Kawasaki's ultimate high-speed tourer

Mode-changing mechanisms allow the rider to select the riding position and functionality to suit the conditions for example, it can be a low or high speed touring machine and there's even a full-on sports mode where the adjustable fairing and screen takes on its most aerodynamic profile. Borrowing from many exclusive automobiles which offer varying aerodynamics dependent upon speed, the Kawasaki ZZX-R has speed sensitive fairing components which change position depending on speed too.

Some other firsts on display within the concept machine include cone-shaped, rim-mounted disk brakes which are designed for maximum cooling efficiency, and a centrally-mounted fuel tank which is designed to centralise the mass on what is obviously a very large machine.Ample storage capacity has been designed into the machine, with a capacious storage area in front of the seat. Yet another first is the muffler which is built into the bodywork.

Details on the machine are purposefully vague - no weight, no engine details and no power figures have been released, which indicates Kawasaki was attempting to float the concept rather than indicate a specific machine. Perhaps even more significant than the machine which was shown, were the sketches which accompanied the showing. They clearly illustrate a line of thinking which involves an all-purpose bike with different panelling to be clipped on for different purposes - with the add-ons ranging from expandable panniers through to a roof.

2013 Honda PCX150 Review

Now, with the new and improved Honda PCX150, Team Red has directly addressed this issue, boring out the original 125cc, two-valve, programmed fuel-injected engine to 152.9cc, making it officially eligible to hop on the freeway. Of course, being a Honda, while the 125 engine was getting a facelift, engineers made other improvements as well.

If you didn’t know any better, you’d think this PCX had a 125cc engine. But you’d be wrong.

A number of subtle improvements to the cylinder and rocker arm reduce friction, while the piston itself went on a diet, thanks to CAE (Computer Aided Engineering) analysis. A more efficient radiator allows the use of a smaller, lighter cooling fan, and internal modifications reduce oil agitation losses, allowing oil capacity to come down approximately 25% compared to the 125cc version.

All of these low-friction, higher-efficiency adoptions are a reflection of a global initiative Honda calls ESP, or Enhanced Smart Power. ESP’s aim is to develop environmentally responsible scooter engines without compromising performance. Further proof of this initiative is the 150’s “built-in” cooling system.

The 25-liter underseat storage can easily gobble up a full-face helmet with room to spare.

Whereas other scooters place their radiators near the nose or head of the leg shield, requiring complex hose routing, the PCX150’s radiator is placed directly adjacent of the engine, toward the center of its crank axis. This reduces and simplifies cooling system parts, with an added benefit of centralizing weight. Revised gearing results in more oomph when launching from a stop.

Honda claims this world-model scoot will achieve 102 mpg, but it’s interesting to note, in the interest of keeping costs down, the units coming to this side of the pond won’t be equipped with the Idle Stop feature, which shuts down the engine at a stop to conserve fuel. This technology becoming more prevalent in the car world.

The tamper-resistant ignition system uses a simple lever to cover the ignition. Using the plastic key on the key fob unlocks the cover to reveal the ignition.

Other changes: seat cushions use a different material for firmer support, and a new mounting bracket is available to accept an accessory 35-liter top box in case the 25-liter underseat storage and additional 1.5-liter front storage compartment weren’t enough.

Otherwise, the PCX150 remains largely unchanged from its 125cc predecessor. The Honda V-Matic CVT eliminates the need to shift, while a 31mm conventional fork and single shock, offering 3.5 and 3.1 inches of travel, respectively, handle suspension duties. Even styling cues have gone unchanged, still fresh and attractive with its angular, Euro-inspired lines. Bringing the scoot to a stop is a rear drum and single 220mm front disc mated to a three-piston caliper. Honda’s Combined Braking System links rear to front, but not front to rear.

A single 220mm disc is plenty strong enough to slow the PCX in most situations.

At first glance, it’s easy to mistake the PCX150 for its smaller predecessor. Pick it up off the sidestand or centerstand and this feeling continues even from the saddle, as the user interface has gone unchanged. Thumb the starter and the PCX quietly purrs to life like before. The difference is felt once you twist the throttle, as the extra muscle (relatively speaking) noticeably propels the PCX off the line with just a smidge more urgency than the 125cc model. Performance easily trumps anything in the 125 category, and will likely give fits to bigger competition as well.

And being fuel-injected, there’s no worry about waiting for it to warm up. Simply start it and ride away. There’s plenty of squirt to maintain pace with surrounding traffic, though when it comes time to hop on the freeway and reach merging speed, the urgency in its acceleration quickly drops.

Taller riders may find themselves sitting in the pillion seat to ride the PCX, though the long, sweeping floorboards provide plenty of legroom.

I was able to reach an indicated 70 mph before the little scoot plateaued. It wasn’t having any more. Ride quality is supple and compliant, though suspension damping feels more on the firmer side than I remember from the 125. The 90/90-14 front, 100/90-14 rear tires remain unchanged.

With its weight located low and central, the PCX150 has impressive handling characteristics for a scooter.

Apart from the extra grunt from the engine and perceived firmness in the suspension, it was difficult to notice much of a change between new and old. Mainly because there’s not much of one. My 5-foot, 8-inch frame fits nicely in the 29.9-inch high saddle with convenient support from the backrest. Taller riders may want to remove this backrest for a greater breadth of seating positions. Swooping floorboards allow riders to place their feet directly below them or out in front, cruiser style.

With its mass-centralized engine and fuel tank, the bulk of the PCX150’s claimed 286-pound curb weight is low in the chassis, allowing for quick, neutral handling despite its 27.0-degree rake. With its linked brakes, slowing down was never an issue. The front binder scrubs speed just fine for 90% of applications, though using both brakes makes a noticeable difference during emergency stops.

When viewed from a performance and intended design standpoint, the PCX150 is hard to top. With room for a full-face helmet (and then some) under the seat, responsive yet supportive handling, and a freeway-legal, fuel-injected engine, what more could you ask for? Judging from our past experience, Honda’s claim of 102 mpg is hard to believe, but we’ll have to wait until we can get one for a thorough test to find out. Still, expect impressive mileage numbers.

With enough motivation, you can wheelie nearly anything!

Honda says the mid-displacement scooter category is the second-most popular behind the 50cc category, with 66% of sales going to first-time scooter buyers. Interestingly, 20% of these consumers are brand new to two-wheels and 33% are women. At $3,449, it’s difficult to think of a more capable performer for the price.

