a Friday afternoon one because if it isn't perfect they won't even start let alone last."


*Better BSFC than a small turboprop but that doesn't take much doing since small turboprops are about as efficient as farting down a hosepipe

[kaivalagi]

tis a shame...lovely engine in principle...maybe if that engine design had more years of engineering put into it like a normal piston engine has it may be more reliable and efficient....but that's beside the point I guess

Still, a nice 400 sports from yester year with a turbo sounds great...a nice zxr400 with those ram air pipes maybe

If only I had a garage, lots of spare cash and loads of time.....

[yorkie_chris]

It's inherent to the design that the wetted area is huge with the resulting heat loss.

A nice brand new sports 400 would be a lovely bike for someone to make.