Niken

[steve27bha]

Two page report with pix from the EICMA show in latest BiKe mag "Jan 2018" edition. Not ridden, but techy details.

[Swarf]

Just seen the front on pic. Holy shite it's ugly!

[dablik]

Apparently it's so big in the flesh ya may as well have a cage

[Swarf]

I'm not quite seeing the point of it to be honest, but I suppose it's in a similar vein to the old gts1000. Bit of a clever, but what's it for contraption.....😂

[TKH]

Saw the piccies a few weeks back. Hated it then and hate it now. :tdown:

[fixitsan]

I looked at it at the NEC show, Longer wheelbase than the MT-09 and, on paper, it's only 7cm wider. I think there may be some wider bikes, big tourers and the like

 

I'm not going to knock it till I've tried it. I think on a regular bike if you hit slippy bit of surface mid corner the front can give away, but with two contact patches you almost have a backup. Overall grip will be about the same (grip being a function of the vertical pressure between tyre and road, half front end weight per tyre) but at the limit you have bit more of a chance of catching it should it start to slip. IMHO, in theory, with guesswork

[marko67]

I looked at it at the NEC show, Longer wheelbase than the MT-09 and, on paper, it's only 7cm wider. I think there may be some wider bikes, big tourers and the like

 

I'm not going to knock it till I've tried it. I think on a regular bike if you hit slippy bit of surface mid corner the front can give away, but with two contact patches you almost have a backup. Overall grip will be about the same (grip being a function of the vertical pressure between tyre and road, half front end weight per tyre) but at the limit you have bit more of a chance of catching it should it start to slip. IMHO, in theory, with guesswork

I think the physics is pretty complex. Donkeys years ago a UK bike mag did a test which included an MP3 and CBR 600. Part of the test was wet cornering and wet braking. The MP3 absolutely smoked the CBR, embarrassingly so.

At EICMA and Tokyo, Yamaha presented a whole raft of prototype vehicles using leaning technology with independent suspension. They must feel that this tech has a big future.

My postie uses a 125 Tricity to drop my bills off. I have a steep, narrow, driveway. Slippy as a freshly greased weasel at times. He rides down, pops in the bills and does a full lock turn, off camber, on the steepest and weasliest part of the drive. Effortlessly, no feet. I can do it on my trials bike, nothing else.

 

Having said that, I should imagine the Niken is like a decent Subaru. It will take a lot to get it out of shape but when it goes it will go proper!

I can't wait for it to come out, sod the looks, I love the tech.

 

Oh, wonder how much replacement front tires will cost? They are currently unique.

[erdferkel]

 Overall grip will be about the same (grip being a function of the vertical pressure between tyre and road, half front end weight per tyre) but at the limit you have bit more of a chance of catching it should it start to slip. IMHO, in theory, with guesswork

 

I think the Niken might even have more grip than a traditional motorbike in front, because it has double the contact patch for the front. Somewhere I read that grip is not only a function of pressure but also of the size of the contact patch as well, This is supposed to be because the surfaces are not ideally smooth, but the tyre and the asphalt interact a little more intimate

[fixitsan]

 

 This is supposed to be because the surfaces are not ideally smooth, but the tyre and the asphalt interact a little more intimate

 

Yes you're right, in the dry when the maximum achievable amount of friction between 2 surfaces is very high, larger area is better.

 

However in the wet and on unstable surfaces, when the maximum achievable friction is very low, downwards pressure becomes more important. hence why narrow tyres aquaplane less than wider ones when fitted to the same vehicle.

 

How this all works on a wet corner, while braking, while leant over at 45 degrees I really don't know !

[Robodene]

Nice to have two wheels at the front for better stiction, but do we need two at the back to complete it?

[CrashTestDuffy]

Nice to have two wheels at the front for better stiction, but do we need two at the back to complete it?

Then it would be a Dodge Tomahawk

[Robodene]

Then it would be a Dodge Tomahawk

Looks like the Tomahawk only goes in straight lines. But anyway, 'my' Niken would have rear wheels that move in the same way as the fronts.

[fixitsan]

Looks like the Tomahawk only goes in straight lines. But anyway, 'my' Niken would have rear wheels that move in the same way as the fronts.

 

A crazy idea which I like  !

 

i wonder what vehicle classification it would come under in the UK ?  Interesting !

[fixitsan]

Nice to have two wheels at the front for better stiction, but do we need two at the back to complete it?

 

As per this ?

https://riders.drivemag.com/news/quadro4...ign=Riders

[CrashTestDuffy]

 

As per this ?

https://riders.drivemag.com/news/quadro4...ign=Riders

Trying to work out the range on that and assuming I'm missing something as it looks like it has a 14 litre tank and only gets around 4-7km per litre (61 miles optimistically) out of a 346cc engine.

[Robodene]

As per this ?

<a class="bbc_url" href="https://riders.drivemag.com/news/quadro4-steinbock-the-r1200gs-killer?utm_content=buffer33cb3&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=Riders">https://riders.drivemag.com/news/quadro4-steinbock-the-r1200gs-killer?utm_content=buffer33cb3&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=Riders</a>

Well yes, something of that ilk. Though what I had in mind was the Niken with two close-coupled, single-sided swingarms. Many engineering questions arise, none of which am I able to answer (or the desirability/necessity!).

[bjorge]

Trying to work out the range on that and assuming I'm missing something as it looks like it has a 14 litre tank and only gets around 4-7km per litre (61 miles optimistically) out of a 346cc engine.

 

Must be some mistake .......

[fixitsan]

 

Must be some mistake .......

 

4.7L per 100km maybe ?

[Apache]

As per this ?

<a class="bbc_url" href="https://riders.drivemag.com/news/quadro4-steinbock-the-r1200gs-killer?utm_content=buffer33cb3&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=Riders">https://riders.drivemag.com/news/quadro4-steinbock-the-r1200gs-killer?utm_content=buffer33cb3&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=Riders</a>

Tracer GT further down the link is much more desirable.....ruled a Tracer out recently because of the poor seat/screen and fragile look of it. Buggers fix the seat/screen add luggage - heated grips and cruise. Looks like a TDM replacement now.........except it's not a twin and has no proper exhausts.

[CrashTestDuffy]

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