2012 Honda CBR1000RR Review [Video]

[seruzawa]

Tuned for torque!

Where is JB when you need him?

[The Spaceman]

Originally Posted by Kevin_Duke

Yeah, the Buell wheel design ethos is distinctly different.

As in a fanatical devotion to weight loss at any price, and a lack of contraints brought by the realities of tooling for mass production? Or is it more subtle than that?

[Kevin_Duke]

Originally Posted by The Spaceman

As in a fanatical devotion to weight loss at any price, and a lack of contraints brought by the realities of tooling for mass production? Or is it more subtle than that?

Nope, you covered it quite well! But also the choice of material (magnesium) and a new casting technique. From my article on Buell's 1190RS:

"But a newly developed casting process – ablation casting – has the ability to vary the properties of the metal depending on what’s needed where, and it enables complex castings in which the metal can be formed in a wide variety of thickness. It’s proving to work especially well for magnesium components which can be difficult to cast to precise levels. Buell says this new method allows a ductile rim area (able to slightly deform on impact to retain structural integrity), while the spoke and hub region can be built stiff enough to support the motorcycle."

[Dennis Chung]

We've uploaded onboard video of Jake Zemke riding the 2012 Honda CBR1000RR at the press launch at Infineon to our Youtube channel. Check it out!

Jake Zemke on the 2012 Honda CBR1000RR at Infineon Raceway - YouTube