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/128086
The chassis remains largely unchanged for 200 I, and few would argue that anything needed to be chenged to improve the handling anyway. Yamaha did make some minor changes to the steering head shaft in an effort to save weight but, other than that, things remain the same. The same is damned good, though, with a 54.33 wheelbase - the shortest in the class - the R6 was bom to tum. To help the rear end stay planted and improve stability the R6, features a short aluminum Deltabox frame mated to a long swingarm (22.96 inches). The engine is used as a stressed member on the R6, which allows the frame to be lighter and still provide ample rigidity. The forks are 43mm units that are fully adjustable for preload, compression and rebound dampening, with 5.2 inches of travel. The rear shock is a piggyback style unit that is also fully adjustable, and offers 5.1 inches of travel. The wheels are lightweight three-spoke cast-aluminum-alloy measuring 3.50 X 17 inches in the front and 5.50 X 17 inches in the rear. The tires that come on the R6 in North America are Dunlop 0207 radials - 120/60ZR17 in the front, and 180/55ZR17 in the rear. The brakes on the R6 are four-piston, monoblock calipers, which squeeze twin 298mm discs. and the rear brake is a twin-piston caliper with a 220mm disc. Yamaha made a couple changes to the styling that really keep the bike looking fresh. The most obvious is the redesigning of the tail section that has three key changes. The first is the new taillights - the R6 is the first production motorcycle to incorporate LEOs (Ught Emitting Diodes) in place of traditional bulbs. The LEOs reside behind a semi-opaque white lens. When the taillights are on, the LEOs appear to be at half voltage, when the brake lights are activated they go to full voltage. and full bright. There are two advantages to the tail/brake lights - LEOs last much longer than bulbs, and the LEOs are bright, very bright, which should improve the bikes visibility in traffic. They look clean and I imagine that Yamaha may have just started a trend. The second element that was redesigned was that the under-tray, or inner fender, has been painted the color of the bike, which is a subtle but nice touch. The third is the way the rear license plate/tum signal assembly is designed (club racers take note) - the entire unit can now be detached by removing four bolts, and unhooking the wiring. There's no cutting required. There is also a new swingarmmounted rear fender, which is color matched as well - it is similar to the Rl's, which is much longer and overhangs the rear tire more than the previous generations. Weight was reduced in various components, but using a different battery, that weighs almost a pound and a half less than the old battery, made the biggest savings. YZF-R6/Champions Limited Edition List Price $7999/$8499 Displacement .599cc Engine Type Liquid-cooled, in-line four-cylinder Bore x Stroke 66.5 x 44.5mm Compression Ratio 12.4: 1 Carburetion (4) 37mm Keihin Ignition ...............•..•.............Digital Transmission .................•.......Six-speed Starting System Electric Fuel Capacity .........•............... .4.5 gal. Wheelbase .............•.....•.......... .54.4 RakejTraii .........•..............24°/81.02mm Seat Height '.' .32.8 Front Tire ........•......•........... 120/60-17 Rear Tire 180/55-17 Front-Wheel Travel .5.2 in. Rear-Wheel Travel .............•..• . .5.1 in. Front Brake Dual disc Rear Brake Disc Final Drive ....................•..•......Chain Claimed Dry Weight ' .365 Ibs. Yamaha must be sweating just a bit with the new 2001 GSX·R600 just released. but the R6 is such a good package. and was so revolutionary when it came out a few years ago, it should hold its own. Although it pulls through the rev range effortlessly, without any real dips in the power, Yamaha took no chances and has taken steps to improve the engine response - even if we don't reca II anyone complaining about its performance. The R6 is available in three different color combinations: blue/white, red/white, and the Champions Limit- !3m(j][Jm@v [fi(]f]@!JV !Jtr®m0fiiJ[J00[J@m The R6's motor was the first production motorcycle power plant to exceed 200 horsepower-per-Iiter, thus setting the standard for the new generation of 600s. The liquid-cooled 599cc, DOHC, 16-valve motor is not only compact - enabling the engineers to position the engine where it helps improve weight distribution, but powerful as well. The stratospheric 15,500rpm redline is the secret to the motor's power. In an effort to improve the engine, the lightweight forged-aluminum pistons have been redesigned to improve performance and treated with an Alumite coating to reduce friction. The cylinder walls are also Electroplated - which is a low-friction coating - which allows tighter piston-tocylinder clearances to be run. The carburized connecting rods were redesigned in conjunction with the pistons to optimize both weight savings and strength. The cylinder head remains unchanged, proving that the lightweight valve train components including the hollow cams - are not only mandatory to deal with the skyhigh redline, but strong enough as well. The R6 retains the 37mm Kehin constant-velocity carbs, and the alu-' minurn four-into-one exhaust system, although the exhaust headers feature new crossover chambers to reduce weight. The shift shaft has been improved to facilitate smoother and more positive shifts as well. timeter than almost any production ed Edition blue and white that we motor ever made (bike, or car). Look rode. Only 1000 of the Champions for our 600cc Shootout in issue #3 - edition will be available. The normal we will have dyno figures, and a full versions of the bike retail for $7999, comparison test of all the 600s head while the limited-edition paint will to head. cost you an extra $500 cycle n e "" 50 • JANUARY 10. eN 2001 29