EU proposes “650cc singles with automatic gears” as future for biking

[Bob]

Motorcycles should be powered by no more than 650cc, single-cylinder engines with automatic transmissions. This is the nightmare vision of the future for biking, as set out in an EU paper titled ‘Reduction of Energy Use in Transport’.

The report, produced by a Working Group comprising 15 specialists from EU member states including DEFRA and the Department for Transport, also appears to display an alarming lack of knowledge about the development of motorcycles in the last 20 years. Additional recommendations are for four-stroke rather than two-stroke engines and that the use of “well tuned carbs or better direct injection” is essential.

In other words, an accurate reflection of how most modern motorcycles are built.

In another part of the paper, there is also a suggestion that motorcycles be made part of “city tolls” – going directly against recommendations made by Ken Livingstone and also the DfTs own motorcycle strategy paper!

The BMF has damned the EU paper, saying it “demonstrates an ignorance of
motorcycling technicalities and is biased against motorcycles as a form of transport”.

Trevor Magner, the BMF’s Senior Government Relations Executive added “Tinkering with the technicalities will have far less effect on the environment than treating the motorcycle as a viable alternative to the car. The UK government has accepted this in its own motorcycling strategy document, it’s a pity our technical contributors didn’t appear to know this.”

The BMF has now written to DEFRA and asked for a meeting to discuss the proper role of the motorcycle in helping to save the environment.

[onearmedbandit]

Now that is scary. Keep us posted regarding how long it takes before this is dropped like a hot stone.

[erik]

An automatic transmission would be less efficient than a standard manual gearbox though, wouldn't it? :scratch:

[Korea]

Motorcycles should be powered by no more than 650cc, single-cylinder engines with automatic transmissions.
650cc auto-singles???
I think I speak for everybody when I say...
F*&#k Off!



No offence Eagle Scoutmaster! Keep up the good work :yes:

[SPman]

Where do they get their Technical "experts" from?

They may be "experts", but they know fek all about motorcycles!

[XP@]

Urrr this is aparently not a joke...


A plan to end the superbike has been hatched by official advisors to the European Commission, which could see a ban to outlaw any bike which has more than one cylinder and a capacity greater than 650cc.
http://www.motorcyclenews.com/nav?page=motorcyclenews.articles.articleCategory.a rticle&resourceId=4908342&articleCategory=NEWS_OTHER-NEWS

[carver]

fucking socialists, thats europe for you though...:sick:
ban this, ban that, tighter controls on this...what ever happened to self responibility and liberty?

[bugjuice]

lamo.. that has to be bollox..

[Sniper]

Now that is shite

[sAsLEX]

HOW IS an auto more enviromentally sound than a manual gear box!? Load of popppy cock that is!

[Finn]

Don't worry. It'll never happen. It's just a bunch of academics voicing their ideoligy. Let's stop and think for 5 minutes.

10,568 1000cc motobikes running non stop for 596 days would cause the same environmental damge a 1 x 747 over 10 hours. Or equal to 10 2-stroke outboards on the back of Greenpeace inflatables.

[Magua]

Nah, no way that'll get through.

[Smokin]

Sounds like a load of bollox to me, It gives no reasoning behind it either. If they are going to do this to bikes then surely it spells the end of V eight engines and high performance cars as well, and lets not forget about smoke beltching fuel dropping diesel's either.

[Biohazard]

tbh guys, thoose pricks in Brussels tried it about 5 yrs ago, when they tried to impose a bhp limit on bikes...

tossers the lot of em, tbh it'll never happen the major motor manufacturers ie (Honda, Yamaha & Kawasaki) will cause some damage, they'll pull car/bike and heavy machinery plants out of the UK and Europe...

i wouldnt loose any sleep over it tbh.

[oldrider]

Don't worry. It'll never happen. It's just a bunch of academics voicing their ideoligy. Let's stop and think for 5 minutes.
But we have got Clark and company, thats how they started and look at the crap they dish out to us! :blip:
Anything the Euro's do she can do better especially if the UN say so! :tugger: Bitch.

[scracha]

Sounds like a load of bollox to me, It gives no reasoning behind it either. If they are going to do this to bikes then surely it spells the end of V eight engines and high performance cars as well, and lets not forget about smoke beltching fuel dropping diesel's either.
Bwhahahah, there are no V8's and fuel dropping diesel's in Europe. Have you seen the price of diesel over there? Not to mention the emissions testing.

[Toast]

Yeah, not likely to happen...like Biohazard says, commercial clout will upset it...and thank God for that.

If it did though, it would suck...smaller market for the bikes means less R&D means .2 second slower per lap K7 GSXR :(

[The_Dover]

Where do they get their Technical "experts" from?

