Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

CQ "' i l>. M ,... '" ai . c: .., Vl ;: W Z w ~ U > U • D·~appearance of front brake in water is believed to be caused by prior abuse. Rear brake wasn't bothered at all. minutes, it is ready to go. Getting on the throttle moderately hard in the first few minutes of riding would cause the oil pressure warning light to glow dimly. Even after wann up the light would glow if you got down to ail-out fast starts. This machine didn't have the oil cooler on it that the proto-type we rode featured. The oil cooler will be available as an option, however, and ·wouJd seem like a good idea. Also optional will be a dual disc arrangement for the front wheel. Our staffers had mixed feelings about the stock single dise. Some felt that it was adequate in the dry, others felt that it wouldn't lock the wheel. What it amounted to was that it required a great deal of pressure,· and no one could develop a lot of interest in locking the front wheel at any speed on a machine that heavy. The dual disc will provide a solution to those who find the single Photo bV Dave Schoonmaker disc to be insufficient. That is in the dry. In the wet, the front brake simply vanished. During the time that we had the machine there were several big rain stonns in the area, and we rode in all of them. In all of them the fron t brake ceased to be effective. Engine compression was a more effective brake than the disc was when wet. It was all very strange because discs aren't supposed to do th at. But ours did. On one occasion we found It was also the machi.e staffers used to ride around· the corner io the grocery store. ourselves slithering off into the ditch with the rear wheel locked, and the front brake lever firmly clenched. The mystery was heightened when we asked Kawasaki about it. They said that they had tested exhaustively, and it wouldn't do that. Then we rode another one in the rain. No, It didn't do it either. You migh t fall down because you had too much brake, but not because it wasn't there. So the answer h as to be Bob Braverman (of "Cycle Guide") and his th rash -i t-f 0 r-2 4-h 0 u rs-fl at-a u t-an dsee-if-you-both-survive game. The brake, like the rest of the machine, has suffered. That the engine didn't show it was amazing. One item that reflected the abuse that the machine had previously received was the exhaust system which was a Ii tile louder than stock. AU that opened-up running removed some of the baffling. The pipes are similar to the Honda's. They are positioned about the same and are buil t the same way wi th the seams on top. The welding could be a little better, too. The looks were fairly popular. The pain t is very good on the big tank. The tank looks a lot smaller from the side than it does from the top, and gives it a popular profile. The engine is painted flat black, with the cases and the caps on the ends of the camshafts polished. The well executed seat ends in the now-usual. Kawasaki style gizmo. This one conceals a tray that would hold a map or set of gloves. but doesn't have the capacity of the one on the 750. You get at it from under the lockable seat. If you don't get an owner's manual with the machine, it doesn't matter. All the same information is there under the seat. There are wiring diagrams and all sorts of jnformation printed on various labels stuck under there. (Continued on page 69) BIG AND LITTLE ENGINE: Type Bore x stroke Four cylinder, dual overhead camshaft four stroke 66mm x 66mm g~s~~:ees~~~tr~t'i~ . : : : : : : : : : : : : :: : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : 98~~~~ Claimed horsepower ........•.......•...•...•.......... 82 BHP @ 8500 RPM Carburetion ..........•...............•...•.... (4) 28mm Mikuni (VM type) Oil Capacity ..........•...•...•...•...•...•...................... 2 qts. Recommended fuel ~~;~ii~~ regular :.::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::down. l-N-2-34-5 'EI~~t~~t~~~t~~~ Left side. down for Shift pattern OTHER STUFF: ~~~~~a;~ : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : ~ : : : : : : : ~ : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : .ab~ut .~~031~~: ~~~~~h. : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : :j 18~ :~: Fuel capacitv .....................•...•........................ .4. 7 gal. Gas mileage during test : .....•...•.......•.............. 37-43 MPG Miles recorded during test 1539 Base price ........................•...•............ $1895 (plus set up, etc) On tight roads weight was a big disadvantage. Bad shocks need to be dealt with. It would adapt equallv to anv cornering SlVle. Photo bV John D_ Ulric!)

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