Hell, maybe I’ll actually end up buying one this time.

1997 Harley-Davidson Heritage Springer Softail

Once upon a time, when our GI's returned home from W.W.II, they noticed that motorcycles available to them at the time were large, voluptuous and beautiful. They were also big, heavy and slow -- bikes built for respectable older folks, not twenty-something rebels. War was hell, now it was time to cut loose, have fun and be cool. Big stodgy bikes were definitely not cool.
Since the right kind of motorcycle wasn't being offered, these intrepid GI's decided to make their own. They started chopping things off those big, heavy bikes. Things like heavy fenders, bags, even front brakes. They called these bikes "choppers." And the motorcycles they were chopping things off looked a whole lot like the new 1997 FLSTS, a.k.a. Heritage Springer Softail.
Sporting big, full-skirted metal fenders, fringe-laden bags and that classic springer front end, this bike comes straight out of 1948 -- the Panhead's first year and the last for a factory springer set-up. Like the original, H-D's 1997 version was built for respectable older folks. The kind who just happen to be a large percentage of new Harley buyers.
A bike of details

In re-creating the past, the Motor Company has seen to every detail but have also donned a pair of thick rose-colored glasses. In this rare case, the original can't compare with the copy. In fact, when you really examine old Panheads, you are surprised by how delicate they look by comparison.
They were certainly reliable bikes for their time, but were born in an era where cost was an issue and image wasn't everything. By contrast, everything on the FLSTS is heavy-duty, designed for beauty and chromed to within an inch of its life. Gone are the exposed wires, the untreated metal pieces and, of course, that spring-loaded saddle floating 10 inches above the frame.
The '97 Heritage Springer is an impressive looking machine. A bike of details. It benefits from the fact that it was designed in an era where cost is basically not an issue for bikes bearing the H-D logo. The original Pans didn't have that luxury.
For instance, after designing two of the best looking fenders ever, the good folks in Harley's design department slapped on a trick looking tombstone taillight and front running light, making those fenders just that much more impressive.

Another such detail is the horn. Prominently displayed right up front, atop the damper, this thing is a brilliant reproduction of the original. And it works great, too. Nice and loud and pointing straight ahead instead of down into your left boot.
What's the big deal about a bike that essentially looks like a Heritage Softail with new fenders and a springer front end grafted on? Well the springer forks that have been around since 1988 are designed for a skinny 21 inch tire.
This nostalgic bike demanded a fat 16 inch tire. Creating this proved a little more tricky than simply widening the existing springer setup.
The added weight of the 16 inch tire required changing its geometry (i.e. rake & trail). H-D's engineers were equal to the task though, and have designed a new front end that is rock solid at modern highway speeds. Even in Montana.

Heavy Metal
The view from the saddle is fabulous. Nothing but chrome as far as the eye can see. Starting with the chrome dashboard, you move up to two stout chrome risers, and then onto the funny looking top springs. And finally the coup de grâce: Three beautiful chrome orbs that are the backsides of the head lamps. This could be the coolest view in all of motorcycling.
One unfortunate side effect to re-creating every detail of an old bike is that your curb weight numbers go through the roof. This bike weighs a ton - 690 pounds to be precise. And it doesn't hide a single ounce of it. By comparison the standard Springer weighs in at 625 pounds. Curiously a Heritage Softail, weighing 14 pounds more, conceals its mass much better.
The Heritage Springer's fancy new front end is damn heavy, feeling like all the weight of the bike is resting on that front wheel. Simple parking lot maneuvers are minor tests of strength. Stopping and starting two-up in the city are not to be taken lightly either.

You have to stay alert and establish solid footing with each and every stop. This is not a bike for most women or smaller men. Neither the standard Springer nor the Heritage Softail share this super-heavy feel.
Another unfortunate retro side-effect might be found in the transmission. We like Harley's new gear ratios more with every Softail we ride. 70 mph is now a comfortable reality. Having said that, we haven't heard a Harley tranny this loud in years. All late model Harleys we've ridden offer up a quiet yet solid "click," when changing gears. This scooter lets out a loud "clunk," just like the old ones. This is not a retro-feature we want back. An anomaly? Probably. But for $16,995 there should not be any such anomalies.

On a more positive note, the new two-into-two exhaust was quite a treat. A unique sounding Harley to be sure. Resounding throaty and noticeably different from the usual staggered duals exhaust note. More like an old BMW than a V-twin. We'd really love to hear this bike with its baffles popped out.
The new exhaust system would also be a great addition to a Heritage Softail. It looks great, comes complete with fishtail-like tips and benefits from a lack of the universally-hated crossover pipe. A great new system.

Accessories
What would a new Harley model be without new accessories? We don't know.
And not wanting to find out themselves, the Motor Company has a whole new line dedicated to the Heritage Springer. Everything from fringed mud flaps to fringed jackets are available to the FLSTS owner.

We opted for a smoked, "sport" windshield. It is an excellent addition to the bike, both in terms of comfort and style. It's also a pleasure to see an add-on item so well designed. The shield fit like it came on the bike as original equipment. No detail was forgotten.
Best of all, Harley-Davidson employs at least one real-live technical writer! If there is one place that nearly all aftermarket companies fall flat, it is in writing installation instructions. The instructions included with the Heritage windshield were just the opposite.
A logical progression of how to take the old parts off, install the new parts and where to use blue Loctite. Kudos to the technical writing staff at H-D.
"Although we doubt anyone thought it possible, Harley-Davidson has once again pushed the retro-bike bar up a notch."
Anyone trying to sell a "classic American cruiser" now has a new yard stick by which to be measured. With its latest bike, the 94-year-old company has truly come full circle. It took Harley just over 20 years to come out with their first "factory chopper," the 1971 Super Glide.
But it took nearly 50 years to re-create a bike that precipitated the chopper craze. And strangely enough, what amounts to the "chopped" version of the Heritage Springer bowed back in 1995 under the Bad Boy moniker.
The FLSTS Heritage Springer Softail is a beautiful ride aimed squarely at Harley's newest riders: wealthy men over forty. Its beauty is obvious and can be found in a thousand details. However, 99 percent of the motorcycling population will roll their eyes when they see this one coming.
Big and voluptuous -- but also slow and heavy -- this bike is truly a love or hate proposition. Most will find it at best amusing, but the few who understand its appeal will love it for life.
Specifications:

Manufacturer: Harley-Davidson
Model: 1997 FLSTS
Price: $16,995
Engine: V-twin OHV Evolution
Bore and Stroke: 3.498 x 4.250 in.
Displacement: 1340cc
Carburetion: 40mm Constant Velocity
Transmission: 5-speed constant mesh
Wheelbase: 63.07 in.
Seat Height: 25.75 in.
Fuel Capacity: 4.2 gal. incl .4 reserve
Claimed Dry Weight: 690 lbs.

