Bikes THEY need to make

Message

High_Side · #1 Unread post by **High_Side** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 2:57 am

O.K., sometimes the manufacturers go to sleep on us and miss an obvious mark. Which bikes should they make? In this thread make it realistic, it has to be a marketable bike. Anyone can dream up a fantasy bike, but this one has to sell! Remember, price is important! No carbon fibre frames for an OTD price of $4999!

Hopefully this thread is around in a couple of years in the archives and we can see how close we were to reality.....

High_Side · #2 Unread post by **High_Side** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 3:22 am

O.K., this one seems obvious to me. Kawasaki needs to revisit the original EX500 concept. Many newbs head straight to the land of 120hp 600cc bikes whcih are practially too much for even experienced riders to use on the street. They look to 600cc because the EX500 looks like a mid-eighties bike, which it is!
This bike:

Needs to be updated to resemble this bike:

Newbs are mostly concerned about looks and this bike could get them there. However, there is some serious potential in this new model. The original EX500 was based on the mid-eighties Ninja 1000 and puts out roughly 60h.p and weighs approximately 375lbs. With half of a ZX10R motor, the new EX could easily put out 80 hp and weigh under 350lbs!
Keep the frame mild-steel for price, but make it look like the aluminum frame from the ZX6R. Give the bike an adjustable ride height and you will double the potential market for the bike. One single wave-rotor front disk will keep the cost down, look the part and provide all the stopping power required for a 350lb motorcycle. Keep the ergos as civilized as possible without loosing the "look" that the newbs must have. Make an aluminum framed R version for $1500 more, that includes higher spec suspension, and a few other goodies. I really believe that this bike could be alot to many people.......WAKE UP Kawasaki!

Nibblet99 · #3 Unread post by **Nibblet99** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 3:34 am

I seriously believe that if they could take any of the current crop of 600 cc supersports, make the riding position slightly tamer, and tune the engine more towards sports tourer, rather than track, they'd be on to a winner.

also if yamaha made a 600cc version of the bulldog, I'd be fairly sold on it. It doesn't look anywhere near as good as life, in any of the photo's I've found though, so this one will have to suffice

High_Side · #4 Unread post by **High_Side** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 4:32 am

Nibblet99 wrote:I seriously believe that if they could take any of the current crop of 600 cc supersports, make the riding position slightly tamer, and tune the engine more towards sports tourer, rather than track, they'd be on to a winner.

I agree. Yamaha almost pulled it off with the FZ-6. Great looking bike, with great ergos, but they left the engine in complete screamer form. If they would have tuned it for more bottom end power, it would really have been an attractive bike. Just about every review of the bike say it is gutless until you scream the heck outta it. Close, but no cigar....

Telesque · #5 Unread post by **Telesque** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 6:12 am

First off, let me say that I'm a big advocate of 'good ol, undefiled technology'. So, now we can move on to the horrible, blasphemous suggestions..

When are we going to start seeing prototype 'electric' bikes? And not just electric run- electronic controlled

With the (possible?

) advent of Fuel Cells and 'motor in wheel' electric drives, it will be possible to create Front-Wheel/Two Wheel Drive motorcycles. Throw on some more electronics, and you'll get a nice Traction Control System. The gyro technology used in a Segway could possibly be used in stabilizing a bike in turns/straights based on speed and lean angle.

That might be a little far off, but it's certainly possible to at least be put on a prototype model.

As for something a bit more modern? I'd always wondered about rigging up a hydrolic piston and some serious hinges/fram mods to allow flip-switch modification of the bike's rake, even during riding. You'd have to start with a steep rake, and a fair amount of ground clearance, as setting the bike's rake to a milder slope would cause the bottom of the frame to drop.. but hey, there's an idea for any over-the-top customizers out there reading this.

TechTMW · #6 Unread post by **TechTMW** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 7:04 am

I honestly can't think of any improvement over the current crop. Ok - a few things here or there, but nothing major.

I don't like the idea of more electronic controls on bikes ... bad juju. Never understood why we are going more and more to electronics either ... A good 80% of what comes into the workshop is an electrical problem or glitch. So ... LET'S PUT MORE ELECTRONICS ON !!!! (This goes for cars as well as bikes)

(Sorry Telesque)

Anyway - I think they should just open up their markets ... I think any bike you could possibly desire (Within reason) is out there ... Just sold in another country, and can't be imported for this reason or that ... What a crock.

There are a plethora of beginner bikes in Europe, for example, but in America we keep going back to the handful available.

How about Honda bringing over the CBF500 or the Transalp?
or Kawasaki the ER5

etc ...

Or, for my sake THE HONDA CBR1300 WHY IS THIS NOT AVAILABLE IN THE STATES!?!?!?!?! (or the Yamaha MT-01 for that matter )

What gives ???

Dennis27 · #7 Unread post by **Dennis27** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 7:29 am

Telesque wrote:First off, let me say that I'm a big advocate of 'good ol, undefiled technology'. So, now we can move on to the horrible, blasphemous suggestions..

When are we going to start seeing prototype 'electric' bikes? And not just electric run- electronic controlled

With the (possible? ) advent of Fuel Cells and 'motor in wheel' electric drives, it will be possible to create Front-Wheel/Two Wheel Drive motorcycles. Throw on some more electronics, and you'll get a nice Traction Control System. The gyro technology used in a Segway could possibly be used in stabilizing a bike in turns/straights based on speed and lean angle.

That might be a little far off, but it's certainly possible to at least be put on a prototype model.

As for something a bit more modern? I'd always wondered about rigging up a hydrolic piston and some serious hinges/fram mods to allow flip-switch modification of the bike's rake, even during riding. You'd have to start with a steep rake, and a fair amount of ground clearance, as setting the bike's rake to a milder slope would cause the bottom of the frame to drop.. but hey, there's an idea for any over-the-top customizers out there reading this.

You'd have a seriously heavy bike on your hands w/ that one. Fuel cell technology is no where near where it would need to be to implement in a bike. From my understanding they are very heavy.

nyrblue35 · #8 Unread post by **nyrblue35** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 7:56 am

id like to see the nighthawk 750 be made again. ive never owned one but would sure like to.

#9 Unread post by **Sev** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 9:31 am

I'd take any of the current crop of supersports pop out the 600cc inline 4 and throw in a 250cc v-twin.
Everything else could look identical, right down to the stickers. But at least it'd be a sane option for starting on. They could design the frame and drive system so the engines could be swapped out over time replacing the 250 with a 500cc inline 4, and eventually a 600cc inline 4.
The newb gets ALMOST everything he wants, and the ability to move up to what he wants AS he becomes able to handle it.
Of course there will always be people out there who want to start on the supersport, because they belong to the group that cannot crash. But what can we really do about that?

bigswifty · Thu Jun 02, 2005 10:13 am

some cool ideas here...good thread.

I'd take any of the current crop of supersports pop out the 600cc inline 4 and throw in a 250cc v-twin.

very good idea. If more 250 sportbikes were out there, ppl would buy them for sure.

They could design the frame and drive system so the engines could be swapped out over time replacing the 250 with a 500cc inline 4, and eventually a 600cc inline 4.

the only problem is that they'd prefer the newb to purchase another motorcycle instead of just the motor. and there are many other things that would hafto be changed to accomodate the weight and power.