Injector gadget

Fuel injection in motorcycles open up a whole new world of possibilities.

Hero Honda has just launched India's first fuel injected motorcycle, the Glamour FI. It becomes one of the world's smallest displacement motorcycles to sport the technology. The 125cc motor now incorporates a tilt sensor which cuts fuel flow if the motorcycle falls.

On the more visual side, the Glamour FI will look the same, but it will have an LCD gauge among the instruments which will include an instant fuel economy readout.

The Glamour FI is priced at Rs 49,990 (drum brake, kick start) and Rs 53,990 (disc brake, electric start) ex-showroom Delhi. Which is roughly Rs 5,500 over the normal carburetted models.

We expect that differential to come down as fuel injection becomes more common "" Hero Honda officials said that fuel injection will appear on more of its motorcycles.

Meanwhile, Bajaj is lining up the launch of the new Pulsar DTS-Fi, which will take over from the Pulsar 180 DTSi as the new flagship product. While Bajaj is keeping details in the market scanty, it is known that the new motorcycle will combine the twin spark plug setup with a fuel injection system.

Seeing the rise in capacity (and therefore speed), there will also be chassis upgrades, including stronger suspension, more braking prowess and more comprehensive instrumentation.

In a few months, India will have two fuel-injected bikes on sale, and more importantly, a whole flood of them is likely to follow. What does that mean for motorcyclists?

An industry source commented recently that while we normally expect electronic fuel injection (EFI) to bring performance and fuel economy gains, they aren't guaranteed.

The contention is that if the carburettor setup was (theoretically) perfect there should be no gains at all, since the EFI basically does the same work as a carburettor.

In the real world, dramatic gains will only be seen on motorcycles that don't have well-sorted carburettors.

But the primary benefits of fuel injection lie elsewhere. In essence, the EFI uses a microprocessor to instantaenously track the engine operating conditions (similar to F1 style telemetry).

It uses this data and a pre-loaded map (a comprehensive set of operating guidelines) to determine what would be the right air-fuel mix composition and the ideal spark timing.

Hundreds of times a second, the system responds to changes in ambient temperature, engine temperature, throttle position, etc to produce the best bang possible. The key word is accuracy.

This accuracy brings out the benefits of EFIs. Cleaner burns mean smoother operation and crisper feel.

The microprocessor also makes it easier to start the motorcycle, and will also compensate in extreme weather or altitude-related conditions. If the fuel is clean, EFIs are also require far, far lower maintenance. The performance and fuel economy benefits do exist, of course, but engineers consider them side-effects.

In India, the motorcycle industry is already meeting some of the strictest emissions standards in the world. That means our carburetted motorcycles are already running very efficiently. So adding fuel injection should not automatically produce giant leaps in performance or economy.

However, the entry of software creates other possibilities. You could, for instance, combine the best of both worlds and create a motorcycle that is indecently economical, say, between 2000 and 4500 rpm.

However, once the rider crosses that, there could be another side to that motorcycle, making every ounce possible of power past 6000 rpm. A microprocessor fed with the right map would make this sort of flexible motorcycle eminently possible. Which is an interesting prospect.

As you would have noted, the current per unit cost to the customer for fuel injection, is around Rs 5,500. As the technology becomes more and more common, and more products enter the market, the cost will drop per unit.

It is interesting that Bajaj and Hero Honda are taking two radically different approaches to the EFI transition (yes, it's inevitable "" as emissions tighten further, EFIs will become the default jumping off point to meeting them). Bajaj is showcasing their technology in their flagship, while Hero Honda has chosen a bread-and-butter segment motorcycle to debut the technology.

Obviously, the latter has the advantage of netting greater economies of scale, while the former will enjoy the glitz of being a desirable, aspirational product. Again, we expect both (and others) to spread the technology and its benefits across their range. We're even prepared to be surprised by how quickly the transition may be complete.