Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Honda’s 2&4 Concept Mashes 1960s Indy Car, F1 into Modern MotoGP

HONDA PROJECT 2&4 POWERED BY RC213V TO DEBUT AT FRANKFURT: A COM

A couple of weeks back, we dissected Honda’s teaser image and text of its Frankfurt concept, the 2&4. Now, on the eve of Europe’s biggest auto show of the year, Honda has released full images and a bit more information. Claiming influence from the pivotal RA272 Formula 1 car from 1965—the machine that gave Honda its first Grand Prix win—the 2&4 is a little more sedate than the V-12–powered monster of 50 years ago.

HONDA PROJECT 2&4 POWERED BY RC213V TO DEBUT AT FRANKFURT: A COM

After all, the 2&4 only features one-third the cylinder count yet revs to the same 14 grand. The 2&4 is, however, incredibly light, tipping the scales at just 892 pounds. Which, we might note, is less than a modern GL1800 Gold Wing. Like the Wing, however, the 2&4 features a motorcycle engine, in this case, plucked from the all-the-tech RC213V-S. Based on Marc Márquez’s MotoGP bike, the hyperlimited, $185,000 motorcycle makes close to 160 horsepower in stock trim for non-U.S. markets. A power kit raises that to “over 212” horsepower. Given that Honda makes the same claim for the 2&4, we’re assuming that it’s fundamentally the same engine. Peak horsepower comes at a lofty 13,000 rpm, while the full 87 lb-ft of torque arrives at 10,500.

HONDA PROJECT 2&4 POWERED BY RC213V TO DEBUT AT FRANKFURT: A COM

It’s just 119.7 inches long—which is six inches shorter than a standard-length Mercedes S-class’s wheelbase—39.2 inches high, and 71.6 inches wide, making the 2&4 smaller in every dimension than an Ariel Atom. More bonkers than that, though, is the seating position, which seems to have been cribbed from Smokey Yunick’s madcap “sidecar” Indy racer from 1964. But at least Yunick’s machine had something between the driver’s outside hip and the wall. Honda claims that the arrangement evokes “the freedom of a bike.”





We’re not entirely sure what the 2&4 evokes in us, other than a rather staggering desire to get behind the wheel of the thing. Sub–Gold Wing weight, near-MotoGP power, and a revival of one of Indy’s glorious follies? Sign us up yesterday, posthaste.

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