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/126292
Remar kably similar to the 78 production models. Maico 's prototype TransA MA machine was almost entirely redesigned_Check .the small motor cases. changes to eithe r the en gine, chassis or suspension. . . Mai co certai nly need ed to mak e th e changes. In the engine department they'v e been m ak ing' do with the same basic engine design since the Ma ico marque .was introd uced in Am erica some 10 yea ago . The bikes the tea m used in th e Trans-AMA MX Series are named Versuch II , which is German for proto type II . The bikes are pre product ion ma chines. Producti on versions will be available for sale on our shor~ early in 1978 . Che cki ng its in sides _ There are no -technica l innovations Maico "Versuch II" Impressions of . assin' G Gaylon's Maico Trans-A machine A By J im Gianatsis Maico impressed the elite of the m otocross set this past fall when they introduced a nearly allnew bike for the Trans-AMA MX Series. R idden by teamsters Herbert Schinitz, Steve Stack18 able and Gaylon Mosier , the new 400cc bike looked and performed im p ressively throughout the senes. Des ign ing a new m ot orcycl e certainly is a tou r d e for ce for th e litt le German compan y. especially when its larg er co m pe ti to rs usu all y lim it with the new Maico. Instead , modern updating keeps it competitive with the other works bikes , Since Maico races what it sells: this is a big bonus for someone who's shopping for a production racer. The most impressive change is in th e engi ne department. The sandcast prototype engine cases, made of ' aluminum . are now m ore compact to save weight , The primary ' sprocket location is moved as close to the rear of the cases as possible, hence as close to the rear swingarm pivot as physically possible to lim it changing chain tens ion during travel of the rear wheel. It's an idea Honda pioneered with the RC series works bikes and other manufacturers are now incorporating on their own ' bikes . At long last Maico has done away with points-activated ignition. A Motoplat CDI nowprovides spark for combustion. It 's certainly a welcome change. on e they should have made five years earlier. Timing has beenchanged on the new engine. now 2.3- • 2.5mm 'BT DC to work with porting changes in the new 400 and 450cc cylinders. Old ignition timing with the points ignition was 3.5mm BTDC . The new cylind er has one less cooling fin t h a n t he present pr oduction version . T ogether with a new cylinde r head, th e new porting spe cifica tio ns on th e pr e-production Maicos offer improved power and torque th roughou t the RPM ran ge of th e engine. The carburetor is a 36mm Bing. The transmission remains a fivespeed, but the re is a new shifting m ech anism . The clu tch is also new , alon g with a primary kick starting d esign : Old Maico owners will be happy to kn ow th at th e new clutch does not drag. At one poi nt in th e test I had th e bike in gea r for 30 seconds with th e transm ission engaged and the clutch never came close to making the bike creep. Since Maico was designing a new engine they should have come up with a new six-speed transmission to go with it . Not that the Open class Makos need it , but certainly because the same engine design will be used with their 250cc bike, and all competitive 250s these da ys are running six-speeds. From a distance the frame looks sim ilar to present production Maicos , but it too is an all new design . Up close you'll see that th e engine is now a stressed member of the rear portion of the frame with the swingarm pivot shaft located through the rear engine cases. This is similar to the latest Husqvarna design , It allows less frame: flex with resulting better handling. A heavier frame m ight otherwise be required for the same effect . Suspension up front is provided by a new design Maico leading axle front fork assembly with air/steel coil springing, Travel is approximately 250mm (9 .5 in.), At the rear, Maico follows the latest trend pioneered by KTM three years ago with a bent style swingarm which allows long rear wheel travel without jacking up the rear of the bike to unreasonable heights. Rear wheel travel is approximately 260mm (10.5 in .) with O hlins gas / oil reservoir shocks with dual rate springs handling the suspension chores . . Because the Ohlins shocks cost around $300 in Europe , thes e are probably the only parts on Versuch II which won't make the ir way over as standard equipment on the production bike . The. new bike m ay come with a less expensive non -reservo ir version of the Ohlins as a sub stitute. ~ ..