Bike vs Car

[J.A.W.]

As a matter of topical interest, I raised a question of road going bike vs car cornering & braking performance..
..with 1, a group of social riders with whom I enjoy a run, & 2, on a motorcycle forum..

I asked if they felt they could corner faster & braker quicker on their bike than in their car..

Some were honest enough to admit that their confidence on the bike was the limitation,
- but others insisted cars were inherently more capable.. ( & we're not talking Pagani Zondas)

I said that my GPS clearly showed confirmation - that in most road situations I could do better on the bike,
& offered to put money on it.. if anyone was up for a contest.. none of my riding mates were up for it..

Over on the forum, it was remarkable, the degree of 'cognitive dissonance' evident from riders who felt humiliated
by having their limitations raised, & sought to be angry & judgemental, rather than feel shamed - by their own lack of skill..

[mrluke]

There's a lot to be said on the road for the much more open line a bike can take through corners.

[Postmoe]

There are too many factors to take into account, so it's always going to be a "it depends" comparison.

For example: bumpy roads tend to affect very differently cars and bikes. A bumpy high speed corner is the rider's ego worst enemy, as it completely destroys your front axle/fork sensitivity. A car there will just correct as many times as needed while a bike just tells you to stop dressing like a power ranger and come back home - it can be THAT scary-.

On the other hand, in other environments, bikes are capable of things that a car driver could never understand if not a biker. This is quite noticeable in urban cohabitation. The feeling on your two breaking fingers is quite something, the precision when changing gears and the way mental speed builds up once you've been riding for some time.

An so on...

If I could choose, I would freely roam on my bike and race with a light car. Not because bikes aren't suited to race... but because cars are so much friendly. I any case, taking in to account the sheer diferences between the two machines, I would never versus them mechanically but rather emotionally. Each comes with a very, very different set of emotions.

[J.A.W.]

There are too many factors to take into account, so it's always going to be a "it depends" comparison...
I would never versus them mechanically but rather emotionally. Each comes with a very, very different set of emotions.

My GPS readout does not feature an emotion data set.. or any other subjectively 'qualitative' parameters..

Really, all you have to do.. is pick a favourite corner - that can be addressed in a reasonably safe, but confidently quick manner..
& compare the quantitative results obtained on bike vs car - via the GPS readout..

If this is too dry, go with a friend who you can trust as a capable observer/participant.. bike vs car..
& do a road test to check it out, see if a relative gap is maintained or not..

[J.A.W.]

Curiously enough, I recently dragged my old high-hours commuter hack Yamaha RZ 350 out for run..
.. the battery was flat but a down hill run spun the engine fast enough to fire it up..

The old darlin' felt a bit doughy, but I thought, nevermind, get 'er spinning & she'll come good..
I should've checked the tyre pressures though, because checked later, they were about 10 psi down from norms.

None-the-less, once warmed up she felt as eager as ever.. I took 'er out over some hilly back roads where
I caught up with a 4WD holding up a sporty Ford Focus on close switchback twist & turn 40 Km/h bends ..

On the other side of the hills the road opened out into rural land & the 4WD turned off on a farm access road.

The Focus driver then put his boot into it, & began travelling at ~160-180 km/h over the the undulating
terrain, but slowing somewhat for the various advisory speed marked 75- 95 Km/h corners..

I had no trouble catching him in-through-out of the corners, where he was pushing his machine hard, - even though I was unwilling to match his maximum straight-line speed on my soft, but old, well used tyres..

After a ~20 Km run I was right behind him as we approach the next town & we slowed down, the driver
gamely acknowledged me with a wave- which I returned.. just a bit of fun really..

[Tim.Wright]

and?

[Jolle]

I think it's fairly simple, a bike is faster because of its power to weight ratio advantage until the car is fast enough to go beyond the physical limits of a motorbike (because of its high centre of gravity). This is around the 1 - 1.2 G of cornering and braking/acceleration force. I think the crossover point is around a BMW M3.

[J.A.W.]

Depends on how sporty the relative machines are, & the skill of the operators. & conditions such as traffic.

Ultimately, unless the car can employ downforce - it will be outmatched by the equivalent bike.

[J.A.W.]

and?

& I enjoyed the ride.. the car driver had fun too, no drama..

[J.A.W.]

FWIW, Damon Hill was recently interviewed in the September 2016 edition of 'Motorsport' magazine.

On P. 186, when asked about cars & the one he might 'covet most' - he replies..

" I'm not really a car person, I prefer bikes, if I'm honest."

Needless to relate, they don't take this line of inquiry further...

[J.A.W.]

Topically, the magazine mentioned in the previous post has a feature on GT3 sports car racing.
The reviewer/driver takes a Bentley GT3 around Silverstone.

Apart from the needful strip-out/weight reduction & chassis/tyre race package, aero improvements are listed.

"...it is incredible to see how far the game has moved on since I first tested one a decade or so ago.
Its the downforce that really fries your mind."

&,

"In aero terms it has a fully flat floor, an incredibly long rear diffuser, carbon front splitter, & that massive carbon wing.
Great attention has been paid to cleaning up air flow particularly in the critical wheel arch area & while the large frontal
area is unavoidable, the sheer length of the car means drag can be reduced compared to its competitors."

As noted in another thread, these needful racing modifications would be problematic in regular road use.

[hemichromis]

Never been to Nurburgring but Sabine Schimt took a ford transit van around and was passing Porsche 911s, does that mean the van is faster?

Straights: Bikes up to 140ish
Corner braking: Cars due to better COG
Mid corner: Cars though in sweepers bikes can do quite well
Corner Exit: Bikes acceleration is hard to beat.

On the road: I've had fast cars and bikes, no car can beat a bike point to point. If you have a Bugatti Veyron you'll be stuck in traffic, if you have a 125cc you'll be passing.

[bdr529]

FWIW, Damon Hill was recently interviewed in the September 2016 edition of 'Motorsport' magazine.

On P. 186, when asked about cars & the one he might 'covet most' - he replies..

" I'm not really a car person, I prefer bikes, if I'm honest."

Needless to relate, they don't take this line of inquiry further...

Yeh Damon's a big fan of 2 wheels, along with being a motorcycle courier in his youth, he used to race a bikes