How reliable is a turbo hayabusa?

[Geek_Law]

... Anyway, to make a Real Long Story Short, Having a Turbo Motorcycle has ruined me. Non-Turbo bikes will never do, ever again (for me).

+1 Having a TC/SC bike really does ruin you for all other bikes.

Anyway, I'll chime in on the reliability issue here. I put about 10K miles on my SC'd bike (not a busa) and those miles were fun as hell and trouble free. Then something broke and I'm looking at about $4K to $5K for the repairs which are nearly complete now.

I have no regrets and I'm not taking my bike back to stock, but things do break more often when you push the limits of the bike. I personally know folks who have blown clutch baskets, seized pistons, broke crankshafts (that's what I did), and so on by using forced induction.

Maybe the Busa is a better platform. I'm definitely thinking of a TC for mine. But I would just caution you to go in with eyes wide open. Enjoy the miles you get, but be financially prepared and willing for something to break. I think this same issue applies to cars too.

I say go for it. The ride is just amazing.

Hopefully I'm not out of place with these remarks being a newbie on the forum here. lease:

 

[asylum1]

Ive been debating whether to do a basic stage 1 this year (230-230whp) and see how that goes before spending more money and going for 300+whp. That way I can spend more money later and do everything right over next year. I can probably do it all now but with projects like this, there always seems to be little things that you forget about while budgeting. So I dont want to get caught with things I didnt budget for right now. But like I said Im still debating which route to take.

 

[asylum1]

Maybe the Busa is a better platform. I'm definitely thinking of a TC for mine. But I would just caution you to go in with eyes wide open. Enjoy the miles you get, but be financially prepared and willing for something to break. I think this same issue applies to cars too.

I say go for it. The ride is just amazing.

Im definately not a newbie to turbo charging cars that came n/a stock or putting bigger turbos on cars that came with "smaller" turbos. Ive had a number of cars that Ive turbo charged or put bigger turbos on. Taking cars with less than 200whp and built them to have more than 500whp, Ive done a quite a few times. Of course with that came the understanding that things can and will go wrong. That is the reason why I started this topic. One of the cars that I put a turbo on which started off making about 170whp n/a and then made close to 600whp turbo charged, kept breaking and cost me a hell of a lot of money. Yet another one thats started at 230whp and made just over 500whp was very reliable. But two different brands of cars and the one that kept breaking didnt have much aftermarket support at the time I was building it.

Turbo charging the busa has enough support out there but I just want to make sure I dont run into major issues ending up in me hating the bike.

 

[jellyrug]

I have three turbo street bikes right now- one of them is an RCC Ultra that put down just over 600 hp.

How so you use 600 hp between your legs on two wheels?

 

[megawatt]

My 06 is a RCC stage 1 with all the engine parts built for much more hp, water injection, 2 stage boost controller etc . I am limited by the fueling system so 311 hp is my highest number. It is two years old and I ride it in the 110F Summer days out here in the desert. When I do take it on long trips I stay off the high boost of 12-13 lbs and limit myself to the 8 lbs. While the hi boost is crazy fun I honestly find myself satisfied with the low boost and I have absolutely no worries of dependability. Out here in the desert if you break down it can be a very long time before someone can help provided you can even get a cell phone signal. My point is I ride my bike (when time and work allows me to) where I want and as hard as I want to without being gentle for the most part. Even on a day of riding low boost I still get home and tell myself "damm that was fun and I can't believe its legal to have that much fun".

Is a turbo for everyone? Absolutely not!

Is there more maintenace? Get use to changing oil often to keep things healthy.

Is boost addictive? O hell yes! You may find yourself wanting more.

Is a meager 240 hp good enough? I say for street riding it is very tame, streetable, and fun fun fun.

If I had to do it all over again would I do it different? I would save the upgrade $$ and keep it to 240hp, but I can only say that because I have a 300hp bike. The upgrades are not money wasted they are doing their part, and are there for when I want to change out the fueling system and add secondaries to add more hp. I would stay at 240hp because the desert roads out in Vegas can not take more than 250hp. It is very easy to spin the tire out here in the sand polished asphault roads. Other roads in the country have better traction and better suited for hi hp bikes but not where I live.

