[pharm4life]

Good day All:

So I've been riding as much as i can lately, im around 210 miles on my bike thus far. i've started making some longer trips on the highway (20 mile commute to work and back etc) and i know some points have been brought up in other threads but im curious about a couple things.

has anyone actually radar'd or GPS'd their speed? im not certain but i am thinking that the speedometer is reading strong.... i had it above 80 for the first time today and i wasnt passing people like i usually am @ 80 in my car etc

secondly, Im not sold on 'breaking in' and my dealer even told me its a thing of the past. Honda redlines all their engines before they ship them the dealer instructed me. that being said the one thing i was told is to avoid riding at a steady single RPM for extended periods of time, especially initially.

BUT: how the heck else am i supposed to ride when i have miles and miles on the 6 lane interstate with massive traffic all going 70mph etc? im rolling around 7-9000 RPM when on the major roads and its usually pretty close to 8000. I can deviate by maybe +/- 500 RPM but thats about it....

thoughts?

 

[Luke]

Several people have told me that the speedo is optimistic - reading 4-5 mph higher than the actual speed at ~60mph. I'll get a GPS on it before the week is out.

 

[pharm4life]

nice! do keep me posted

ive been driving around looking for a radar work area but havent found one yet

 

[l8r]

break in

I just rolled to 300 miles last night when i got home. As for my break-in, i just followed what the owners manual said. I took it out in the countryside, and kept varying the rpms on the engine. When i'd get up to speed, if no one was behind me, i'd back off and down shift a couple of times and then run up through the gears again. I kept the revs below 8K (mostly below 7K), and never stayed at one rpm for more than a few minutes.

This is my first new bike, and i did some research about break-in before i took it home.

I think the advice in the owners manual is conservative and probably good advice. The advice from my dealership's service department was to keep varying the rpms. I've followed both of the recommendations, but in the end, i wonder if it really matters that much. I guess you would have to take the engine apart and inspect the parts to really see if it made much of a difference.

I talked to a friend of mine who is a motorcycle mechanic, and he just grinned and said... "I don't have the patience to break one in like that, and anyway, you really won't know how good a job you did until it comes time for a rebuild".

I'm glad it is past the 300 mile mark though, as now i will start riding normally. I'm really curious to see what kind of fuel economy i'll get

--Steve

 

[qlred]

It will break in fine your way. Maybe slow down a little...Plenty of power @8krpm, right? So since the engine is making peak hp, isn't it overcoming resistance in the least stressful way. By turning it faster, it is easier on the motor.

Like peddling a bike going uphill, you use less force when the peddles move faster. No way can you ride the cbr250 around at under 6Krpm.

 

[pharm4life]

quite frankly i dont know what else to do IF what im doing is bad... its how im going to ride and given the bikes power and whatnot at those speeds there isnt much of an option otherwise

im getting more comfortable on the highway and my habits might vary slightly, but thats it

most of my joy comes on back road cruising!

 

[madd-trapper]

Im sure its fine as long as all off your break in riding isnt on the freeway.

 

[pharm4life]

yeah, its not... just seems you get the most miles that way..

the first 150 miles or so were before i touched the free way... and last night, for example, i got off an exit early and took some back roads home, a couple extra miles but much more fun!

 

[Luke]

GPS on the way to work this morning. The speedometer is pretty much dead on - I did several tests at both 35 and 50mph and it was either on or off by less than 1/2 mph (which means it's on). Since it's digital/optical, yours should be correct also, unless you change to a taller or shorter tire.

 

[Xplorguy]

Nice to see that the clock is very close! This is in line with stateside reviews that said the same. Asian owners have indicated and verified that they are seeing up to 10% optimistic on the clock...not sure what is different on their cbr's to cause such a wide swing....

 

[pharm4life]

GPS on the way to work this morning. The speedometer is pretty much dead on - I did several tests at both 35 and 50mph and it was either on or off by less than 1/2 mph (which means it's on). Since it's digital/optical, yours should be correct also, unless you change to a taller or shorter tire.

awesome man, thanks for checking... good to know

i've been slightly speeding lately thinking im under what it says....

Nice to see that the clock is very close! This is in line with stateside reviews that said the same. Asian owners have indicated and verified that they are seeing up to 10% optimistic on the clock...not sure what is different on their cbr's to cause such a wide swing....

interesting

 

[Xplorguy]

Ya Pharm......go figure...why the difference?? It's a mystery for now.............

 

[pharm4life]

im still hoping to find a radar gun along side the road of a work zone or something... i saw one the other day but the traffic was all bunched up and it didnt pick any of us up

 

[madd-trapper]

If you see a cop running radar ask him to check your speed on his radar. Just dont speed.

 

[ferrix]

Ya Pharm......go figure...why the difference?? It's a mystery for now.............

Could it be that the Asian market gets a different tire?

 

[Xplorguy]

Could it be that the Asian market gets a different tire?

The Asian market seems to get a Continental branded vs the IRC that we are reportedly getting. But I don't think it is a different size. I thought of that also and that may be it....but everyones specs indicate the same size tire and wheels........also the photos we've seen of Asian owners sure appear to be no different.....

 

[DaSik]

What I heard from a seasoned track rider on breaking it in is to break it in just how you plan to ride it. Me..i personally take it easy, but my cousin on the other hand, that dude goes hard. 18k and his bike still runs great, other than a new clutch and tires now and then.