hello and welcome to 1000ps tv. we are on the spanish race track alcarrã s, around 180 km west of barcelona. ps, together with motorrad, organised a superbike comparison test which will be done on this race track to demonstrate and compare the racing capabilities of the bikes. as you can see the motorcycles all come in their top model variant. yamaha r1m, aprilia rf, kawasaki zx-10rr, the new v4 panigale, suzuki gsx-rr, the fireblade as sp version. and a fully equipped bmw. these 7 high-end products will be struggling for the crown of superbikes here.
christian kelle, the man for the fast laps here, is with us. he was, is and continues to be a very good professional. now, what where your first impressions of the bikes? you rode them all already? k(elle): i rode them all by now. the first impression, well - i did 5-6 laps with every bike. there is no bad bike anymore, every single one rides different. and let's see what the lap times are going to be tomorrow. k(laus)g(rammer): do you have any first impressions about the suspensions? there are mechanical and electronic suspensions in the race. but when they are tuned, there won't be any differences, right?
k: as you say, when it's tuned it all works similar. but you need to be able to tune it. manually or electronically, you have to do it by yourself. kg: next question: v4 or i4? k: let's wait for tomorrow, i don't want to spoil it! kg: good, then let's keep it at that. now we have our test rider from ps, not 1000 ps, just 1 ps. tobi, you rode the rsv already, v4, and the ducati panigale, v4. a small conclusion? t: a conclusion is difficult after only 2 turns.
but foremost what i find funny on the panigale: despite being a v4 now it still has that v2 character. and you immediately feel it's a ducati. rough charm and very aggressive. they did a great job for ducati fans. the bike is quite long while the aprilia is very compact. feels somehow smaller. kg: can we state ducati is stable and aprilia handy? is that right? t: no, both are very handy and stable. you can't explain it with 5 sentences. since i assume that the circuit d'alcarrã s isn't very acquainted amongst the 1000 ps subscribers - i didn't know it either - i'd like to point out one key section. since lap times are one of the main judging categorise in this comparison
now if you look up there you'll see a summit which descends quite steep. this is the fastest corner section of the enitre track. there are some - you might not see it - respectable corrugations. and this double left ends into a long right chicane. in my opinion, if you want to have a fast lap you'll need essential trust into the front wheel right here. it will be inevitable for a fast lap because as we know, fast corners reduce lap times the most. further back there are some slow switchbacks, but there isn't going to happen much. but if you come down here with 150 kph or 130 kph, that makes all the difference in lap times. and this is one of these key sections.
yesterday i spoke with kelle and we estimated that at least 1000 bikes already slid with their front wheel and into the gravel here. it really is difficult, you'll need trust and it will judge the bikes suspension. jacko, you are responsible for the tuning of the suspensions. the main work on the track is done by christian kellner and you do all the set-ups. what is adjusted? j(acko): well, depending on what the guys want, if they deem it too soft or hard. or if they say it dives to much on braking. the electronic suspensions are quite well adjustable and i try to find the best set-up for the boys. kg: that means you prefer the electronic suspensions and see an advantage over the conventional
solutions from kawasaki and suzuki? j: indeed the conventional systems are easier to adjust. the electronic suspensions offers you tuning options but you never really know if it trully works when everything has to work jointly. that is the big difficulty on electronic suspensions, it all has to work together. i'm not always sure if you don't distort one system while adjusting another. however you basically get unlimited adjustement options, yet it takes time. kg: so we can establish that a electronic suspension isn't necessarily an advantage for an adept technician? j: well, in the championships they ride, with one exception last year - everybody has choosen
conventional suspensions again this year. adjustable with tools, not by clicks and buttons. that says a lot! yet, we have to say for hobby racing and country roads the electronic has its advantages. it is only at high-end racing, at which normal people won't compete, where conventional suspensions are still better. kg: ok, so we establish the conventional suspensions is for the professional, the conventional is for the fast hobby racer. j: yes, that's about it, i would sign that. now, one of the first to ask about his imressions is freddy from the swedish motorrad branch. he rode the zx-10r and cbr1000.
we've got the most important man with us, karsten from motorrad. you organised the event, maybe you could tell us something about the important parts of planning? because the test actually has huge proportions. what was necessary for this? ka(rsten): yes, indeed it's the second largest test we do, right after the "alpen masters" with 20 bikes. here we've got all current 7 superbikes, 1000cc class. and in tie with a first done road test this makes for a massive effort. renting a race track, tyre services, changing the stock tyres, riders - it's international we had a swedish colleague and an italian with us. kelle as professional.
