At the ongoing EICMA 2014 international motorcycle show in
Milan, Italy brake genius Brembo is represented through some very powerful motorcycles.
Brembo SpA is the world leader and acknowledged innovator of disc brake
technology for automotive vehicles.
Two Japanese manufacturers are featuring Brembo components
at the show. These are Yamaha and Suzuki. Have you ever wondered how to stop
the most powerful production motorcycle ever built? Kawasaki's engineers turned
to Brembo for the answer when they were designing the track-only 2015 Ninja
H2R, which produces 300 hp from a supercharged engine, and its street-legal
Ninja H2 sibling. The entire system has been specifically designed for the H2R
and H2. It includes a new sintered pad material, BRM 11G, developed in
cooperation with Kawasaki for this project. The front brake system makes use of
the famous race-proven M50 caliper and employs a powerful 16/21 radial master
cylinder. It is operated by a brake lever designed exclusively for this
machine. At the rear, stopping is provided by a fixed caliper with twin 32mm
diameter pistons, a 15/19 radial master cylinder and a 28mm diameter, gravity
die cast clutch slave cylinder body which is painted in black.
The Brembo brake components and systems also feature on the Suzuki
concept motorcycle: Recursion. The Suzuki's supercharged 588cc concept
motorcycle has a Brembo concept front caliper. This employs a fixed six piston
caliper, four pads and two independent circuits. Two 26mm diameter pistons on
the front caliper are driven by the rear master cylinder, which acts
simultaneously on the rear caliper, while the other pair of twin 32mm diameter
pistons at the front are driven by the front master cylinder. To restrict the
overall dimensions of the front caliper, the upper radial fixing is positioned
between the central pair and upper pair
of twin pistons. The caliper is designed for use with a 330mm diameter, 5mm
thick brake disc and is attractively finished in nickel with the Brembo logo in
bas-relief.
According to a Brembo press release, the choice of Brembo as
the brake design partner and supplier for these two highly innovative projects reflects
the Italian company's increasingly close relationship with Japan's leading
motorcycle manufacturers in the supply
of OE parts. This follows many years of proven success on the race track in
such world class competitions as MotoGP and SBK. Brembo, which currently
supplies Suzuki, but also Honda in MotoGP and Kawasaki and Honda in
SBK, also supplies OE brake components for many of these
manufacturers larger and sportier bikes. For example, Brembo calipers have been on Suzukis
since 2010 with the GSX-R 600 and 750 and now on the GSXS 1000 and 1000F naked. Brembo debuted with
Honda at EICMA in 2013 on new CBR 1000 RR Fireblade SP with a new monoblock
caliper featuring differentiated diameter 30 mm and 32 mm pistons.