http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=34046

It's a short read of course.

Goodbye AMA, you lost me faster than you got me

Even though i despise AMA/DMG,lets be fair.Suzuki didnt come up with anything that proved the cranks were legal.This is just Suzuki blowing steam after they got caught.PR lip service is what it is.They got caught,they knew they got caught,they played the appeal game to save face and acted totally suprised when the appeal was rejected.It was rejected because they didnt supply hardly anything the AMA/DMG asked for.

povol - 07 September 2008 01:58 AM

Even though i despise AMA/DMG,lets be fair.Suzuki didnt come up with anything that proved the cranks were legal.This is just Suzuki blowing steam after they got caught.PR lip service is what it is.They got caught,they knew they got caught,they played the appeal game to save face and acted totally suprised when the appeal was rejected.It was rejected because they didnt supply hardly anything the AMA/DMG asked for.

I am open to see that printed in any reputable source. Until then it seems one of us doesn't understand what an appeal is.

it just keeps piling on here. Hate Mladin or not, how can anyone defend these ignorant pieces of garbage. I'm simply amazed

X1TX - 08 September 2008 07:33 AM

IIRC, Soup had an article where DMG stated exactly what Suzuki needed to provide in order to win their appeal. They basically said "Show us a US street bike that has the same crank and everything's jake" but Suzuki couldn't do that. .

you recall correctly

povol - 08 September 2008 07:09 AM

My question to Don is,exactly how many different vendors do you have making crankshafts for 1 model of bike.They know what serial numbered part goes in what serial numbered bike,its how they track inventory.If there is a recall on a specific part #,all they have to do is look up what serial # range of bike that part went in to do a recall on that segment of #'s instead of recalling every bike.Its all bulls$%^ what they are saying.Im sure it would be like looking for a needle in haystack when that crank doesnt exsist on any bike sitting on any showroom

actually, that type of stuff is very common in any manufacturing industry. Suzuki designs the parts, creates the engineering drawings for manufacturing, and can get anyone, anywhere to manufacture the parts. Depending on prices of raw materials and market fluctuations, who knows how many various manufacturers they use. I've had experience with this in the auto industry here. You'd be amazed how many parts of vehicles sold around the world all from different brands, use the same manufacturers to produce their parts. The company I worked for created automated welding cells that assembled these parts, and we got part samples from all parties that would be involved and came from no less than 3 different companies/locations. Ironically, the stuff we got from Mexico was always better than the stuff we got from inside our borders.

roadracingfan - 07 September 2008 09:45 PM

povol - 08 September 2008 07:09 AM

My question to Don is,exactly how many different vendors do you have making crankshafts for 1 model of bike.They know what serial numbered part goes in what serial numbered bike,its how they track inventory.If there is a recall on a specific part #,all they have to do is look up what serial # range of bike that part went in to do a recall on that segment of #'s instead of recalling every bike.Its all bulls$%^ what they are saying.Im sure it would be like looking for a needle in haystack when that crank doesnt exsist on any bike sitting on any showroom

actually, that type of stuff is very common in any manufacturing industry. Suzuki designs the parts, creates the engineering drawings for manufacturing, and can get anyone, anywhere to manufacture the parts. Depending on prices of raw materials and market fluctuations, who knows how many various manufacturers they use. I've had experience with this in the auto industry here. You'd be amazed how many parts of vehicles sold around the world all from different brands, use the same manufacturers to produce their parts. The company I worked for created automated welding cells that assembled these parts, and we got part samples from all parties that would be involved and came from no less than 3 different companies/locations. Ironically, the stuff we got from Mexico was always better than the stuff we got from inside our borders.

Of course there is outsourcing,but you can better believe a company the size of Suzuki knows what part comes from what vendor.Thats why they are marked,its not a guessing game.If i had to guess,those were one off cranks built specifically for the race team and Suzuki is not wanting anyone to know who made them and where they came from.With that info,the walls would come tumbling down around their story.Thats why they found one that was 'substantially similar'. Its all in the wording.Remember we had a President that said,'it all depends on what your definition of IT is'.Its a very common practice to talk in circles in the world of poitics, and this is racing politics.

I'm sure Laguna Seca are very happy to hear that

Yosh got caught, apparently; but I'd still like a plausible explanantion from AMA/DMG as to why Spies' bike wasn't subjected to the same scrutiny.

Suzuki Files Appeal Paperwork On Mladin's Crank-Related DQ

From a press release issued by American Suzuki Motor Corp.

Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Mat Mladin Appeal Update

BREA, Calif. (Sept. 5, 2008) – Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing announced today that American Suzuki Motor Corporation and Yoshimura Racing are currently endeavoring to comply with the AMA's requirement, on short notice, that they produce by Friday, September 5, 2008 an exemplar motorcycle and production records relating to the crankshaft that is the subject of the appeal by Mat Mladin and Yoshimura.

According to Don Sakakura of Yoshimura, the task of finding an exemplar motorcycle is akin to looking for a needle in a haystack. It is virtually impossible to track down an engine with "vendor-specific" components or parts. However, Sakakura was pleased to report that American Suzuki was able to locate a crankshaft, through its customer service department, that is, in all-important respects, substantially similar to the subject crankshaft with respect to the categories questioned by the AMA.

American Suzuki was also able to supply written documentation reflecting that the exemplar was an "OEM" part used in a GSX-R1000 purchased in the United States. In further compliance with the AMA's demands, American Suzuki and Yoshimura are submitting to the AMA, on behalf of Mat Mladin, the Japanese vendor information and manufacturing procedures requested relating to crankshaft production. Sakakura hopes that this information will satisfy the AMA and make it clear that the subject crankshaft used at VIR was within specification and was therefore in compliance. In addition, both American Suzuki and Yoshimura stand by their conviction that the crankshaft in question did not enhance engine performance. Sakakura is confident that the documentation provided to the AMA will confirm this and the race wins will be appropriately credited to Mat Mladin, so the championship can be decided on the racetrack at Laguna Seca.

where are you guys pulling this crap about them not being able to prove it from? That was the official press release. They found the paperwork, and also supplied an additional shot peened crank from yet another US GSX-R 1000