There has been great technological innovations when it comes to motorcycle engine design. Larger motorcycle manufactures such as Honda, Suzuki, and Yamaha spent tons of money on R & D to produce the best performing engines for motorcycles.

Almost all car manufacturers will tell you that the leading edge of engine innovation is with motorcycles instead of cars or airplanes. Many times the developments of the motorcycle engine winds up inside of cars. Better combustion is the key to all engine development. One new strategy is to use more than four valves for each cylinder so that there is a better flow area.

The change of the motorcycle engine from the traditional two valve models to four valve models was aimed to enhanced combustion.

The development of the four valve engine by Honda back in the 1960s gave way to the use of narrow valve angles and less deep combustion chambers which was able to provide good combustion when paired with a spark plug.

As early as the 1980s Yamaha was looking beyond the four valve engine for new head and valve configurations to achieve better combustion. At one point they even experimented with a seven valve per cylinder design. These models used three valves for exhaust and four for intake.

They finally found the right configuration with five valves per cylinder. This design features an additional intake valve which allows for better air flow during low to medium valve lifts.

This is the way that most engines are operated on a regular basis. One of the largest and most innovative producers of motorcycle engines in North America has to be Honda.

They have fairly recently constructed a large state of the art plant which makes more than half a million high tech engines each and every year. At this new plant they are able to combine the most advanced techniques in manufacturing with leading edge engine design to produce a premium product.