What Does CC Mean With Motorcycles?

If you've ever looked at any motorcycle's specifications for any reason (or even some four-wheeled vehicles), you've likely come across numbers like 50cc, 125cc, and so on. But what do those numbers actually mean, and why are they important enough to be mentioned by every major motorcycle brand?

"CC" stands for "cubic centimeters," which is how an engine's displacement is measured. The figure tells you the cylinder volume of an engine, and it can generally give you an idea of that engine's power. This capacity correlates to the engine's overall volume as shared between all of its cylinders, but it's also the sum of each individual cylinder's cc value. For example, a two-cylinder engine touting 50ccs means each cylinder is 25ccs. This capacity can then help determine an engine's overall power and torque, as well as mileage.

If you want to figure out an engine's capacity in liters, that's also fairly easy when you look at its cc value. Simply divide an engine's ccs (the engine, not individual cylinders) by 1,000, and you'll have the volume in liters. So something like a 50cc engine equates to 0.05 liters, a 125cc engine is 0.125 liters, etc.

The simplest way to think of engine ccs is in terms of overall power. Generally, motorcycles with higher cc numbers tend to be faster and more powerful due to a higher engine capacity that allows for a larger overall mixture of fuel and air in the combustion process. It's a big reason why the maximum speeds between 50cc and 125cc motorcycles are so different (about 30 to 40 mph and 60 to 70 mph, respectively).

However, the flip side of this is that the increased power typically comes with a reduction in fuel efficiency and mileage. Insurance premiums tend to be higher with higher cc motorcycles, too, and most of the time, it's more expensive to repair higher-capacity engines.

So basically, motorcycle engines with lower cc values aren't as powerful, but you don't have to spend as much to maintain and use them, while larger cc values mean better speed and torque but are more expensive to live with. Whether or not one is better than the other comes down to what a rider wants in their motorcycle's performance.