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/128110
~~WBikes By CHRIS JONNUM uzu k i got a lot of a tte ntio n last m ode l year - both good and bad. The good came wit h th e anno unce ment of new -from -the -ground -up RM motocrossers that had been lig hte ned s ign ific a ntly , and that had a new, flat layout that was fa r more popular than the old "s it-In" design . The bad came w hen word got around that pow er was not up to par w ith the other m otoc ros se rs in the class - at least on t he RM2 50 . Yes , the power sp re ad was useable (a nd e ven preferable for off-ro ad ), bu t top -end ove r- run was la ck ing for s killed ride rs . The s cena rio should not have be en a tota l shock , a s it' s no t th e firs t tim e that an a ll -new m o d e l has be en re le a s e d w ith a t lea st one g lar in g fa ul t. It's not un c omm o n for m a n u facturers to fa ll be hind on the dev e lopment of s uch models, and to have to cut corners in o rde r to make it to production on tim e. We 're not sure if that's what hap pened with Suzuki last year, but we do know that th e company 's sport division hasn't had any trouble rnak- S 42 2002 Early-release Suzukis JUNE 27, 2001 • cue I e As mentioned in our lead , the RM250 has been somewhat of a dis- appoi ntment in 200 1, with a lackluster motor preventing the bike from living up to the hype that inevita bly su rroun ds an all-new model. For 2002 , the bike has a revised exhaust-port shape that is said to help mid-to-h igh rpm power the bike's weak point this year. Also aiming at increasing high-end power is the compressionincrea sing reduct ion of piston -to-cylinder clearanc e. Low-to-mid power has also been add ress ed. via a new single -piece exhaust valve that moves indepe ndently from auxiliary exhaust port valves (ther e's also now a steel connector between the exhaust valve's actua tor and control arm). The exhaust system is all-new (with a lightweight expansion chamber ). and the piston pin uses a thinner wall diameter to cut reciprocating weight. Also, the COl has a builtin rectifier (said to cut weight). and the crankshaft is claimed to have better balance (for less vibration). Rounding out the cha nges to the powerplant are an altered transm ission and a reshaped clutchrelease camshaft. > ing the 200 1 RMs work on th e race tra c k . Rid ing in his s opho m o re seaso n, Tra vis Pastrana took the 125 to his first -ever Eastern Regi o na l Superc ross Championsh ip , a nd as t h is is w ritten , he s t a n d s a good sho t a t defending his outdoor title in the tid dl er division. Not only that , but h e cl imbed aboard the RM250 for s elect ed stadium races , and s ho we d bursts of speed that were downright shockn e vv :so As for the RM 125, it has refined ca rburetor se ttings a nd a reshaped needle jet. jet needle and throttle valve, all aimed at boosting low-rpm power; toward that same end, the bike's exhaust valves no longer have a power-chamber passageway. The move ment of the carbu retor float is said to be more precise (and thus constant), and the transm ission has been updated . Uke the 250. the tiddler has less piston-to-cylinder cleara nce, and its exhaust-valve connector is now stee l. Regarding the chassis. both bikes have a revised fork; a new tape red swingarm for more rigidity; a revised cushion-lev er mount- ing point and leverage ratio for more ground clearance and better weight distribution; and a revised front-brake -pad material. In addition, the 125 gets increased rake and trail; a thicker reinforcement plate behind the steering head ; a revised shock ; and a COl relocation to the steering head (for a shorter wiring harness). The 250 has a new triple clamp that rubber-mounts the hand lebar and has a lightweight lower piece. The suggested retail price on both bikes rema in the sa me as in 200 1 (the RM 125 costs $4999, while the RM250 sells for $5899). ing (tho ug h they wer e typicall y tru nc ated by just-as -s hock ing c rash es ) . With t esting hel p from Fr en c h h ero Jean -Mic hel Ba yl e , T eam Suzu k i' s big RM is a lso working well outdoo rs , with Kev in Windham riding th e b est we 'v e s een him in s om e ti m e . Such new s bodes well fo r the 2002 customer . No , Suzuk i will not be offering Pastrana 's and Windham 's bikes to the public, but s e co nd- ye a r e fforts - though la ck ing in th e sexappeal of debut models - are typ ica lly m o re po lis hed . S uzu k i is o b viou s ly aw are of th e ge ne ra l take o n its 2001 RM250 , and yo u can bet that co m pany en gi n ee rs h av e a d d res se d the freshman 's problems. Here 's a clos er lo ok at Suzuk i's n ew and im p rov e d motocrossers (incl udi ng the all -new RM85 ), along with some other models. eN