Southern Honda Powersports: 2012

Monday, 31 December 2012

The story of the Honda V4 from Southern Honda Powersports PART 3

1982 RS1000RW

NR500 Know-How Inspires a New Generation of V4 Sports Bikes
Some may follow in the footsteps of others, but if Honda builds a machine, it has to be special. During the early nineties, when in-line Fours were considered de rigeur, Honda returned to GP racing and　at the same time　began development of a sports bike powered by a new kind of engine. It was completely different from anything offered by other manufacturers — an engine delivering unheard of levels of performance. The roots of this incredible engine can be traced back to the V4 NR500. As one of the engineers said, "Before releasing the bike on the market we wanted to show the world the amazing performance of the V4 engine. So we wanted to win the most prestigious race in America, the Daytona 200." This machine, the RS1000RW was powered by a racing prototype version of the production engine. Although it used round pistons, the 90° V4 engine was loaded with NR500 technology. Even during testing it pumped more than 150PS. During the race, however, the engine's ferocious power and blinding speed proved too much for the tires and it finished in 2nd place. But the potential of Honda's V4 engine was obvious. When the V750 Sabre and Magna debuted they were powered by the world's first* liquid-cooled 4-stroke, DOHC, 4-valve, 90° V4 engines.
* Honda research

1984 RS750R BOL D'OR & Le Mans 24-Hours Endurance Race: G. Courdray

1983 RS850R

1982 VF750F Engine(Production Model)

1982 VF750F(Production Model)

Production V4 Engine Has Ample Race Potential

In 1982, the VF750 Sabre was followed by the VF750F. While its engine had the same output figures as the Sabre and Magna, heavy engine braking caused rear wheel hop, requiring fitment of the slipper clutch designed for the NR500. The VF750F was also the first production bike to feature a double-cradle frame made from box-section tubing. The incredible potential of this machine was proven when racing versions won the Daytona 200 and many other races around the world. The VF750F was followed by a whole line-up of V-Series machines developed in quick succession, including the impressive VF1000R. In 1982, HRC (Honda Racing Corporation) was established and went on to develop many racing machines based on the VF750F. In 1983 they developed the incredible RS850R. This was followed in 1984 by the RS750R, which won the 24-Hour Le Mans endurance race and many other big races. In addition to its impressive power output, the 90° V4 engine layout eliminated primary vibration, was as narrow as a twin-cylinder engine and had its cylinders cast into the upper engine case. The design of this remarkable power unit was both revolutionary and, in retrospect, very rational. It would form the basis for many successful Honda V4 engines to come.

1984 VF1000R(Production Model)

1984 VF750F Daytona 200

Images and information provided by Honda Motor Co.

Stay tuned for Part 4 of the evolution of Honda's V4 Engine.

Southern Honda Powersports is your source for Honda Motorcycles Atv's and Side by Sides. We serve Chattanooga and the surrounding states with the best deals on Hondas.

Southern Honda Powersports, The World's Largest Honda dealer.

www.southernhonda.com

info@southernhonda.com

1394 Workman Rd.

Chattanooga, TN. 37407

1-800-959-5432

Wednesday, 26 December 2012

Why our non-current inventory selection is good for you!

We see it all the time. Folks come from all over Chattanooga and beyond looking for the best deal on a Honda motorcycle and aren't aware that there are still non-current Honda's out there to be had for a smokin' deal. These are brand new Hondas, still in the crate and ready to sell. They are considered non-current because they are older than a 2012 model. Southern Honda Powersports has models all the way back to 2006 still in stock. There are two huge advantages to going with this type of bike over a brand new 2012/2013.

First, a non current is always going to be steeply discounted. In the case of our VTX1800F a customer is saving $5502 off retail. You are able to purchase this 1800cc Honda cruiser for what most other dealers sell VT750 Shadows for. No where else in Chattanooga or the southeast will you find a deal like this.
Secondly, you get a lot of "play room" with a non-current model when it comes to financing. That means the $5502 that you saved off of MSRP on a non current VTX1800F, you can spend on accessories or gear. That way if you want saddlebags, a windshield, floorboards or any other cruiser accessory, you can finance it right in. We always say that it's much easier to pay a little more over time than a lot more at once and up front.
Financing is where we shine. Our finance professionals are the best in the business. If you need $$ to buy, most of the time we can get it for you.
Go ahead and browse our site and check out our non-currents. There are huge deals to be had!

Non-current Honda Cruisers by year (click to see each): 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006

Non-current Honda Street Bikes by year: 2011 2010 2009

Non-current Honda Dirt Bikes by year: 2011 2009 2008 2007

Non-current Honda ATV by year: 2008 2007

Non-current Honda Scooter by year: 2011 2007

Non-current Honda Side by Side by year: 2010

Non-current Honda Jet Ski by year: 2009 2008

Southern Honda Powersports is your source for Honda Motorcycles Atv's and Side by Sides. We serve Chattanooga and the surrounding states with the best deals on Hondas.

