From the archives: Motorcycle safety tips

Scanning through past Consumer Reports articles on motorcycles, scooters, and mopeds, advice from the June 1981 issue resonated with me today. The basic wisdom from decades past still applies today. I set this research aside to address later, along with lessons gleaned from the well-packaged Motorcycle Safety Foundation’s Guide to Motorcycling Excellence and other bike publications cluttering my desk. However, a news headline from Automotive News today ("Pininfarina CEO dies in road accident") drove home the importance of again sharing safety advice, particularly before a summer weekend. (Also see the Pininfarina company statement and New York Times article.)

Andrea Pininfarina, the CEO of famed automotive design firm Pininfarina, died this morning. He was reportedly riding a Vespa scooter to work when he was struck by a car. At this time, I do not know the particulars of this tragedy, though it underscores that safety must be of paramount concern when riding any motorcycle or scooter, and much of the following applies to both.

Excerpted from Consumer Reports, June 1981:

There are three main reasons [motorcycles have a higher death rate than automobiles]:

1. A motorcycle is much harder to see than a car.
2. A motorcycle offers its rider little or no protection
3. A motorcycle’s handling is tricky—if it skids, it often spills.

• Like any motorized two-wheeler, a motorcycle must be ridden with extreme care. Steering, accelerating, and braking require skill and a high degree of coordination to handle competently. If you’re used to power steering, power brakes, and automatic transmission, learning to balance a motorcycle while handling its clutch and gear-shifter can be a formidable task.
• If you’re a beginner, ride especially conservatively for the first six months or so. Learn to operate the clutch and both brakes smoothly and precisely, to avoid skidding. As your skill increases, gradually discover the limits of your motorcycle’s traction—but do it in a safe place, away from traffic, and do it carefully.
• A properly designed motorcycle, when cornered too hard, always skids out at the rear. To recover control, allow the skid to continue somewhat, without aggravating it. Reduce throttle so the engine is neither speeding you up nor slowing you down. Don’t touch the brakes. To maintain balance, steer in the direction of the skid—that is, turn the front wheel to the right if the rear wheel is skidding to the right. Brake only when you have the motorcycle under full control.
• Use the front brake carefully to avoid locking up the front wheel. If the front wheel begins to skid, release the brake instantly.
• Drive defensively. Assume that you are invisible and that motorists therefore will not give you the right of way. It’s unwise to place your life in the hands of every stranger who drives by.

Our current engineers also caution that traction varies widely on different road surfaces and in different weather. Learn to scan the pavement and determine the level of grip available. If it’s too shiny, it may be slick.

In the future, we explore the Consumer Reports archives further and dig deeper into safety and ownership issues. Learn more about motorcycle and scooter safety from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation.

—Jeff Bartlett

For more motorcycles and scooters coverage, read our blog entries:
Vespa LX150 scooter – A fair-weather friend
Tips on buying and driving a motorcycle or scooter
Downsizing to two wheels - Motorcycle interest revs up
Motorists move to scooters and motorcycles to save
Motorcycle death rates doubled; supersport bikes the most dangerous

Read our full report and tests of scooters and motorcycles. Also, join in the Motorcycles & scooters forum discussion. 

Comments

[Cale]

The fourth item "Use the front brake carefully to avoid locking up the front wheel. If the front wheel begins to skid, release the brake instantly." Sounds like advice to minimize front brake application.

On the contrary, the best study of motorcycle accidents, the Hurt Report, found that many accidents could have been avoided had the rider used the front brake more aggressively.

By all means, practice progressive braking, but make the front brake your primary focus when stopping. It provides up to 80% of your bike's stopping power.

Train your muscles to react properly in an emergency by practicing panic stops (in a safe place) on a regular basis. Or buy a bike with ABS brakes so you can prevent front wheel lock-up.

Ride Safely.

