How many years do you think we had worked hard?
A part of me felt mad.
At the 1979 French GP where both of the two NR500s could not qualify to race. Takeo Fukui is shown at right in the photo. Shoichiro Irimajiri is in the center. (Photo/Takeo Fukui)
It was Shoichiro Irimajiri, general manager of motorcycle development at Honda who decided to switch from the 4-stroke NR to the 2-stroke NS with top priority to win. Irimajiri was also the inventor of the oval piston engine concept and handed off the NR project to Fukui. It was only natural for him to jump on his boss.
"At that time, I didn't think we had provided the best performance out of NR. There were a lot of things we hadn't done yet. If we had completed all the tasks, we would have potential to win. That was our belief. You could easily succeed with 2-stroke, but switching to 2-stroke here would be complicated for us. That's why I thought it would be better to stick to 4-stroke."
"We also knew how well a 2-stroke machine was suited for racing. While we had a lot of trouble with the 4-stroke at the races, neighboring 2-stroke teams seemed relaxed after checking cylinders. Anyway, NR became competitive little by little and when we felt strong for the 3rd and 4th seasons, NS came on stage hogging all the credit we accumulated with NR. That made me feel more or less like 'How many years do you think we had worked hard?' But I hated to lose anymore. The result of struggling was an open mind for change. NR or NS? Either machine will do. I thought it would be fine whichever way."
"Besides that, they were in the midst of the HY War and Honda was pushed by Yamaha in those years. I think the upper management of Honda, people higher than me, were filled with a sense of crisis."
In 1983, between the opening round and the final round, we increased about 10 hp.
Riding a matured second-year NS500, Freddie Spencer won the Grand Prix in 1983. He became the youngest premier-class champion in history. (Photo/Honda)
In 1982, NS500 with a 2-stroke V-type 3-cylinder engine was introduced to the opening round of the World Grand Prix. Next year, Freddie Spencer riding NS engaged in a historic battle with Kenny Roberts on Yamaha YZR500.
"In 1983, I didn't go to the Grand Prix because we were busy here in Japan. We collected data from every race and prepared for the next race including changing parts and such. Everything was supervised from Japan. Racing site was easier because they were just racing."
"In the beginning of the season, we had an advantage, but halfway through, Kenny's Yamaha was really catching up. For obvious reasons, it was just a matter of horsepower. Our engine was a 3-cylinder, and theirs was a 4-cylinder. Yamaha was faster on the straights and we were usually caught by the end. So we desperately tried everything in Japan. You can't tell the difference from the standpoint of appearance, but the maximum speed increased to a degree. Especially in the second half of 1983, we also increased horsepower."
"The secret of the improvement was not only the power valve system but the craftsmen tapping the ports, designing the shape of the exhaust chambers and trying their combinations. Because we were manufacturing motocrossers, we had quite a few ace craftsmen in our factory. Thanks to such efforts, I think we increased ouput by around 10 horsepower between the opening round and the final round in 1983."
"However, doing the math and based on the practical calculated values for acceleration performance and maximum speed, we were not in it with a 4-cylinder engine. Their smaller bore is more favorable to avoid burn-in that is the biggest problem for a 2-stroke engine. That's why we started to run the 4-cylinder NSR in 1984. In the beginning, we were OK with a 3-cylinder engine, however the right choice was a 4-cylinder engine. Based on the regulations, the 500cc 4-cylinder engine was full spec. I think I made a good decision."
