Anti-lock Brakes for Motorcycles

This was originally published on 2008-01-16.  It was significantly updated, based in-part on feedback, on 2009-10-14.

Purchasing My ABS Motorcycle

Almost every advance in the world-of-motorcycle-safety came from the world-of-racing with the exception of two: anti-lock brakes (ABS) and airbags.

Anti-lock brakes aren’t on most motorcycles because motorcyclists are extremely conservative with regards to changes in the motorcycle-world.

Who is even more risk-averse than motorcyclists?  …motorcycle dealers.  They won’t order motorcycles with new, optional safety features unless customers have requested them-to.  Dealers are afraid that the higher price may make them less competitive.

The 50-closest Suzuki dealers (that belong to the Powersports Network, Ctrl-C, Ctrl-V, Click Submit, Repeat, 50 times) only ordered one SV650 with ABS and one SV650S with ABS for 2007.  That’s not 2 motorcycles-per-dealer, that’s two motorcycles, period.  American Suzuki Motor Corporation advertised ABS left-and-right, but it was already too-late for the dealers to order more for that year.  We had to decide whether to purchase the S-model or not, and the answer to that question determined whether we would be making a trip to Colorado or to Illinois.  We went to Illinois, because it’s easier to add a tubular handlebar to an SV650S ABS than it is to add a fairing to an SV650 ABS.

Using My ABS Motorcycle

Motorcycle manufacturers advise riders to only use their anti-lock brakes while the wheels are in a straight line.  We don’t know why.  Maybe they are worried about what could happen if a litigious rider crashes while leaned over.  Maybe anti-lock brakes are only tested for straight-line panic braking.  Maybe they are concerned that the pulsing will upset the bike.  I can’t vouch for how well they will work for you (that’s my disclaimer), but I can tell you that they have worked very well for me, while leaned over, at high speed (at least for me), at Heartland Park, in the rain (thump-thump-thump-thump).

Yeah, man: I messed up and did that a couple of times.  No, I was nowhere near as fast as some other folks, but my middle name isn’t “competence”, and my bike doesn’t have a real sportbike suspension, so its easier to upset it (I am too heavy for the springs at any setting).  The SV650 comes with a standard fork suspension adjustable for pre-load only.  I love my SV650, but after factoring in a suspension upgrade the Suzuki GSX-R600 starts looking not-so-expensive.

So here is my claim: anti-lock brakes will help in every case. Let’s list a couple:

Alternatives?

“I had to lay ‘er down!”

This is the kind of thing that you hear in biker bars, at bike nights, and at bike rallies.  At least it was the kind of thing that I heard when I went to such places.  Also, I don’t know how many times a non-rider said something to me like: “My uncle is a really good biker, and even he had to lay her down to avoid crashing into a truck!”  (OK, I can tell you: I think that I heard something like this five or six times.)  Folks tend to believe (after the fact) that they actually chose to scrape-up their motorcycle in order to avoid colliding with another vehicle.

To be sure: colliding with a vehicle is something that you truly want to avoid.  I describe it this way in my airbag post: During a collision your pelvis gets crushed by the “fuel tank”, your head bounces off the other vehicle, your neck snaps, your spine gets compressed, and your skull gets crushed.  Your last thought before all that happens shouldn’t be: “Gee, I am glad that I saved money by not buying that [ABS].”

…but, your tires do have a hell of a lot more traction than the metal and plastic on your motorcycle, plus your leather-vest wearing biker’s exposed flesh gets abraded-off (it’s like being burned) while it’s sliding down the road.

Here’s the easiest way to avoid layin’ ‘er down: use anti-lock brakes. Well, watch this video.  The motorcycle with outriggers doesn’t have the anti-lock brakes.

MSF-style Crash Avoidance

The MSF Basic RiderCourse Rider Handbook tells us to swerve around an obstacle before braking.  The handbook stresses separating the two actions.  Here’s why: tires only have so-much traction, braking uses up some of the available traction, but so does swerving.  Swerving lowers the amount of available traction, because the contact patch has less traction at the edge of the tire.  Completely running out of traction while leaning means that you will fall down (this is called a “lowside”).  The Motorcycle Safety Foundation wants riders to separate the two, so that they are less likely to run out of traction.  You can read about the procedure in more detail on page 37 of the MSF Basic RiderCourse Rider Handbook and page 25 of the current MSF Motorcycle Operator Manual, but here is my version:

1. Realize that oh-mommy, I am about run into that car!
2. Decide whether to swerve to the left or to the right.  You have no time to think, so the best way to do this is to know where your escape route is at all times.
3. If you are swerving to the left, then push on the grip on the left side of your handlebar (left-turn countersteering), and then push on the grip on the right side of your handlebars (right-turn countersteering).  Let the motorcycle move underneath you: in other words keep your back straight up, and do not lean with the motorcycle.  If you need to swerve to the right, then reverse the directions above.
4. Begin braking as soon as your tires are no longer leaning.
5. Stop as quickly as possible without losing traction.

If you can do all that without crashing, then you are a better rider than I.  In fact it is extremely rare that riders get it perfectly correct: crash rates continue to rise in spite of better training.  The truth is that folks instinctively begin braking immediately: they just can’t wait.  You probably can see where I am going with this: losing traction while braking is the same as locking up the wheels, and anti-lock brakes allow maximum braking without locking up the wheels.  Also, anti-lock brakes allow you to do the swerving and the braking in less space.  (Please see Do I Brake or Do I Swerve– Motorcyclist Crash Avoidance Maneuvering presented at the 2006 International Motorcycle Safety Conference for more information about the distances that are travelled while braking and swerving at various speeds.)

This video teaches you how to do a proper panic stop (that’s step 5 above) with ABS.

The bike in the video is extremely similar to my own, and has the same ABS system.