Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

I""""l I""""l BY p~p~ Wf~LfY 1263 VF500F Interceptors released to public need new engines By John Ulrich An additional 1263 Honda VF600F Interceptors must have their engines replaced because their crankshafts may break. according to American Honda. Mailgrams sent to affected owners and a Product Update bulletin sent to dealers last week advised that owners not exceed 10.000 rpm before the engines are replaced under warranty. "There is a possibility that some 1984 VF600F Interceptors may develop a fatigue crack in the crankshaft if the engine is operated for extended periods above 10.000 rpm." the notice to dealers said. "Crankshaft breekage could eventually occur which would result in abnormal engine noises and partial power 10..... According to Honda. affected machines have frame numbers from 001839 through 001876; 001879 through 002023; 002026 through 002071; 002073 through 002167; 002169 through 002368; 002360 through 002666; 002668 through 002779; and. in California only. 000266 through 000584. The notice to dealers said that American Honda will soon reeeive replacement engines for the affected machines. In the interim. dealers were asked to advise owners notto exceed 10.000 rpm. The 600 Interceptor's normal redline is 12.000 rpm. The 1263 machines affected by the Product Update are in addition to 1700 VF600s which had new engines installed in the last few weeks. The first 1700 machines had a different lower end problem. according to Honda. and most of the machines were still in Honda warehouses. All 1700 had been repaired as of preaatime. But the latest batch of machines had reached the public. The problem was caused by improper machining of a crankshaft journal with too tight a radius at the edge of the flywheel. causing str... accumulation and resultant crank breekage. At least one magazine test bike is suspected to have broken a crankshaft due to the problem. In the Intercontinental Final of the World Team Cup Speedway Cham, pionship, the American team earned a straight ticket to the August World Final in Poland by winning over three other teams. The Americans, led by the II-point scores of Shawn Moran and Lance King, tallied 41 points, while Denmark (23), England (18) and Sweden (13) trailed. Bobby Schwanz chipped in 10 points, and two other U.S. riders, Kelly Moran and John Cook, each had two wins in two rides. Sweden and Denmark both transfer, but to the Continental Final where they will face West Germany and Czechoslovakia. It was Kelly Moran's first WTC appearance this year; he was taking the place of the injured Dennis Sigalos. 2 the defending World Champion. pitted on the third lap of the reee in Assen. Holland. to have a spark plug lead put back on a plug and then pulled out of the race a few laps later. Lawson. who would not speek to the press after the race. now leads Spencer by 27 points. 99 to 72. with just four races to go in this year's championship senes. Mamola and Roche dueled throughout the race and the ferocity of their battle made Lawson decide not to try to pa.. them. Mamola Ripped Roche by less than th;ee-tenths of a second at the finish line. with Lawson approximateIya second behind Roche. The victory moved Mamola to within three points of Spencer' in the point standings. Honda-mounted Randy Mamola and Raymond Roche finished 1·2 in the June 30 Dutch GP's 600cc .race. while a third-place finish by Yamaha's Eddie Lawson and a DNF by Honda's Freddie Spencer took Lawson one step closer to winning the WorktChampionship. Spencer. Carlos Lavado (Yam) won the Dutch 250cc GP with Jacques Cornu (Yam) second. Californian Wayne Rainey (Yam) qualified fourth, but yet another poor start - 40 seconds behind the pack - relegated him to 12th at the finish. Three-wheeled Harley-Davidson MILWAUKEE, WI, JUNE 27 Harley-Davidson, Inc. has acquired Trihawk, Inc., which produces a specialty threewheeled vehicle called a Trihawk. Under terms of the acquisition agreement, HarleyDavidson acquires the assets of the California company and will pay the former owner of Trihawk a royalty on vehicles sold. According to Harley-Davidson Chairman Vaughn Beals, the company purchased Trihawk because "we see a definite market niche for it between current motorcycle and sports car offerings. In contrast to today's touring-oriented sports cars, the Trihawk is lightweight and captures the open air feel of a motorcycle. Since it has three wheels and can support a great degree of comfort and protection from the elements, we believe it will reach out to recreational vehicle enthusiasts who might not be interested in a motorcycle." Designed by businessman·enthusiast Lou Richards, the limited-production Trihawk was builtforexceptional handling performance. Car and Driver magazine (January, 1984) named it he best "roadholding" vehicle among the 70 vehicles the publication tested in 1983. The Trihawk features a 1,299cc four-cylinder air-cooled Citroen engine. The engine is mounted laterally and drives the front wheels through a five-speed Citroen gearbox. The shell is fi berglass, over a tubular steel frame. Beals said motorcycle produCl sales. research and development will be . Honda's Danny "Magoo" Chandler was spectating at the July 1 National MX at Red Bud Track 'n' Trail in Buchanan. Michigan. Plans are for Chandler to spend a few days practice riding at Red Bud to get back into shape. then he will ride the 600cc Support class at Unadilla. Chandler sustained a cracked collarbone at the Atlanta National. Yamaha's Rick Johnson and Broc Glover had front disc brakes installed on their basically-production Yamaha MXers at Red Bud. while Keith Bowen's machine retained the stock drum brake. Tom White of the White Bros.• received a ticket for doing 70 mph on his way to compete in the unaffected by the Trihawk acquisition. The Trihawk will continue to be produced at its California facility for the immediate future and distribution will continue through existing automotive channels. Studies are being developed to examine future production and distribution methods. Harley-Davidson, Inc. also is the parent company to Harley-Davidson Motor Co., Inc. and Harley-Davidson York, Inc., which produce HarleyDavidson motorcycles. Prior to the decision to acq uire Trihawk, Harley-Davidson officials held talks with Charles Clayton, founder of Cycle News and inventor of the Hy-bird, a three-wheeled electric/gasoline vehicle. Advised of Harley's decision to buy Trihawk, Clay· ton said, "Let history record that the Harley-Davidson Company is the first motorcycle manufacturer to offer a modern three-track motorcycle for the road. They have a head start on winning a virgin American market. The three-track street stroke sports buggy is a low-slung, shaft-drive twoseater. powered by a Citroen engine that is like an air cooled Gold Wing. It is inevitable, the way road bikes are growing, that a third wheel is needed. And side cars are not the only solution. I hope we will be seeing wheel to wheel three-track roadster racing this year." Mammoth Motocross. White said the speedometer on his new FJ 1100 indicated 136 mph at times during the trip. He finished seventh in the Vet division at the MX. Jim Vreeke won the sixth round of the ARRA/Willow Springs Superbike Series, his fifth win in a row. Northern California tuner Jan Houtermans will be taking three American riders to the final three rounds of the 600cc World Motocross Championship. Phil Larson. Eric Eaton and Eric McKenna are the riders; they'lI also contest some International MX events. The trip is being sponsored by Motocross Marketing. • •

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