Why aren't the majority of 600cc+ bikes illegal?

[Phuz]

After learning a bit more about bikes, and watching some pretty neat clips.. I find it hard to understand why a lot of bikes aren't made illegal.

For instance, there are some cars that are illegal in Canada, like Skylines. But, most 600cc bikes could easily turn it upside down.
Why certain cars are illegal.. well, they obviously they threaten police.. but some of the 600cc bikes can acheive crazy speeds like 200mph+! That's more of a threat it you ask me!

(that video floating around here... a guy does 220mph with a helmet cam)

Don't get me wrong, I think bikes are amazing, and definatly something to respect..

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

why are skylines illegal? are they illegal in the US? I've never seen one here...

<---- doesn't know much about cars.

 

[silverpig]

The government puts restrictions on bikes. I think the top speed for a 600cc bike in Canada is about 154 mph (converted for y'all), and for any other bike it's about 180 mph. If you wanted, I'm sure you could take the restrictions off, but I don't know if that's technically illegal or not.

 

[iamwiz82]

they are not illegal because of their power!!! They are illegal for environmental and safety reasons(bumper, etc). If they were illegal due to power, then corvettes, f-bodies, mustangs, would all be illegal.

 

Because we don't need more laws.

 

[Viper GTS]

<< they are not illegal because of their power!!! They are illegal for environmental and safety reasons(bumper, etc). If they were illegal due to power, then corvettes, f-bodies, mustangs, would all be illegal. >>



Bingo.

If it were simply a speed issue, Vipers would have never seen the light of day.

Many cars don't meet the emission/safety requirements & thus aren't imported without modifications.

Even the venerable McLaren F1 requires modifications to be street legal in the US.

Viper GTS

 

[yobarman]

uh skylines are not Illegal in the US... they just don't meet the standards US cars have. That's why it costs so much to convert a Skyline for US use, because they have to change a lot stuff, especially saftey issues.

 

[Phuz]

<< they are not illegal because of their power!!! They are illegal for environmental and safety reasons(bumper, etc). If they were illegal due to power, then corvettes, f-bodies, mustangs, would all be illegal. >>



That doesn't fly with me. If thats true, why does your insurance skyrocket above 600cc, and not before?

It wouldn't be hard to get a stock bike that does 200mph.. anywhere.

SammySon, although I do agree with you..



<< Even the venerable McLaren F1 requires modifications to be street legal in the US. >>



That car isn't even in context... 376kmph later..

 

[vi edit]

A big reason that many performance cars that are available in other countries that aren't available here are because of very harsh bumper restrictions that the government puts on cars.

They have to be able to meet certain requirements than many European(In particular) models can't make. In order to bring a car over from the Europe market, the bumpers, and sometimes even the oil pans are the first things that have to be redesigned.

 

[Tsaico]

Another reason why a lot of motorcycles get easier laws is that they only kill the rider. Very rare for them to kill pedestrians or other motorists. In a car, very different story...

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

<< they are not illegal because of their power!!! They are illegal for environmental and safety reasons(bumper, etc). If they were illegal due to power, then corvettes, f-bodies, mustangs, would all be illegal. >>



Nevermind, read it wrong

 

[silverpig]

They scale insurance with engine size. Why should a 1200 cc harley have the same insurance as a 50 cc moped? The jumps have to be made somewhere.

I'm pretty sure you can't buy a stock 200 mph bike. The Hayabusa (1300 cc GSXR) will only do ~189 I think. If you want it to go higher, you have to mod it. Now, modding may just be taking a governor off, and I don't think you'd have to add a turbo to that bike to get it above 200, but still...

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

FYI Newer Busas are limited by the ECM, though that can be fixed

 

[Lucky]

<< uh skylines are not Illegal in the US... they just don't meet the standards US cars have. That's why it costs so much to convert a Skyline for US use, because they have to change a lot stuff, especially saftey issues. >>



theyr'e illegal if you dont mod them to US standards.

 

[Phuz]

Hayabusarider

You shouldn't have edited that post, it was excellent..

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Well it is true that the politics of safety comes into play here. "If this law/regulation saves one life it is worth it" attitude is bull. So ban- hiking, skiing, rock climbing, hell even driving. After all it just may save one life.

Hayabusarider Maxim-
Humans have the inalienable right to do foolish things.

If someone is involved in an act seen by others as foolish, but that act doesn't inherently harm another, leave 'em be.

