All a TRE (Timing Retard Eliminator) does is "fool" the CDI into thinking the bike is always in 5th gear.
On certain Suzuki models, and the Kaw ZX10R, there is a gear indicator which goes to the CDI. For each gear, there is a different ignition timing map. The maps for 1st - 4th gears have less ignition advance in lower RPMs to make the bike more "streetable" - in effect, they detune the motor so it is less responsive in lower RPMs. On the big-bore bikes, the 6th gear ignition map also acts as the speed governer by severly retarding ignition at high RPM.
With a TRE, you're always using the 5th gear map. This gives you more ignition advance at lower RPMs and no speed limit in 6th gear. That's all it does. We sell the original "Ivan's TRE" for $60 (everything else is a copy or variation of his).
The result is quicker response and more midrange power in lower gears. The downside is that it makes the throttle a bit more twitchy at the same time. It's not an optimal ignition mapping ... but for $60, it is what it is.
This is also nothing new
We do the same thing with Japanese NSR250 two-stroke GP replicas. Japan had a national 47hp limit for that displacement/bike type - even though the motor will make 60 without any modification. The same basic trick works ... we fool the bike into using a lower gear ignition map that isn't restricted.
- Brian Roach
- SpeedWerks.com
