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/128607
Cagiva Raptor and V-Raptor World Motocross title in '99, courtesy of Alessandro Chiodi (not to mention signing four-time World Champion Stefan Everts to ride for the Italian factory in the 2000 World 500cc MX series), now the most hands-on, committed and just plain bike-mad motorcycle magnate in the world can turn his attention to relaunching the family brand that made it all possible, with the pair of one-liter V-twin street rods powered by the Suzuki TLlOOOS engine, which are the work of his other star progettista, Argentine designer Miguel Angel Galluzzi. The classically styled Raptor and more radical-looking V-Raptor made their shock debut at last September's Milan Show to universal acclaim, and are now entering production right on schedule, with the first of the 5000 20 n By ALAN CATHCART PHOTOS BY KYOICHI NAKAMURA , laudio Castiglioni has had ' - other business to take care of first, but now it's Cagiva's turn. Fresh from reviving the legendary MV Agusta brand with the benchmark Tamburini-designed F4, and restarting volume production of his Husqvarna off-road brand on the back of another ApRIL S. 2000ยท cue I e e vv s bikes scheduled for manufacture in 2000 leaving the Varese factory in mid-March. And judging by the day I spent cruising the canyons of the Maritime Alps above Monte Carlo aboard the two new naked bikes, Castiglioni now owns a hat-trick of brands each setting standards for others to aim at, in very different market sectors. The Raptor twins are the first of a series of new Cagiva models developed around Suzuki engines, with the TLl OOOS-powered Navigator street enduro already launched alongside the two street rods next up into pro- duction in April, followed by SV650powered mini-Raptors in a year's time. After that, so it's rumored, will follow a Cagiva 600cc four-cylinder Supersport contender, built around the new fuel-injected GSX-R600 engine coming at the end of this year. A half-faired cafe racer based on the V-Raptor is also in the pipeline, and confirmation of the importance of this link between the Japanese giant and much smaller but still high-profile Italian manufacturer comes with the news that Suzuki will be selling both Raptor models themselves through their dealers in Japan - the first time ever that any of the four Japanese majors have done this. Quite a coup for Cagiva - and those suspicious minds who will infer from this that Suzuki has bought itself a slice of the Cagiva action are invited to present this suggestion personally to Mr. Castiglioni, an.d be prepared to be blown out of the water by the vehemence of his point-blank denial. He knows how to negotiate a good deal, though - because the price Cagiva is paying for the supply of TLlOOOS motors must be incredibly low; otherwise there's no way they could pitch the bikes so cheaply in the marketplace: About $9080 in Italy for the N-Raptor (as in "norma/e"), and $9680 for the V-bike, both including a 20-percent local tax. That compares with $9430 for the base-model Ducati Monster M900 i.e. also launched at Milan in fuel-injected guise, and $9920 for the M900 i.e. Special, the two most direct desmodue competitors for the Raptor models. And this for a 78-horsepower aircooled desmodue engine package with a top speed of around 1 18 mph and midrange performance to match, compared to a pair of bikes powered by what is generally acclaimed to be a state-of-the-art 90-degree V -twin otto valvole motor delivering 105 horsepower in Raptor guise. Cagiva's R&D team for the Raptor project, led by Romano Albesiano formerly chassis designer for the works 500cc racers that Lawson and Kocinski took to GP victory - have remapped the stock Nippondenso EFI to give more bottom-end power in search of smoother pickup and better response low down, and the result is muscular acceleration from barely off idle, aided by the lower 16/40 gearing, compared to 17/39 on the TLl OOOS. The stainless-steel exhaust system is also all-new, and allows the Raptors to pass the tough new EURO-1 emissions test even without a catalyst fitted, though these are standard for legislative reasons. The twin oval-section silencers deliver the trademark thunder of a 90-degree Vtwin, albeit in muted form. The silencers are carbon-wrap on the VRaptor and alloy on the N-bike, though Termignoni surely won't be able to pass up the commercial