“Don’t put too much stock in fuel injection for 2007″ was what I was told by an industry insider. We were deep in a poker game of what’s new next year and I couldn’t tell if he was bluffing or going all-in. So I did a little research. At the first round of the All-Japan National MX the factories rolled out the works equipment. It is usually a blurry view into what we’ll see on our dealers showroom floor next year. And FI is the big new thing everyone is playing with. All of the factories except Kawasaki has a 450cc bike running the electronic fuel system instead of the traditional carburetor. But after pouring through tons of photos, from long lens shots through the team tents to the belt-buckle sneaky shots, it may just be till 2008 before we see it and here’s why.First, there’s more to it than just swapping out the carb for a throttle body. First you have to power it. Even though the Honda ran a production looking cover, the other bikes all had works ignition covers obviously to get a little extra power out of the ignition to run the system, most of that extra steam going to a high pressure fuel pump that is generally housed inside the fuel tank. There are sensors and of course the control of the injector and running the computer to tell it all what to do. So we looked to the second issue and notice that all of the fuel tanks on the bikes were either hand made aluminum or carbon fiber. Not too production there! We have learned that the molding of the tanks is one of the first processes finalized during a production start-up. Then there is the issue of testing and development. Since this is only the first time (the second time for the Yamaha) that most of these FI have been out in public, they are likely still refining it in actual racing conditions (Honda was extremely secretive running a cover on their bike most of the time. We all know it is coming, it is just a matter of when? And the biggest stumbling block is price. This stuff will add to the already skyrocketing retail prices and for that the carb may just hang on a little longer. In all reality, we will be more likely to see this technology appear on off-road bikes that are governed by stringent emissions standards, that will grow even tighter in 2008 as opposed to the unregulated competition MX bikes unless there is a clear power or tuning advantage that can’t be ignored.
