Jay GTI
17th October 2011, 11:17
Carbs really are dead, EFI is the future…
Was out at Woodhill on Saturday, itching to get the bike out as TMG had put the 2012 EFI map on my bike when they did the gearbox recall and I wanted to see what it was like. I was told it makes a big difference and gets rid of the slightly woolly bottom end, making it a bit more punchy out of corners. I’d have to say while it’s not like a completely different bike, it is more aggressive at low revs, definitely has a bit more punch, as I was told. In the past, unless you were in the meat of the mid-range, it was pretty tame, to the point where popping the front wheel over an obstacle needed either a good tug on the bars and some decent weight re-distribution, or a handful of clutch. Now front wheel lofting is all off the throttle, which is much more fun. Overall it’s just more responsive to throttle input, it has swapped some of it’s friendly nature, which was at times frustrating, for a bit more of that big bore bite. Still nothing close to the bottom end of my mate’s 450SX-F, but where it used to be super-friendly power everywhere, now there is just a bit of angriness to it. Overall I was very surprised at how much the nature of the bike has changed, considering absolutely nothing else has changed, just the engine map. Hence why EFI really is the future, a simple tweak at the dealer and my bike is a different beast. No pipe, no jetting, no drilling airboxes, no ¼ turn throttles, just plug in the laptop/EFI module and say hello to your new power delivery. Lots of fun!
What wasn’t fun was the 3rd gear corner exit where the new throttle response just caught me off guard and lifted the front wheel before I had time to get it upright and point it in the right direction, meaning that by the time I recovered it was time to get up close and intimate with a bank… I was thrown over the bars and landed on my back a good distance from the bike and now can barely walk! Next time I have any mapping changes done, I think I will be a little more reserved with the test riding… at least until I know what to expect.
Was out at Woodhill on Saturday, itching to get the bike out as TMG had put the 2012 EFI map on my bike when they did the gearbox recall and I wanted to see what it was like. I was told it makes a big difference and gets rid of the slightly woolly bottom end, making it a bit more punchy out of corners. I’d have to say while it’s not like a completely different bike, it is more aggressive at low revs, definitely has a bit more punch, as I was told. In the past, unless you were in the meat of the mid-range, it was pretty tame, to the point where popping the front wheel over an obstacle needed either a good tug on the bars and some decent weight re-distribution, or a handful of clutch. Now front wheel lofting is all off the throttle, which is much more fun. Overall it’s just more responsive to throttle input, it has swapped some of it’s friendly nature, which was at times frustrating, for a bit more of that big bore bite. Still nothing close to the bottom end of my mate’s 450SX-F, but where it used to be super-friendly power everywhere, now there is just a bit of angriness to it. Overall I was very surprised at how much the nature of the bike has changed, considering absolutely nothing else has changed, just the engine map. Hence why EFI really is the future, a simple tweak at the dealer and my bike is a different beast. No pipe, no jetting, no drilling airboxes, no ¼ turn throttles, just plug in the laptop/EFI module and say hello to your new power delivery. Lots of fun!
What wasn’t fun was the 3rd gear corner exit where the new throttle response just caught me off guard and lifted the front wheel before I had time to get it upright and point it in the right direction, meaning that by the time I recovered it was time to get up close and intimate with a bank… I was thrown over the bars and landed on my back a good distance from the bike and now can barely walk! Next time I have any mapping changes done, I think I will be a little more reserved with the test riding… at least until I know what to expect.