THE 1999 BUELL S3 THUNDERBOLT

Ride the Thunderbolt! That is the only way to understand this motorcycle. I had looked at Buell motorcycles, especially the top of the line S3 Thunderbolt, almost every time I visited my local Harley-Davidson dealer, but I never understood these motorcycles until I finally took a test ride.
That is what the Buell motorcycles are all about: the ride. There are fancier, plainer, costlier, cheaper, prettier, homelier, faster, slower, lighter, heavier, bigger, and smaller motorcycles available, but in all my years of riding I have never ridden anything like a Buell. That also seems to be the opinion of the Buell owners I have talked to, including those who have owned a variety of expensive (read Italian) sport bikes.
Speaking of which, Harley's investment in Buell appears to be paying off. Last year (1998), Buell outsold all of the other "specialty sport bikes" (a term which, I believe, excludes the regular production of the Japanese Big Four) in the U.S. except Ducati, who managed to stay in first place by the slimmest of margins. This year, Buell expects to outsell Ducati and take over the number one spot.
As I write this, in 1999, the Buell line of Vee-twin sport bikes consists of three models. There is the surprisingly economical M2 Cyclone, the X1 Lightning street fighter, and the sport or sport-touring oriented S3 Thunderbolt. All exhibit similar, but not identical, styling and performance, and all three are powered by a modified Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200 motor. All three are sporty motorcycles designed to get you off the line and down the road quickly, with the maximum amount of fun. Real world performance is the forte' of these bikes, and not much can catch them on the road.
Like all Buells, but unlike most other sport and sport-touring bikes, the engine of the S3 is left open to view. There is no bodywork to hide that big powerplant. The visible V-twin motor is probably the easiest way to identify a Buell American Motorcycle. In a world of look-alike sport bikes, nothing else looks like a Buell.
Because I am a fan of the sport-touring concept, the Thunderbolt S3T is the Buell for me. All Thunderbolts feature a frame mounted sport fairing designed to protect the rider and gas tank (without obscuring the motor), You get to pick from a variety of color combinations for the Thunderbolt. My favorite color scheme for 1999 is the "Molten Orange" (fairing,tank, and tail section) with "Nuclear Blue" (frame and wheels) color scheme. Hey, there's safety in conspicuity!
I recommend the S3T touring package. This includes touring handlebars, fairing lowers, two fitted soft storage bags for the fairing, an underseat tote bag (perfect for a toolkit, and not much else), and the newly improved, color coordinated, detachable, hard saddlebags, which come with fitted removable liners. The saddle bags come with your choice of deep (read bulky) or narrow (read trim) covers. Although the deep covers will swallow a full face helmet, I prefer the sleeker and more attractive narrow covers, a triumph of form over function. The other covers can be ordered separately later, if it becomes necessary.
I don't have much use for the color matched fairing lowers, included in the S3T touring package, because they trap even more of the already excessive heat generated by the big 74 cubic inch engine throbbing within inches of the rider's legs, and detract from the bike's appearance. Also, they are fairly flimsy (the body parts of these bikes are designed to be light in weight) and stick out to the sides, and are therefore liable to damage if the bike falls over in a parking lot mishap (or something similar). Fortunately, they are designed to be easily removed.
Two options available only from the aftermarket (as I write this) are a taller "touring" windshield, and thicker, softer, gel handgrips (is anybody at Buell taking notes?). Buell does offer an excellent tank bag, which I recommend. The result is a sport-touring bike from the sporty end of the spectrum.
Other neat features of the Thunderbolt include a chrome-moly tubular perimeter frame, digital electronic fuel injection (which eliminates the hassle of a fuel tank petcock, as well as a choke), hydraulic self-adjusting valve lifters, electronic ignition, belt drive, stainless steel header pipes, fully adjustable suspension with inverted front forks and a rear mono shock which operates in extension, aluminum arc swingarm, hollow 3-spoke cast wheels, "Z" rated radial tubeless tires, superb brakes, completely sealed maintenance-free battery, halogen headlight with an adjustment knob in the fairing, excellent fairing mounted mirrors (you actually see the traffic behind you, instead of your arms), European passing lamp flasher (a little trigger on the left handlebar controls that flashes the high beam), and folding footpegs. About all that is missing is self-canceling turn signals (Dear Buell representative: please note).
All 1999 Buells come with a much improved dual seat, and I am happy to report that the new, wide, Thunderbolt seat is adequately comfortable for solo commuting and Sunday rides. I have not taken any long trips, so I cannot comment on its suitability for serious touring. A drawback to the wider seat is that it is a longer reach to the ground than it used to be from the old, uncomfortable but narrower, version. The factory specification says the seat height is 29.5 inches, but they must have measured it with the suspension at both ends set to the lowest possible setting, and the tires flat. It feels higher than that. The Thunderbolt would not be my first choice, given my 30 inch inseam, for a lot of complicated parking lot maneuvers. Nor is it a particularly good bike for riding with a passenger. The bike is somewhat top heavy to start with, and this top heavy feeling is aggrivated by a seat that puts the passenger too high and too far back. If you ride two up a lot, a Buell may not be the bike for you.
After mentioning the new seat, I should mention that I find the rider's seating position quite comfortable. An average size rider is postioned in a relaxed position with a slight froward lean. It is better, in my opinion, than the seating position on a BMW R 1100RS sport-tourer, or a Triumph Thunderbird Sport (bikes with which it might reasonably be compared). The location of the rider's footpegs, in particular, is very good. So is the height and reach of the touring handlebar. The layout of the handlebar controls and switches is conventional, and easy to learn.
Mounted in the dash are a large tach and speedo, plus a surprisingly useful quartz clock. Also on the dash are a variety of idiot lights, including a handy low fuel warning light which illuminates when .4 gallon of petrol remains. The large 5.4 gallon fuel tank means 225-265 miles (on average) before the low fuel warning light comes on. This is outstanding range, greater than that offered by most luxury touring bikes. On a recent 205 mile Saturday ride from Eugene to Sisters and back, involving both the old and new Mckenzie Highways over Oregon's Cascade Mountains, I actually averaged 59.94 miles per gallon. That would mean approximately 300 miles from a full tank of gas before the low fuel light comes on! More complete technical specifications for all of the Buells, and many other top sport bikes, can be found in the "Sport Motorcycle Comparison Chart," on my Travel page.
The only area that needs improvement, to make the Thunderbolt a decent touring bike, is rider protection. The factory supplied windshield is pure sport bike. Combined with the smallish fairing, it offers good protection for the torso, none for the hands, and directs the slipstream coming over the windshield about at the chinbar of the rider's helmet. This is tolerable on a Sunday sport ride, but fatiguing on a long freeway ride.
I fitted a Rifle brand replacement windshield 17 inches tall (the only aftermarket replacement I could find) and while this represents a marginal improvement, it is far from ideal. The factory windshield is very short, about 13 inches, and angled at what appears to be less than 45 degrees above the horizontal. The Rifle replacement is angled almost bolt upright, and still too low. The wind collapses behind and around this windshield, and hits the rider in the face and shoulders. It is marginally better than the factory windshield, in that you are being hit in the face by broken air (I believe the aerodynamic term is "burble"), rather than the almost laminar airflow off the factory windshield. Faint praise, to be sure, since at speed the rider's head is still continually buffeted by the wind. If I lay over the tank, the Rifle windshield provides excellent protection--but who wants to ride a long distance laying over the tank?
