I have heard numerous numbers as to the horsepower rating of the DN-01 from different sites/"expert" people. Could someone please tell me what the official/real number is. AND IF it possible to "increase" said HP without damaging the HFT if one wanted to. How would one do it? Just curious. Thanks
The Honda published horsepower at the engine is 60BHP. ( Do a Google search on "Honda DN-01 60BHP" and all the introduction press announcements mention it. Honda took the DN-01 specs off their web site last year.)
I think the confusion comes from a number of issues. Apparently, the Euro (British?) version was detuned for local government reasons to 51BHP at the engine. Rear wheel HP is always less than at the engine. Dynos are notoriously dependent on the operator and elevation/weather with plugged in correction factors. The DN-01 has an odd transmission that does not lend itself to redline testing on a dyno; manual mode or not it will shift or not shift when it wants to. At least some of the reviews mention the difficulty in putting the bike on a dyno and getting predictable results.
In the real world, few people who own a bike are going to redline the engine and drop the clutch at a stop light on a regular basis to get the performance one gets on a dyno or in a magazine 0-60 test. On the other hand, a DN-01 is dirt simple to get very close to its best performance without any risk of damage; twist and go. Its not a fast bike, but its faster than most cars on the road and 90% performance is very accessible on a regular basis.
Frankly, most people don't really ride their bikes much and live a world of magazine reviews and bragging to their friends. Doubt that last bit? My runner up choice for a bike was a V-Rod. Most 10 year old V-Rods had <5k miles. So did most Sportsters and non-touring Harleys.
