Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

ggest Bv Paul Cannurx:ns PHoros BY KEvrN l rrNG impeller in the radiator; a lighter shift-drum shaft; laghter front brake rotors (even though they're bigger in diame- ter);a smaller, lighter rear brake caliper; a lighter four-into- two combination titanium/stainless-steel exhaust system; and countless hardware changes, including hollowed-out axle bolts, etc. To increase engine performance, Honda changed the combustion chamber shape on the CBRl000s' cylinder head to bump the compression ratio up to 12.2: I from la5t year's I 1.9: l. That cylinder head has also been re-ported to get more power in the mid- and upper-rpm ranges, and redline now hits at 12,200 - up from the 11,650 of last year's model. The ehgine also gets a new intake cam; intake valves (with the springs now a double-spring design instead of a single-sprinS unit to improve high-rpm durability) to pump up poweri and a strongen more durable crankhaft to han- dle the extra oomph. The upgraded engine rits in a chassis that's slightly chanSed with more radical numbers includinS wheelbase, rake and trail- For sta-rters, the wheelbase has been short- ened by lomm to 55.3 inches (the swingarm itself is 4mm shoner), which makes it identical to the wheelbase found on the GSX-R|000, thanks in paft to a head angle that has al'o been reduced with the rake and trail now a much more extreme 23.45/ l00mm (it was 23.75l l02mm last year). Honda has changed the brakes up front on the CBR, going with bigger rotorc (up to 320mm from 3 lomm) that are also 100 Erams lighter, due to the fact that they're half a mil thinner The rear brake rotor is unchanged, but they ve gone to a smaller and lighter caliper. After spending a day on the Honda CBR|o00RR at Buttonwillow Raceway, one word seems to describe the new model - guicker. lt basically does everything quicker. lt revs quicker and it flicks quicker, the weight savings and additional power are obvious from the get-go when you take to the racetrack- The l7-pound loss is quickly evident when lou flrst ride the new bike, especially so when you're trying to get the bike stopped for one of Euttonwillow's hairpins. Though the front brakes have changed a tad, they feel completely new and a whole lot better this year. And that has to stem mainly from the fact that those radial-mounted brakes are getting a whole lot less weight stopped than they were before. That dissimilarity in braking power and feel was really evident when Honda allowed us the opportunity to throw a leg over last year's model for comparison's sake. Not only does it stop befter, it also has better feel through the lever. Go figure. That comparison also quickly showed that Honda has given up a bit of stabiliq/ in an effort to get the bike to turn quicker. While the old Honda felt like it was on a monorail, the new one can get a bit twitchy when you get it hooked up right and you're putting in maximum effort at the race- track. But that's a good thing... this CBR|000RR feels livety and more exhilarating than the older model - even though it still uses the Honda Electronic Steering Damper (HESD). Whatever ),ou give up on stability is wonh it wtEn it comes The brond-sponking new Hondo CBRTOOORR ir o lighrer, fosler motorycle lhot rhould tompete heod-to-heod with the best the .ldis hos m offer. by shortening the wheelbase and reducing the bike's steer- ing-head angle. First things first. The weight. ln order to get rid o[ poundage, Honda attacked pretty much the entire motor- cycle, chipping away a bit here and a bit there - from pieces of hardware to the exhalst system- ln total, 60 percent of the components ofthe new bike were redesigned, accord- ing to Honda. Among the weight savers are a magnesium ACG cover on the left side of the engine (only the head cover and oil pan were made from magnesium on lart year's model): a lighter and smaller ECU; a smaller, li8hter cooling-system D D CYCLE NEWS . JANUARY I 1, 2OO5 27 I 5 r / t [, \ I tr\ \ 3 \ I \ ,t a. rl a IifON

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