Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

DS80, DS100, and DS18S: I Suzuki's formula for family fun By John Huetter In the world of motorcycles as in the larger world, we are in an era ofspecialization. Pure motocross bikes, especially configured enduro bikes, street machines for riding fas t but not racing, and so on through every category of m otorcycle-built, to h fusi f 11 .d t e con usion ~ a . non-ri en: and some who do n de. Suzuki . 24 has this year introduced a new category of specialty bike: the playbikel Nonsense, you say, we have all of us had playbikes for decades . But you probably didn't have one that was designed specifically for that activity. You probably removed or added things to a bike built for other uses. The sages of Hamamatsu, with a great deal of American input , designated a new " OS" series of machines which are , in reality , directional refinements of basic Suzukis that have been around a few years . The direction they took was hassle -free trail riding. As one neophyte dirt rider .wh o is acc omplished in other areas of athletic endeavor put it: "Suzuki met their design goa l with these bikes. " .., Given t h e phit oso p hy 'o f no . maintenance, put gas and oil iIi them , and ride them forever, the OS pla ybikes are actually better than they have to be . In addition to the usual thrashing abOUT the hi lls from regular members of the Fearless Freelance Test Team, we put these Suzu kis to yet another t':5t few bikes are re:,lIy suited for: teaching.two young ladles a.nd an eight-year-old boy how to ride a motorcycle, At the cost of one snapped lever, they all passed with impressive merit. These machines are easy to start, shift and stop. Those features build confidence in a new rider and don't get in -the way of someone just learning a new set of skills and reflexes . It also means the weekend rider m ight just get the wife or . girlfriend (but not both at the same time , please) to go putting down the trails with him, while avoiding those messy scenes of hysteria and frustration . One lady who started the day on the OS100 (Its light weight was the prime attraction to 100 lb. females) got with the program enthusiastically enough to be bounding over hill and dale on the OSI85 by the end of the day and on into the following week . We cou ldn't break the machines: even the chi ld-a b used min ib ike motored on without complaint. The only bending came when the "big kids " started playing Grand Prix motocross on the OSIOO . Its limitations with 180 lb . rider aboard became apparent to all. The 100 really is too small for big folks but does allow barely five-footers to get both feet on the ground. The. OS185 continued to pleasantly surprise all who rode it , including off-road racers. All three , machines share certain qualities beyond the International orange paint jobs (which should certainly keep the trail rider from being mistaken for a deer). The 100 and 185 show motocross input in the slim gas tanks that taper at the rear to meet firm . narrow seats which permit easy movement. The OS series machines look cleaner with a narrower overall profile than models tha t precede d them in the same disp lacement categories. Engi nes in each d ispl a ce m e n t category p rod uce quite adequate power for the cc's involved though in different, even surprising ways. The OS100 , for instance, was very pipey for a learning bike. There was sufficient hill-climbing power only when the motor was working within the fairly narrow powerband. Outside the favored RPM range, the 100 produced enough torque to get riders of the appropriate size rolling on the flat trails. even at very low RPM : The peaky engine characteristic seemed to be noted more by the old, experienced riders who attempted to overtax the 100's design intent than the ladies who motored about happily while learning to ride it. One recommendation: Make the OS100 a 123cc motorcycle . For riders under 125 Ibs. , the OS100 works well. It has better trailbike attributes than a beginning rider might really need. The power characteristics of the OS185 engine may well be the best feature of the machine. The 183cc motor features crankcase reed valve induction as well as conventional piston porting. In fact , all of the OS bikes, in cluding the 80, have the reed valve between carb and crankcase. The tuning choice for the 185 was for lots of tractable power at low rpm . The 185 felt slow on the road - like it needed to be more zippy. After riding it in the dirt and hills, though , it looks like Suzuki achieved an admirable compromise in the engine. It will go r easonably fast in the off-road application without using up lots of rpm in doing so. Since you aren't legal on the roads of most states with the minimal (but sanitary) lighting arrangement , most riders will only experience and appreciate the tractability of the machine. It was almost trials-like in rolling up to an obstacle at low speed, then lightening the front end with a twist of throttle. The abundance of low end power was more surprising than the lack of top end street-going speed. The 79cc m otor of the OS80 makes it a very qu ick minibike. It accelerates hard with a kid-sized person in the saddle and does great long wheel ies for the guys who should know better but show off anyhow. The engine is the same as found in Suzuki's RM80 minimotocrosser but carbureted with a 20mm Mikuni. The littlest tester of our gang had no complaints and was certainly not shy about gassing it, even to popping a few mini-wheelies of his own. The suspensions worked well on all the machines if the right size rider was at the controls. Again , some residual racer influence is apparent in the shock mounting arrangements: cantilevered notably on the big bikes. The shocks themselves are conventional oil-damped Kayabas that worked fine in this application. The 185 seemed especially well-balanced in its suspension. There was no severe pogo-ing or sideways twitches. Fork action was progressive and the fork bottomed on ly once d uring a very diverse set of riding conditions. T he OSIOO could benefit from a sturdier front fork: the tubes are quite skinny and for k action seems more confused. We will eval uate the suspension of the OS80 only in terms of it making the bike safe for a very young rider while fun . to ride off-road . It succeeded in accomplishing that an d . we therefore deem it a very good suspension design for intended use of the minibike . The bigger two machines have a measured 6.75 inches of front wheel travel and 3.5 inches of rear wheel travel. While those

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