What is needed is a windshield taller than the Rifle version by about 5 inches, and angled back at about 60 degrees. This would put it somewhere between the excessively upright stance of the Rifle windshield, and the very swept-back angle of the factory windshield, and hopefully it would send the slipstream over the rider's head. Certainly a competent designer, with a little practice, could produce a satisfactory touring windshield for the Thunderbolt fairing. It has been done for plenty of other motorcycles.
It is no secret that Buell motorcycles have had something of a "kit bike" reputation. After all, Eric Buell originally started building them in his garage. (Bill Harley and the Davidson brothers started the same way, back in 1903.) Everyone agreed that they were a blast to ride, but niggling problems like cracks in ultra light body parts, excessive heat radiating from the engine and exhaust pipes, broken engine mounts, uncomfortable seats, saddle bag latches that didn't work, and similar problems have drawn criticism, and rightly so.
The 1999 models are the first since Harley-Davidson acquired 98% of Buell American Motorcycles. Eric Buell remains in charge, and still owns 2% of the stock. Harley had previously owned half of the company, with Buell owning the other half. The changes allowed by Harley's deep pockets are apparent. Everything has been improved, including the frame, engine mounts, fuel injection, front forks, swingarm, rear monoshock, seat, handlebar controls, the S-3 fairing, the S3 saddlebags, and more. Unfortunately, work remains to be done to eliminate the small, niggling problems to which the bikes are still prone.
Judging by my experience with the S3, build quality still does not appear to be as good as a Harley-Davidson. In fact, it is probably below that of an average Japanese motorcycle, not really bad, but not perfect. There is no assembly line at the Buell factory. Each motorcycle is built individually, by a small team of workers, who work only on that particular bike until it is finished. This system yields great job satisfaction, high employee morale, a lot of promise for the future, and motorcycles that are maybe a little less uniform than they might otherwise be.
Before founding Buell American Motorcycles, Eric Buell worked as an engineer for Harley-Davidson. Based on what I have read about Eric Buell, the most basic ingredients of his design philosophy seem to be centralization of mass, low unsprung weight, and frame rigidity. Let's take a quick look at these concepts, because they are central to why a Buell is so much fun to ride.
I am no engineer, but as a sailor I am familiar with the benefits of mass centralization. A boat designed with the weight concentrated in the center, instead of out at the ends, will respond more quickly. It will tend to ride over, rather than plow through, the waves. Two people with access to a small skiff, dinghy, or rowboat can experiment with this concept. First, have one person sit in the very bow, and the other at the stern. Note how the boat feels sluggish and responds slowly to the waves. Now move both people (the mass) to the middle of the boat. Suddenly it feels more lively, and responds faster, now that the mass is centralized. The same basic principle also holds true for motorcycles. This is why Buell concentrates the weight of the heavy components of the motorcycle, the engine/transmission, muffler, gas tank, rear monoshock, and battery near the center of the motorcycle. Everything is basically placed above or below the engine/transmission unit, the heaviest single component of the motorcycle. The result is that Buell motorcycles feel exceptionally lively, and a lively motorcycle is more fun to ride.
Unsprung weight is the weight of the components not supported by the suspension, principally the wheels, tires, lower fork legs, and brakes. Lower unsprung weight allows the tires to maintain better contact with the uneven surface of the road, thus making for a safer, better controlled, and more enjoyable ride. Buell uses hollow 3-spoke alloy wheels of the lightest and most rigid type for all of their models. For the Thunderbolt, Buell uses expensive Showa inverted front forks. Inverted forks put the smaller diameter fork section on the bottom, which lowers unsprung weight. They are also extremely strong, and more rigid than conventional telescopic forks. Going further to eliminate as much unsprung weight as possible, the Thunderbolt has a single stainless steel floating front brake disc, rather than the dual discs found on almost all other specialty sport bikes. Brake discs and their associated calipers are very heavy. To ensure adequate swept area, that single disc is the largest found on any production bike, 340mm in diameter. To make it lightweight while retaining the necessary thickness in cross section, it is extremely narrow in profile, and to ensure an excess of stopping power, the Thunderbolt comes with a 6-piston front brake caliper. "Stoppies" are easy on a Buell. Other premium motorcycle manufacturers can and do take some of these same steps to lower unsprung weight, but none combine all of these strategies as Buell does.
Almost everyone agrees that a rigid frame is crucial to precise handling and control. Buell selected the expensive but effective method of using chrome-moly alloy steel tubing to build a perimeter frame with triangulated sections. Buell calls it a "geodesic perimeter frame." In the best modern fashion, the engine serves as a stressed member of the frame. The result is an exceptionally light and stiff frame, which improves handling and control. A bike that handles precisely and delivers exceptional control is more fun to ride.
The centralized mass, low unsprung weight , stiff frame, and premium suspension, when combined with a rather short 55 inch wheelbase and only 24.5 degrees of front-end rake, should result in a light and quick handling motorcycle, and indeed it does. You might think the same combination would also make for a twitchy feeling motorcycle, but it doesn't. I expected, and found, a fast handling bike, but what I found most surprising was the Thunderbolt's excellent static stability. Static stability means that left to its own devices, it will run straight. This is a bike that will run straight as a die with the rider's hands off the handlebar. I guess the 3.8 inches of trail has something to do with that. Whatever the reason, the bike responds quickly, handles superbly, and runs true.
Of course, more than trick engineering is necessary to build a complete motorcycle. The motor is the key to performance, and all Buells use a highly modified Harley-Davidson Sportster V-twin engine. The hot-rodded 1203cc "Thunderstorm" power plant used in the Thunderbolt produces an ample 101 horsepower at the crankshaft, and a gut wrenching 90 ft. lbs. of torque. This translates to about 71-78 ft. lbs. of torque and 85-90 hp. at the rear wheel, depending on whose dyno you read. Remember that horsepower is a measurement of work performed over time, and torque is the turning force at the crankshaft (or rear wheel). This is why torque is more important in everyday riding. Torque is what is responsible for that slingshot feeling when you roll the throttle on, not to mention those "power" wheelies.
The vibration produced by the compact 45 degree V-twin motor is isolated from the frame, and the rider, by Buell's proprietary "Uniplanar" mounting system. This system works. It is amazing to ride a bike, powered by what is basically a Sportster 1200 engine, that is so smooth. At idle it feels about like a Sportster, but as the RPM increases, vibration diminishes. By the time the tach has moved past 3000 RPM, vibration is almost completely absent. The Sportster, as I wrote in my article "The Harley-Davidson Sportster," is quite pleasant to ride below about 60 MPH (in 5th gear). But vibration intrudes as speeds increase, and becomes uncomfortable (to me) by about 70 MPH. But on its cousin, the Buell Thunderbolt, the faster you go the smoother it gets. At 70 MPH and above, it is uncannily smooth. It is hard to believe it is powered by a Sportster 1200 motor, let alone one producing about a third more power.
It seems to me that the Thunderbolt is a pretty good sport-touring bike, by which I mean a great sport bike for Sunday rides, with its power and razor sharp handling, that still has the capability of making overnight and longer trips. It has the range, speed, smoothness, stability, comfortable seating position, and available luggage to serve as a solo touring bike, plus the benefit of a very extensive dealer network should something go wrong while on the road (a good point to consider before purchasing some exotic brand sport-touring bike). Rider protection is the primary deficiency at present, but all it needs is a properly designed touring windshield to bring it up to snuff in that area. I hope that someone, either at Buell or in the aftermarket, will eventually respond to fill this need.
If you want a sporty looking motorcycle for cheap transportation, there are more economical alternatives. But if you're leaning toward a sport or sport-touring bike, and ride for the pleasure of the experience, you owe it to yourself to at least test ride a Buell Thunderbolt.

