Up To Speed

UP TO SPEED

TECHNICAL

How to Make Your Speedometer as Fast as Your Bike.

Just how fast motorcyclists have been riding on the newer machines has been a matter of speculation, guessing and the occasional cooperation of stern-faced men in funny hats who drive cars equipped with bright red lights. Even law-abiding, slow-riding motorcyclists have been heard to ridicule the federally mandated 85 mph speedometers. Why, of all the numbers the printer can affix to a faceplate, should they all read 85? There’s nothing sacred about the number. It isn’t even required for new motorcycles any more, though we haven’t seen the first new bike without one yet.

Time to fight back. No longer are you stuck with an 85 mph speedometer on your 140 mph superbike. Moon Lite Ltd. has come to your rescue. Moon Lite recalibrates speedometers. This isn’t a little sticky that gets fastened on the speedometer and then slowly peels off. No sir. You have to take the speedometer off your bike and send it to Moon Lite to have it liberated from the influence of the Anti-Destination League. When it comes back about a week later the speedometer will look perfectly normal, all the way up to the 140 mph top speed. How nice.

To investigate this service we plucked the speedometer off a Yamaha Seca 650 and mailed it to Moon Lite. Back it came a week later. It looked perfect. The new dial read up to 140 mph, just like motorcycle speedometers used to look. As easily as it came off the bike, it went back on, not taking more than 5 min.

Best of all the speedometer works. Just hold the throttle open and shift through the gears and watch the needle sweep past 100 mph. What fun. Because the speedometer has been recalibrated, the odometer and trip odometer work just as they are supposed to, measuring miles accurately. Speedometer error is negligible. One of the few benefits of the old speedometer laws was a requirement for accuracy. Before that law, Japanese bikes in particular had speedometers and odometers with as much regard for veracity as senators who buy cars with fresh unmarked $20 bills. Motorcycle speedometers have at least become accurate up to 85 mph, and the Moon Lite modified speedometer is as accurate as the stock speedometer.

Not all motorcycles can be fitted by Moon Lite. Speedometer faces are available for cable driven round speedometers, square Kawasaki and Yamaha speedometers, the hemispherical Suzuki GS750 and 1100 speedometers and the Katana.

Cost is $79 for the round and most special shapes, $69 for 750 and 1100 Suzuki. For other speedometers or special requests, best contact Moon Lite Ltd., 10 Meyer Ct., Hermosa Beach, Calif. 90254. (213) 374-1657. B