We've really gained momentum with Project Berzerkeley. It seems that getting the engine to fire last week inspired a flurry of additional activity this past weekend. We've heard that success leads to success, so we shouldn't have been surprised when Per and Tom got the beast in motion.
Now that the engine was running, we affixed a somewhat rough facsimile of an exhaust system to prevent the roadside grass at our double-top-secret test facility from erupting into flames. This will also protect our test crew from going deaf.
Before we tried to drive it, we gave the whole Berzerkeley a thorough preflight inspection--we wanted to ensure that we'd be able to stop and turn when we were underway. Once we had checked all of our vital fluids and reinstalled the seat, we felt we were ready to test the core of the vehicle in motion.
We only drove about a quarter of a mile, but it was a long enough distance for us to make a few important determinations.
Our GSX-R 750 engine is running well and seems to be happy in its new home. The gearbox is also working as advertised--while we didn't rev beyond 5000 rpm or so under a load, we did row through the gearbox without incident. Mechanical controls for the clutch, brakes and throttle all work well, but we're still not 100 percent sure about the steering. The suspension seems to be pretty compliant and controllable up to about 30 miles an hour in a straight line, so it won't be long before we're ready to expand the test envelope to include some real driving.