Southern Honda Powersports, The World's Largest Honda dealer.

www.southernhonda.com

info@southernhonda.com

1394 Workman Rd.

Chattanooga, TN. 37407

1-800-959-5432

Monday, 24 December 2012

The story of the Honda V4 from Southern Honda Powersports PART 2

Birth of the NR500 & Debut at Silverstone.

1980 NR500(1X) Engine British GP: T. Katayama

1980 T. Katayama & T. Fukui

By the time the OX engine was undergoing dyno testing, the 1979 season was already underway. As always, testing revealed many problems which had to be solved, but machine development progressed at a furious pace. In July, the project was officially named NR500, and the first NR500 was completed shortly thereafter. As a racing machine, it was still a work in progress. Still, Honda decided to enter the NR500 at the Silverstone in August. The high-rpm V4 engine produced more than 115PS and was mounted in a semi-monocoque, aluminium shrimp-shell frame fitted with inverted forks, common-axis swingarm, side radiators and other avant-garde technology. It was a premature debut, however, for although both machines qualified for the race neither finished. In fact, there remained a large gap to be bridged before the NR500 could battle for victory. But this early disappointment only spurred the engineers on to greater effort, and the pace of development increased.

Progress is made. Performance increases.

1981 NR500(2X)All Japan Championship

1983 NR500 Tokyo Motor Show Exhibition Model

As new engines were made with improved gear trains and a revised V-angle of 90°, power increased to more than 130PS. To compensate for excessive engine braking, a slipper clutch was developed. With increased emphasis placed on actual performance and lap times, the revolutionary suspension units were replaced with more conventional items. In 1981, the latest iteration of the NR500 made history by winning its first race, the Suzuka 200km endurance race. Still, in WGP the NR500 found it hard going. In 1982, after four years of developing the NR500, Honda decided to put its main effort behind the 2-stroke NS500. And although race appearances of the NR500 became fewer, bench testing of the remarkable engine continued. As one of the engineers said, "The value of the engine lay in its remarkable potential." Behind the scenes, development continued. In 1987, the fruits of those labors were revealed when the NR750 debuted at the LeMans 24-Hour Endurance Race. Development of the production version of the NR began the following year. The project culminated in 1992 with the release of the NR production machine, a supersport bike the likes of which the world had never seen. Today, the spirit of the NR lives on in the V4 engines which have powered so many of Honda's successful road machines and championship-winning racing machines.

1987 NR750 Le Mans 24-Hours Endurance Race: M. Campbell/G. Roy/K. Nemoto

1987 NR750 Le Mans 24-Hours Endurance

Race: M. Campbell/G. Roy/K. Nemoto

1987 NR775 Engine 1992 NR Engine(Production Model)

1992 NR(Production Model)

Images and information provided by Honda Motor Co.

Stay tuned for Part 3 of the evolution of Honda's V4 Engine.

Southern Honda Powersports is your source for Honda Motorcycles Atv's and Side by Sides. We serve Chattanooga and the surrounding states with the best deals on Hondas.

Southern Honda Powersports, The World's Largest Honda dealer.

www.southernhonda.com

info@southernhonda.com

1394 Workman Rd.

Chattanooga, TN. 37407

1-800-959-5432

Sunday, 23 December 2012

The story of the Honda V4 from Southern Honda Powersports PART 1

PART 1

Honda Revolutionizes 4-Stroke Engine Design

In 1978, one year after Honda announced its intention to return to WGP the NR (New Racing) development team was established, and full scale development of the new machine began. Honda had three stated goals for their return to racing. First, to showcase Honda technology by winning races. Second, to create revolutionary technology. And third, to bring up a new generation of engineers and designers inspired with the racing spirit. The development team members were all young and full of new ideas.
"We wanted to create a machine that epitomized the ultimate in advanced technology," says President Fukui. "An engine that would shock the world. At the time, 2-strokes dominated racing, and both 2-strokes and 4-strokes were limited to 500cc and four cylinders." Conventional wisdom was that a 4-stroke simply couldn't compete under these regulations. But with Honda's reputation for building 4-strokes, the development team was determined to show the world what they could do. The battle to revolutionize 4-stroke technology had begun!