Motorcycle Touring Tips - Riding Versus Touring Buddies

When planning an extended motorcycle road trip there are many things to consider before setting out. The more obvious items are things like where you will be going, the routes you will take along the way and doing your pre-ride preparations on your motorcycle by checking things like tires, brakes, cables and fluid changes. The most obvious problem with long motorcycle trips on the road is often overlooked. That overlooked problem is the person (or group) that is traveling with you.
You need to ask yourself how compatible are you and your riding companion?
Prior to any long motorcycle tour you need to be honest with your assessment of several things and follow up with a candid conversation with your riding partner.
Here are a few things to consider.

Do you and your motorcycle buddy have similar riding skills?

Riding skills can mean a lot of things. For example, riding skills can mean how fast a motorcyclist navigates a “tricky” section of road. Imagine you reach a really twisty section of mountain highway, just what you have been waiting to enjoy on your trip. However, the other rider is a bit intimidated by those same roads and slows down...a lot!
When you have completed that nice section of roadway you may find yourself quite a few minutes ahead of your friend and spend a half an hour waiting on the side of the road.
First, and most importantly, you can’t ask your friend to pick up the pace. This can take away the enjoyment of their ride not to mention the possibility of creating an accident. Secondly, the slower rider may ask you to slow down and ride down to their comfort level. Again, not good because you are now sacrificing what you may enjoy the most.
Riding skills can also include the rider’s stamina. One rider might consider a long day in the saddle to be 300 miles while the other may want to put in 600 miles per day. If you are faced with cutting your riding days in half or doubling your riding day depending on your perspective, your trip plans will change significantly. You may miss seeing Mount Rushmore or ride by so fast you barely get to see George Washington’s nose!
These are just to examples of riding skills that can come into conflict between two motorcyclists on a long motorcycle trip – so get to know your buddy’s skills beforehand!

 

Become A Blogger With This Simple Advice

 

It seems blogs are everywhere these days. It seems as though everybody has something they want people on the Internet to know. Creating a successful blog can be tricky because people blog for many different reasons. Use what you've learned in this article to make your blog the kind of success you would like it to be.

It's easy to get around writer's block if you don't do written content some days. Choosing to do video or audio content instead will help. By incorporating different types of content and media, you will keep your blog interesting. You will find it less challenging to produce new, gripping content that keeps you interested and engaged.

When you first start your blog, start out with a few high quality posts that effectively introduce you and your topic. Share the basics first. Upload some images that help people understand basic information about your niche, as well as your attitude about it. You do not need to put up a personal picture, but you do want to include visuals that are relevant to your subject and are reflective of your own personal vision for the site.

Make your blog stand out from the competition. Having content that is different will make more people want to read your blog. You should also include information that is not easily found anywhere else. Talk about unusual and interesting events and experiences. Give details of how widgets are made. You need to give readers a reason to visit your blog if they are searching for information.

Don't let your posts become long and rambly. Get right to the point. Long wordy blogs will turn off readers. People who read blogs look for clear and concise information rather than complicated details. People want content, not fluff.