 

[Zenmervolt]

<<

<< they are not illegal because of their power!!! They are illegal for environmental and safety reasons(bumper, etc). If they were illegal due to power, then corvettes, f-bodies, mustangs, would all be illegal. >>



That doesn't fly with me. If thats true, why does your insurance skyrocket above 600cc, and not before? >>

Insurance rates have nothing to do with legality. Those are the reasons for the illegality of certain vehicles. However, insurance companies are free to make their own distinctions, and these distinctions are largely due to accident rate. A CBR 954 RR generally has higher insurance premiums than a Valkyrie because statistically sport bikes are more likely to be involved in accidents than cruisers. It's the same with sports cars versus cars like a Civic DX. Insurance prices go up at that point because insuring such bikes is a greater risk to the insurance company, it has no connection to the regulations concerning the legality of certain vehicles.

ZV

 

[Eli]

I've been watching that clip of the guy doing 220 @ 11k rpms over and over for the last couple of days now. It's pretty insane.. lol..

I ride motorized scooters, like Go-Peds(r), only better. All I can think when I watch that video is, "scooter".

Oh yeah. I want a scooter that will do a wheelie from 50 - 140 in 7 seconds... Mmm.

Muwhahaha!

 

[GagHalfrunt]

<<
That doesn't fly with me. If thats true, why does your insurance skyrocket above 600cc, and not before?
>>



Because the bikes before 600cc are usually oriented more towards basic transportation. The ones larger are usually geared more towards children who want to go fast, make as much noise as possible and attract a lot of attention. They don't just throw darts to determine insurance rates, it goes by the frequency and cost of paying out claims. The bigger bikes, especially the large displacement sport bikes, are ridden by juveniles that are far more likely to get into trouble than those riding smaller bikes and cause far more damage when they do eat the pavement.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

<<

<<

<< they are not illegal because of their power!!! They are illegal for environmental and safety reasons(bumper, etc). If they were illegal due to power, then corvettes, f-bodies, mustangs, would all be illegal. >>

That doesn't fly with me. If thats true, why does your insurance skyrocket above 600cc, and not before? >>

Insurance rates have nothing to do with legality. Those are the reasons for the illegality of certain vehicles. However, insurance companies are free to make their own distinctions, and these distinctions are largely due to accident rate. A CBR 954 RR generally has higher insurance premiums than a Valkyrie because statistically sport bikes are more likely to be involved in accidents than cruisers. It's the same with sports cars versus cars like a Civic DX. Insurance prices go up at that point because insuring such bikes is a greater risk to the insurance company, it has no connection to the regulations concerning the legality of certain vehicles. ZV >>






Quite true. The sport bike is not inherently less safe than a cruiser, probably safer since it is more agile, has better brakes, and acceleration. That is not the point for insurance companies. Most adrenaline junkies ride sports bikes, not a Dyna Glide. Statistically, the beginner rider of one of these machines is at higher risk. Premiums reflect that fact.

 

[Jzero]

<< [Quite true. The sport bike is not inherently less safe than a cruiser, probably safer since it is more agile, has better brakes, and acceleration. That is not the point for insurance companies. Most adrenaline junkies ride sports bikes, not a Dyna Glide. Statistically, the beginner rider of one of these machines is at higher risk. Premiums reflect that fact. >>


Also why it's cheaper to get insurance on a bike in general--your liability insurance covers property and bodily damage to other people, so you stand to do less damage on a bike in that respect.

 

[Bignate603]

Actually, Iwonder if Civics have higher premiums then they normally would because of the ricers tearing around and getting accidents.

 

[ajskydiver]

<< some of the 600cc bikes can acheive crazy speeds like 200mph+! >>

Not any stock 600cc that I know of...and I highly doubt you could modify one to that level unless you had a sponsor--even then I don't think they're reaching those speeds.
Maybe in a few more years...but not now.

Also, for motorcycles (due to their horrid aerodynamics) the air resistance/drag begins to overcome the rolling friction/traction of the rear tire around 210+ MPH. And typically, those 200+ bikes were like ZX-11s, Hayabusas, CBR1100xxs, etc with turbos in them (ie: MrTurbo).

And insurance varies by hundreds and thousands of dollars depending on rider/bike/location...ex: my 1999 TL1000R was $175/year for full coverage (I don't remember the exact amounts but it was nearly the max as SF would give me)...prior to that, my 1997 GSX-R600 was about $100/year, full coverage there (and prior to that my 1995 CBR600F3 was around $90/year). Main reason it was reasonable was 1) clean record 2) not primary transportation (had 2 cars also) <----#2 is the BIGGEST reason to be able to get affordable insurance.

If a bike is your only and primary mode of transportation, expect to pay thousands for full coverage.

I'd have a bike now if I owned a safe place to put it....<sigh>

~AJ