This year, for the first time in many decades, we find ourselves without a two-stroke engine in the Grand Prix classes of motorcycle road racing. For lovers of diversity in engineering in general and engines in particular, the class of 2012 Grand Prix bikes are perhaps a disappointment. Having seen the two-stroke bikes regulated out of existence with the demise of the 500 cc and 250 cc World Championships, 250 cc four-stroke single-cylinder engines have come to replace the 125 cc...
In the previous article on NASCAR exhausts 12 months ago, the subject of materials was discussed without addressing the design of the exhaust system itself. The NASCAR regulations offer very specific guidance to the teams about the design and configuration of the exhaust system. The exit of the exhaust at the sides of the race car are of particular interest. The perimeter of any pipe in the exhaust is mandated to be 13.25 in (336.5 mm), but at the exit of the system, which in NASCAR is...
When I last wrote a short piece on the subject of exhaust systems in Formula One, it was just ahead of the 2011 season. Little could we have predicted the central role that exhaust systems, combined with different engine management strategies, would play during the past season. The cause of the furore was the use by some of the more successful teams of exhaust flows to influence the aerodynamic behaviour of the car. The addition of significant mass flows of exhaust gas over, through or...
World Superbike remains a popular series in motorcycle racing, its enduring appeal stemming from the fact that the machines are based on the same motorcycles that you can find in your local showroom. Twenty years ago, it was a competition full of limited-production homologation machines, such as the Honda RC30 and Yamaha OW-01, which were produced at great expense and which required a racing kit that at the time dwarfed the cost of the motorcycle. In 1990, if we discount the Bimota...
The British Touring Car Championship is in a state of flux at the moment, with cars running to different sets of rules and with different engine regulations in play. As we might expect, no 'side' is happy when the others are winning. It would appear that teams operating under the new rules, with the so-called Next Generation Touring Cars (NGTC) such as the Toyota Avensis campaigned by Dynojet Racing and driven to good effect this year by Frank Wrathall, are becoming more successful,...