Let people know about your blog through social media sites. Let your followers know that it's there, ready for them to check out, and that you'd love it if they shared it with their followers. Using your personal social media accounts on your blog will give your readers an intimate connection with who you are.

Blog about something readers want to know. Everyone has to do regular day-to-day chores like washing dishes and vacuuming. Unless your blogs are unique when writing about common topics, people won't read it. Look for a topic that will engage readers. The main goal of blogging is to get readers to your site.

It is okay to use social media to get your blog known, but just be sure that you are not overdoing it. If every one of your Twitter tweets has your blog links, this can actually turn some people off. The main content should be interesting and informative on its own. The links can then reinforce this content.

As previously mentioned, blogging has become rampant on the Internet. There are so many different types of blogs and so many varied reasons for blogging. Fortunately, any blogger can find their niche on the Internet. Take the tips in this piece and make your blog really stand apart from the crowd.

The rather unique Bangkok Motorbike Festival

The Bangkok Motorbike Festival is quite unlike any other motorcycle show on Earth. Held within the vast public spaces, promenades and forecourt of the upmarket CentralWorld shopping center, the festival locates the stands of motorcycle manufacturers, distributors, customizers and accessory distributors between the upmarket boutiques, restaurants and cafes of the third largest shopping complex in the world.
CentralWorld is larger than any Shopping Center in the United States or Europe, and unlike those countries where motorcycles are regarded as recreational rather than legitimate transport, the Festival is given pride of place in Bangkok's largest public space in a country where motorcycles are the predominant form of transport.

CentralWorld's forecourt covers a massive 8,000 square meters (86,111 sq ft) – so large it is the venue of Bangkok's New Year's Eve celebrations, when several hundred thousand people gather there to watch the countdown. To grasp the magnitude of the environment, think of holding a motorcycle show in Times Square, and next door throughout the largest shopping center in the United States.
There seems little doubt the 21st century will be the Asian Century. Whereas Western civilization has dominated the 20th, Asia will be the focal point of development in the coming century.
Asia accounts for two-thirds of the world's population, and the next decade will see almost all of its constituent nations developing at warp speed, all at the same time.

Above is a map of the world with per capita car ownership data – darker means more cars, lighter means less cars.
The world's two most populous nations, China with 1.35 billion people and India with 1.21 billion, head the list, but there many other Asian countries undergoing economic transformation – Indonesia (240 million), Vietnam (90 million), Philippines (95 million), Malaysia (30 million), Cambodia (15 million), Laos (seven million), Myanmar (50 million), Bangladesh (155 million), plus a number of nations such as Japan (125 million), South Korea (50 million), Taiwan (25 million), Thailand (70 million) and Singapore (six million) already significantly progressed.

The implications for the personal transportation market are immense. For decades in Europe, America and other advanced regions, the marketplace for automobiles has been a replacement market – everyone who wants a car already has one.

The Asian countries however, have very low vehicle ownership levels – these are the people in the world who don't have a car already, but have embraced the concept of personal transportation via the scooter.
These are the countries with the lowest per capita vehicle ownership and who will make up the majority of new car and motorcycle sales over the next decade.
The Bangkok Motorbike Festival has no entrance fee, parking is free, and the general public flocks to the event in a country where two million motorcycles are sold each year, roughly double the number of cars sold. To put that in perspective, Thailand's 70 million people buy roughly four times as many motorcycles each year as America's 313 million people do.

As the Asian Tiger (Thailand) is regaining its strength after a period of political unrest and a flood of Biblical proportions that besieged Bangkok's eight million residents just two years ago, its automotive manufacturing capacity has since rebounded to pass that of the United Kingdom.
Thailand's auto making output also recently exceeded the annual output of the Czech Republic and Spain, where auto manufacturing had moved in Europe to take advantage of the cheaper labor forces of those countries, and is about to pass the output of France – the original automotive industry which contains the likes of Renault, Peugeot and Citroen.
As a producer of two-wheelers, the Thai Kingdom is one of the foremost manufacturers in the world, producing motorcycles for many of motorcycling's best known brand names.

It is a sign of the increasingly global times that Thailand is not yet well known as a manufacturer of motorcycles because many of the brand names that produce motorcycles there are strongly associated with countries other than Thailand.

All of Japan's "Big Four" manufacture motorcycles in Thailand – Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and Kawasaki now produce a considerable share of their export market enthusiast motorcycles as well as a plethora of scooters.

Indeed, several enthusiast brands one might reasonably expect to be manufactured elsewhere, such as Great Britain's beloved Triumph marque and the the pride and joy of Italian motorcycling know how, Ducati, also both produce world-class enthusiast motorcycles in Thailand.
Honda accounts for more than two-thirds of annual two-wheeler sales in the Kingdom, and produces a large number of its enthusiast motorcycles for export markets around the world there. Honda's R&D Center for Asia is also located on the outskirts of Bangkok in a facility where new models are conceived, built, and evaluated.
Hence, it was no coincidence that with the country celebrating its largest motorcycle-only exhibition in the capital city's largest public space and biggest shopping center, Honda's finely-tuned intelligence-gathering regime should be out in full force.

Unlike established motorcycle markets in rich European countries, the United States, Canada, and Australia, where large capacity motorcycles are the norm, small capacity motorcycles and scooters make up the majority of road traffic in all Asian countries.
Many major new models from the smaller categories are regularly shown for the first time at the Bangkok Motorcycle Festival each January and the Thai Motor Show each March.

One such motorcycle was the Honda Zoomer-X which made its world debut at the Thai Motor Show in 2012. Like most objects emanating from the thriving design community in Thailand (which is now officially nurtured from the Thailand Creative Design Center – TCDC is a national treasure and should be replicated in EVERY country – a well educated and informed design community is a catalyst for economic growth), the Zoomer-X is edgy and striking and VERY practical.
The most interesting aspect of the Zoomer-X is that it was specifically designed as a blank canvas for individualization – a base-model two-wheeler designed to be easily customized.

Honda and most of the more sophisticated motorcycle manufacturers around the world already have a range of accessories designed to individualize their machinery offerings for many of their more popular motorcycles – that trend is accelerating, and from some strong indications at the Festival, Honda appears to be raising the customization game to a new level.