They may be "experts", but they know fek all about motorcycles!

BMW I would imagine. F650 auto anyone?

Didn't think so.

[XP@]

Yeah, not likely to happen...like Biohazard says, commercial clout will upset it...and thank God for that.

If it did though, it would suck...smaller market for the bikes means less R&D means .2 second slower per lap K7 GSXR :(
We hope Biohazard is correct... thay have managed to pass some really silly stuff in the past.

and your K7 GSXR would probably be a 650 single with an automatic gear box. Just like a dr650 but with a different frame.

[Lou Girardin]

Bwhahahah, there are no V8's and fuel dropping diesel's in Europe.
Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Ford, Vauxhall, Aston Martin, Jaguar, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati. To name a few.

[The_Dover]

Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Ford, Vauxhall, Aston Martin, Jaguar, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati. To name a few.

I think he meant there are no shitty Falcunt or Commode shopping wagons.

There are proper cars in europe.

[Lou Girardin]

I think he meant there are no shitty Falcunt or Commode shopping wagons.

There are proper cars in europe.

Well he should have said so.:hitcher:

[The_Dover]

Well he should have said so.:hitcher:

Now now Lou, not everyone can be as intelligent and articulate as you and I.

[Big Dave]

You know how politics works - if you want to achieve plan 'A' - then go to press with a three times more restrictive version of plan 'A' and when it gets beat down - the opponents think they have won, meanwhile....

120 horsepower and 1000cc will be their real target.

[Mr. Peanut]

If they do that im gonna burn tyres in my back yard day and night. Put oil in my cars fuel and so on and so fucking forth until I get my superbikes back.... :angry2:

[Big Dave]

If they do that im gonna burn tyres in my back yard day and night. Put oil in my cars fuel and so on and so fucking forth until I get my superbikes back.... :angry2:


Nice! - i'll ride up to the lookout at the top of the hunuas and say - look! - there's peanuts place over there.

[Edbear]

Now now Lou, not everyone can be as intelligent and articulate as you and I.



Ha! Gotcha! It's "you and me"! (and me!):nya:

[scracha]

Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Ford, Vauxhall, Aston Martin, Jaguar, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati. To name a few.
Well anyone who can afford one of them can afford the gogo juice (currently over $3 a litre).

Anyways...Vauxhall only recently started flogging V8 monaro's and I never saw one on the roads when I lived there.

Ford don't sell V8's in Europe unless you count the rare as hen's teeth GT40.

You wanna turbo diesel Ford focus you do :-)

[Wired1]

I don't mind 650 singles, as long as there's two of 'em and they're in a vee configuration...

[avgas]

Dont fret boys and girls, if you can ditch a cop in town on a 400cc single:nono: :shifty: :whistle: .....then imagine the fun of a 650 ;)
also lets see they would have to base the engine of something allready developed - say the XR650.....to which there is all ready a crap load of boxes to bolt on if you knew the right mechanic.
And even if you dont like that - remember, you can only get busted if they actually catch up to you

[Macktheknife]

"Ok, ... GOD I know we havent talked for a while but we have this little problem coming up in the EU, then probably here. Tell you what, you make it go away for ever and I promise not to do wheelies ever again and only speed on sundays. What do you say?"

I can't believe they think this will ever get anywhere. It has to be a con, make us think we are getting something later when we are still losing and just don't notice. Either that or someone slipped something in their drinking water.

[Flatcap]

Don't worry. It'll never happen. It's just a bunch of academics voicing their ideoligy. .

Well, the EU has already started down the track. Many of you won't care of course but the Vespa PX 200 is no longer sold in EU nations due to some nonsense about particulates vs engine size. Why would the Environ-mentalists stop at that.....

[myvice]

The EU bastards are worse than the Nazis!
At least they had the common curtsey to kick your door in and shoot you, these pricks bleed you to death with endless regulations and mindless bureaucracy!
The sad part is we are letting them do it over here too.
Could be worse tho, even less freedoms in the states!
When will it all end?
We already lose our licences for a month if we go over the speed limit by 40k's, and that was just to stop people saying it was all just a money scam!
They don’t give a rats ass about my, or anyone else’s safety/life, its control they want and they are taking it bit by bit.
When I was a kid (I'm 31, so not too long ago) I could rip about on my dirt bike without too much drama.
Now if my son was to do a quick lap round the block we would have 27 concerned residents ringing the cops, court imposed family meetings, a "Safety in your neighbourhood" flyer go around and a wad of fines from no rego through to excessive noise!
Odd when I called the cops last weekend due to the punch-up out side our house (I was the second caller) they didn’t show!
Must have been called away to some reckless hoon doing 55kph!
:angry2: