Honda 2005 Fireblade

It's not often you get a chance to revisit a model, but we got that rare opportunity last November as part of a bigger story for Precious Metal magazine. The )5 Blade is about to become a run-out model, with the new fella pencilled in for a release in late March. We're told the fairing is new, the chassis has been worked on, it's 3 kilos lighter, though the powerplant is similar to the current toy.

In any case there is still a supply of 05 bikes in the showrooms, and they'll be on the used market for a long time to come - so we figured a revisit wouldn't hurt.

So what makes a Blade? The overall formula of an inline four shoe-horned into an alloy chassis is pretty much universal for this class. Rather than rewriting the factory blurb, we've reproduced the essential detail below, which gives a good overview on what was done to make this model.

The week we rode this, we also had the Yamaha R1 and Suzuki GSX-R1000, which provided a handy basis for comparison.

What distinguished the Honda when it was first launched was its user-friendly manners. Given its outrageous performance, it was a surprisingly civil road bike and, I'd venture, the pick of the crop in this direction. However time and advances from other makers have caught up with it, with both the Suzi and the Yamaha probably equalling it on that score.

It's right in the ballpark with the others when it comes to size, though it manages to feel better than average for a taller rider. The stats say it weighs in at a mere (claimed) 176 kilos dry, which equates to 208 kilos with a full tank in the real world.

 Where it trails the competition a little is in the horsepower stakes. Australian Motorcycle News put this group on a dyno not so long ago and scored nearly 166 horses for the GSX-R at the back wheel, 162 for the Yamaha and 155 for the Honda. That's a substantial gap, although it's next to meaningless on the road and of questionable significance on the track - unless you're actually racing. But it has an effect on bragging rights, which hurts in the showroom.

The reality is, though, that it will still try to tear your arms out of their sockets at full noise and is an awe-inspiringly quick motorcycle, capable of sub-11 second times over the standing 400m.

On the road, it's a quick steerer - not quite as easy to flick as the GSX-R, but equivalent to the R1. The tricky electronic steering damper is 'invisible' to the rider, while the suspension response is pretty much on par for this class.

Where the bike is exceptional is mid-corner feel for the rider. Of the three machines we road recently, it was clearly the leader in this direction, with both ends providing exceptional feedback and generating a lot of confidence when heeled over on its ear. And no, I have no technical explanation for this - it's just one of those 'dark art' areas of motorcycle handling that sometimes comes together.

Finish is generally what you'd expect in a $19k motorcycle: High quality, with a few niceties such as an immobiliser to discourage theft.

Something we discovered while doing some studio shots for Precious Metal is that this is also the easiest machine of the three, by far, to strip fairing panels off for access to the engine. That's hardly a major buying criteria, but is nice to know.

So is it worth buying, despite the fact it's now in run-out mode? The short answer is yes, so long as the numbers add up. The new chap will no doubt claim more refinement, but this is a good package in its own right.

Below is Honda's tech overview.

Honda's tech overview

Engine
The Fireblade's powerful 998cc liquid-cooled, fuel-injected DOHC inline four cylinder engine is a touchstone of Honda's highest performance racing technologies. Primed with technological features derived directly from the history-making RC211V, this lightweight and compact powerplant delivers instantaneous thrusts of highly competitive performance from anywhere in its wide powerband.

Lighter Weight and More Power
Considerable attention was focused on reducing the engine's weight while achieving a notable increase in maximum power output in order to realise an all important increase in its power-to-weight ratio and overall performance. This increase in power output was achieved not with any single improvement, but rather with a collection of detailed modifications that add up to a significant boost in performance. To start, the cylinder head's intake ports were refined in shape and its exhaust ports increased in size for an accelerated flow of larger volumes of air/fuel mixture into the slightly smaller combustion chambers combined with faster and more forceful exhaust. The combustion chambers' reduced volume also provides a slight increase in the compression ratio, from 11.9 : 1 to 12.2 : 1, with the cumulative effect of increased combustion efficiency and subsequently improved power output.

 New dual concentric valve springs installed on the engine's intake valves also contribute to the engine's increased performance by maintaining more precise valve operation at the high engine speeds associated with racing, while complementing the operation of the single-spring exhaust valves for top performance. In a configuration used and extensively tested on HRC's race machines, this dual-spring valve closure makes possible both an extension of redline from 11,650rpm to 12,200rpm, and more assured reliability and durability when pushing the outer limits of performance. Moreover, the shape of the intake valves was changed to gain improvements in intake efficiency.

Further ensuring greater durability during extended high-speed operation is a new crankshaft made of a stronger steel alloy which provides enhanced stiffness and durability to meet the demands of racing stresses without adding extra weight. Even the camshafts weren't overlooked in the interests of engine weight reduction, with thinner shaft wall thicknesses trimming over 450g of weight from the drivetrain.

The end result of all these changes is a 3.4% increase in max. power output throughout the Fireblade's wide, high-output powerband, with fully 75% of this power increase realised through the above-noted modifications made to the cylinder head and porting. Likewise, these modifications achieve a 3.3% increase in the Fireblade's already exceptional power-to-weight ratio, thus delivering sharper acceleration and a noticeably stronger rush of performance.