[Mike]

I wholeheartedly agree with the previous poster. The front brake is where you get most of your stopping power on a bike. Don't be afraid to use it. Looking at the recommendations, I think they really need to be updated. Today's tires and brakes on motorcycles are vastly improved from 1981. In fair weather and good road surfaces, I don't think you could brake hard enough to wash out the front. Now riding in gravel is another story.

[chasfs]

Visibility is number 1 on your list and here are some pointers that can make a big different in that area. Headlight modulators flash the headlight during the day and in my experience do a great job of catching the attention of oncoming motorists. Similarly, brake light flashers can help drivers behind you see that you are stopping. Additional reflective materials, either on the bike or on your clothing, improve your visibility to others at night.

Thanks,
-chasfs

[jim wilkinson]

i cant find consumer report about motorcycle...which is one best brand bike and best quaitly etc also less trouble etc alike maintance free or less problem on parts etc alike car have one but dont have one for motorcycle can u give me which one website i am look for 1995 bmw k 1200 lt....thanks jim ....i hope hear from u asap....

[John]

Here's an typical accident scenario that I have personally experienced:

On a 45mph 2-lane highway, an oncoming car driver about 50 feet away impulsively turned left directly into my path. The driver didn't use his directional signal, so to me it seemed that he was simply aiming his vehicle directly at my bike. When this happens, it usually results in death for the motorcyclist. However, even though the crash is just a second or two away, there are decisions that can be made that help the rider to survive.

First, squeeze the front brake lever...hard! At the same time, apply a moderate amount of pressure to the rear brake pedal and simultaneously squeeze the clutch lever, kicking the gears down as fast as possible. Speed reduction is a must if you are to survive.

Second, discipline yourself to avert your eyes away from the oncoming vehlcle. If you keep your eyes on the object you need to avoid, you will end up crashing head-on into it. Instead, look for a way out, either to the left or to the right.

Third, you need to decide which way you should go. Moving to the right is almost always better, for several reasons. There is a chance the oncoming vehicle will take evasive action at the last second by trying to swerve his car back into his lane, and if that's where you decided to go you will have a problem. Also, if you hit the rear quarter panel of his vehicle while swerving left, you will end up sliding into the oncoming lane of traffic, where you should not legally be. Another oncoming car may hit you. At the very least, you may be judged partially at fault for crossing the center line, even though you did that as an evasive maneuver. It is better to aim to the right and hope that the other driver will stop before hitting you. Even if he doesn't stop, you'll be connecting with his vehicle at an angle, reducing the initial impact upon your body. In my case, I needed to seek a right-hand escape because all the mailbox posts on that road were on the left side, and I did not want to hit one of those. If you hit a mailbox post, you are at fault because it is a fixed object. Even though the other driver did not stop, he was found to be 100% at fault since he was in motion illegally and violating my right of way. To be 100% without fault in an accident means a lot to a motorcyclist when the medical bills reach a quarter million dollars, as even a 10% responsibility will cost you $25,000.

Finally, once you are airborne (which you will be), try to relax your limbs so that you break as few bones as possible when you hit the ground. In my case, since I used a right-hand escape route, I landed in a grassy culvert away from the pavement. My helmet saved my face and head. Quick response by the paramedics prevented a fatal loss of blood on the way to the hospital. The only long-term problem from this crash was an amputated leg, which is quite common in motorcycle accidents.

[tom]

There are two types of accidents, ones that are caused by other drivers and ones that are caused by the riders themselves. After riding for over 40 years I can't begin to count the accidents I've seen caused by riders not properly handling turns. Gravel, sand, autumn leaves, dirt, steel manhole covers, etc. are death for motorcyclists in turns. In a straight line they are normally ridden through without difficulty. The key to handling a turn, especially to the right, is to not cut off the turn at the apex. You must drive far enough past the turn to see into the corner and evaluate the surface. If you turn too quickly, i.e. at the apex, you can't see far enough into the corner to see the surface.