EU law makers trying to ban bike modificatins.. massive protest, very little news coverage

reply to post by Extralien


Seems to me you might need a specialist branch of the police to enforce this silliness. How would the average copper know what was / was not standard on any particular machine ?

They'd have to carry a manual / laptop with photographs / info on every machine ever made, to make comparisons, standard v non standard ...?

reply to post by Extralien


Absolutely. Motorcycles should be compulsory before cars. That way they would appreciate what is like having to think for car drivers...

reply to post by MrJohnSmith


And that special branch of the police just so happen to be chasing you on thier modified motorbikes.. modified engines and tyres, wheels, brakes etc.. and also fitted with non standard flashing blue lights and whoo whoo siren..

Just as we see in the final moments of the vid I posted

Originally posted by Extralien

firstly, this EU law could make ANY modified motorbike illegal to be ridden on the roads. Why only motorbikes? Why not cars too?

Cars have had tightened laws on modification since the start of 2012

reply to post by llmacgregor


Ahhh.. The Z1 ... Memories of that machine being introduced warm the cockles of my heart ! The best bike the British police had at the time, as I remember, was the 850 Commando....no competition on the straights ! And look how it has metamorphosed over the decades, due to modifications ( ! ) mostly from track racing, ( And some environmental regs...)

Before I started riding motorcycles over 45 years ago I was aware that there was extreme prejudice directed toward the machines and those that chose to ride them... The big difference I have noticed recently is the sport bike riders that ride in huge groups, shutting down traffic on freeways to perform burnouts, wheelies, stoppies and other tricks and stunts that usually result in high speed police pursuits at speeds above 150 MPH on urban streets.... Cops are generally pretty cool if you are tooling along on a large displacement touring bike at up to 20 or 30 MPH above the posted limit when conditions are such that doing so creates no danger for the rider or others on the road.... I have been getting away with doing things to my daily driven cars and bikes that aren't quite legal for decades... Even my little 1.5 liter station wagon has twice the torque and horsepower it came with from the factory but I am careful to not call attention to myself.... Racers have been pushing the limits imposed by sanctioning bodies.... You would have to be a real jerk that is trying to be noticed to have a cop write you up on charges of illegal modifications to a bike or car.

reply to post by Extralien


Quite ! Ie the motorcycling equivalent of Subarus and Mitsubishi Evos spring to mind...

reply to post by Aloysius the Gaul


Mmmmm.one of my neighbours has a battered old Range Rover. The standard front and rear bumpers, sorry fenders ( ? ) have been removed and replaced with what look like heavy duty steel tubing, painted bright orange for some reason.

If he hits hits a pedestrian with this vehicle, or another vehicle or that matter, he could do some serious damage / injury.

I'm willing to bet his insurance company don't know about these " Mods " and probably wouldn't sanction them if they did....

Glad to see people standing up for themselves.

I'm a rider and though I can't ride right now I can tell you it's in our blood.

Riding is something that if it's not in you, you can't understand it.

One thing you don't do is mess with riders motorcycles in any way.

It's like forcing someone to alter their body.

massive protest, very little news coverage

sure...

Hundreds of bikers staged a rolling roadblock

Hundreds of bikers... Massive protest... sensational much...

They are protesting safety changes which would benefit them and the other users of the road... no problem there...

I have put so much into my bike that there are more aftermarket parts then factory parts. The bike is more "Me".. This law is absolutely ridiculous !!!

reply to post by Magnum007


its not going to help safety.. most aftermarket parts are significantly higher quality then OEM

The EU is silly and stupid.
they bann things like black pudding.

England has its own Money!!!
so WHY should we have to take the rest of the poo!

reply to post by Extralien


every bike should have a toilet and a mini fridge i think.

reply to post by sp1r1tu4l33


You mean like the Goldwing with its drinks holder, radio and ash tray?


They got a reverse gear too...
and an 'armchair' pillion seat...
electric side stands...

Originally posted by ConspiraCity
reply to post by Magnum007

 

its not going to help safety.. most aftermarket parts are significantly higher quality then OEM

Here here.

If I had stuck with the original break/clutch levers on my bike I would have done far more damage to my hands when an idiot almost killed me.

As it is switching to shorter race levers made it so my hands weren't caught up in the larger levers.

Sure it's not much of a difference, but it's something.

Everything from smoother shifters, to different handle bars not only improve performance they increase safety.

reply to post by Extralien


I once saw matching his and her Goldwings with CD player, Radio, TV(that was scary), and GPS, wind protectors that kept your legs out of the wind, and even an auto kick stand that let the rider keep their feet on the floor boards at a stop.
The audio was filtered through a wire to the helmets and the helmets had wireless communication to each other.

At that point just get a freaking car...

reply to post by MrJohnSmith


I am not a bike guy (to be honest the thought of going the speed limit on one scares the crap out of me), I am a car guy though. I love the feeling of speed; I love to make my car faster. I do not live in the UK either but I am fully against any laws banning modifications to either cars of bikes.

I am a firm believer though that there should be balance. You need safety as well as speed, and what the heck throw a little bit of cosmetic in there as well (limited on this in my opinion though ). Most would say that many cars are fast enough stock and "out of the box" so to speak. That might be true for them, but for me I want more from it. I want the feel of being pulled/thrown back into the seat as I accelerate.

As I mentioned before going the speed limit on a bike is a scary thought to me. In a car going well over is nothing to me. There is a feeling of if something goes wrong I have a slightly better chance of survival I guess.

Raist

reply to post by Magnum007


Could you elaborate how this would benefit other road users and the bikers themselves?

Many bikes come with standard two pot brake calipers and rubber brake lines...only to be modded with 6 pot calipers and goodrich hoses.. that's an upgrade rather than a mod.
It improves braking/stopping distance ...
but it is considered a modification from the original design and/or sold as new item..

Would you allow that change to be made by the bike owner or would you consider that a breach of the modding law?

A car can have a 'wire mesh, washable air filter fitted with no problems.. bikes can too, but this may be seen as a modification for a bike.
Does that hinder safety?
Cars can change their entire exhaust system, bikes generally change the rear can.
How does that not benefit the bike/r or make it less safe?

Originally posted by Raist
As I mentioned before going the speed limit on a bike is a scary thought to me. In a car going well over is nothing to me. There is a feeling of if something goes wrong I have a slightly better chance of survival I guess.

Raist

That feeling you get in a car is so much more on a bike.
There is nothing like dragging a knee through an S turn, or going so fast on a straight away into a curve you drift.

It might not be for you, but one day I hope you get to experience triple digit speeds on a motorcycle.