Editing Honda NR500
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
The edit can be undone. Please check the comparison below to verify that this is what you want to do, and then publish the changes below to finish undoing the edit.
Latest revision | Your text | ||
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
[[Honda]]'s announcement that it was returning to 500cc [[Grand Prix]] racing in 1979 with | [[Honda]]'s announcement that it was returning to 500cc [[Grand Prix]] racing in 1979 with the [[Honda|Honda's]] 'New Road' NR500 [[V4|V-four]] racer that used oval pistons. After an absence of 12 years, Honda caused less of a sensation than the news that their GP contender was a four-stroke, as at the time two-strokes seemed to rule GP races. | ||
==A Fake V8== | ==A Fake V8== | ||
Moreover, it quickly became apparent that this engine was really an eight-cylinder whose pistons had been "welded" in pairs to meet the rule prohibiting more than four cylinders in the 500cc class In fact, the pistons and bores had 3 cross section like a rectangle with semicircular ends, This ploy allowed the engine to run at over 20,000rpm, producing a power output equivalent to that of a two-stroke. The oval [[piston]] allowed for eight [[4-stroke cycle engine valves|valves]] per [[cylinder]] which generated more power due to the increased air / fuel mixture throughput and compression. | Moreover, it quickly became apparent that this engine was really an eight-cylinder whose pistons had been "welded" in pairs to meet the rule prohibiting more than four cylinders in the 500cc class In fact, the pistons and bores had 3 cross section like a rectangle with semicircular ends, This ploy allowed the engine to run at over 20,000rpm, producing a power output equivalent to that of a two-stroke. The oval [[piston]] allowed for eight [[4-stroke cycle engine valves|valves]] per [[Cylinder (engine)|cylinder]] which generated more power due to the increased air / fuel mixture throughput and compression. | ||
==Monocoque Frame== | ==Monocoque Frame== | ||
And that wasn't the only original feature of the machine: its 16-inch wheels were something new at the time, as was its front fork with external springs and its lateral radiators -which even as late as 1992 had not been adopted by other makers, Nothing like its streamlined light-alloy | And that wasn't the only original feature of the machine: its 16-inch wheels were something new at the time, as was its front fork with external springs and its lateral radiators -which even as late as 1992 had not been adopted by other makers, Nothing like its streamlined light-alloy monocoque exoskeletal frame has been seen since, Despite all Hondas efforts, the career of the NR was a fiasco, which led the company to create the NS, a two-stroke three-cylinder that Spencer rode to the world title in 1983. Nicknamed "Never Ready", the NR continued as a test vehicle long after its racing days were over, including such variations as the [[Honda NR750|NR750]]. | ||
[[Category:Honda motorcycles|NR]] | |||
{{motorcycle-stub}} | {{motorcycle-stub}} | ||