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Yamaha MOTOROiD

global.yamaha-motor.com

271–280 of 332 posts

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#271

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How do you feel about airplanes?

As a private pilot: The same. I always took extra care to cut back on the engine after takeoff, crossing the homes near the airport more slowly and without ascending much. And I avoided pristine landscapes or at least also slowed down a lot for a much quieter engine and prop. Because when I was at home or in some national park I hated those noisy small planes as much as the next guy. With a propeller the engine is no…

Student pilot in the Bay Area here.

I completely agree. My CFI has spent time making sure I understand how to reduce noise impacts of my flying. I live out in the hills which means planes and motorcycles are the only noise intrusions I get on a consistent basis. I wish I could do more for the noise issue as a pilot.

As for the lead issue, I had a small crush on an experimental that is being developed. The company is using a brand-new engine that can technically burn mogas (Motor Vehicle Gas) but the wings are constructed such that putting any ethanol in the tank is a severe safety issue. This combined with the fact that 100LL and Jet Fuel (diesel) are usually the only two fuels available, it seems like a lock-in for more lead consumption.

While there is some good news in the lead/noise department, it's not taking hold as much as I think it aught to: there are electric trainer aircraft produced now that provide very low operating costs, much less noise and release no lead. Unfortunately, I was reading that the performance characteristics make them a less desirable training aircraft than a Cessna 172 so adoption is slow.

Question for parent: I know the FAA's avgas initiative has been around for a while, do you know of any significant progress they have made in the area?

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#272

I can’t wait for electric motorbikes to be more diverse and advanced. I used to be a “my loud exhaust helps me to be seen” kinda guy. Until one day, sat in standstill traffic in my car on the M74 motorway just outside Glasgow, a rider on a BMW S1000XR, with the same loud exhaust as on mine, filtered past the window and I didn’t hear him until he was level with my rear passenger door. Exhausts sound great, i love the…

I owned ride 6-7 different motorcycles, and I believe there's a special place in hell for those who put on loud aftermarket exhausts. Sure, it sounds nice to them . It shows an astonishing disregard to thousands of other people they impact daily. Let alone your next 10 neighbour houses who put up with it on consistent basis. ... :O There's no increased safety factor - there's no real location or distance clue such lo…

I don't ride for you, I ride for me, and I love my loud exhausts. Don't like it? I don't care.

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#273
post #157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Modifying the exhaust can add power which is why you never see stock exhausts at the track. But for most riders, the performance improvement is barely noticable. I'm saying this as someone that had an aftermarket exhaust on all of 3 of my street bikes and one of my dirt bikes.

Lose 5 kgs and you'll have gained more performance without annoying other people.

Most aftermarket exhausts will drop far more than 5kg from your bike weight.

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#274
post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I owned ride 6-7 different motorcycles, and I believe there's a special place in hell for those who put on loud aftermarket exhausts. Sure, it sounds nice to them . It shows an astonishing disregard to thousands of other people they impact daily. Let alone your next 10 neighbour houses who put up with it on consistent basis. ... :O There's no increased safety factor - there's no real location or distance clue such lo…

I always assumed that the point of loud vehicles was to assert dominance by being an asshole. If people are annoyed and upset then it is working exactly as intended. You have provoked an emotion that fuels your ego and image of yourself as a bad ass that doesn't care about other people.

'I don't like loud vehicles therefore anyone that drives one is an insecure asshole trying to assert dominance.'

Maybe the point of loud vehicles is to make you feel better about having a quieter one?

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#275

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a private pilot: The same. I always took extra care to cut back on the engine after takeoff, crossing the homes near the airport more slowly and without ascending much. And I avoided pristine landscapes or at least also slowed down a lot for a much quieter engine and prop. Because when I was at home or in some national park I hated those noisy small planes as much as the next guy. With a propeller the engine is no…

Is the use of leaded gas just because most small planes are old? Do new planes still require leaded gas? It seems absurd that avaiation gas is still leaded when it was phases out decades ago everywhere else.

It's the last hold-out of leaded gasoline in the US that I'm aware of and the landscape is complex to say the least. Some aircraft engines still require 100LL to perform within spec but most modern engine designs can also accept high octane "mogas" or motor-vehicle gas. mogas is also often not available inside an airport so getting it requires a vehicle and gas-cans.

