Michael Ruben Rinaldi marked his debut season as ARUBA.IT Ducati rider with a sensational Superpole Race wins at WorldSBK.
Riding onboard the Panigale V4 R, the Italian rider secured Ducati first win of the season in front of 5,000 fans at Misano.
Rinaldi finished ahead of Yamaha’s Toprak Razgatlioglu in the Superpole Race while the 6th time WorldSBK champion, Jonathan Rea, claimed third place.
The 25-year old rider then completed a spectacular weekend by placing second in Race 2, this time behind Razgatlioglu.
Jonathan Rea continues his championship leads with 149 points, followed by Razgatlioglu with 129pts and Redding with 104pts meanwhile Rinaldi sit fifth with 82pts, just six points shy of Alex Lowes with 88pts.
“I am very happy with this weekend: we just missed the icing on the cake. But I must admit that in Race 2 Toprak and the Yamaha were better than us and that’s why I want to congratulate them.
“I gave my best trying to chase the victory, but in the last laps, I took a high risk and then I decided to bring home this very important second place. It’s a very important step forward,” said Rinaldi.
Fellow ARUBA.IT Ducati rider, Scott Redding, struggled to keep up the pace against his teammate but managed to place 4th in both races.
“It was a very difficult weekend for me. Today we were able to improve a little bit the feeling with the bike compared to yesterday, but it was not enough to be able to reach the podium.
“honestly, in the first laps of the Superpole Race, I thought I could fight with Jonny (Rea) in an incisive way, while in Race-2 I felt I had no grip with the front tire. The season, however, is still long and I hope to be much more competitive in Donington,” he said.
Redding will have a chance to redeem himself in the next round at Donington Park in July.
Here we describe how the principles of the cooling system and how coolant works.
Engine coolant or antifreeze is a necessity in most bike these days but it’s another thing many take for granted. Do some research and it will turn out that there’s so much to that coloured liquid sitting in a translucent plastic tank.
How does the cooling system work?
It’s about heat transfer.
Credit Dan’s Motorcycle Repair Coourse
The coolant/water pump pushes coolant through passages called “water jacket” surrounding the engine block. Some of the heat from combustion is transferred to the coolant.
The KTM 790 cylinder block. The space around the bores is the coolant jacket. The large rectangular hole on the right is cam chain cavity
The coolant continues its journey to the radiator. The radiator consists smaller tubes that are surrounding by little fins. These fins provide bigger surface areas thereby absorbing even more of the heat (just like fins on the engine block).
Incoming air cools the coolant as it travels back to the engine block. A fan takes over to pull heat away from the radiator when the bike idles for an extended period.
This is why the radiator is also known as a heat exchanger or just “cooler” unit.
What is coolant and antifreeze
First and foremost, let’s talk about the good ol’ Edge-Two-Oh (H2O). Water freezes at 0-degree Celsius and boils at 100-degree Celsius.
This is why we need to add something else to the water to change its freezing and boiling points. As such, coolant and antifreeze are essentially the same as far as product terminologies go.
Ready to use coolants usually feature a mixture of 50% water and 50% glycol. It brings freezing point down to -37-degrees Celsius and boiling point up to between 240- to 270-degrees Celsius.
However, to be more precise, coolant is the medium i.e. antifreeze or water or oil circulating through the cooling system; while antifreeze is the concentrate before being diluted. Most coolants are sold as premixed these days, so again, they are the same. However, do check the descriptions and instructions on the bottle on whether the product is ready to use or needs to be diluted.
What are the types of glycols in antifreeze?
There are generally two types of glycol used:
Ethylene glycol
It used to be a common ingredient but its toxicity can cause birth defects, reproductive damage or even death if ingested. It’s appealing to young children and animals due to its sweet odour and flavor. Consequently, it requires specific handling.
Propylene glycol
It’s significantly less toxic than ethylene glycol. The words here are “less toxic” at low levels.
What are the types of antifreeze?
There are three types:
Inorganic Additive Technology (IAT)
This is the common green antifreeze with corrosion inhibitor package. It typically includes silicate, borate, phosphate, nitrate, nitrite and molybdate. It has a lower lifespan, typically 2 years.
