We love eco-modders and hypermilers because their singular pursuit of superlative fuel economy often results in innovative thinking and interesting vehicles. Like, say, this Honda streamliner. Not only did Allert Jacobs' slick DIY fairing make a pedestrian Honda Innova motorcycle downright cool, it boosted the bike's fuel economy to 214 mpg.
The Honda Innova is no slouch out of the box, returning 133 mpg from a 125cc engine producing a whopping 9 horsepower. But the Dutch "efficiency enthusiast," as EcoModder calls him in its write-up, couldn't leave well enough alone.
He's put in a lot of miles on recumbent bicycles and knows a thing or two about aerodynamics, so the first thing he did was convert the Inova to a recumbent by moving the seat waaaay down on the bike's step-through frame and moving the footpegs. That and a simple fairing boosted the bike's top speed from 56 mph to 69 mph. Together with taller gearing, Jacobs raised his fuel economy to 156 mpg.
But why stop there? Jacobs spent several months designing and building the full fairing, which splits in two vertically just behind the windshield so he can get in. While it looks like you'd blow right over with a sneeze, Jacobs claims the bike is stable even in a 40-mph crosswind.
The bike's record is 214 mpg, and Jacobs says it averages 199. But he's not done yet. He's shooting for 235 mpg -- which for those using the metric system is 1 liter per 100 kilometers.
More info and pics at EcoModder, where one member is doing a similar mod with a Suzuki Burgman scooter.
Photo: Allert Jacobs via EcoModder.com
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