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Zard America for Bonneville

24K views 79 replies 20 participants last post by  FattRat 
#1 ·
Here are the latest photo's for the new Zard exhausts on the Bonneville, we will be offering 3 versions of the design.

Steve Larson
 
#3 ·
Okay.... looks pretty serious, in fact it looks "race ready"
- but -
what kind of claims is ZARD' making with regard to equal length/"tuned" headers, performance gains, chick magnet potential, or boy-racer intimidation
- and -
how about clearance issues with regard to oil filter and/or center-stand? And....... pri$e?
:???:

[ This message was edited by: FattRat on 2006-11-23 10:27 ]
 
#5 ·
And with THAT bad boy 2-2 system, how 'bout clearance issues with the standard (lower) shocks of the Bonneville's as opposed to the taller Thruxtons? I speak on behalf of those who have since ground away the feelers on the bottom of their foot pegs..... it's looking like it might be an issue unless better/taller shocks are installed.
- BUT -
As much as I grew up thinking that two into one's are the best for performance, I LIKES that 2-2!!! Can you imagine it in some kind of two-ton titanium on ceramic Black configuration!?!!!
 
#6 ·
On 2006-11-23 10:25, FattRat wrote:
Okay.... looks pretty serious, in fact it looks "race ready"
- but -
what kind of claims is ZARD' making with regard to equal length/"tuned" headers, performance gains, chick magnet potential, or boy-racer intimidation
- and -
how about clearance issues with regard to oil filter and/or center-stand? And....... pri$e?
:???:
A bit of patience is going to be needed here, these are the first showings of the designs from the Milan Show, and we are told product release is going to be sometime in January.

I will get you all the information as it comes forward, but a few comments right off the start:

Zard is run by one of the top designers who previously headed the racing division of one of the most exclusive companies in the business. Take a look through at the Speed Triple dyno results and owner comments on your forum, search out Zard on the Ducati 999 & 749 and you will see they are unmatched for performance (up against some of the biggest names in the business) on one of the most difficult bikes to manufacture for. Look at the designs for the Ducati Sports and Paul Smarts (who BTW was in the booth in Milan because he wants the Zard for his bike!); consider that Zard ran the Triumph Thruxton Cup series in Italy and won the Italian Championship with the MV Agusta F4, all in their FIRST year of business, and you can probably guess that they know what performance is for a machine.

Regarding the "chick magnet" side of things, that is a personal issue but I would be careful that she will want to steal your bike...! :-D

Is the centerstand stock? I am not sure about the answer on this one...

Lastly, every Zard exhaust we have had to date clears all stock OEM oil and filter parts and pieces, so there should not be any issues there.

Hope this helps a bit, we know that everyone wants to know "everything" right now, but sometimes patience IS a virture!

Steve Larson
 
#10 ·
I'm banking on that 2-1 system for sheer performance......
yeah babieee!

With regard to a center-stand.... nope; triumph doesn't provide it as factory equipment when purchasing a Bonnie. In fact it's not uncommon for stealerships to charge two hours to install one, for a job that takes only thirty minutes (at best).

Clearing oil filter and drain plug.
WhoHOO!!!
You just made a lot of friends here, as a competitive outfit requires that their design be removed from the bike just to change the oil/filter!?!?!?
 
#11 ·
Probably gonna get the heat for this,but, I just don`t see IT. The headers,while racey looking,aren`t that nice looking,and the can or cans look just like every other can builders tri-oval can for every other UJM sportbike.If they crank out an extra 10hp,sweet,but they still look Yamahonzuki to me. Sorry.
 
#12 ·
I see that too, but it EXCITES me!

It may be my imagination, but I think I see the ID of the pipes GRACEFULLY grow in size from outa the heads to progressively larger chambers. This allows the process of exhaust to flow with minimal turbulence and ideal extraction while keeping the noise level to something reasonable. And the mention made of a removable baffle is DA BOMB (for those of us who do LOUD)!