Smoother Throttle Response
The Fireblade's fuel injection system ECU was also reprogrammed to realise more linear response. The ECU's new, more simplified internal design also resulted in a 100g reduction in its weight, making yet another small but significant contribution to the Fireblade's overall weight loss.

New Magnesium ACG Cover
Making a further contribution to reduced engine and overall machine weight is a new magnesium ACG cover, which joins the engine's current magnesium head cover and oil pan to trim engine weight by approximately 100g compared to the aluminium cover it replaces. Inside the new magnesium cover, the ACG's reduced frictional inertia contributes to sharper throttle response.

Larger Rear Drive Sprocket
To take even fuller advantage of the engine's increased power output, the Fireblade was also fitted with a larger rear sprocket (up from 40t to 42t). A seemingly minor change, this new addition complements the engine's higher revs and stronger torque to deliver much sharper bursts of acceleration, both off the line and out of corners, and stronger roll-on performance for reeling in the competition down the back straights of a racing circuit.

Usually, gains made in a larger rear sprocket's sharper acceleration must be paid back in reduced top speeds, but this new engine's taller redline and stronger high-end power output maintain the 'Blade's high top speed ceiling for exceptionally sharp, responsive performance.

The rear wheel and sprocket are also fitted with a new set of rear wheel dampers that better absorb the shocks of quick clutch operation and sudden jolts of drive lash during hard acceleration and deceleration, especially in the extremes of racing.

New Narrower and Lighter Weight Radiator
Ensuring that the CBR1000RR Fireblade maintains a cool head in the performance and temperature extremes of high performance, especially as associated with racing, is a large-volume aluminium radiator that seems to take up the entire area behind the front wheel. Attention paid to the shape of the radiator achieved weight savings of approximately 500g, which combine with its new hoses to reduce weight by nearly 700g.

Chassis
The CBR1000RR Fireblade burst onto the streets and Superbike racing scene in 2004 with an all-new gravity die-cast aluminium frame and advanced Unit Pro-Link rear suspension system taken directly from Honda's famed RC211V MotoGP racer. Gripping its powerful engine in a stressed-member diamond configuration that contributes to 'Blade's exceptional handling stability, this frame features light weight and a relatively simple, organic design. Its Unit Pro-Link rear suspension helps achieve lighter weight frame construction and smooth handling characteristic without transmitting rear wheel stresses to the frame.

Fine-Tuned Steering Geometry
For its new second generation, the Fireblade's chassis and frame required very little in the way of major modifications or improvements, but instead received a host of small but still important changes that add up to a significant upgrade in overall handling ease and smoother response to rider input.

 First, although the 'Blade's front suspension, with its highly responsive inverted, fully adjustable cartridge-type front fork, remain essentially unchanged, the steering head's caster angle was reduced by a mere quarter of a degree, from 23 degrees, 45 minutes to 23 degrees, 30 minutes, for a reduction in trail from 102mm to 100mm that helps sharpen steering response and overall handling.

Next, to complement the rear sprocket's new final ratio, the swingarm was reduced in length by 5mm, which combines with the reduced caster angle to shorten the chassis' wheelbase by 10mm, from 1,410mm to 1,400mm. Front and rear suspension settings remain virtually unchanged, with full pre-load, compression and rebound adjustability the order of the day for a competitive World

Superbike challenger. One small change was made, however, to the 'Blade's innovative Unit-Pro-Link rear damper in the form of a lighter new aluminium spring pre-load adjuster ring to replace the steel piece used on the current model's damper.

New, Larger Front Brake Rotors
The Fireblade's superbly responsive radial-mount front disc brakes have been increased in diameter from 310mm to 320mm, for a significant increase in braking power and a greatly enhanced feel of brake control. In order to keep unsprung weight down, the thickness of the rotors was also reduced from 5mm to 4.5mm, resulting in a total reduction of 300g in weight. Also lightening the chassis' unsprung weight is a smaller and lighter new rear brake calliper.

Lighter Exhaust System
In the further interests of minimising weight, even the 4-into-2-into-1 titanium and stainless steel exhaust system was revised in construction, trimming over 600g from its pipes, 480g from the servo-controlled exhaust valve, and an additional 380g from the 'Centre'-Up' silencer located under the seat, which not only reduces overall vehicle weight, but also contributes to the Fireblade's enhanced mass centralisation and swifter cornering control.

At the tail end of the exhaust system, the current model's three-piece decorative cover has been changed to a single moulded resin piece for a simpler and more attractive design, as well as lighter weight.

Equipment
The new 2006 Fireblade continues as the only motorcycle on the road equipped with its highly advanced Honda Electronic Steering Damper (HESD), the revolutionary electro-hydraulic unit mounted directly atop its steering head that helps maintain its smoothly predictable high-speed handling. 

Unlike other designs of steering dampers, HESD automatically adjusts itself for both vehicle speed and rate of acceleration, firming up gradually as speed increases to dampen and minimise sudden changes in attitude, such as might occur when encountering a large bump in a high-speed corner. What really sets it apart, though, is its operation at low speeds.

Here, its damping valve is fully opened to permit such free and unencumbered movement that it feels as if there is no damper attached at all.

Offering an exceptional level of technological sophistication and seamless operation, the Honda Electronic Steering Damper effectively demonstrates Honda's commitment to pursuing advancements in riding ease and comfort, even in such a competitive Super Sports machine as the CBR1000RR Fireblade.