there is a lot organising. kg: how much time is needed in advance? 10-20-30 or 40 hours? just for reference. ka: it's done parallel to other tests because we are on the go every two weeks. you start 3-4 months in advance with planning to fix appointements on the track. after that you check the availability of the bikes to tie it together. next is tyre supply and service and the riders and foreign colleagues. this is how it works over a duration of weeks. booking hotels as well... kg: and before this track test you tested on the roads for a couple of days to achieve a complete result? or what is the goal?
ka: indeed we a country roads test with these bike beforehand. might not be the most exciting with these bikes. but we as motorrad want to present everyday-riders with a conclusion how these bikes perform on roads as well. the race track comparison is mainly for ps, we write a smaller article in motorrad. kg: so the quintessence is the race track testing, since we all like to know how a supersport performs on a race track. ka: no question. principally you use these bikes for a race track, on country roads they don't make that much sense. of course there are a lot of riders who like to use them on streets and partially it really is fun. but to satisfy the technology, the engineering art behind it you'll need to rip
it on a race track and push your limits. tcs, abs and electronic suspensions, all these systems need to be tested how well they work. kg: but the evaluation is done at home since there is a ton of data being recorded by dirk debos from 2d data recording. we've got confidential lap times and dyno results from every bike. where these the same bikes which were tested on the track? ka: yes, we had all bikes on a dyno before, then we did our road test. after that we measured lap times here on the track - we have data recording graphs from the power output, acceleration and pullthrough. everything is measured. in the end you'll get a 2 part review in motorrad,
a road part and a track part. kg: in the print media motorrad and ps we'll get the final results with all the collected facts? ka: that's right. ps will deliver a big race track article, motorrad a big raod test article and a smaller track part. kg: but both magazines will state all the data, facts and results? ka: yes, the facts are the same in both. but in motorrad you might get a different result due to the road testing. race track will be the same logically. kg: i have another question. we are riding purely with pirelli. yesterday we had road tyres, today it's pirelli sc-1. why pirelli?
ka: on roads we always ride on the oem tyres. but on the race track we choose a single brand for all. this is because we want to test the motorcycles, not the tyres. if we'd, for example, test the ducati on pirelli tyres and another bike on a different brand then the lap times might depend more on the tyres and not the bike itself. that's why we want identical slicks on all bikes. kg: this is a means to ensure equal chances for every manufacturer. ka: right. we spoke to every manufacturer in advance, especially because of the different tyre dimensions. ducati for instance has a 200/60 in the rear and it comes down to a 190/50 on the honda. the first turns we did on oe dimensions but for lap times we had 200/60 slicks mounted uniformly.
we asked the manufacturers if it complies with their tcs and they all agreed. kg: i remembered another topic i'd like to ask about. yesterday you dealt with it for a long time. even today. namely the set-up of the bikes. mechanically at kawasaki and suzuki. or electronically at yamaha, bmw or ducati. so you reviewers are quite adept in chassis? ka: that is something that gets underestimated a lot if you only read the magazine and think "oh well, they did some ripping on a track and measured lap times, ok." but in reality you need to adjust the chassis in advance. the ducati f.e. is very complicated with its numerous options and functions. you can choose an automatic mode which makes the suspension adapt on its own.
or you select a fixed mode in which you set rebound and compression in a fixed stage. you need a day lead time to find the optimal set-up. kg: and the necessary knowledge as well. i saw you really putting effort into it, you continued making arrangements. this means experience helps?! ka: we try to do our best and it helps having professional racers and experienced folks with us. a lot of good riders. andrea paduani from italy, a very good rider. kelle obviously. volkmer and tobi from ps, they all are experienced and good riders and that allows us to set up the bikes accordingly together. kg: final question. since we now heard how much work and skills it involves, is motorcycle journalist
a dream job? yes or no! ka: to me, i'd say it is. kg: well that's an answer you could rate on its own, right? it's good... ka: well, in winter it is stressy, we are underway in foreign countries almost every 2 weeks. you invest a lot of time into the job but it's also a passion. kg: thank you, that was very informative. first queston since you rode both v4 bikes: what's the difference, what can you tell? t: after the first 2 turns i can tell you the ducati has one thing for sure: extreme power! feel-wise more than the aprilia. but the ducati is what it is, difficult to ride, a bit
capricious in its suspension, quite firm. the aprilia is a bit more calm and relaxed. kg: but it isn't believed the power advantage of the ducati doesn't come from the 100cc more? t: it seems to be the case nevertheless. that machine is on fire! but you need to be able to put it on the tarmac. after the first few laps this seems quite difficult on the ducati. it truly is a ducati. the v4 feels much like a v2 engine. very rough at low speed and then starts to kick in. the ducati dna is everywhere in its complete glory. kg: so the ducati stays a challenge?
