Technology of the 2002 model year

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Technology of the 2002 model year

Technology of the 2002 model year
Undercover

In the 2002 season it is the inner values ​​that count, and what is sensational is the consistency with which the Japanese in particular buttoned up their models. From important details such as the inlet control to completely new chassis.

Waldemar Schwarz

01/04/2002

The newcomers had no chance against Multistrada or Blue Marlin. None of the series machines attracted as much attention as the two Italian studies at the autumn trade fairs. Follow at first sight Yamaha YZF-R1 and the like, also tried and tested knitting patterns. But firstly, a lot has happened under the cladding, and secondly, the renovation objects were already at such a high level that enormous efforts were required to make them even better and more attractive.
This applies especially to the Honda models VFR and Pan European. For both, Honda is optionally offering a newly developed, even more compact and lighter ABS. Due to the increased computer capacity, the regulation improved compared to the previous version, which the VFR impressively demonstrated in the top test (MOTORRAD 25/2001). The ABS is a useful addition to the revised CBS composite brake system, because only the combination of ABS and CBS offers the driver optimum safety. The composite brake relieves the driver of the difficult task of distributing the braking force, while the anti-lock braking system prevents dangerous overbraking, especially of the front wheel, in an emergency. With the use of ABS in the VFR, Honda is finally opening up the active safety system to a larger group of customers, a trend that hardly any manufacturer can avoid in the long term.
But the sports tourer has even more to offer: the variable valve control known as VTEC. In the mid-1980s, the Japanese had already equipped the CBR 400 with this control, but then only relied on the complicated and expensive technology in the automotive industry. The decisive advantage: By switching off one diagonally opposite intake and exhaust valve per cylinder, a decent torque in the lower speed range is to be achieved even with engines with high peak performance. In addition, the legal requirements can be met more easily thanks to the lower noise level and fewer flushing losses and thus reduced pollutant emissions in two-valve operation. These advantages obviously justify the complex system in which the sliding bolts in the bucket tappets activate all four valves per cylinder from 7000 rpm via oil pressure. But the merchants used the red pencil elsewhere. The exact but expensive gear drive of the camshafts of the V-four-cylinder had to give way to cheaper timing chains. A positive side effect: the engine weighs a whopping three kilograms less.
More displacement and power combined with a more compact design is the new formula for the fundamentally revised Pan-European engine. With a longer stroke and a larger bore, the V4 now has 1261 cm³ and, thanks to numerous detailed modifications and, last but not least, an injection system, delivers 118 instead of 98 hp. The toothed belts replace timing chains, which saves 60 millimeters in length. Two gear-driven balancer shafts are supposed to optimize the vibration behavior and thus ensure even more comfort on the Supertourer.
Strong engines need stable chassis. Therefore received the Pan European instead of the double loop frame made of steel, a stiffer aluminum bridge frame and an aluminum swing arm, which also contributes to the approximately 15 kilograms lower weight of the 2002 model. The new chassis not only promises more stability, but also better handling. The wheelbase shrank by 50 millimeters and the fork tube diameter increased to 45 millimeters. A regulated catalytic converter with a secondary air system goes without saying at Pan European and VFR in accordance with the Honda philosophy.
Such a philosophy is just emerging at Yamaha. But the pressure of the legislature and the demand from customers are having an effect on the new models YZF-R1 and TDM 900. Both finally have electronic injection and exhaust gas purification via a secondary air system and catalytic converter? the TDM one regulated, the R1 unfortunately only one unregulated. In the injection system of the super sports car, a smart, if well-tried, solution is used, similar to the double throttle valve system of some Suzuki cars. What at first glance looks like a battery of constant pressure carburetors actually turns out to be a component of traditional carburetor technology. The conventional, manually operated throttle valves are preceded by gas slides, which increase the negative pressure in the intake manifold, analogous to the constant pressure carburetor. But instead of compromising carburetor jets, precise injection valves take care of the fuel metering. This means that Yamaha uses a system that has been tried and tested a million times and that does not require electronics to operate the throttle slide.