 

[icehacka]

POWERHOUSE has 30+ years turbocharging both street and track bikes. Turbo bikes - built and tuned properly - are rock-solid reliable. Make sure that your motor is built to withstand more power than you plan on putting down; build your foundation strong and solid. That is key. Get a good, trusted and reliable kit - like the RCC - and have it installed and tuned by someone who knows what they are doing. If you set it up to run on pump gas, run it that way. Make sure that when it is tuned, it is done using the same fuel you intend on using, and make sure that the A/F is checked and set up properly for every boost level you intend on running: low boost, high boost, and everything in between. Don't "cheap out" on anything - do rods, pistons, studs, valves (Gen 2), valve springs, oil pump gear, good clutch springs and slave support. Build it right, build it once!

I have been building, tuning and riding turbo bikes since 1978. I have always had at least one turbo street bike in my stable. I went cross country, from N.Y. to Salt Lake City, Utah - on a turbo bike. Through snow, rain, and all kinds of miserable weather. I went from N.Y. to Montreal, non-stop, on a turbo bike, and then back again. I have put countless miles on turbo street bikes, and would not think twice about taking one on a long trip. I have three turbo street bikes right now- one of them is an RCC Ultra that put down just over 600 hp. Weather permitting, I ride that bike every day, and have been everywhere on that bike. I commute with it, and do a lot of sport riding with it. I've raced many other bikes, and many turbo cars with it. I've had it WFO more times than I can count. Right now this bike has over 7,000 street miles on it since the build. The only maintenance involved is changing the oil - although I have to admit, I've had to change the rear tire twice because of how I ride.

My opinion is that it is just as reliable as a stock Busa, because it was built right, and tuned right. Its just not as boring as a stock Busa!

Since it seems like you have been in this game for a long time, what's a ballpark cost to build the engine as you outlined and slap on a Stage 2 turbo? With the Stage 2 turbo kits being anywhere from $5500-$7000, I'd imagine the engine build to be another $3000-$4000?

 

[POWERHOUSE]

Since it seems like you have been in this game for a long time, what's a ballpark cost to build the engine as you outlined and slap on a Stage 2 turbo? With the Stage 2 turbo kits being anywhere from $5500-$7000, I'd imagine the engine build to be another $3000-$4000?

Your estimate of $3000 - $4000 is very close, and that is if we are talking about a Gen 2 with the additional cost of stainless steel valves . . . sometimes people look at these numbers and think they are unreachable; I will tell you flat out that a turbocharged bike can be the meanest, baddest bike you ever owned. In spite of all the money I spent on all my turbo bikes over the years, I don't have any regrets at all, except one: that I cannot ride my turbo bike every day!

 

[arthur39]

Your estimate of $3000 - $4000 is very close, and that is if we are talking about a Gen 2 with the additional cost of stainless steel valves . . . sometimes people look at these numbers and think they are unreachable; I will tell you flat out that a turbocharged bike can be the meanest, baddest bike you ever owned. In spite of all the money I spent on all my turbo bikes over the years, I don't have any regrets at all, except one: that I cannot ride my turbo bike every day!

+1 on that, If you have money to do both now, I would do them. Nothing like a built motor, it is a whole different animal (just got my done and it just sounds mean . I did my build over a period of 2 seasons because of finances. It is a lot of extra work and will have to re tune the bike. Don't skip on the trans work either. HD shift shafts, BIillet output shaft, undercut tranny (at least 2/6). I agree with Frank, all the money and work is well worth it when enjoying the ride.

 

[HayabusaPilot]

I don't really post much, but I do have a 2007 Busa with 46,000+ miles using a Hahn Stage 1 system and running into stock exhaust for "stealth" look. The bike runs great, long distance trips alot, especially the Busa Stampede (2010 and 2011) and going to the 2012. Just ran a 1,400 mile trip to Southern California last weekend. Powerhouse gave me some good info on "boost creep" that eased my worries. I think with following the maint./oil change schedules religiously, the turbo bikes are very reliable. We also have a stock 2008 and 2011...but the 2007 turbo is my favorite!

 

[Geek_Law]

I don't really post much, but I do have a 2007 Busa with 46,000+ miles using a Hahn Stage 1 system and running into stock exhaust for "stealth" look. ...

I don't think you can get a better endorsement than 46K on a turbo bike. That's amazing.