What I see is modern "Yamahonzuki" race-bike technology applied to the age olde parallel design. If the tech who designed this system is all he's cracked up to be, his efficient exhaust system may end up being worth it's weight in Gold (not MY Gold). I can only hope that one of the systems he designed will be good across the board for us street riders who need/want ego gratifying off-the-line low-end torque, good canyon carving mid-range, and screaming top end that allows us to exceed 65 mph by only a mile or two......... :wink:
 
#14 ·
I'm with Rodburner on this one. If they improve performance, great, but to me they really don't mesh well with the retro look of the Bonnie. Also, will the welds look as "burned" as they do in the pics, or is that just a prototype thing?

On the other hand, the more aftermarket stuff out there for the Bonnies the better!
 
#15 ·
I agree, the welds do look rather dodgy. The welds on the Scrambler pipes don't look so bad so I'm hoping it's a prototype thing.

Re the retro look: yeah, they don't really look too retro but I think the black cans would mesh real well with a set of Rodburner's trick wheels.
 
#16 ·
I think the issue here is whether you want "performance" or a retro look. The two are not usually compatible on modern motors, especially when price is a much bigger factor here then on other machines.

Guess you could always have the pipes chromed, that would eliminate the weld lines...?

Personally, I like the "engineered" look of the tapered weld sections, gives the bike a much more aggressive appearance, something out of the "trick" world of the early days. Not that everybody does, or will, but that is what makes Zard so much more interesting then all the "just like everyone else" designs...

Steve Larson
 
#17 ·
WOW! I drop off the forums for a bit, and look what breaks cover.

I have been wishing for a proper performance exhaust and had even looked at the Zard stuff and said to myself, "Why don't they..." Well, now they have, and all three systems look pretty bitchin' in my book. There is nothing available, that I have seen, that even comes close.

As far as price: nice exhausts aren't cheap and cheap exhausts aren't nice! :wink:

I wouldn't expect earth shattering performance gains on the Thrux, due to the agricultural state of tune you know, but I'm sure that the Zard stuff could coax a couple more donkies out of the ol' twin. They should be very effective in conjunction with some cams and compression.

This system would dig into my trackbike budget for sure, maybe the Thrux could pull double duty for a little bit longer? :-D
 
#18 ·
I think the issue here is whether you want "performance" or a retro look. The two are not usually compatible on modern motors, especially when price is a much bigger factor here then on other machines.

Guess you could always have the pipes chromed, that would eliminate the weld lines...?

Personally, I like the "engineered" look of the tapered weld sections, gives the bike a much more aggressive appearance, something out of the "trick" world of the early days. Not that everybody does, or will, but that is what makes Zard so much more interesting then all the "just like everyone else" designs...

Steve Larson


I concur with Steve on this one,^but it's a pretty subjective thing. I'm thinking that the style will polarize owners between:

-geezers reliving their youth

AND

-people who weren't even BORN in "68" :razz:

[ This message was edited by: WANG on 2006-11-23 16:29 ]
 
#19 ·
Everybody here knows that I ain`t afraid a no visable welds,hell,I live for them. :-D

Its the less than sweeping lines of the2 into 1 headers and tha basic "me too" shape of the cans.And I know for a fact that retro styling AND modern performance are not mutually exclusive.[see Predators here].I`ll show you what I mean before spring rolls around. :wink:
 
#21 ·
Any chance they will offer a "black" version with the headers black also?

Larry
 
#22 ·
Steve Larson- answers are important!!
I want to know about Triumph centerstand compatibility and LSL rear sets on my T100 Bonnie. Will the Zard fit with these items on my bike.? No answer -no sale.

Guaranteed they fit I will buy.
 
#26 ·
Always GREAT to see more stuff out there for the Bonnie - as a design
guy I appreciate seeing different solutions, especially if form follows function I know I'll be studying these pics of the Zard pipes for sometime... my initial reactions range from wow! to funky! to ugly! to holy deflection angle! to veddy interesting! to YEAH baby!... that said, IMHO rodburners 2-1 pipe design pretty much rocks the box - sensibilities going on with his design that have yet to be (and may well never be) duplicated, and more than holds it's own design-wise compared to the Zard 2-1... but hey, Steve Larson, I'd be happy to road test all the Zard systems and write a detailed evaluation in exhange for a free one of each...

;-)

Cheers,

D9
 
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