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HP / Torque vs Top Speed / Acceleration

2K views 4 replies 4 participants last post by  Wilco10 
#1 ·
Wasn't sure where to ask this but...

Why is there so much discussion about HP and Torque? Isn't it better to talk about top speed and acceleration curves?

If I was interested in comparing bikes I would want to look at the different acceleration curves under the same conditions.
 
#2 ·
This kind of information is seldom published in these politically correct times. Manufacturers are not allowed to advertise how fast their vehicles are and magazines which used to rigorously test bikes with two way runs under specified and consistent conditions are few and far between. In the UK most of the factual reporting in the specialist publications has been superseded by heavily sales and advertising oriented copy. That's why I don't buy them any more!

On the bright side dyno test facilities have sprung up everywhere and, provided you interpret them with the same amount of caution as previously applied to stopwatch performance tests, it is quite possible to infer what the relative performance should be. It is also easy for any owner to use GPS to record quite accurate performance figures so you could always trawl the internet for this kind of stuff.

The other good thing is that if you want a high performance bike for ordinary road use there are a huge number to choose from all of which have far more power available than you are ever likely to use on a daily basis. Its no longer a question of whether a Triumph Bonneville would actually do 120 MPH because if that's the sort of performance you want plenty of modern Triumphs ( although not the Bonnevilles! ) can do 150.
 
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