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/128100
because the numbers show pretty aggressive geometry. The Yamaha still has a tendency to shake its head at times. AggreSSive throttle inputs on rough tarmac will cause the bike to tank-slap momentarily, especially when transitioning from side to side. If I owned an R1, I would get a steering damper right away. Interestingly enough, the Yamaha and the Suzuki tied in our street portion of the test. Half of the staff picked the R1 as their favorite, and the other half picked the Suzuki - the R1 is one of the easiest bikes to hustle around. the canyons, so much so that a few staffers weren't swayed by the Suzuki's sheer grunt (wimps). The R1's brakes are good, but they aren't great. They ultimately have good power, but they tend to feel a little bit mushy. The R 1 has great manners under heavy braking - the bike can be trail-braked right to the apex of a tight corner, either on the track or the street, without any fanfare. Our fast guy, Haney, loved the R1 on the racetrack, which makes sense because Jeff used to be a racer and this bike is as close to a racebike as any here. The suspension on the R1 is really good on the race- The R1 is stili one of the best sportbikes that money can buy. It proved to be the Suzuki's equal on the street, due to Its stellar handling and perfect carburetlon. ~he R1 is, without a doubt, the current king of sportbikes - at least it has been for the past couple of years. The Yamaha has had the ultimate combination of power, handling, and overall performance since it came out. No other manufacturer has been able to rival its hard-edged efficiency. We had an idea that the R1 may have met its match in the Suzuki, but had to see for ourselves if it was truly going to end up taking a back seat to the GSX-R after such a strong reign. Yamaha took Honda's concept of an ultra-lightweight liter bike a step further than Honda had envisioned in the first place. The R 1 has the chassis of a Grand Prix racebike, combined with what had been the most potent one-liter motor available. The 998cc inline-four cylinder motor features Yamaha's famous five-valves-per-cylinder head. The R1 still has the tried-and-true bank of Mikuni 40mm downdraft carbs and, after riding all of these bikes back to back, the Yamaha is the only bike that has perfect fuel delivery. The jetting is spot-on and gives the rider absolute confidence in terms of throttle control. This made riding the bike at Willow Springs almost easy. It was just one less thing for us to worry about. It U became even more apparent on our street ride, which took us through some of the tightest roads imaginable - the R1's perfect carbs never failed to impress us. Every single test rider made a comment about the carbs' crispness. If they can make it this good, who needs EFI? FEAHIRES \7~~cmLJ Engine 99Scc, liquid-cooled, inline-four with five-valves per cylinder 40mm Mikuni downdraft carburetors EXUP (Exhaust Ultimate Power Valve) exhaust system with titanium canister Forged-aluminum pistons Electroplated cylinders Chassis Aluminum Deltabox frame, using the engine as a stressed member Extra-long braced aluminum swingarm Fully adjustable 41 mm inverted cartridge forks Fully adjustable rear shock Dual 2gSmm front discs with four-piston mono-block calipers Single rear disc What's hot? Awesome handling Great looks Still has a potent motor Great suspension What's not? Needs a bit more power Needs a steering damper Bottom Une It's still a fantastic motorcycle. despite the power deficit to the GSX-R. The best-handling open-class bike around. The R1 has a wonderful spread of power. The motor is smooth and seamless, and still feels very potent. It may fall behind the Suzuki in terms of outright power output, but the Rl's power is easy to get to the tarmac. The Yamaha, once again without a doubt, has the best chassis of the bunch on the track. Like we said before, the Yamaha and the Suzuki do things in two very different manners. The Yamaha steers qUicker than the GSX-R, but not quite as fast as the Honda. However, it has the best compromise between stability and quick tum-in. There is something about the way the R1 bites midcorner that gives you tons of confidence. Going through turns two and eight at Willow, the bike felt like it was literally on rails. Most of our testers felt like they could go faster through those two corners on the R1 than on any other bike in the test. It just gives you the confidence to keep opening the throttle more and more each lap - and that was even after I took a peek at the speedometer halfway around turn eight and saw an indicated 155 mph with my knee on the deck. The R1 has the least trail of any of the bikes here, and yet it has a stable front end mid-corner. The extra-long swing arm has got to have something to do with its stability, cue I e track. The bike was easy to set up, and took very little fine-tuning over the course of the day. Front-end feel is very good. The R1 lets the rider know what is going on at all times. We never had any clearance problems with the R1, and only nicked the footpeg feelers a couple of times. The same goes for the street. The suspension feels very good although, at times on the freeway, it feels a little harsh and jolting. And the R1 is a bit noisier than the GSX-R, emitting nasally whir from its bowels when putting around town. The R1 is still one of the best looking bikes on the market. Yamaha got the styling right the first time, and has only had to make minor revisions since. The ergonomics are well thought out, with a comfortable sporting seating position and mellow reach to the c1ip-ons. The gauges are all easy to read and well placed - but where's the clock? _ n e _ S • APRIL 18, 2001 31