Bigger Engine = More Sever Injury

[james1988]

Hello,

I've been having a discussion (in the losest sense of the word) in work this morning about biking and injuries. The general consesus seems to be the larger the engine the worse the injury to the rider should they have an accident.

My view is that 60mph is 60mph if your on a 125cc or a 1000cc and therefore you can almost negate engine size when it comes to injury (unless the bike fell on you, I would imagine it would do more damage).

Am I being stupid or does my argument make sense?

Sorry for shit formatting; I'm on my phone.

James

[Bendy]

My brain can't quite comprehend this one so early in the morning.

[Pete.]

You're looking at it too simplistically. 60mph is indeed 60mph, but a bigger engine means more mass, more kinetic energy when moving etc. If you're going to be near a sliding uncontrolled mass the lighter it is the better for you.

Take speed out of the equation, would you rather tip over at a standstill and get your leg trapped under a moped or a Pan Euro?
____________________
a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[Jim Mc]

But would you rather die on a shitty moped or in a ball of flames on a super sports?

Apologies to anyone who likes mopeds.

[Pete.]

[Eddie Hitler]

Too many factors. Size of the bike is one of them, but negligible IMO. I found it annoying when friends and family gasted at me when I rocked up on a 1000cc. "You'll hurt yourself on that!" was common.

[CarlosCBR]

[james1988]

[MarJay]

The EU did a study on Engine power vs injuries back in the early '90s. They found no correlation between the two, and found that there was no need for a blanket 100bhp power limit on motorcycles.
____________________
British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Recluso]

Seeing how many kids seem to kill themselves on 50cc's and 125's I think the argument is pretty moot

I don't think it can really be effectively generalised as there's far too many variable to consider. If you're looking purely at the speed aspect then yes, it could be suggested that a larger capacity machine has the potential to faceplant you into a wall pretty effectively.

But looking at it as a whole, it's not really as cut and dry as 'big engine = instadeath' imo.


Very contemplative question for the time of the morning! Put your brain back to sleep!
____________________
'Just erotic. Nothing kinky. It's the difference between using a feather and using a chicken.'
Honda PS125i > Yamaha YBR125 > Yamaha XJ6 Diversion > Yamaha Tracer 900

[andyscooter]

i get similer

i wear a textile bike jacket on my 100cc

why do you wear all that on a scooter is normally the one i get asked

because 50 mph is 50mph whatever your riding and it hurts the same when you fall off is my normal answer
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gilera runner vxr200 (chavped)
if its spelt wrong its my fat fingers and daft auto correct on my tablet

[Bikermice]

I know your thread talks about the moment you crash, but surely the moments leading up to a crash are also a factor? I mean, a 125 might be lighter but generally has thinner tyres, might also only have 1 disc up front and drum on the back - whereas a 1000cc would have 2x discs up front and disc at the back, wider and better tyres etc. I also suspect that during a low-side crash, a big bike would be less likely to flip around due to the weight?

Like you say, far too many variables to generalise. I find it insulting when people say you're going to kill yourself on a bike, as it suggests that everyone on a bike just opens the throttle and closes their eyes. Fact is most of us ride a lot safer than cagers because we're more vulnerable.

[mysterious_rider]

[Rogerborg]

Their claim, their burden of proof. Describe the scenarios, explain where the damage is coming from.

Against that extra weight flipping and sliding around, there's the fact that a bigger bike is less likely to get into an accident at any given speed in the first place due to being more visible and turning and stopping better.

Why are you arguing with ignorants anyway? You'll only get dumb all over you, and you'll never shake their conviction that bike = death and big bike = megadeath.
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[Wonko The Sane]

[Walloper]

[recman]

On the subject of bike safety equations, here's one I often get asked by the dolts at work.
"Why do need to put all that gear on when you only live a few minutes away?"

I answer with the question; "Who helps you tie your shoes?".

[Wonko The Sane]

The thing to remember with bigger more powerful bikes is that the throttle is not an on/off switch...



unless you're on a 125cc :p

[Walloper]

[Walloper]

[Fizzer Thou]

There is a paragraph in this study

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=265138

...that tries to "suggest" that a bigger bike is more likely to cause a more severe injury.

What concerns me most is if someone in Guvingmunt wants to ban us oldies from riding bikes over a certain size "just in case I might hurt myself"
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Just talk bikes.What else is there?

Always have a 'Plan B'

[Fizzer Thou]

[iMark]

Depends on circumstances...
What were you doing at the time of 60mph?
Just cruising along at 60 on a smaller cc?
Giving it WOT out of a bend at 60 on a litre?

Generally I say more accidents happen on smaller bikes though because of younger, less mature... pedbois being prats

[Im-a-Ridah]

This is kind of like the falacy peddled by the cops that speed kills, which is complete nonsense. Not being able to react in time, not being able to slow down in time, not bothering to look or think at all... these are real killers.

[G]

Given two equal low sides, the size of the engine isn't going to make much difference unless the impact of the bike is an issue - but the the fully faired GT125R comet thingy actually doesn't weigh THAT much less than a CBR1000RR say!

However, if you're sitting at 60mph on the 125 and twist the throttle hard, not much is going to happen. On the 1000cc bike in a low gear either the front is likely to come up or the rear lose traction.

Further, the 1000cc will probably go from 0 to 120mph quicker than the the 125 will get to 60 - so for the same 'effort' you can be going at twice the speed.