Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

them, still makes solid - as well as usable and fun - midrange powe r, and does so very smoothly. Is it the mid range you might find, say, on on e of th e new Japanes e s por ti ng twin s? Of course not. But with all the noise abou t the fun, easy-to-ride, affordab le V-twi ns jus t floodin g the market (well, at least in our journalistic minds), it' s easy to forg et a bo u t th os e pesky, hard -to-ride in-line fours droning around in the world . And no, the LX7 isn' t as easy to ride as a VTRlOOO, but it' s not exactly an HI triple either. In fact, part of the fun in going back to a four is the challenge of it. The power is broad enough on the LX7 that you d on't hav e to have exactly the right gear to have a good time through or on the exit from a certain bend, but natu rally it's not quite so lazy a n affair as a liter-class V-twin . Duh . What this is is a bike that demands your attention wh en you ride it aggres- (Left) The front brakes are strong f rom high speeds, but the trade ollis • "' ~ k of sensitivity du ring " normal" riding. (Below left) Desp ite the low windscreen to p, wind protection fro m t he fairing is good. (Above and left) Fat city: a 190/50Z A17 sively. Good form and concentration are rewarded . For insta nce, if you 've found yourself entering a corner a bit too fast a nd want to d o some last-second trail braking befo re the apex, YOU'll have to fight the bike with some vigor to keep it from sta nd ing up . Overall, though, rid ing the LX7 aggressively doesn't take too much effort and on ce you've selected your line it stays put. with neutral pres- rad ial graces t he rea r of the 'ZX7. The rear shock Is fully adjustable, tho ugh after much fiddling we ended up back at t he stock settings . su re on the bars. Feedback from the front wheel is very good , and even if you aren' t accustomed to' riding a bike with such aggressiv e steering geometry (25" rake /99nun trail), you quickly find the confidence you need to start exploring the limits of the z:x7's ground clearance, of which there is plenty for street use. The d rill is si mple. Drop a gear or Displacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . two entering the comer, wait, wait, wait for a nice late apex, flick 'er in deep and Compression ratio Carburetion , roll on the gas, letting the fat mid range urge you smoothly out of the corne r. Just d on't ex pect your 'e yeb a ll s to ge t smashed into the back of your head, ev e n if yu u re v it a ll the way to i ts 12.500-rp m red line, because the tra deoff for the fairly meaty midrange on the LX7 is the lack of that wicked top-e nd rush that mak es bik es like the GSXR75O in quickly and safely. The distinctive fairterms of all-out performance vs. (comparing, with its geisha-like eyes and wasp atively ) butt-cuddling comfort, and ends body, protects the pilot pretty well and up being the best compromise available d oesn't send turbulent air around vour head , and there's enough roo m for' a 6between those two elements in its class. At $9399, it is, however, the most expenfooter to luck nicely behind the fairing . sive of the three by a couple hu ndred dolThe dose-ratio six-speed didn't give lars, so it's something youll pay for going us any difficul ties over the life of our test, in. What you get in return is a well-engitho ugh it isn't the class of the gea rbox neered rep li-racer that you can live with field . It takes jus t a hair extra effort to one that doesn't exact too high a phys ical move the lever throu gh its short stro ke price for its racing ped igree. c and yo u d efinit ely get the impression 39

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