An Öhlins FGRT 43mm inverted...
An Öhlins FGRT 43mm inverted fork handles suspension duties up front, with four-piston/radial-mount Beringer Aerotec calipers and 310mm stainless steel discs helping bleed off speed.
Sims also outfitted his 'Busa with ceramic bearings from World Wide Bearings (which we found significantly reduced rolling friction in wheels back in our May '05 test, "Hybrid Ceramic Bearings") in the front and rear wheels. A two-stage MTC lockup clutch with beefy Muzzys all-billet inner and outer clutch basket ensures that the massive power gets transferred with zero slippage loss, and a tool steel shift shaft from Brock's Performance keeps everything working smoothly when the air shifter (utilizing a unique design by Ryan and Richard Sims that bolts into the left side cases) is punched during dragstrip runs.
Sims wanted maximum suspension performance, and he didn't want to mess around with the stock components, so he turned to Dan Kyle at Kyle Racing for an Öhlins FGRT 43mm inverted fork and fully adjustable rear shock. A set of ultra-light BST carbon fiber wheels from Brock's Performance are shod with Avon VP2 Sport tires to add to the traction quotient. Keeping all the speed in check is a pair of Beringer four-piston/radial-mount Aerotec calipers and 310mm stainless steel discs.
The custom Kosman extended...
The custom Kosman extended swingarm utilizes an axle block with two holes. The rearmost hole allows a 64-plus-inch wheelbase for dragracing and speed runs, while the forward hole shortens the wheelbase to the back end of the stock measurement.
Exquisitely machined Sato...
Exquisitely machined Sato Racing rearsets keep the rider's feet where they should be. The Nitrous bottle resides inside the swingarm in front of the rear tire. Note the incredibly nice welds on the Brock's Performance titanium exhaust.
This shot shows the Kosman...
This shot shows the Kosman output shaft support that prevents the countershaft from getting pulled back under the stress of high horsepower, hard launch conditions. The air shifter setup was custom designed and built by Sims and his son Ryan.
This fail-safe switch on the...
This fail-safe switch on the throttle cam ensures that the nitrous cannot be activated unless the throttle is wide open.
Excellent vision and aerodynamics...
Excellent vision and aerodynamics from the Zero Gravity double bubble windscreen were nice to have at 213 mph. Brock's Performance triple clamp allows access and adjustment of the Öhlins fork tubes, while a Pit Bull rotary steering damper quells headshake.
The elegant fabrication of...
The elegant fabrication of the wet nitrous setup on the Sims bike is evident when you remove the airbox lid. It took Sims and his son Ryan about 30 hours to design and build this custom setup.
Kosman Specialities designed and fabricated the unique lengthened swingarm that features "dual-hole axle" blocks. This allows the usage of the same swingarm for both an extra-long 64-inch wheelbase for dragracing, and a shorter wheelbase that is close to back end of stock length for regular street and canyon work. Kosman also designed (and sells) the output shaft support that connects the countershaft and swingarm pivot boss in the frame, preventing the countershaft from deflecting under hard launches and big horsepower at the dragstrip.
Here you can see the dual...
Here you can see the dual battery setup that pumps 24 volts to the starter motor for easy starting, while maintaining 12 volts for the rest of the electrical system. Lee's Performance re-flashed the stock ECU to disable the speed limiter, increase the rev limiter, and retard the ignition when the nitrous is activated. Schnitz PNC-3000 nitrous controller and Bazzaz Z-Fi fuel computer handle their respective categories. The DME Race Chassis aluminum rear subframe weighs half of the stock unit.
When it comes to electronic (and even electric) trickery, the Sims 'Busa is packed to the gills. For example, because a heavily modded 'Busa engine can be difficult to turn over quickly enough to fire up, Ryan Sims designed and fabricated a unique dual-battery system that briefly pumps 24 volts to the starter motor while maintaining a normal 12 volts to the rest of the bike's electrical system. By running a standard-size battery along with a smaller additional one in series, the system can produce the necessary current for easy engine startup while still retaining the stock charging system without overloading.
An increasingly popular mod these days is "reflashing" the stock ECU. Various portions of modern sportbike ECU programming can be modified-the trick is cracking the access code. The increasing sophistication of computer hackers has resulted in some shops being able to gain access and change the programming on some stock ECUs. Lee's Performance is one such place, and they re-programmed Sims' stock ECU in three ways: the 184 mph speed limiter has been disabled, the rev limiter increased from 11,000 rpm to 12,000 rpm, and a special feature that retards the ignition 10 degrees when the nitrous system is activated.
Ah, the nitrous system. Sims decided on a "wet" nitrous system (one that injects both fuel and nitrous, versus a "dry" nitrous system that depends on the stock injectors to deliver the extra fuel) because he has a lot of experience designing and building them. "Dry nitrous systems are neat because they're cheap and easy to install," said Sims, "but I'm more comfortable with wet systems because I know that enough fuel is being delivered." Richard and Ryan spent about 30 hours designing the custom nitrous system on the 'Busa, with an intricate delivery system that fits inside the stock airbox without restricting airflow. The system uses a recirculating fuel setup to maintain a constant five pounds of pressure to the fuel solenoids. A Schnitz Racing PNC-3000 nitrous controller manages the numerous fuel and nitrous solenoids, and offers countless options for fuel and nitrous delivery; the nitrous bottle is mounted within the swingarm in front of the rear tire.
Handling the fuel tuning side of the electronics is a Bazzaz Z-Fi unit. A very versatile piggyback fuel tuning computer, the big difference between the Z-Fi and "closed-loop" fuel tuning units is that the Bazzaz is able to record data so that you can see what changes are being suggested (and hence, what changes you actually make) to the fuel maps, giving you a more accurate measurement of your bike's state of tune.