Organic antifreeze (OAT)
Typically based on a variety of carboxylic acids and derivatives. Carboxylic acids is the general terms for acids found in plants. Coolants with OAT generally last longer (up to 5 years).
Hybrid Organic Acid Technology (HOAT)
It combines both inorganic and organic substances, hence provides the best of both worlds. It’s also compatible with both IAT and OAT coolants, therefore users can just top up their coolant levels, regardless of the type present in the system.
Why can’t I just use water?
Again, it’s because water freezes and boils too early. Corrosion will clog a cooling system and/or cause leaks.
Apart from that, good coolant also:
Prevents rust and corrosion of metal parts.
Prevents corrosion of rubber hoses and plastic parts.
What about the colour?
Coolants used to be available in green only (I personally call it “radioactive green”) but there are all sorts of colours now. The colours are supposed to mean different proportions of glycol and water, but they are not regulated therefore colours don’t offer a specific guide between different brands.
A bit on maintenance
Coolant doesn’t go on working at its best forever and therefore is considered a consumable. Manufacturers typically recommend replacing it every 2 to 3 years regardless of type used.
We will touch more on maintenance, replacement, handling in a future article.
MV Agusta has since steadily re-organised its company structure thanks to its new CEO, Timur Sardarov.
Under his stewardship, the MV Agusta has shifted its focus towards improving reliability and ownership experience while putting in a significant investment in expanding the current line-up.
“One of my first objectives was to resolve the situation of financial stress that the company was experiencing and lay the industrial and commercial foundations for its growth. Today, these objectives have been achieved and we can look to the future with renewed confidence, comforted by the success our new models are achieving.
“In 2021 we expect to exceed 100 million euros in turnover for the first time in history, and to triple this figure within the next three years,” said Sardarov.
The Varese-based company is currently busy updating its current model to meet Euro 5 emission; however, Sardarov revealed they would soon turn its attention to enter a new segment, particularly the mid-range market.
“A 550 and 950 [will come]. Both projects take 24 to 28 months from now to complete. Perhaps the 550 could arrive first,” he added.
Many modern motorcycles are equipped with electronic rider assist systems.
These systems include ABS and traction control.
But why do we still crash?
The TC and ABS lights blinked like Christmas lights gone crazy as the R 1250 RT’s rear end snapped to the right, threatening to overtake the front. MFG and CSS training told me to hold on to the gas, to not chop the throttle. So, I held a steady. The rear wheel reversed direction and slid to the left, then continued sliding the right and back to the left.
However, the intensity of the slide started to lose momentum, the slide was now smaller in degree and wound down to four right-left-right-left headshakes.
Still keeping the gas on, the bike and I continued down a straight line. Speed had dropped from 140+ km/h down to just below 100 km/h.
The above scenario wasn’t made up (no need to sumpah laknat), as it happened while I was testing the new BMW R 1250 RT. I had hit a huge rainstorm like a continuous ice bucket challenge on the way back from Ipoh to Kuala Lumpur. I steered too quickly over the white line, which triggered the slide.
Traction control did work, as evidenced by the blinking lights and lower speed at the end. But this episode brought up and important question: Why do riders still crash despite rider assistance?
What do we have?
Most bikes these days are equipped with ABS, while those higher up the scale (read: more expensive) feature a whole myriad of rider assistance systems such as lean-angle sensitive traction control and ABS, engine braking control, wheelie control, vehicle stability control (slide control, in other words), rear wheel lift mitigation, etc. etc. The list of rider assistance electronics would stretch almost from A to Z.
So why do we still crash?
Lowside crash due to too much speed – Courtesy of RNikeyMouse
Rider assistance electronics are just that: TO ASSIST. While they do compensate for clumsy riding and mistakes, it’s only to a small degree as it still depends on the rider to make the correct inputs. Think about it: If the systems take over, we might as well just sit back and let the bike ride itself.
