Honda Getting Set To Launch RC211V-Based Streetbike?
Is Honda's highly-successful RC211V MotoGP racer getting a make-over to become a high-performance supersport street-bike, as shown in these exclusive images from Honda?
The styling faithfully follows the striking lines from the racer except in terms of exhaust routing. The exhaust headers from the front three cylinders merge within the fairing belly-pan and then take two U-turns to feed a large silencer contained within the fairing belly-pan as well. This follows the design of early RC211V race bikes tested during 2001, but was replaced with a straighter design from 2002.
Honda remains attracted to this design and, in fact, the Honda CBR600RR had a four-in-to-one exhaust design with a silencer in the belly-pan as plan of record during the early phases of design.
The rear cylinder exhaust pipes route under the seat and then join together into a single pipe. The single pipe is formed with a 360-degree loop before joining with a silencer. Accordingly Honda have designed the road-going RC211V as a solo rider motorcycle.
The rear cylinder header pipes are offset to the right-side of the motorcycle, presumable to make room for a battery and/or under-seat fuel tank.
Drawings from Honda point that the road version of the RC211V will have a fuel tank closer in design to conventional motorcycle. The racer features a fuel tank largely contained under the rider's seat. What looks like a normal fuel tank on the racer is actually a large air-box. On the civilized RC211V the air-box will be substantially smaller in volume, and shifted towards the steering head. The ram-air duct-work on the road-bike is substantially the same as the 2001 RC211V.
The road bike will be fitted with long, tall radiator that extends all the way to the bottom of the fairing belly-pan. The RC211V is actually a motorcycle of rather modest physical size, thus if the streetbike follows the racebike on major dimensions then this would explain the vertical oriented radiator.
Honda's drawing clearly show headlight, turn-signal, and rearview mirror hardware. Taillight and license plate hardware is not shown, however.
Honda presented the RC211V to the public at the 2001 Suzuka 8 Hours, and a year later they showed a RC211V fitted with lights from the then-unreleased CBR600RR. If Honda decides the spring the road version of the RC211V at this year's 8 Hours, we'll be there with pictures.
see http://www.amasuperbike.com/2003-Jul/030718z.htm
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