has Jez slagged us again?

[Virago]

........The Atom weighing in at 500kgs, and a Civic Type R engine, supercharged, pumping out 300bhp. Jez pointed out, that's 600hp per tonne.....
....the CBR600RR puts out 601.45hp/p/t. Have I got that right? The bike puts out 101bhp and weighs 168kgs......

Comparing the power to weight ratios without rider / driver is pointless, unless you can drive them by remote control!

Add the weight of a fully kitted rider to the bike - 85Kg? Combined bike / rider is 253Kg, giving a power to weight figure of 399 hp/p/t.

Put the same weight of driver in the car. Combined car / driver is 585Kg, giving a power to weight figure of 513 hp/p/t.

Spot the difference?

Coupled with the centre of gravity differences, and the amount of rubber on the road, means the bike doesn't stand a chance.

[WINJA]

Power to weight is pretty useless.

GN250 will get nearly 200hp/tonne and although it's quicker than most cars to 100km/h that's pretty much all that it'll get to.

The only real way that would be fair is to compare cost to cost. When someone finds the $3000 brand new car thatworks reasonably well, that's the day that I might think about switching.

ITS TRUE DOLLAR FOR DOLLAR NOTHING DOES BETTER THAN A BIKE

[Ixion]

Power to weight is not even the way to compare bikes,let alone compare bikes and cars - my XLV750 and the DT230 I replaced it with have exactly the same power to weight ratio,both adventure bikes....but I wouldn't even dare to compare them...apart from two wheels.

I once had a Yamaha 50 that had an (unladen) power weight ratio that was better tha n the Triumph I had at the same time.

Power to weight is maybe relevant for initla acceleration , but over about 50kph it becomes meaningless, as air resistance takes over from inertia.

[wkid_one]

And no one has yet mentioned torque.....

[Jeremy]

That reminds me, I'd like to see how fast one of the MotoGP bikes can go around the Top Gear track.

[gav]

At best maybe 6-8 seconds quicker than a CBR600RR, did you see the F1 Renault lap under a minute last week
The thing with bikes is a GSXR1000K5 (or whatever) could lap within 10 seconds of the MotoGP lap record, but no production car can lap within 30 seconds of a F1 car.
Oh yeah, theres a Atom Aerial on Trade Me, sadly it doesnt have a 300hp supercharged Civic R engine though http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Mo...n-27115981.htm
Bloody funny watching Jezza's face getting sucked off, he's right about the real wind in you face experience though, isnt he?

[Ixion]

And no one has yet mentioned torque.....

We don't talk about that.

[gav]

And no one has yet mentioned torque.....

Shit movie, that kid shoulda stayed in Shorty St

[wkid_one]

I was meaning the force of rotation - not the movie

[Ixion]

I was meaning the force of rotation - not the movie

And -- may the Force be with you .

[Motu]

And no one has yet mentioned torque.....

Horsepower,and colour,and graphics,and top speed and 1/4 mile times are far more important than torque.

[Virago]

Horsepower,and colour,and graphics,and top speed and 1/4 mile times are far more important than torque.

......and as we all know, torque is cheap.

[idb]

Horsepower,and colour,and graphics,and top speed and 1/4 mile times are far more important than torque.

And the sunglasses, and the chick on the pillion................

[Oscar]

Where power to weight is similar four wheels is always gonna beat two.
Get over it.

[StoneChucker]

It would also depend on the layout of the top gear track. On some tracks, a 600 is faster than a 1000, so it may have been the better choice.

But Jeremy is being a pillock again. He tries to win the bike/car arguement by getting a car to go around the track faster. Lets face it, thats not hard to do - there are some awesome cars out there, like the Arial ATOM for instance. What a car! I'd love to have a go in that.

When Jeremy said he had NEVER felt acceleration like that before, thats right where he lost the arguement for cars being more exhilerating than bikes imho. 1000 sports bike accelerate faster than the atom, thus making them more exhilerating. Add in the cornering sensation and the potential for cunning stunts and you've got alot more joy on a bike.

It really is a silly arguement to perpetuate, both vehicles have their uses and strong points.