Harakiri

[Verismo]

Do any of you gentleman have any insight about the inside history of the Goldwing engineering? I've always wondered about it.

My dad and Uncles were Goldwing guys. My first motorcycle was a 1984 GL1200 Standard. I still own it, and even though the carbs are currently apart, when they are on the bike it runs as smooth as ever and is an amazingly refined machine, even by today's standards. I've always been in love with the horizontally opposed motorcycle platform and what Honda has done with it, and don't know how the first ideas made their way into Honda engineering, and would love it if any of you guys had any knowledge about this and could shed some light.

Jason

[Phantom]

Do any of you gentleman have any insight about the inside history of the Goldwing engineering? I've always wondered about it.

My dad and Uncles were Goldwing guys. My first motorcycle was a 1984 GL1200 Standard. I still own it, and even though the carbs are currently apart, when they are on the bike it runs as smooth as ever and is an amazingly refined machine, even by today's standards. I've always been in love with the horizontally opposed motorcycle platform and what Honda has done with it, and don't know how the first ideas made their way into Honda engineering, and would love it if any of you guys had any knowledge about this and could shed some light.

Jason

Welcome to the forum.

Volkswagon beetles had the flat 4 design first then they expanded their engines to fit their Porsche sibling line that needed flat 6's,
German engineering copied by the Japanese. Subaru's have flat 4 and flat 6 engines. Ferrari had a flat 12 at one time.

[willtill]

"Seppuku, sometimes metathesized as harakiri is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment.....

Why do you use harakiri as a title for your post?

[Verismo]

Welcome to the forum.

Volkswagon beetles had the flat 4 design first then they expanded their engines to fit their Porsche sibling line that needed flat 6's,
German engineering copied by the Japanese. Subaru's have flat 4 and flat 6 engines. Ferrari had a flat 12 at one time.

Thanks for your response. I was aware of the prior employment of the horizontally opposed engine in several cars. Just not in motorcycles, especially in the American segment. I'm more interested in how the Japanese engineers went about this transition, especially considering what a radical departure it was from American twins.

Jason

[Verismo]

"Seppuku, sometimes metathesized as harakiri is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment.....

Why do you use harakiri as a title for your post?

Because the ritual has made it into Japanese corporate culture before, and I've often wondered if this kind of pressure or something akin to it was ever present, and if so to what degree, at Honda.

Jason

[willtill]

Because the ritual has made it into Japanese corporate culture before, and I've often wondered in this kind of pressure or something akin to it was ever present, and if so to what degree, at Honda.

Jason

I think your reading way too much into Honda motorcycle product development.

I'm going to bow out of this thread. It's just too deep.

[Verismo]

I think your reading way too much into Honda motorcycle product development.

I'm going to bow out of this thread. It's just too deep.

Lol, you think wondering if a part of Japanese culture made it into a Japanese company is "reading too much into" it?

Lol, Alrighty..

Jason

[druggr]

This is one of the better history books I've read. It a nice read of the challenges involved with creating something that had never been created at the time ... an opposed, water cooled, shaft driven m/c. If I recall, the engineers had to fight with Mr. Honda because he wanted it to be a 2-stroke. It was originally a 6-cylinder engine, but they didn't think a 6 cylinder would sell, thus the early 4-cylinders. Also, Honda didn't have a drive shaft. At first they used a BMW one until they designed their own. The drive shaft alone took them like 2 years to get to a final design. I'm sure you will find it an interesting read too. Honda used to give these books away for free at their yearly factory event. This books history is from generation 0 thru 4. If you google GoldWing history books, you'ill find a couple of other history books.

https://www.amazon.com/Gold-Wing-Fir...4C7ANYJPY6HBH9

You can also read here, but this more of a linear history from model to model less all the engineering struggles of getting there.

http://world.honda.com/GoldWing/history/

[Verismo]

This is one of the better history books I've read. It a nice read of the challenges involved with creating something that had never been created at the time ... an opposed, water cooled, shaft driven m/c. If I recall, the engineers had to fight with Mr. Honda because he wanted it to be a 2-stroke. It was originally a 6-cylinder engine, but they didn't think a 6 cylinder would sell, thus the early 4-cylinders. Also, Honda didn't have a drive shaft. At first they used a BMW one until they designed their own. The drive shaft alone took them like 2 years to get to a final design. I'm sure you will find it an interesting read too. Honda used to give these books away for free at their yearly factory event. This books history is from generation 0 thru 4. If you google GoldWing history books, you'ill find a couple of other history books.

https://www.amazon.com/Gold-Wing-Fir...4C7ANYJPY6HBH9

You can also read here, but this more of a linear history from model to model less all the engineering struggles of getting there.

http://world.honda.com/GoldWing/history/

Thanks, druggr! That's great and I appreciate it!!!

Jason

[Retired Army]

Now for the burning question. Does the plane of the piston rotation of the flat engine contribute to the smoothness of the Gold Wing?