1979 NEngineR500(0X)

1979 NR500(0X) Engine

1980 NR500(1X) Engine & Frame

Imagination and Unconventional Ideas Create a Revolutionary V4 Engine

In simplest terms, in order for a 4-stroke to compete with a 2-stroke under the existing regulations it would have to spin at twice the rpm. Thus, a valve train that could survive at ultra-high rpm would have to be invented, and intake efficiency would have to be dramatically increased. To meet these seemingly impossible conditions the engineers came up with a breakthrough idea. They would double the number of valves per cylinder from the usual four, to eight. To ensure high combustion efficiency, they developed oval pistons. Of course, oval piston rings and other new technologies also had to be created, and extensive tests were needed. Six months after this preliminary design work, development of the actual engine began and the first drawings of the revolutionary oval-piston engine were created. Featuring a 100° V-angle, the liquid-cooled DOHC Four was designated the OX engine. The engine used a reduced number of crank journals to reduce frictional loss for high power output. An opposed piston layout reduced primary crankshaft vibration. A slim and very compact design contributed to mass centralization, resulting in very responsive handling. By freeing themselves from the conventional wisdom that 'pistons should be round,' Honda's engineers were able to create a unique and revolutionary V4 engine.

1981 NR500(2X) Cylinder head 1981 NR500(2X) Cylinder head

1981 NR500(2X)Piston 1981 NR500(2X) Piston

1981 NR500(2X) Engine 1981 NR500(2X) Engine

Images and information provided by Honda Motor Co.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of the evolution of Honda's V4 Engine.

Southern Honda Powersports is your source for Honda Motorcycles Atv's and Side by Sides. We serve Chattanooga and the surrounding states with the best deals on Hondas.

Southern Honda Powersports, The World's Largest Honda dealer.

www.southernhonda.com

info@southernhonda.com

1394 Workman Rd.

Chattanooga, TN. 37407

1-800-959-5432

RC213V for the Street?

Could this be the bike we have all been waiting for?

Toward the end of his annual share holders address last September, dealing with business as usual, Honda President/CEO Takanobu Ito snuck in a paragraph that relit the pilot in the hearts of the V-Four faithful everywhere: “Since its market introduction in 1987, the RC30 [VFR750R] supersports bike has been loved by a large number of fans. With a goal to create a new history, passionate Honda engineers have gotten together and have begun development of a new supersports bike to which new technologies from MotoGP machines will be applied.”

RC is not a nomenclature Honda throws around lightly. In the modern era, Honda won the first two Superbike World Championships, 1988 and 1989, with Fred Merkel and the RC30. Later, it spent many millions building a fuel-injected 750cc V-Four, the RC45, and hired John Kocinski to beat Ducati in 1997. When Honda determined to beat the Italians at their own V-Twin game, the RC51 was the bike to do it and Colin Edwards the man (in an epic last-round win over Troy Bayliss in 2000).

Finally, with MotoGP in dire straits and CRT machines making a mockery of motorcycling’s premier class, Honda has decided to build a production racer for sale. And with that decision made, why not an SBK homologation/domesticated street version for sale to the public?

What the new bike will be like is anybody’s guess. Here’s Kevin Cameron’s: “I think Honda has put a lot into cutting weight from the RC211/212/213V engines, and the affordable part of this will be passed along to whatever they produce. Fuel used to be up in a humpy gas tank but is now moved down under the seat for the most part. So much has been learned in the MotoGP years about how to use chassis lateral flexure to make bikes hook up even on rough pavement; some of that will pass along.

“A lot of MotoGP relationship will be look and detail styling—not much more than Bold New Graphics. In line with current MotoGP norms, the fairing will look very abbreviated from the sides. There’s no other way to get all that heat out without having an enclosing fairing channel it onto the rider, making the bike into a convection oven in motion.

“All the details, the swingarm braced on the bottom, the details of how the brake calipers and fork look, will contribute to the effect. I hear it’s to be designated RC213B, but as to product name, surely something stormy and predatory! Vortex! Perfect Storm! Naked Mole Rat? Basically, who knows?”

Contributing Editor Steve Anderson, who traveled to Japan in 1988 to ride the RC30, thinks the bike will be a Honda technology statement just like the RC30 was: “I would expect tiny LED headlights, a lithium-ion battery and full-color TFT LCD dash. Perhaps a race ABS and sophisticated traction control, wheelie control and launch control matching or exceeding those used by BMW. Or maybe just a GP-look fairing on an improved CBR with gear-driven cams?” When Honda racing boss Shuhei Nakamoto was asked about the bike at the final MotoGP race of the season at Valencia, he said, “That is production machine. Not my department.”

The CBR1000RR isn’t getting any younger, but it remains a decent platform for World Superbike competition and for selling to the masses at reasonable cost—meaning the new RC doesn’t have to be anything like practical. In 1990, an $11,000 RC30 wasn’t quite twice the price of a $5998 CBR1000F. In ’94, you could get three CBR900RRs for the price of one $27,000 RC45. But the 2000 RC51 sold for the very same $9999 as the CBR929RR, so there really is no precedent. Whatever the price, expect the new RC to be a highly desirable object of moto-worship.

It’s about time.

Words by John Burns. Illustration by Kar Lee. Cycle World Magazine.

Southern Honda Powersports, The World's Largest Honda dealer.

www.southernhonda.com

info@southernhonda.com

1394 Workman Rd.

Chattanooga, TN. 37407

1-800-959-5432