Like Honda with the CBR 900 RR, Yamaha is now equipping the R1 with an exhaust control system with two rollers in the collector of the exhaust system. You should increase the torque in the lower speed range again significantly. The TDM engine also has more torque and more power thanks to its larger bore and electronic injection. An air inlet with a variable cross-section supports the search for Newton meters and PS. As with Honda’s VTR 1000 and Suzuki’s TL 1000, there is a flap at the entrance to the air filter housing that can change the cross-section and thus influence the flow rate. The increase in performance from 82 to 86 PS and 90 Newton meters is not enormous, but thanks to the new six-speed gearbox, the available torque can be converted even more effectively into driving performance. The new chassis with aluminum bridge frame, aluminum swing arm, a stiffer fork and the well-known powerful brakes from the R1 do the rest.
The same frame layout should also help Suzuki’s new V-Strom travel enduro to be light on the one hand and good driving stability on the other. With an empty weight of 235 kilograms, it is one of the lightweights in its class. As in the GSX-R models, the injection system of the powerful engine of the TL 1000 has a system with two throttle valves per intake manifold in the V-Strom. Together with the power reduced to 98 hp in favor of a lush torque, the new Suzuki promises a lot of steam from the cellar.
Exciting things do not only come from Japan, but also from the USA. After the parent company Harley-Davidson, which broke with rigid traditions in the form of the V-Rod, the company offshoot presented Buell also a completely new motorcycle with technically highly interesting details. The Firebolt XB9R has a completely new engine, which, however, is strictly based on the classic Harley model. A V2 with a cylinder angle of 45 degrees and two valves per cylinder, actuated via the camshaft below via bumpers and rocker arms, could be seen as a tendency to anachronism, if it weren’t for the downright sensational departure from the long-stroke engine. With a bore of 88.9 millimeters and a stroke of just 79.8 millimeters, it is the only short-stroke engine among the 45-degree V2 from Milwaukee and, with a nominal 92 hp from 984 cm³, achieves a respectable performance for a two-valve engine.
The Americans are breaking new ground with the framework concept. The aluminum bridge frame also functions as a tank. 13 liters of fuel are stored in the lower part of the chassis, filling an otherwise unused cavity. This arrangement saves a separate tank, creates space for a voluminous intake system and contributes to a favorable mass concentration around the center of gravity. If so, because already, thought the designers and use the front part of the swing arm as an oil tank for the dry sump lubrication.
They also introduced a new system for the front brake in series motorcycle production. The internal disc brake already presented by the brake manufacturer Braking is celebrating its debut in mass production on the XB9R. Since the brake caliper does not encompass the brake disc from the outside as usual, but from the inside, the diameter of the brake disc can almost correspond to the inside diameter of the rim. In figures, that means in concrete terms: Instead of the usual disc diameter of 320 millimeters for sports motorcycles with 17-inch front wheels, the disc of the XB9R is an impressive 375 millimeters. The decisive advantage: With the same hydraulic transmission ratios and the same manual force, the braking torque increases. So much so that one of the two brake discs in the front wheel, which are mandatory on larger motorcycles, can be dispensed with. This not only reduces the unsprung masses, but also the mass moment of inertia and thus the gyroscopic forces, i.e. the handiness is improved.
at Ducati It’s not primarily about braking, but about accelerating. All 998 models are equipped with the Testastretta engine, which has been crowned with world championship laurels. With 123 and 136 hp, this ensures an increase in performance of ten and eight hp respectively for the 998 and 998 S. The R-model, already blessed with this engine last season, achieves 139 hp through further detailed modifications ?? and is thus the most powerful 1000 twin-cylinder. In doing so, the designers exceeded the bore diameter of 100 millimeters for a Superbike V2 for the first time. Pistons 104 millimeters thick reduce the stroke to 58.8 millimeters. In this way, larger valves and higher speeds can be achieved, which means that the 998 R claims racing ambitions like no other two-cylinder machine.
So a lot is going on in secret. The obvious, if not entirely voluntary, willingness of some Japanese manufacturers to install a modern mixture preparation and exhaust gas cleaning system in new models is to be welcomed. The introduction of electronic injection was not always associated with lower gasoline consumption and better drivability, but there are already examples that prove that this inevitable path leads to a successful future.

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