Turbo cruisers to be the next big thing?
Honda may be leading the charge into the next big thing for cruisers -- turbocharging.Word is that the big H is playing with introducing a turbo model VTX1800 to the USA market, initially as a limited-build item to replace the Valkyrie Rune.
The company already builds five variants of the VTX1800 for the USA market (see www.honda.com) and seems keen to play with the concept.
There is also speculation the idea might catch on. Turbo chargers had a pretty ordinary run on factory bikes in the early 1980s, generally being fitted to 650-750cc and relatively high-revving engines. They ended up weighing about the same as a litre bike, with no great performance advantage.
However it's relatively easy to rationalise fitting turbos to cruisers, where weight is far less of an issue, and the engines are mostly already in mild tune with large capacities. Engineering them to accept a turbo would be relatively straight-forward. And it would be a way of livening up the class...
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