dextasy
Well-known member
looks like my 08 600rr with 75k is toast....
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Upgrading to R3 from a Ninja 250?
- Thread starter Ridin2TheGym
- Start date
looks like my 08 600rr with 75k is toast....
conundrum
Well-known member
I sometimes wonder about this. The tachometer is "white" from 0 to, say, 12,000RPM where it's then "red." Living in the "white" zone is presumably okay and in the "red" is a no-no. After all, if 11,500 isn't safe for the engine, the engineers would have made the red zone start at 11,500, right?
But is 11,500 RPM -- i.e. living within millimeters of redline -- really okay for such an engine, especially for long periods of time? Intuitively, I think not: there are that many more fatigue cycles on the rod bolts, its beam, the piston pin and the pin bosses under the piston crown etc per unit time; the rings scrape their way along the cylinder walls that many more times per second; finger followers toggle that many more times per second, the valve springs also see that many more cycles etc etc.
But clearly, well designed and maintained engines designed for high-RPM operation seem to do okay. I think the quality of oil and rigorous maintenance play a role here.
Even still, while my FZ8 redlines at 11,500 I feel better cruising along at 6000 than I would at 11,000RPM for hours on end.
I've heard both ends/sides of this one too -- Any RPM below fuel cut is safe, or extended periods in the red will damage the engine over time. In all honesty so long as the engine 'happy' and not lugging or having issues and you should be fine. Personally, I like to combine the two 99% of the time, and just say any RPM that doesn't lug the engine and is below the red zone/line, is ok, so long as the bike is properly warmed up first and properly maintained.
Also, with larger (non 250 class) bikes, there really is no reason to keep it in the red for an extended period of time, outside of racing. If I'm having fun in the twisties I'll run her up to around 11,000 at times (hair below red on mine), but I'm only there long enough to shift into the next gear then keep accelerating. Most of the time I'm in the middle to upper rev range when having fun, and just below middle if I am cruising in a straight line for any larger length of time (bike still makes power if I keep it above 3500-4000).
RedDogDarren
Well-known member
I believe you meant "up to redline", and not actually "in" the red. If you're in the red, then your rev limiter is broken.
conundrum
Well-known member
Depends on terminology. Maybe it is a Honda thing, but on both my bike and my car, the red 'zone' starts well before the rev-limiter (by at least 500-1000 rpm). That said, I'm rarely that close to it on anything but my old 250 -- Both have more than enough power that I'd be at or above the legal limit well before I'd reach 2nd or 3rd gear. lol
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RedDogDarren
Well-known member
I've read that the tachs can be optimistic as well. Thanks for the clarification.
On my bike the red line starts right at the limiter, 13750rpm. Verified on the dyno that the gauge is 100% accurate.
And just FYI, my engine is holding together fine even though I let it go right past the red zone
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