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/125819
r0N TUESDAY, JULY 24 thru SATURDAY, JULY 28 - !JAM to 9PM &29 961 I ... !i; From PACIFICCUSTOMS -GUARANTEED UNBREAKABLE PLASTIC Ga."tantts SEAMLESS CONSTRUCTION ROTATIONALLY MOLDED EASY CENTER MOUNTING WEIGHT 3LBS. FITS MOST SINGLE ~UBE FRAMES • • . • ~ .W Z w .... ~ U Gas Cap not includeO. - ..... 1.5 GALLON CAPACITY Red. White. Yellow. Silver _ & Oran!l'O: options which include a big seat and tank. The Norton offers it in the form of the Interstate, and the Yamaba has accessories. We would recommend them to tourers. Yamaha also offers an oil cooler which also seems like a good idea. Another accessory item from Yamaba is a second disc for the front end which' isn't really necessary, although the Norton stops better, probably because it has better tires and less weight. The Yamaha's rear brake was a little more sensitive, but it may have been affected by the fact that our machine had a bald rear tire. One area where the Yamaba clearly outshone the Norton was in lighting. Lighting was superb on the Yamaba. The Norton's was better than' we expected, but not like the Yamaha, which means not good enough. To our surprise, the Norton was quiet. The 750 that we tested had kind of a bite to it; the 850 was in the ball - park. Both bikes were big "thunder twins", as one staffer was fond of calling them. They both were big rumblers (properly subdued). Some people don't like the big twin boom, . but those who do, love it. There is also a certain mystique, possessed by the Norton, that affects certain girls, If we hadn't repeatedly experienced it so dramatically on Nortons, we wouldn't have believed it either, so we won't blame you if you don't. The Norton got better gas mileage than the Yamaha - about 40 MPG to the Yamaha's 35. The Yamaba proved to be less trouble than the Norton. We rode it for more than 2700 miles, a lot of miles, never doing more than chain adjusting or oil addition. In the 100 miles that we had the Norton it sprung a leak and would have required some attention. Both chains seemed to be equally sturdy. In the odds-and-ends department, the Yaniaba looks betters - or the Norton looks worse. The major problem here is that the Norton is British and uses those damn Lucas switches. They're all in the· wrong places, too. For example, the turn signal switch was on the throttle side, and it was almost impossible to reach without losing your grip on the throttle. The horn only worked sporadically. A neat thing on the Commando was th~ flasher button the left switch which flashes the high beam when pushed whether the liglits are on or not. It's useful for passing, warning cars of your presence at night, or for signaling truck drivers. The Norton's speedo was more accurate than the Yamaba's but it stopped working for 50 miles. Then it decided, w;-th no coaxin!!, to work again and did so for the rest of the test. The Yamaha key is located between the instruments, but the Norton's key is down by your left knee and not terribly convenient. The Norton has two gas taps; the right one is the reserve tank and it's easy to use. The Yamaba has two gas taps; each one has a reserve. They were a bit more of a nusiance because of the difficulty in remembering which way reserve was. The N orton had non-folding pegs which was no problem since they are so high. In fact, it was an advantage, as one staffer" found when he crashed it. The rigid peg broke, bu t it saved the pipes, shift lever, and cases. You could just touch the pegs in hard oornering solo.. The Yamaba dragged stands and things and had a IittieJess potential lean. EE CLEAR TUBING-2 Ft. FREE with pur- chase of any tan k above. Limit 1 per customer. 49$ S!l90II 98 I-'liiii UNI"SLOPPERcap gasket STOPPER" Poly foam filler Ga.Tank Mountlng,Klt 98i 11.60 14.96 UNlln-Llne Filter T,Flttings keeps dirt away from gas cap. Includes all necessary hardware.~. Vented Gas Cap High volume plastic cap available in chrom r I fini h • Cleans fuel with foam filtering. Nickel plated brass Aluminum Gas Cap Polished aluminum complete 'h ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ CONCLUSION We didn't originally intend. to compare the two bikes, but when they happened into our clutches at the same time we couldn't avoid it. They are so similar in intent. But when you are done with a comparison, the conclusion is inevitable: The Norton makes it. The Yamaba just misses. . The Commando handles and stops better. It's smoother at all speeds except near idle. It gets better gas mileage. It requires only a little more maintanence. It is more plain fun to ride. For this reason, the Yamaha often sat idle while the N orton was fough t for. . To its credit the Yamaha went 2700 plus miles without any real attention, and, until the Norton arrived, we were very pleased by it. By itself it would have looked considerably better. It also cost $240 less, which will sell it to some pe~ple over the $1800 NoTton Roadster. And it din't leak a drop of oil. Both are very versatile machines. They seem reliable and are comfortable enough to make it in the long run, but are still fun around town. In most ways we preferred them to the present crop of multis. Someone wanted to know, "which is better, tradition or progress?" How about, "Which would you rather ride, develop~entor technology?" - ,.. 1.75 GALLON CAPACITY Red. Whita. Yellow. Silver & Orange. ~ < ~ OPEN DAILY 9109 CLOSED SUNDAYS Hand Washable • Riding .. Racing • Street GLOVES Stay Soft 1032.W. BROOKS 5T.· ONTAAIO.CA 91762· 714 983-5871 Othman Distributing Co. 18227 Ludlow St. Nonhridge..ca.91324 Dealer Inquiries Invited (213) 363-6230 Jolin's Racing Cycles SALES-SERVICE-PARTS-ACCESSORIES Largest InventoryeOyno Tunin~U$ed Bikes (Street & Dirt) 2255 Harbor Blvd.., Cost-aMesa, Calif. 92627 (714) 646-4655 or 646-2428 HODAKA-BILITY See your local HODAKA dealer Distributed by Tiger Distributing "·,,fA'f.l \1"f ':'A'.": A , :0800 .... CYP""S, CA 906JD C7141 827-7427 COMPETITION MOTORCYCLE NUlLS DESIGNED, BUILT AND REPAIRED. SEND 50¢: FOR CATALOGl SPECI FICATIONS 850 NORl:ON Engine OHV Four-stroke twin Displacement 828cc Bore/stroke 77/89mm Compression 8.5:1 Carburetion 2, 32mm Wheelbase 57 inches Transmission .' Right side: 1 up, 3 down Fuel capacity ..' ....•....... 3 gallons 'Price $1795 750 YAMAHA Engine ..... OHC Four-stroke twin Displacement 743cc Boni/Stroke 80n4mm Compression 8.8:1 Carburetion '" 2, 34mm Wheelbase .57 inches Transmission Lett side: 1 down, four up Fuel capacity 3.7 gallons Price $1554 CONTACT: K&N ENGINEERING. P.O. BOX 1329 CN-W RIVERSIDE. CA 92501 :* WHOOP-de-CHEWERS *: LOVE PIT TOO~IES until they get caught free info: Pl'OIresslve Products. Box 10S1. L. M .... C. 12041 jiM FishbACk's ·YAMAIIA"lf©.t"J 1;\NA ~ (714) 822-2252 9008 Sierra Ave., Fontana,Ca.