Instead of Stopping Riding Maybe I Get an MC w/ All Those New Safety Features

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LoneRanger

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Like this jobber, for instance:



Pretty radical concept, leans like a conventional bike but two wheels up front. Also has to park on a kickstand like a reg bike. I love weird stuff, being different, and blazing my own trail.
 
IMHO safety is due to you and nothing is going to change that. Maybe it will make you feel safer, and that could be good, but the reality is that is an illusion. Teslas are incredibly safe cars, and yet people kill themselves still. Mercedes and BMWs the same. No matter how safe the vehicle it comes down to the driver. Our safety culture has made everyone afraid of almost everything, but we are often most afraid of the wrong things. Studies show that those that wear helmets take greater risks. I think instead of looking for a safety cure you need to decide if the inherent risks are worth it for you. Maybe they are not and you should do something else. Don't expect safety features to cure the problem.
 
I rode a Niken for a bit. I personally didn't care for the heavy and heavy-feeling front end. But everyone has their own likes and expectations.

There are other versions of motorcycles with two wheels in the front that lean. An aftermarket example: Tilting Motorworks

Yamaha has Demo trucks that travel around the country. Some dealers, admittedly very few, will also allow test rides.

You can put in your location at this link, and see if any Demo events are near you: Yamaha events
 
All that stuff won't help if a car or pick up t bones you or runs over you when you fall off.
 
Defensive Riding Course would be the best $ & time spent.
Safer than assuming ABS or traction control or three tires will save the day when crunch time arrives.
 
The problem with a motorcycle has nothing to do with the machine itself but rather involves its rider as well as other traffic.
You're an experienced rider, so you've got that covered.
You're also well aware that no amount of ABS will help you when some idiot you've already noticed and accounted for does something totally unexpected.
A cocoon of sheet metal and airbags might let you walk away while this won't be happening if you're on a bike.
People drive stupid these days with no courtesy and no respect for their fellow road users. When I get tailgated by some fool driving with no more reference to the road than the back of my car with a phone glued to their ear or in front of their face because they can't afford something with Bluetooth, I sometimes wish that I were driving our old E350, maybe give 'em a hard brake check. Thing is that nobody seems to want to mess with that rusty old van.
 
Originally Posted by 02SE
I rode a Niken for a bit. I personally didn't care for the heavy and heavy-feeling front end. But everyone has their own likes and expectations.

There are other versions of motorcycles with two wheels in the front that lean. An aftermarket example: Tilting Motorworks

Yamaha has Demo trucks that travel around the country. Some dealers, admittedly very few, will also allow test rides.

You can put in your location at this link, and see if any Demo events are near you: Yamaha events


How was the power? My Guzzi is 600 lbs (book) and 105 hp w/ 79 lb-ft torque. While I see that the Niken's triple is rated @ 110hp, can't find a torque curve or torque figure. While thought I'd like the Guzzi CARC shaft drive system, there's just a lot of take-up (slack) in it. Wouldn't be against going back to a chain and sprocket bike.
 
It felt pretty close to the perceived power of other Yamaha's that have the 847cc I-3, in the low-end and midrange. It doesn't have as much power at higher RPM. Yamaha says it's tuned-for-torque, which usually means milder camshafts, and sometimes other measures to reduce peak power, and lower the RPM of the power curve.

I don't have a lot of seat time on the other Yamaha bikes that use the 847cc I-3. Maybe a couple hundred miles total. My perceptions and likes/dislikes may or may not align with those of anyone else.

I didn't ask, but I'd guess it's probably geared lower too, to help compensate for the added weight of the front end.

I found myself grounding the peg feelers pretty easily, which is an early warning, as the amount the bike can lean is limited by the front end. Which means if pushed further one tire will lift off the pavement, loading the one remaining tire on the ground suddenly, and possibly beyond it's traction limits. Tires can take quite a bit of load while leaned over on the edge of the tire, but that load needs to be applied and released smoothly. Sudden changes to the load on a tire by lifting one of the wheels on this bike, or abrupt brake or throttle inputs as often happen in a panic situation, can overload the available traction. Catching a tire that is now sliding, is going to depend heavily on how much experience a rider has at the traction limit.

But this bike isn't billed as a sportbike, which is still my preferred style of bike. This bike is billed as a sport-touring bike, and in most circumstances won't be ridden aggressively enough to realize it's lean-angle limitations.



Anyway, that's my opinion, which is admittedly heavily biased to sportbikes. There has to be some reviews from some of the long-time motorcycle industry scribes. They should have ridden most of the bikes produced, and can give a more balanced review.
 
