06-01-2013, 08:58 AM
So the recent talk that the CB1100 had a speed limit of 112mph proved too much temptation for me. I decided to go out to my favorite stretch of empty desert highway to see if this was true.
Previously, I'd had the bike up to 105 mph and it had still been accelerating briskly. It was hard to imagine that Honda would artficially hold it back. I'd heard that some of the scary fast bikes like the ZX14 and Busa had been limited to 186 mph (299 kph), but a 112 mph limit seemed kind of low. If you took the bike to the dragstrip, you'd likely bounce off the limiter before you finished the quarter mile.
Anyway, since I hadn't heard that anyone on the site had actually verified the existence of the limiter on U.S. models, I decided to go check it out for myself.
I was humming along at about 80 mph, when I shifted into 5th and rolled the throttle wide open. Within a few seconds the speedo was passing through 100. Without any letup, the bike passed through 110 and was still accelerating quite well. Then the speedo hit the area between 110 and 115 and I felt the power drop off. The bike made it to 115 indicated (114 on the GPS) then dropped to 110 then wobbled back and forth between 110 and 115.
I'm assuming that the limiter is built into the ECU and is shutting off 1 or 2 of the injectors when the computer detects that the speed is above 112 mph. My CB750 has a rev limiter built into the electronic ignition that shuts off one coil above redline and it seems a lot harsher than the CB11's limiter (the 750 has no EFI or engine computer).
So, there it is. While most will never bounce off the speed limiter at least we know it is there. Sadly, that makes my CB750 the fastest bike I have. No doubt the CB11 would blow it away from 0-112, but after that the 750 would leave it behind.
Previously, I'd had the bike up to 105 mph and it had still been accelerating briskly. It was hard to imagine that Honda would artficially hold it back. I'd heard that some of the scary fast bikes like the ZX14 and Busa had been limited to 186 mph (299 kph), but a 112 mph limit seemed kind of low. If you took the bike to the dragstrip, you'd likely bounce off the limiter before you finished the quarter mile.
Anyway, since I hadn't heard that anyone on the site had actually verified the existence of the limiter on U.S. models, I decided to go check it out for myself.
I was humming along at about 80 mph, when I shifted into 5th and rolled the throttle wide open. Within a few seconds the speedo was passing through 100. Without any letup, the bike passed through 110 and was still accelerating quite well. Then the speedo hit the area between 110 and 115 and I felt the power drop off. The bike made it to 115 indicated (114 on the GPS) then dropped to 110 then wobbled back and forth between 110 and 115.
I'm assuming that the limiter is built into the ECU and is shutting off 1 or 2 of the injectors when the computer detects that the speed is above 112 mph. My CB750 has a rev limiter built into the electronic ignition that shuts off one coil above redline and it seems a lot harsher than the CB11's limiter (the 750 has no EFI or engine computer).
So, there it is. While most will never bounce off the speed limiter at least we know it is there. Sadly, that makes my CB750 the fastest bike I have. No doubt the CB11 would blow it away from 0-112, but after that the 750 would leave it behind.