t: right. now, at the end of the first day i have a small interim result which is all riders agree that no matter the bike, abs has no advantages on a race track regardless of how it is tuned. this is surely an information that not everybody appreciates but is definately confirmed by every test rider. on our second day today the weather god looks quite merciful. it still is rather cloudy and cool. right now they try to adjust the bikes to slicks. yesterday they tested all the bikes on profiled tyres, now it's time for slicks so that christian kellner can set his lap times in the afternoon.
dirk debos from 2d is about to install his data recording equipment on every bike. and all this data serves the purpose to determine the factual comparison winner. for a sensible testing and reputable results we a prominent supporter in from of dirk debos. hi dirk! d(irk): hello! kg: normally he's on duty in the motogp but for motorrad, ps and 1000ps he took some time off. dirk, please explain in short which data we collected and why. d: on the bikes there is a 50 hz gps systeme. 50 hz means we get 50 velocity values per second which grants as a relatively nice view over the topspeed and dynamical differences between the bikes as they're quite similar.
additionally we have attached a lean angle sensor or a 6-axis acceleration and rotation rate sensor which measures the bikes movement. meaning acceleration and braking, side movement and lean angle with which we measure the stability of the motorcycle. then we can compare: handy or not, more dynamic or more stable. kg: this means in one word that all the results we acquired are technically profound and resilient? d: at the moment it looks that way, yes! let's intrude the technical discussions. any results yet? ka: ooh, we can't talk about that!
it's secret but all bikes are great! we wanted a real reaction and with the helmet on it's unfiltered! t: awesome! yamaha with the slick, brutal! if that wasn't fast than i don't know anymore! kg: from your feeling it was your fastest lap of the weekend? t: well, we don't record data from the editors, only from kelle. thus i can only make assumptions. the ducati is quite fast with me on it but the yamaha also was very impressive. she did everything i wanted and i don't have any criticism. now, my first few laps with the ducati panigale v4 s. alltogether i only noticed the suspension is way too soft for me and the engine is a dream.
the engine only has 1 letdown, the transition from overrun to load operation is very rough. else the engine is a real monster up to highest revs. after the first few laps with the yamaha r1m i have to say all in all compared to the ducati i like the yamaha much more. it much more stable to ride. it's also more direct, feels more like a race bike to me. only the engine is more linear, not as aggressive as the ducati. alltogether r1m is a great bike. handy, braking stable and the engine is relaxed, not pure power but pleasantly to ride. after ducati and yamaha i rode aprilia and suzuki.
aprilia felt very pleasant in corner entries and the engine is very relaxed to ride and very powerful. but my favorite in corner exits is the yamaha for sure. the biggest surprise to me probably is the gsx-r. let me start with the cons. the engine feels rather weak, at least compared to the competitors i rode. maybe this is deceiving. but the rest, fork, monoshock, brakes, cornering, handling and stability - from the 4 bikes i rode my favourite is defiantely the suzuki. a huge surprise! imo from the 4 bikes i tried it's the best one. except for the engine, which feels a bit weak, the entire ride. ergonomics, cornering, the downhill section with the corrugations - it's line true, the behaviour at corner exits is great.
it's exactly as i imagine my bike to be. maybe the advantage for me lies in the conventional suspension which the colleagues did a great job with, it's on the firm side. this at last is very pleasant and predictable to ride on a track. hi christian. you did all your lap times now. just purely from your feeling, what is your favourite, what are the results? k: well, i have ridden all bikes now. all are very fast, i don't think there is a slow bike. surely, with the bmw - it's long-established and just works. aprilia works. i was quite fast on the yamaha. the others - i don't know exactly, we haven't evaluated the lap times yet.
kg: what about the new ducati? it's probably the most interesting bike for a lot of viewers and it has a 100cc displacement advantage. is it noticeable? k: the ducati is a very fast motorcycle but it also has its disadvantages. very aggressive and needs some more fine-tuning for a perfect lap. kg: so we can state the ducati is still a real race bike? k: it still is a race bike, yes. now, i hope i could give you an overview of the testing activity over the last 3 days here on alcarrã s - not alcatraz. the weather mostly was ok. unfortunately i rained a couple of times, distroting the planning and thus hindered me from
riding all the bikes. therefore i can't give you a final conclusion. the final results will be presented in the print media of motorrad and ps, supported by dirk debos. what i will present and recommend is the live show on april 5th at 7 o'clock pm. nastynils, zonko and i will discuss the test and then we hopefully will have the results. stay tuned! i hope it was informative and interesting.