Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128373
MotoGP Tech Update: Here We Go Again! like Malaysia. This year, Yamaha has kept the long front-engine of its adjustment range and putting a lot mounts but has managed to ing the MI's base setting is still not perfect. What the Engineers Say Shigeto Kitagawa, head of motorcycle engi- move them in by making the engine narrower. This was done by moving the cam drive more weight onto the front wheel, suggest- gear train up the back of the neering, Yamaha Motor Company: "Our aim is to improve the balance of the engine rather than on the side. To raise the center of gravity of tion performance and top speed. We are the motor, the clutch has been raised and the output shaft my and have made the machine more moved to where it has the right relationship with the new swingarm pivot. Exhaust: The exhaust systems are different on Colin Edwards' bikes, with Edwards taking the benefit of better aerodynamics. Wind-tunnel machine's handling stability, boost acceleraalso balancing high power with fuel econoadaptable to different track conditions. The 2005 engine is a more compact design to concentrate the weight around the center of gravity, and the chassis is different, too, with improved torsional balance, laterally and longitudinally. Besides winning a second rider's championship, we also intend to go for the 2005 manufacturers title." tests have showed that the A Yamaha engineer panders Nicky Hayden's new/old swingarm. Jeremy Burgess, Rossi's crew chief: additional drag of a muffler sticking out can cost 2 to 3 mph on top speed. The new engine has a new sump with all the oil now on the right-hand side of the engine. This has led to the "The bike is much closer than before. Last year we would work and we would get big exhaust system being routed we could. The bike is quick. The race dis- down the right-hand side of the bike. The pipe is still a classic tance stuff is good - we matched the best improvements. This bike is much closer; it means we can plan ahead. Last year we just didn't know how it would go on a new circuit, 50 we were just grabbing everything two times that Gibernau did in Philip Island. I am not worried whether we were fast all arrangement. On Rossi's bike, H f 0 u r- into - two - into - 0 ne the way through the test at Catalunya; it is RC is determined to crush Valentino Rossi in MotoGP this year. Still smarting after their former golden boy won the title last year for rival manufacturer Yamaha, Honda is determined to show it is its bikes that make champions. It will send out an army of seven ReVs this season to prove it. The year promises to be as much of a battle between two rival groups of engineers as just an on-track dogfight between Rossi and main rivals Sere Gibernau and Max Biaggi. Yamaha and HRC engi- Colin Edwards' Yamaha gets an abbreviated set of exhausts. neers have been burning the midnight oil during the winter months to try and find the winning formula for 2005. We have been camping in the pit lane to try and find out what they have been up to. The Yamaha M I Clutch: The new engine design moves all the main components into new positions all in the name of compact design and mass centralization. This has resulted in a of their ranges. This year, because of the the pipe continues up to a short muffler. a test. We were fast at the end, and when redesign, all the adjustments will start again in the middle of their ranges. Cams: Driven from the back of the cylinders by putting the cam drive on the back of the engine, nearly 30mm can be chopped off the width of the engine. This Edwards' bike, on the other hand, has had its pipe cut off just by his foot pegs. we go back there in a few months, it'll be compietely different anyway." Kyochi Yoshii, RCV project leader: higher-mounted clutch and a vertical lay- allows the chassis to be narrower, the fairing to be narrower and still allows more air out of the radiator. Engine: The motor addresses several of out gearbox. the problems that affected the bike last year. Chassis: A completely new chassis, the "arched deltabox" of last year is gone, with At the start of last year, to make the steer- the new frame being narrower at the front engihe mounts and revised to take both the shorter, narrower engine and the longer swingarm. To get the chassis to a position where Rossi was happy last year, a lot of the possible adjustments were near the limits /? Sete Gibernau's Honda uses an adjustable steering head. ing head more fiexible, which allows the front wheel to find more grip when leaned fully over, Yamaha fitted extended frontengine mounts. Unfortunately, while these helped the handling, they got in the way of the radiator exhaust ducts, meaning that the bike needed a special fairing in hot climates 10 APRIL 13, 2005 • CYCLE NEWS Front Fork: For the second year in succession, Yamaha has started the year using a brand-new prototype Ohlins fork. Ohlins won't comment on the design, but it seems to be a constant volume design - a bit like a steering damper - with little gas pressure. Only the Yamaha Mis are fitted with these forks. Air Intake: The air intake is about 75mm higher, moving it into the highest-pressure area on the front ofthe bike. Swingarm: The swingarm is longer than last year's and mounts in a new chassis. Rossi seems to have kept the rear axle in the "The chassis is designed to help us improve the way it runs through the corners. For entering, we want more cornering ability. For acceleration, I think we are fine, but we shall see. Internally, many things have changed. I can't tell you about the bore and stroke, but there are many changes. The throttle system is mostly used in first, second and third, but the system works in all gears - we just have to want to use it. The system makes for eas- ier controllability of the bike. We have one middle of its adjustment range for most of the tests but struggled in Catalunya. The standard setup, but we can make differences in adjustment for each circuit. Electronically, we are supporting human solution included moving the axle to the back control, and mechanically, the slipper