Honda Thailand's Mo'cye Idea Challenge

Honda was a pioneer of computer-aided manufacturing systems that enable a highly flexible mix of machinery running down the same production line to produce custom output. When I saw Honda Thailand's Mo'cye Idea Challenge at the Bangkok Motorbike Festival it immediately crossed my mind that it might be researching a new level of mass customization.

Prior to the Festival, Honda Thailand embarked on a bold and ambitious exercise when it seeded all of its major dealerships and some 30 design houses and motorcycle customization shops each with a Zoomer-X. It then asked them to let their imagination run wild – "go and build something interesting" was the fundamental message. The only rule was that it had to be based on the Zoomer-X, it had to be registerable, and it had to be a fully functioning machine – no mock-ups like the manufacturers often field at motor shows.

Soichiro Honda may now have passed away, but his spirit lives on. He mandated during his leadership of the company that a minimum percentage of its turnover each year should be spent on Reseach & Development, long before this was fashionable – a recent study showed Honda still spends more than 5 percent of its income on research and development.
Honda's R&D capacity has always been remarkable. In 1978 I traveled to Tochigi in Japan to sample Honda's turbo 500 road bike.
What completely blew me away was not the motorcycle, but the depth and breadth of Honda's development resources.

Apart from the Tochigi test track where they let me ride the turbo at top speed for as long as I wanted (two kilometer long straights connected by two banked corners where a motorcycle or car will simply go around the corner without any steering input at speeds of up to 230 kmh) there were dozens of other facilities, plus more than a thousand engineers working solely on conceiving the next generation of personal transport - people whose sole job was finding how to do things a better way.

That very same platoon of engineers has since given us an array of personal transport options I could not have conceived of at the time - in the last decade alone, Gizmag has reported on Honda developments more than any other company in the transportation space.

The costs of this seeding of the Zoomer-Xs may well find itself listed under R&D expenditure in the balance sheet, because apart from creating a massive spectacular display of innovative thought, Honda staff could be seen seeking comments and filling out forms to evaluate what the public thought of the different customs on display.

The added advantage of the CentralWorld shopping public being part of this massive show had not been lost on the world's most prolific two-wheel maker – this was equally an opportunity to divine broader public opinion on two-wheeled fashion, not just that of the enthusiast market.

There were some quite spectacular highlights amongst the highly-modified Zoomer-Xs, though for me, the tilting-three-wheeled Zoomer-X built by Ride-On was the stand-out amongst a field containing dozens of extraordinary examples of fresh thought.
The image library for this article contains dozens of examples from the Mo'cye Design Challenge of innovative rethinks of what can be done with a Zoomer-X scooter.

Yet another indication at the Festival of how seriously Honda is tackling mass customization was the appearance of quite a few Honda-produced customs based on other motorcycles in the range.

Three months ago, Honda announced a range of new 500 twin-cylinder machines powered by an all-new 500cc engine. The CB500F is the naked offering whilst the CB500X provides adventure styling and enhanced weather protection for longer journeys. The CB500R is the more sports focused of the trio, with sharp, dynamic styling that echoes racing heritage. As can be seen above, the Honda stand at the Bangkok Motorbike Festival saw custom versions of each of the new machines. That's Mugen's take on the CB500R above.

Next to the Mugen CB500R was a CB500F crafted by Moriwaki. Moriwaki and Mugen are long-term Japanese-based collaborators with blood ties to Honda Japan.

There was even an adventure version of the CB500X decked out for motorcycle touring off the beaten track. Who made the third version? Honda Thailand, presumably using parts borrowed from the Honda Crosstourer SE V4.

Even the tiny fuel-injected MSX125 (“Mini Street X-treme 125”) which hit the market only a month ago had several custom versions on display. The MSX125 carries on the tradition of the original 1963 Honda Monkey bike – a small-wheeled leisure motorcycle which Honda has since continued with the Dax and Ape.
Manufactured in Thailand, the MSX125 is small but has a big-bike feel thanks to many standard sized motorcycle parts. It is part mini-bike, part motorcycle, with a 125cc fuel-injected 4-stroke engine and four-speed gearbox.
Complementing the power train is a compact chassis that features a sturdy steel frame, inverted front forks, monoshock rear suspension, hydraulic disc brakes (front and rear) and lightweight 12-inch wheels sporting wide, low profile tires.

Quite clearly, Honda set out to make a statement with the magnitude of its multiple display areas across the massive shopping complex. It would not surprise me though, if Honda Thailand was busy researching public taste for a far more diverse range of accessories than we have previously seen, or at very least, mapping the future of products for the diverse and complex Asian market.

I have often written on the pages of Gizmag that IMHO, you don't drive a car or ride a motorcycle – you WEAR IT. Your choice of wheels is a very public statement about who you are. In purchasing a personal vehicle, you are first enrolling in the brand values of that marque, and increasingly frequently, then modifying that vehicle to reflect your own uniqueness.
My overwhelming take-out from this year's festival is that Honda appears to be devoting considerable resources to solving the personalization equation.

The global cult of Harley-Davidson

While Honda always puts on a show in Thailand, the most intriguing of my experiences at the Bangkok Motorbike Festival surrounded Harley-Davidson.
I have been writing about motorcycles (amongst other things) for more than a third of a century, and one of the most enlightening experiences of that entire period of thinking about two wheels was the opportunity to watch Harley-Davidson's stand at CentralWorld from above.
The multi-level shopping center environment offered the opportunity to watch the movement of the masses past each of the stands at the exhibition from one or two levels above, and the additional perspective offered some interesting insights.

While the public was rabidly keen to take photos of all the pretty girls on the bikes at all the other stands, Harley did not need to field a bevy of beauties with its motorcycles because people wanted a picture of themselves with a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.
From my birds'-eye viewing platform, it quickly became obvious that Harley-Davidson's motorcycles themselves were the stars of the stand.

As an aside, it was also interesting to realize that seemingly everyone now carries a camera (inside a smartphone or tablet or as a stand-alone device) with them at all times, and the Harleys were just as much a focal point as the dozens of stunningly beautiful girls in various stages of undress on other stands.
Whereas mom and pop walked straight past the stands of MV Agusta, KTM, Yamaha, Suzuki and seemingly every other motorcycle brand, the name Harley-Davidson was a huge magnet for the NON-enthusiast, and much moreso than any other marque.
Harley obviously understands that it is sexy enough without a battalion of supermodels getting in the way of the brand's values, and might not have been visited by mom and pop and everybody else if it had overplayed the sex appeal angle.

