Posted on 10/21/2025 7:07:11 AM PDT by eyeamok
The E-Clutch does away with that and thereby arguably does away with the essential thing that makes a motorcycle something different than a Moped or a Scooter (or a car – with an automatic transmission – for that matter).
(Excerpt) Read more at ericpetersautos.com ...
Shifting is a pain in the ass. It’s a remnant from the days when technology couldn’t get enough power to the driving wheel.
I have owned three motorcycles in my life starting at the age of fourteen.
A Yamaha RD125 enduro
A Kawasaki KDX175 competition enduro
A Kawasaki KZ650 custom 4cyliner overhead valve road bike with a Kerker 4-1 exhaust.
I sold that when my son was born. My wife didn’t want to be widow. I sometimes get the itch to buy one again. The roads are now too crowded with people playing on their phones. Plus the Mrs refuses to ride on one.
She complains when I want to put down the top on the Lexus convertible. So, I am probably done with motorcycles. Even though sometimes I really would like a BMW or Ducati.
My password on the former AS400 computer was GUZZI. Short for MotoGuzzi
“The roads are now too crowded with people playing on their phones.”
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When we had to start planning our rides around where and when to avoid the idiots I knew it was over.
My cousin has a Gold Wing and a Harley (forget which model).
He rides the Gold Wing for comfort and the Harley when he wants to look cool.
Thanks for posting. I sort of lost track of Eric Peters recently. I am not a motorcycle guy so I won’t comment about that. He does have another amusing article posted today about the Schumer Shutdown.
https://www.ericpetersautos.com/2025/10/21/the-shutdown-show/
From the article:
“People who work outside the government – who earn rather than take their living – cannot tell that the government has “shut down” because they are still having to pay the taxes that the government redistributes to those who take rather than earn their living; they are still having to comply with the laws and regulations imposed by the government. If the government had truly shut down, they would be free to do business – and to keep the earnings (all of them) generated by their labor.”
So did Honda. CB 750 with an ATway back in the late 70s. They sold but a few. I was fixing Japanese bikes at the time. None came in the shop
**I buy special boots just so I can enjoy shifting.**
During my many years in cornbelt IL, beginning in 91 used an 82 Honda cm450e (a very versatile scoot) for about 5 years commuting year round (my wintertime motto: If the roads are bare I am there), 15 miles to an off farm steel fab shop, then 3 years 19 miles to another steel fab shop. Both required steel toe shoes.
The taller toe made shifting slightly awkward, so I welded a second ‘pedal’ to the shift lever which the toe of my boot fit under with maybe a half inch to spare, moved the lever a tooth or 2 on the spline. It worked great, never had to change foot position, except when I wanted to stretch out on the homemade front footrests. And since the bike was my always ready ‘horse’ to check cattle and fences on the hilly bumpy pastures, shifting between 1st and 2nd gears was used far more than when on pavement.
But here woodlands TN, while the deer may not be as big as the flatlands of northwest IL, they are more populous it seems and succeed in killing bikers much more often. (I wouldn’t be surprised if Lewis county averages at least one fatality a year.)
So, in honoring my good wife’s wishes, road motorcycling is over for me. :(
Honda already has the DCT automatic transmission as an option on it’s bigger bikes, and as others have stated, it has been experimenting with automatic clutches for over 50 years.
It’s not quite the “end of motorcycling” that the click-baiting title implies.
Yes, even the back roads are now crowded around here in southern NH.
I used to take out the KZ650 after work and ride it back and forth between two towns about ten miles apart just because the road ran along a river and had lots of turns.
The KZ650 I had was a Cafe Racer similar to the bikes in the movie Mad Max. Just a smaller engine. It was the predecessor to the Kawasaki Ninja. It topped out at 125mph. Ran really comfortable between 70-85. I had added better shocks and the exhaust system to make it handle better and give it a HP boost.
No kidding
My Tacoma has a 6 speed transmission as well.
Recently I got a company vehicle and it took a couple of minutes to get used to not shifting gears.
Honda E-Clutch is an electronic system that automates the clutch for a more accessible and convenient motorcycle riding experience, while still allowing manual operation.
It enables clutchless starting from a stop and can perform clutchless upshifts and downshifts, acting as a quick shifter and an anti-stall system.
Riders can choose to engage or disengage the E-Clutch with a button, or use the clutch lever manually at any time.
Key features
Automated clutch control: The system automatically engages and disengages the clutch, eliminating the need for the rider to operate the clutch lever.
Clutchless operation: You can start from a stop and shift gears using only the shift pedal and the throttle.
Anti-stall function: The system prevents the engine from stalling, making it easier for new riders.
Quick-shifter functionality: It provides smooth upshifts and downshifts without the need for manual clutch operation, though it differs from traditional quick shifters by physically engaging the clutch.
Manual override: The clutch lever can be used at any time for manual control. After a few seconds of manual use, the system will re-engage.
Customizable settings: The system may include settings to adjust how the clutch performs, such as changing the level of input needed for shifts.
Disengageable: The system can be fully turned off via the bike’s settings menu, reverting the bike to a traditional manual transmission.
How it works
The E-Clutch system uses an electronic actuator with motors to control the clutch, taking signals from the engine’s RPM, throttle position, gear position, and other sensors to determine when to operate the clutch.
It automatically pulls the clutch in when the bike comes to a stop and releases it when the throttle is applied.
When shifting gears, the system electronically disengages the clutch to reduce load on the gearbox and allow for smooth, clutchless shifts.
This happened a couple of decades ago. A husband and wife in my organization got sideswiped on a motorcycle. The husband lost his leg and the wife had her foot severely injured. The wife had numerous operation to try and keep the foot. She was hobbling around several years with a cane, so I assume the surgeries were of some success.
All auto trans cars have an expiration date. Manuals can live forever.
“Left foot shifter”
Don’t British and Jap bikes have this on different sides?
Wait, you’re all worked up because Honda will OFFER an automatic transmission on one model? I always presumed there was a technical reason why they never (successfully) marketed an automatic.
**I never wanted a motorcycle, because I had a friend that was sideswiped on urpose & lost his right leg.**
I knew a guy that lost his left leg and his wife when a guy crossed the centerline on a curve in rural Iowa about 14 years ago.
But he was riding left lead in a pack, went down causing others to crash too. Several were injured. But being IA, they weren’t wearing helmets. That was the difference in his wife’s fate. I always wore a helmet on the road, but rarely in the cow pasture.
The front brake is the organ donor lever.
Florida here.....so I’m sure you can imagine the road insanity. 😏
It’s A Triumph!
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Still I’m a Honda guy.
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