There are a number of factors
Over confidence. That’s right. I’ve met riders who think that the rider assist systems will automatically make them better riders. Sorry to burst your bubble – they don’t. Never go out there and ride without thinking of the consequences of your actions just because the “bike has the most advanced traction control system.”
I’ve seen riders keeping the TC and power settings in “slick” mode when their bikes weren’t on slick tyres and riding on public roads. Sure, they probably liked the bike’s aggressive nature in those settings but keep the consequences in mind.
Not knowing how the systems actually work. Sure, the development of rider assist has come a long way. But remember, they still depend on the rider’s inputs to work.
Let’s go back to the opening story. Things could’ve been tragically different had I shut the throttle as soon as the wheel started sliding. Snapping it shut would cause weight to transfer abruptly to the front, taking the load off the rear wheel. Besides that, engine braking will take effect. These factors will in turn worsen the slide and the bike could’ve either slid out from underneath me or worse, having the rear gripping suddenly and sending me over the high-side.
Therefore, not shutting the throttle abruptly didn’t throw in extra variables into the equation and allowed the ECU to determine the best course of action effectively and quickly.
ABS control unit
That’s the same thing with ABS leading riders to think that they wouldn’t hit an obstruction. While ABS does allow you to brake at the maximum level, hence shorten the braking distance, it’s real function is to keep the wheel from locking up into an uncontrollable skid. It also means that you can steer away from the danger – not braking hard and heading straight towards it!
Also, some riders got spooked when the brake lever started pulsing when ABS activated, causing them to release the lever instead of holding on.
So, what should I do?
The first thing you should do is nothing if the bike slides. Yes, you read that correctly. A sliding tyre is actually looking for a stable position and will find that equilibrium if you let it. Fighting it makes it worse.
If the tyres slide when you’re leaned into a corner, all you need to do it countersteer slightly on the outside handlebar to lift a little and reduce the lean angle. Just don’t lift it with your entire body because that will send you wide and overshoot the corner. Keep looking through to where you want to go and keep the bike pointed that way.
2008 Ducati Hypermotard 1100 S
But most of all, keep the gas on. If you really need to slow down, roll the throttle off smoothly. Snapping the throttle off is tantamount to throwing everything down the road.
The best to do is to take up advanced rider training and learn the correct fundamentals of riding. For ultimate slide control, you can learn it at Most Fun Gym (MFG). For performance riding, you can choose from Alpha Track Academy, Ducati Riding Experience (DRE), PTD, Eric Yong, et al. Also, don’t miss California Superbike School Malaysia.
MV Agusta has just unveiled the updated 2021 Brutale 1000 RR ‘hyper naked’ motorcycle.
At a glance, it’s hard to pinpoint the changes on what remains to be one of the most bizarre yet extreme looking motorcycles in the market.
The updated Brutale 1000 RR looks virtually identical to the previous model, including the power figure, as it remains at 208hp and 116.5Nm.
Nonetheless, the 1000cc engine now Euro 5 compliant, which means despite the same monstrous power, it is now cleaner thanks to tweaked valve guides and exhaust system.
Like the recently launched F3 Rosso, the Brutale 1000 RR now equips with cornering ABS by Contentinal incorporated into the Continental IMU for better handling and ride experience.
Riders will also appreciate the 5.5″ TFT cluster with Bluetooth connectivity, navigation system and Mobistat tracker.
The latest patent from Honda suggests the Japanese motorcycle manufacturer is developing a computer-assisted clutch system similar to the throttle-by-wire system available today.
The Japanese marquee currently offers the conventional cable clutch, hydraulic and dual-clutch transmission (DCT) in its fleet of motorcycles; thus, developing another type of clutch system really put us on edge.
Like the throttle-by-wire systems that are now a must-have feature on every big bike, a clutch-by-wire will allow ECU assistance.
According to the latest reports, the clutch lever will be linked to an electric pump to modulate the pressure, while a hydraulic pressure control unit will ensure a typical clutch feel.
While some may question the need for another computer intervention, some may appreciate the new system to help manage the clutch during high and low speeds.
Then again, if you are not keen on the new development, we can at least appreciate the thought process from Honda.
