The debut of Honda’s pneumatic valve engine in MotoGP beneath either Nicky Hayden or Dani Pedrosa, or both, has been delayed innumerable times. With its engineering prowess, you have to be surprised that Honda is so late to the air-valve game.
Of course, Honda is doing well in the championship with the existing motor (Pedrosa lies second in the championship — just seven points behind Valentino Rossi). Indeed, this is the main reason Honda is giving for the delay . . . it wants the engine to be better than the current motor in every way. Although the new motor easily produces 1,000rpm more than the existing engine, driveability down low has been a problem.
When the engine does debut, Honda test rider Tadayuki Okada (who has raced the new engine) is confident Honda will have competitive top speed on the longer straights, which is something it currently lacks (particularly in comparison to the Ducatis). Despite this performance improvement, Honda believes fuel consumption will not be an issue due to lower friction within the engine. Even handling could benefit from a reduction in gyroscopic effect when the air valves are in place.
