Modern Vespa

Many think our scooters and motorcycles can stop at shorter distances than cars.

It's time to stop believing this myth.

https://www.simplymotorcycle.com/can-motorcycles-stop-faster-than-cars/
Remember: distance equals time. Give yourself the gift of extra time.

Damn, I knew there was "some" difference between "riders skills". But 2x, the difference…







Going to be extra careful when I ride in a group. I'm usually at the tail end any way. Now I want to be last in line.

It does not say whether with ABS or without ...

Good video to share!

Bret makes amazing informative motorcycle content. If you aren't already familiar with it, you should check out the Moto Trek channel. Even if you don't do touring or adventure riding, there's a ton of really cool information there.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWh6PvzNVeOmEU065h-8kUw

Please don't check it out though, or you'll think my stuff looks terrible in comparison lol

I was trying to find an article from the Arizona Motorcycle Safety & Awareness Foundation that discussed stopping distances with ABS. In all instances, the four-wheeled vehicles outperformed their two-wheeled counterparts. ABS improves stopping across all vehicle types.

Non-ABS equipped bikes are 2.09 - 2.38x more likely to crash. Source: https://youmotorcycle.com/motorcycle-abs-mandatory.html

However, this information is pretty vague. We don't really know who is in either group.

Are experienced riders upgrading to ABS, and therefore they've already done their crashing and learning phase of motorcycle riding?

Are new riders flooding into the two wheel scene buying up the non-ABS bikes the more experienced riders have left behind and making mistakes as they learn?

If we put the exact same rider, on the exact same year/make/model motorcycle, but one was equipped with ABS, and the other wasn't, are we sure he/she would be more likely to crash?

We don't know...

One of the most important reasons i upgraded from my 2009 GTS to my 2019 Supertech was because I wanted ABS

ABS can't fix stupid. But, it sure helped me.

Let us not forget that big trucks can sometimes stop quicker than cars!

And Porsche can stop quicker than VW

My 1991 Nighthawk has ABS. Two tiny drum brakes won't ever lock up the wheels. Of course you could call them H-ABS. High Anticipation Braking System.

Guzzi Gal,

Great view. Simple Physics - four wheels provides more resistance points to the road.

Bob Copeland

I'm a fan of ABS but never rode a bike with it. I did once lock a front brake at 100 mph. Tire was destroyed and my hearing was lost for an hour while I sat shaking. The braking effect was dismally weak as the rubber melted. I leave a big cushion these days.

The ABS has never betrayed me, it has saved me from trouble; my feeling is that whoever has had problems with this system is due to the fact that he has never done any braking tests.
It catches you unprepared to pull the lever and feel it vibrate under your fingers, the instinct is to leave it but no! Wrong!
You have to concentrate on keeping the scooter straight and preparing for a possible impact, difficult to do in seconds but this is the reality.

Not quite.

In the video it is correctly stated that all vehicles on tyres have a potential of stopping at 1G. That 1G is defined by the friction coefficient between the tyre and the road, in optimal conditions.
Mass does not play a roll, nor the amount of wheels, but as also correctly stated in the video, the riders skill to get to this 1G is.

I am sure my stopping skills are not perfect. So I take care and keep a correct distance to the car in front of me to be on the safe side.

I am very satisfied with my BV 300. But it has no ABS. The only reason why I would replace it by a more recent BV would be because of the ABS.