Undertail vs. Side Exhaust System?

[dangerous]

Aimed mainly at sportsbike riders, which exhaust system do you favour and why - the undertail or the side muffler design?

How about the best of both worlds..... high rise (1st pic)

[Coyote]

How about the best of both worlds..... high rise (1st pic)

Oooo. Just like those awesome World Supermoto Husabergs

[Waylander]

How about the best of both worlds..... high rise (1st pic)

Wonder what that black one sounds like...

[Toast]

How about the best of both worlds..... high rise (1st pic)

Check out the chicken strips on that second bike...mind you, it must be hard to corner with the plate stuck to the tyre...or do my eyes deceive me? WTF would you stick it there for the photo for?

[dangerous]

Heres another example of a high rise..... sorry lads I had to put it through photo shop 1st, was worried you wouldent see the R1

[Rashika]

Heres another example of a high rise..... sorry lads I had to put it through photo shop 1st, was worried you wouldent see the R1

hmmm ....didn't look like that the last time I saw that pic????


.....the sneaky student wots meant to be working...

[ManDownUnder]

Heres another example of a high rise..... sorry lads I had to put it through photo shop 1st, was worried you wouldent see the R1

R1??



..... 10 fucken chars...

[ManDownUnder]

Aimed mainly at sportsbike riders, which exhaust system do you favour and why - the undertail or the side muffler design?

Personally I think that while the undertail is a tidy finish, the muffler cannot be admired as much because it is not as visible as the side muffler. I enjoy the look of the traditional side muffler, especially the aftermarket look!

In saying that, I think I will always have a soft spot for the old original Ducati 916 undertail exhaust!

Prefer the look of undertail. Smooth clean lines - overall effect is easy on the eye

[vifferman]

I think I will always have a soft spot for the old original Ducati 916 undertail exhaust!

Excuse me? :spudwhat:
You should know your Honda history, Zed.
Both the underseat zorst and single-sided swingarm sported by the 916 were originally on the Honda NR (oftentimes erroneously called the NR750), then the SSS was copied by Ducati after it was put on the 1990 VFR750. As a matter of fact, the NR is where the Blackbird's mirrors originated too.

But I guess, Zed, that you meant that the underseat zorsts on the 916/996/998 look very kewl, as indeed the whole bike does.

Just a thought: some mufflers on some sports bikes can be quite beefy. There would be no room for the that displacement in an undertail presumably, which would make for different mapping and performance characteristics. Make sence?

The underseat zorsts also require heat shielding. Usually, what happens is that other underseat space is sacrificed, and/or seat padding is reduced.
It's not just the different muffler volume that makes a difference to the fueling/mapping - there's also a longer connector pipe, which means that performance at higher revs is compromised slightly. Even on my VFR, where it has a higher mounting than normal muffler, the connector pipe is longer and performance is slightly different to having a Satantune muffler in the low-mount position.

There are quite few VFR (apart from the Vtec ones) and VTR1000 owners around the world that have fitted underseat exhausts. Apart from heat considerations, there is some work required to route pipes and fit the muffler in order that the rear tyre doesn't foul it. Fitting of underseat zorsts on bikes that don't have them as standard is entirely cosmetic, and usually results in some performance loss, due to compromises being made to fit them.

Personally, I'm not that keen on the underseat zorsts on the VFR800s - even though they show off the SSS and wheel nicely, they make the tail fatter, and the factory mufflers aren't that pretty. However, dual Satantunes, Microns or Scorpions look very nice, and sound even better. There's even one aftermarket brand (can't recall offhand which one) that has one functional muffler and one fake one, which is lockable for storing stuff in. (The factory system is a 4-into-1-into-2, and eliminating the final split makes the exhaust performance better and the plumbing simpler).

I *do* like the look of the underseat zorsts on the 2005 Triumph ST although they're yet another marque that copied Honda's SSS and underseat exhaust

I reckon that underseat exhausts are a passing fad, and will soon drop from fashion, as there aren't any advantages, and they add complications and weight.

[Zed]

Excuse me? :spudwhat:
You should know your Honda history, Zed.
Both the underseat zorst and single-sided swingarm sported by the 916 were originally on the Honda NR (oftentimes erroneously called the NR750), then the SSS was copied by Ducati after it was put on the 1990 VFR750. As a matter of fact, the NR is where the Blackbird's mirrors originated too.

But I guess, Zed, that you meant that the underseat zorsts on the 916/996/998 look very kewl, as indeed the whole bike does.

Nah I don't know my Honda history that well, but I would go as far as to say that the 916 undertail exhaust is more famous than any of the bikes of old, even the NR750, and that's what I was thinking when I made the comment.