Whatsmore, I'd be willing to wager that the H-D stand sold more clothing than any other store in the entire shopping precinct during the four days of the festival. Watching from above, I could see the vast number of people who were clearly non-enthusiasts who were forking out THB1500 (USD$50) or more for genuine Harley t-shirts, jackets, gloves, vests, caps ad infinitum, and it really got me thinking about brands in general, and Harley-Davidson in particular.
Harley-Davidson might only appear to sell motorcycles, but from one floor up, it looked a lot like a clothing company.
Last year Harley-Davidson sold less than 250,000 units globally and it has never sold more than 350,000 units in a single year, despite a history that stretches back more than a century.
It is not in the top 20 motorcycle marques in the world by the number of motorcycles it sells, yet ask anyone to name the world's most famous motorcycle and it will almost certainly be Harley-Davidson.
Harley-Davidson has built itself a solid gold, global brand name producing a relative handful of machines annually. During the 1920s, when it was the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer, it produced in the vicinity of 30,000 bikes a year.
During WWII when it was the motorcycle of choice for the all-conquering United States military forces, not once did production exceed 100,000 in a year.

Check out Interbrand's Top 100 Brand Names report each year and you'll notice that diminutive Harley-Davidson fights way above of its weight division.
It is the only motorcycle-only brand in the top 100 global brands (Honda is there, but it is a top 10 car maker, and also makes robots, power equipment and airplanes), with Interbrand valuing the H-D moniker at more than that of Ferrari. So let's put this in perspective. Ferrari cars are demonstrably superior to 99.99% of cars that get sold. Ferrari technology is not just leading edge, but bleeding edge. Ferrari wins races in the most technologically-advanced race series in the world – Formula One – and it does so in front of the largest sports TV audience in the world, usually winning at least three or four times in each annual 18 race series, watched by around 5% of the world's population.

Harley-Davidson technology is NOT any of those things, hasn't won a race of any consequence for decades and there's no logical reason why the marque should carry the gravitas it does.
Indeed, until the Global Financial Crisis hit, Harley was consistently ranked in the top 50 worldwide brands, ahead of Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche and Ferrari in the personal transport game, and Fedex, Shell, Amazon, Panasonic, Nestle, KFC, Kraft, Adidas, Xerox, eBay and Yahoo and hundreds of other household names in any game.

In 2008, Interbrand valued the Harley-Davidson name as close to equal to that of FORD! Though Harley is now valued at US$3.857 billion, it is well below its 2008 peak of US$7.609 billion.
Honda's brand as a transportation company is ranked as the 21st most valuable brand in the world and valued at US$17.28 billion, behind only Toyota (US$30.28 billion), Mercedes Benz (US$30.097 billion) and BMW (US$29.052 billion) - respectively ranked by Interbrand as the tenth, eleventh and twelfth most valuable personal transportation brands in the world.
Brands are symbols of the values of that brand - reliability, consistency of experience, where it fits into your lifestyle, and most importantly, what it says about you, as an individual amongst seven billion.
The only other transport brands in the Top 100 are Volkswagen (39th - US$9.252 billion), ford (45th - US$7.958 billion), Audi (55th - US$7.196 billion), Hyundai (53rd - US$7.473 billion), Porsche (72nd - US$5.149 billion), Nissan (73rd - US$4.969 billion) and Kia (87th - US$4.089 billion).

Exactly what it is about the Harley Davidson brand that resonates with the global public is hard to pin down.
The lumpy 45 degree V-twin engines and exhaust note that once distinguished it from the others have been copied by more than a dozen other major brands to little avail. Indeed, all of the Japanese big four have attempted to build motorcycles that look, sound and feel exactly like a Harley but people have not begun naming their children Kawasaki or Vulcan (Kawasaki's H-D clone pictured below).

Interbrand ranks the world's top 10 most valuable brands as Coca-Cola, IBM, Microsoft, Google, GE, McDonalds, Intel, Apple, Disney and HP. I have never seen anyone with any of these brands permanently emblazoned on their body. If it was possible to survey the world's seven billion people to see how many had tattooed a proprietary brand name on their body, Harley would account for, in my opinion, a majority share.
Harley-Davidson is undoubtedly the machinery of choice for outlaw style bike clubs across the world, and that obviously adds a hint of the rebel we'd all like to be to the H-D brand values, but if its product is almost indistinguishable from half a dozen other marques with the badge covered up, what is it about the name that has such an effect?

After watching the Harley-Davidson stand from above three times for lengthy periods during the show, I was surprised to find in researching this article that official statistics credit the licensing of the Harley-Davidson name as being responsible for just 5% of the company's net revenue.
License Magazine ranks Harley-Davidson as the 54th largest licensor in the world, though it must be pointed out that the companies in front of it such as Disney, Mattel, Warner and Nickelodeon have multiple channels and products with constantly updated movie and television promotion, and the sporting franchises such as NFL, NBA and WWE have weekly television audiences of passionate followers in the millions - Harley only sells a quarter million motorcycles a year, and to be honest, they vary only ever-so-slightly from the previous year's models.

It's little wonder that the Japanese have failed to copy the essence of the Harley-Davidson brand, because I'm not sure that anyone actually understands what it is. One of the most telling clues might well be that Harley-Davidson has had its motorcycles blatantly copied for more than 100 years.
The word brand is derived from the Old Norse brandr meaning "to burn" and refers to the practice of producers burning their mark (or brand) onto their products.
Today, a brand is the most valuable fixed asset of a Corporation, and Harley-Davidson's mark might well be the most plagiarized of all time.
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and whereas Harley-Davidson may have failed to secure the rights to be the only motorcycle to feature the distinctive V-twin configuration, or the exhaust note which accompanies it, it does own the Harley-Davidson brand.
For huge tracts of Asia, where the Americans liberated countries en masse at the end of WWII, the enduring symbol of America's military strength was not the big guns, ships and planes which did the liberating, but the military transport of the soldiers on the ground.
As the chariot was once the personal transport of the conqueror, Harley-Davidson inherited some of those brand values in the Asia Pacific region during WWII. It was during that period that the Harley-Davidson WLA military motorcycle gave the marque a military-strength brand value that endures to this day.
Harley's star might well rise once more as Asia's economic transformation unfolds.