Fun fact: most small GA aircraft still use the exact same engine technology that they were developed with despite needing to occasionally replace the engine. Automobile engines have seen a lot of advances in the last 60 years but any given Cessna 172 you see in the sky is likely still working in exactly the same way as in the 1960's.

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#276
This is what makes Tesla kick ass, they sell their “concept cars”. They make them available.

This is just fluff.

“When MOTOROiD was revealed at the Tokyo Motor Show, it drew massive attention and was a prime topic of the show, but it also triggered something rather strange, especially since it is a concept model. People were already searching the internet to see how much it would cost; people were not just asking Yamaha directly, but internet forums had topics with users speculating over what the MOTOROiD’s price would be. Show visitors were also saying things like, “I don’t even have a license yet, but I’d definitely want to ride something like this,””

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#277
post #193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In my life, the most clear & obvious example of negative externalities is loud vehicles. I'm saying this as someone who would cut 90% of regulation: but I think anyone on a public street with a vehicle louder than a UPS truck should get fine. Enforced by a camera and microphone array.

The noise and the exhaust are the main reasons I don't like populated areas, so I am glad both will probably go away in my lifetime.

I have lived in both Manhattan and the rural midwest. The consistent, droning cacophony of the city pales in comparison to the suburban lifted truck with aftermarket exhaust that wakes up the entire neighborhood every morning at 6:15am.

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#278

I can’t wait for electric motorbikes to be more diverse and advanced. I used to be a “my loud exhaust helps me to be seen” kinda guy. Until one day, sat in standstill traffic in my car on the M74 motorway just outside Glasgow, a rider on a BMW S1000XR, with the same loud exhaust as on mine, filtered past the window and I didn’t hear him until he was level with my rear passenger door. Exhausts sound great, i love the…

I owned ride 6-7 different motorcycles, and I believe there's a special place in hell for those who put on loud aftermarket exhausts. Sure, it sounds nice to them . It shows an astonishing disregard to thousands of other people they impact daily. Let alone your next 10 neighbour houses who put up with it on consistent basis. ... :O There's no increased safety factor - there's no real location or distance clue such lo…

There's no increased safety factor - there's no real location or distance clue such loud exhausts provide and in my experience they only stress and antagonize other drivers :-/

Curious where this idea came from. Some bike riders must also be drivers and it’s very obvious this isn’t true.

Even when emergency vehicles turn on their sirens I can’t tell where they are until I see them when I’m driving.

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#279

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can't even stand listening to it on my own bikes, particularly if I'm slabbing it somewhere on a freeway at a steady speed, the racket is insufferable after 15 or 20 minutes, even with plugs and a full face helmet. There seems to be a prevailing masochism among this flavor of biker, who often add ape hangers and then ride around pretending to be comfortable.

Hah, I always wondered about those and didn't know the name ("Ape Hangers") until now... feels like my arms would lose circulation and muscles would hurt from that position! I assumed I'm just a wimp :P I see a few posts now that I know what to search for that it "relieves strain on wrists and arms", but honestly, I think standard riding position (city / adventure / touring bikes) has the most natural and relaxed bod…

I think you're right- it might be more comfortable than, say, a race bike, but when I think about what it feels like to have my arms in the air for a length of time (like working on an overhead light fixture or something), I can only imagine what it'd be like trying to ride with a set of those goofy bars for an hour.

Re: Yamaha MOTOROiD

#280

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have this same theory with road cyclists. I have no problem with someone bicycling to get to work but there are many other types of exercise that don't involve blocking traffic by making other drivers terrified to hit you. It's like doing jumping jacks at a gun range. There must be a dominance factor at play.

Homie, it has nothing to do with you or your work commute. Cyclists have every legal right to be on the road as a car and if a shoulder lane isn’t safe enough to cycle on then it’s safest and recommended and the law to take up a whole lane to ensure assholes like you don’t risk their safety/lives by trying to squeeze past them in the same lane. Best to just treat them as a car and try to practice patience.

> assholes like you

Less of this, please.

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