Wednesday 24th February 2016

PGM V8 bike: Time for Tea?

Thought eight cylinders in a motorbike really wasn't possible? Think again!

---

V8 powered motorbikes aren't new. What is relatively new is a V8 motorbike you'd actually want to ride.

With the honourable exception of Bill Lomas's Moto Guzzi 500cc racer from the mid-1950s, most eight-cylinder bikes have been silly things staggering under the weight of physically enormous Chevy car engines.

Step forward then the wonder that is Aussie Paul G Maloney's PGM V8, a beautifully packaged 2.0-litre V8 that is the thoroughbred racehorse to the carthorses that have gone before.

Billed as the world's most powerful production motorcycle, the PGM is powered by a purpose-built 1,996cc 90-deg V8 featuring sand-cast aluminium crankcases, 40 valves, a billet crank and eight 45mm Mikuni throttle bodies. That little lot adds up to a handsome 334hp at 12,800rpm (yes!) and 158lb ft at 9,500rpm.

Though it is a flat-plane V8, the PGM's extraordinary revvability must surely more than make up for any perceived shortfall in sonic character. The video can only give you a taste of what this must sound like in the open air through the Akrapovic titanium exhaust system.

Judging by the PGM's cycle parts spec, there's no reason to feel daunted by the PGM's riding experience either. It all sounds right. The seat height is a friendly 840mm - the same as a Kawasaki Versys 650 - and the wheelbase is 1,540mm, which again to give you some perspective is the same as a Triumph Tiger Sport or Yamaha XT1200 Super Tenere.

With carbon fibre bodywork the wet weight is a perfectly manageable 242kg, about the same as a Suzuki Hayabusa or VS1400 Intruder, distributed 51/49 front to rear. The suspension is pukka too with fully-adjustable 48mm Ohlins FGRT301 forks and an Ohlins TTX Mk 2 damper attached to a chrome-moly tube trellis front chassis and a CNC-machined aluminium rear section. To stop the beast you get 320mm discs up front and a 220mm rear, clamped by Brembo GP4 nickel plated calipers.

All very normal. The only thing that isn't quite so normal is the price: $180,000 Australian, or just over £92K at current rates. It is rather fabulous though.

Watch the video here.
 

[QuattroDave]

I'm not a motorbike fan but I do love the look and sound of that and being Australian built it'll be available in right hand drive too.....

[nicfaz]

QuattroDave said:

I'm not a motorbike fan but I do love the look and sound of that and being Australian built it'll be available in right hand drive too.....

Ba boom boom, tish!

[QuattroDave]

nicfaz said:

Ba boom boom, tish!

What can I say, it's a slow day in the orofice!

[sjtscott]

Sounds nice considering its flat plane crank and clearly has plenty of go.. its a shame it couldn't have had a proper V8 standard crank and associated noise though

[3DP]

Shame they didn't sacrifice a few BHP to make it a traditionally firing V8 rather than flat plane V8. Otherwise ace!

[marksx]

Seems odd not to fit a fairing though if you are going for that much oomph. Suppose you wouldn't see the engine though.

Top Speed? How brave are you? About 140 mph, unless you are He-Man.

[smilo996]

Never seen the point of huge engines in a small two wheeled frame. The H2R proves the point that you can get silly power economically. Unless we are in America and all that is important is straight lines.

Cannot image it handles well on UK B roads.

[grahamr88]

Love it. I assume the engine is based on a pair of R1 engines?

[Speed addicted]

marksx said:

Seems odd not to fit a fairing though if you are going for that much oomph. Suppose you wouldn't see the engine though.

Top Speed? How brave are you? About 140 mph, unless you are He-Man.

I've done 150mph on unfaired bikes, once you get over the wind pressure and feeling like your neck will be one solid lump it's not that bad really. Did 3k miles in a week round Germany then rode from London to Aberdeen in one day on the way home. I couldn't turn my head for two days without crunching sounds.

Years ago Superbike magazine did a 200mph shootout, the first bike to hit a genuine timed 200p mph on the day was an unfaired 1200 bandit turbo.

Well it's between this or the Suter MMX500 for my lottery bike!

[Bakazan]

Judging by the size of the rad it looks like they had some cooling issues.

[bogie]

smilo996 said:

Never seen the point of huge engines in a small two wheeled frame. The H2R proves the point that you can get silly power economically. Unless we are in America and all that is important is straight lines.

Cannot image it handles well on UK B roads.

It weighs the same as a H2 so likely better than you think (its not like a Boss Hoss V8 chevy lump)...mind you the H2 is not exactly a B road bike either

So it has a real 330bhp and 242kg....I bet the anti wheelie and traction control is working overtime trying to contain all that so the average bloke can stay on it...utterly pointless on the road, but its nice to see someone still making these crazy vehicles

Looks nicely engineered, if a little bland...not really much of a looker for your £90k

[Baryonyx]

smilo996 said:

Never seen the point of huge engines in a small two wheeled frame. The H2R proves the point that you can get silly power economically. Unless we are in America and all that is important is straight lines.

Cannot image it handles well on UK B roads.

I would imagine it'd be fine on the long straight roads of Australia though. Big long roads demanding power and not much handling needed.

[unsprung]

Speed addicted said:

I couldn't turn my head for two days without crunching sounds.

lol !!!

[RexT]

For those of us more used to four wheels how about that in a Caterham or even, with a big manufacturer, in a replacement for the Honda S2000? They might sell a few!
If small scale chaps can produce stuff like this, and congrats for coming up with something completely bonkers, we should all be allowed to experience it - shouldn't we ?

[JohnGoodridge]

Would that engine fit in an Elise?

Just saying.

Bike looks like a pretty thorough piece of engineering though.

[Baryonyx]

How long could that engine drag the weight of an Elise around for before going bang?

[RexT]

A Morgan 3 wheeler with 2 litres of V8 rather than 2 cylinders of a litre each then? It might sound better !

[dc2rr07]

'Billed as the world's most powerful production motorcycles' that's a bit of a stretch for a 90k bespoke bike, not exactly production is it.

[Fleegle]

I see the power, I see the weight, I see the forks and shock.........and think they just aint man enough


And it fecking ugly......looks like it would get beeched running over a fag butt



Oh...and £92K....get real you aussie tits (is that casey fella in on this?)

[Mastodon2]

Sounds nice, but all that power and no fairing doesn't sound like much fun for high speed straight line blasting and it looks massive. The weight distribution might be finely balanced but the visual impression is dominated by that giant engine in the middle, which is probably exactly what they want you to see, but it looks flabby. It sounds nice on acceleration, but the gear shifts seem very long on the fast acceleration clips, perhaps the box doesn't like being rushed.

I'd be interested to have a go, more so on this than one of those daft Boss Hoss thing, but it's not where I'd spend my £92,000.