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/128199
(Left) These are the bike's machined billet aluminum triple clamps. Check out the unique shape of the fluid reservoirs. (Rlghtl This Is what the 999's exhaust system looks like. Note how the header pipes vary in diameter to even out the problems caused by the front headers being so much longer than the rear pipe. (Belowl The 999 has a double-sided swingarm for improve rigidity and handling. ing a sweat. Okay, I guess the bike was designed for the likes of Ruben Xaus, Neill Hodgson and company, and with me aboard it is probably thinking about taking a nap. I was never under the impression that I was making the bike work hard at all, at either track, and yet I felt like I was pushing about as fast as I wanted to take the nearly $20,000 machine without getting too risky. The bike just glides through the corners with such grace and with so little fanfare and with so much feedback that you feel like you can do no wrong. Last year at Buttonwillow I rode a 998, which was really nice as well, but I was impressed with how much easier it was to put the 999 on the correct line through some of the really fast sequences of corners. Button- willow has a nice combination of fast sweepers and tight hairpins that cover the entire gamut of cornerdom. The 999 just eats the place up with its composure. The suspension was perfect all day both at Buttonwillow and at Willow Springs. At Willow I added a little bit of preload to the rear shock to keep the footpegs from dragging in a few places, but other than that it was perfect. It ate up the bumpy turns three through five with no issues and was perfectly happy in the ultrafast turns two, eight and nine. One thing that Willow Springs doesn't tax very much is the brakes, but Buttonwillow does. There are a few hard braking zones there that require excellent feel from the front end. The brakes are awesome in terms of feel and power. They offer the rider so much feedback with linear stroke at the lever and power that seems endless. The new four-pad, four-piston calipers from Brembo are awesome - they are some of the best brakes I've ever felt. Add to this the excellent compliance from the front forks, and you feel like you can do no wrong on the brakes. I guess we should talk about the motor a bit, although there really isn't that much to talk about. The motor in the 999 is essentially the same Testastretta motor that came out in the 998 last year, and in the 996R the year before that. What I can talk about is how it works in conjunction with the excellent new chassis. The Testastretta motor is already a huge improvement performancewise over the old motor with its added ponies and smooth power delivery. Sometimes the speed just sneaks up on you - you don't really feel a hard hit of power, but the smooth accumulation of speed sneaks up fast. The next thing you know, you need to get on the brakes in a hurry. One thing that the 998 did that I wasn't too crazy about was that bike's tendency to understeer off throttle. It had nothing to do with the motor and everything to do with the chassis. The 999 chassis eliminates much of this uncertainty, allowing the rider to use the engine more effectively. The fuel injection that drove me crazy on the street is absolutely perfect on the track. It never even thinks about hesitating or snatching as you dial in the throttle midcorner. I don't think anyone will be complaining about power; there is plenty for us civilian riders. eN Specifications @@@i!@@@@ LIST PRICE $17,695/$22,995 DISPLACEMENT 998cc ENGINE TYPE Uquid-cooled, L-twin four-stroke BORE x STROKE ..................•.......................100 x 63.5mm COMPRESSION RATIO 11.4:1 CARBORETION ....................•••..•.......EFI w/54mm throttle bodies IGNITION Electronic TRANSMISSION ...............••.•.••.•.•.....................Six-speed STARTING SYSTEM Electric FUEL CAPACITY ......•.•.......................................4.1 gal. WHEELBASE .....................•.•.•••••.....................55.9 in. RAKE/TRAIL ........................•.••................23'so-24'so/N/A SEAT HEIGHT .........................•..•.....................30.7 in. FRONT TIRE 120j70ZRI7 REAR TIRE 190/50ZR17 .5.0 in. FRONT-WHEEL TRAVEL ...............••.••••..•..•..• , REAR·WHEEL TRAVEL ................•..•.•.•••••••••••••....... .5.0 in. FRONT BRAKE ..................................••..•••••.....Dual disc REAR BRAKE '" ......................••..••.•....................Disc FINAL DRIVE Chain 439 Ibs. CLAIMED DRY WElGHT cue I e n e _ so • FEBRUARY 5, 2003 21