Until there are self driving cars, you are at the mercy of human driven vehicles. I know because I drive one.
grin2.gif
 
Quote
People drive stupid these days with no courtesy and no respect for their fellow road users.

Having ridden bikes for more than half a century I think things are actually much better on the road for motorcycles, overall. The big difference is today's riders often get a first bike that has 100HP and can easily kill them, while in the past most of us were riding little minibikes, 100cc dirtbikes and such for years before we even had our licenses. Then we bought our first motorcycles they were like 250s with 20HP. We had nothing in terms of safety equipment, so we had to go slow and safe. Car drivers in those days had giant beasts that couldn't stop and were often loaded with half the neighborhood--talk about distraction! Deaths on the highway are way, way down today, compared to the 60s, but motorcycle rates may be up. Frankly, I think it is mostly due to us, the riders, based on what I see on the road.
 
Yamaha says that the Niken allows for up to a 45 degree lean angle. What happens past that? Does it lift the outer front wheel? Skid like a car? Lowside like a bike?

Electronics to automatically apply the brakes on the car tailgating you and jam cell signals within a one mile radius, I'd call those safety features.
 
I road a 2006 yamaha r1 with no electronics for 4 years, I put 89k miles on it, then last year I bought at 2017 r1, it has TCS ABS stability control that controls TCS the further the bike is leaned over in a corner. I ride it 100+ miles a day in south florida with the rain and sand. The electronics are a big deal for me especially the ABS. the bike will even use the rear brake automatically whenever you use the front brake.
 
Originally Posted by AuthorEditor
Quote
People drive stupid these days with no courtesy and no respect for their fellow road users.

Having ridden bikes for more than half a century I think things are actually much better on the road for motorcycles, overall. The big difference is today's riders often get a first bike that has 100HP and can easily kill them, while in the past most of us were riding little minibikes, 100cc dirtbikes and such for years before we even had our licenses. Then we bought our first motorcycles they were like 250s with 20HP. We had nothing in terms of safety equipment, so we had to go slow and safe. Car drivers in those days had giant beasts that couldn't stop and were often loaded with half the neighborhood--talk about distraction! Deaths on the highway are way, way down today, compared to the 60s, but motorcycle rates may be up. Frankly, I think it is mostly due to us, the riders, based on what I see on the road.


I ve lost half of my left pinky finger and dislocated my left ankle (which left me with arthritis and myosytis ossificans-that's extra bones created by my body around the joint) while riding my 250 Ninja going 40Km/h.
A Kawasaki Z750 from the oposite direction going 80Km/h (as his rider told me) hit me on the left clip on,causing me to fly and land to the tarmac and faint 2 seconds later.Woke up at hospital with dislocated ankle,my half finger hanging 90 degrees completely broken and half cut , and needing stiches on my forearm.
This is my first real bike I have been (and still) riding for 65.000kms.When I reached about 50.000kms with it was the time that I bought my Honda CBR600F with the combined ABS to "level up" my riding skills and experience.
Horsepower is not needed in order to get killed or get hurt.
A blink of an eye that missed the oncoming danger is enough.Even going at bicycle speed.
Didn't stop me from fixing my bike and keep riding both of them.Even after that harsh 5 month period with physiotherapy and enormous physical (less now) and mental pain (as good as before now).
 
Originally Posted by LoneRanger
Originally Posted by 02SE
I rode a Niken for a bit. I personally didn't care for the heavy and heavy-feeling front end. But everyone has their own likes and expectations.

There are other versions of motorcycles with two wheels in the front that lean. An aftermarket example: Tilting Motorworks

Yamaha has Demo trucks that travel around the country. Some dealers, admittedly very few, will also allow test rides.

You can put in your location at this link, and see if any Demo events are near you: Yamaha events


How was the power? My Guzzi is 600 lbs (book) and 105 hp w/ 79 lb-ft torque. While I see that the Niken's triple is rated @ 110hp, can't find a torque curve or torque figure. While thought I'd like the Guzzi CARC shaft drive system, there's just a lot of take-up (slack) in it. Wouldn't be against going back to a chain and sprocket bike.



I have put 12k miles on an XSR900 with The 847cc Triple. The Yamaha 3 cylinder is super strong down low. I know the niken is heavier than the XSR, but I guarantee it will still feel very strong and plenty fast.

The Yamaha triple makes around 65lbft of torque with 80% of that available by 3k RPM at least that is per Yamaha for the XSR/FZ09/FJ09 and Tracer 900
 
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