Cycle News

Cycle News Issue 08 February 27

Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles

Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/946956

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2018 BETA 500 RR-S FULL TEST P86 E very year, the small manufacturing plant in Rignano Sull'Arno, Italy—Beta Motorcycles—keeps impressing us, because the bikes they pump out just keep getting better and better. Case in point, the 2018 Beta 500 RR-S dual sport. In just 10 years since the first Beta dual sport models, the RS series, touched down on U.S. soil, they have matured into one of the elite of the elites when it comes to high-performance street-legal off-road bikes. The 500 RR-S, which we just fin- ished testing, is Beta's big daddy of the RR-S family, which is made up of four models: 350, 390, 430 and 500. All of Beta's dual sports got major overhauls in 2017, so much so that Beta dropped their RS moniker and gave them double- R status because they are so closely related to their full-race off-road RR cousins. They are now essentially RRs with license plates on the back. Despite getting a major overhaul in 2017, the 2018 RR-S's still took on further modifications. For one, all of the RR-Ss are 8.7 pounds lighter, they get updated clutches, and tweaks to their six-speed transmissions to reduce the chance of missed shifts. Looking for the ultimate dual sport bike? Don't forget Beta and its 500 RR-S BY KIT PALMER PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOE MCKIMMEY AND KIT PALMER A Beta a l t rn A tive E

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