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/127771
1996 Beta Techno machine. We were impressed wi th bot h m ach in es, and cam e away even more impressed with Aaron, as the bike he rides is as close to a stock mach ine as anyone else's . Brak ing brake discs and pads, Ren thal handl ebars an d sprockets, and an optio nal throttle tube were the most extensive changes made to Aaron's bike. TECHNO-WEENIE STUFF The biggest new s and most obvious u pdate is th e new forks . Not only are the new Paiolis conventiona l in design, they ha ve an ultra-trick titanium-nitride coa ting on the tubes th at h as a gol den an odized ap pearance. To the best of ou r kn owledge, Beta is the first manufactu rer to feature this expensive coating on a production motorcycle - the process has been used for yea rs on works motocross a n d tri al s b ik e s. Th e tre atm ent is claimed to provid e a more slippery and harder s urface, and in tum, less stiction and bett er forks action. Revised valving in both the for ks and Boge rear shock rou nd out the suspension chan ges. M an y cha nges were m a d e to the motor. When the engi ne was first introduced tw o years ago, it was dee med too p ow erful and vio len t for m ost riders. The latest Techno motor is consider ably t amer and m ore ri der -f ri e n dly . The biggest chan ge is a new va riable-sparkadvance di gital igni tion. The unit allows the bike to rev slower, which results in smoother p ow er . A 750-gram- heavier flywheel and a lower compression ra tio ad d to the "chugga bility" factor, and the 26mm M iku n i ca rbureto r has be e n rew ork e d to co m p li men t the o t her ch a n ges. A larger pisto n in th e hydraulic clutch sys tem is cla imed to provide bett er feel and contro l. The alu mi nu m frame is unchanged with the excep tion of lOmm -lower footpegs. Oth er changes include a new singl e-p iston re ar brake caliper, a n ew front brake le v er, a s t ro nger fork brace /fender mount and a new exh au st pipe. The new Techno features dark-grey bodywork, which is complimented by an orange front fender and di sc guard, and or ange and purple graphics. BETWEE N THE TAPES To ou r dism ay, the Techn o still kickstarts on the left side, and altho ugh we go t the ha ng of it, we wou ld still prefer a right-side lever. In addition, the little By Donn Maeda 22 o the untrained eye, the 1996 Beta Techno looks little different from its two predecessors, but th e latest offering from th e Italian co mpany is ac tually quite im proved. With the excep tion of the new Paioli conven tional forks tha t grace the front of the machine, the Beta looks as if it has under- . gone only color scheme changes, but in actua lity, a n umber of sm all changes transl ate into a wo rld of di fference. We had the oppo rtunity to ride both a stock Techno, a nd one set up for twotime AMA/NATC National Champion Ge off Aa ro n . Though it w as not the actual mach ine that Aaron ' will contest the Na tionals on, it was what the cham p practi ces on an d will u se as a backu p (Above) Reigning AMAINATC National Champion Geoff Aaron tests the Beta Techno's brakes. (Right) It may not look a whole lot different, but the new Beta Techno Is much Improved over last year's vers ion.