Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

sporting side , wh ich is def inite plu s if yo u live near ca nyons ho usi ng se rpentine ribbon s of two -lan e bla c ktop . But you 'll p robabl y like th os e sections bett er on eithe r th e Honda RCS1 o r th e Duc ati 996. Th e only pr obl em is that ne ither of th o se b ike s is a barre l of lau ghs on th e stre et. Th e RC is th e more refin ed of th e two , offe ring a mor e comforta ble riding position , but t h is ha s t o be we ig h e d agai n st a clu tc h tha t ca n be rat her c ra nky whe n c o ld , an d a rather agi tated throttl e res po ns e w he n c r uisi ng b e t w e en ex p a n s io n jo ints o n th e free w ay . There is no sweet s pot. With th e 996 , th at la c k of a sweet s pot m ight best d e s c ribe the bik e 's wr e tch ed e rgo no m ics , whi ch c a n pra ctica lly ca use pain betw e e n s to p lights o r o n th e highw a y. The Duc ati 's aggress ive bend includes th e low e s t ha nd le ba rs , which fo rce th e rid er to stretch o ut ove r th e tall est tank pro file and we dge his a rs e o nto a practi c a lly padl ess se a t th at offe rs ze ro front -to -aft m o vement. Say, d id the Ita lia ns invent t he c ha s t it y bel t? What's m or e , the Du cati is less tha n forgivi ng of laz y shifts to boot , er , pardon the pun. Nope, at the end of ou r short road jaunt, we de clared th e g entl e g iant TLR as the winner o n the street. Engine - All -new DOHC eight-valve 90 -degree V-twin - Ram-air ind uction system with front inlet between headlights - Side-m ou nted radiators - High -pressure programmed fuel- injection syste m - Ceramic- and grap hite- impregnated alurninurn-cornposlte cylinder sleeves - Cast-aluminum pistons with LUB co ating for less drag - Nutle ss, carbu rized connecting rods Chassis/ SuspensionlWheels - Tw in -spar extru ded-a lumi num frame - Combined swingarm pivot that inco rpor ates both crankc ase- and fram e-m oun ted pivot poi nts - Rem ovable alum inum subframe - Showa 43mm inverted fork with Hon da Mult iActi on System damping - Showa piggy-back shock with HMAS and 40 mm pist on - Six-spoke rims - Very aerody namic bodyw ork Controls - Nissin hyd raulic front brakes w/ discs floating on seven stainles s-steel pins per side ANO THE REAL W INNER I S ... W hi le street m a n n e rs ar e bot h adm irab le and a huge co nsi de ra t ion for man y wou ld-be b uyers , the p urpose of thi s s ho otout wa s to d e te rm ine th e best V-twin super bike o n the m arket to d a y. Of cou rs e, that m eans hea vily we ig hing e a ch m oto rc ycl e ' s perform an ce o n the ba s is of its ra c etra ck sa vvy. Wh at othe r c rite ria would o ne us e to s epara te these m a ch ine s fro m , s a y, a V-twin c ruis e r? With th at in m ind , we hav e det er m ine d th at th e Suzuk i T Ll OOORY finishe s fou rth in thi s particula r com pa riso n. We liked th e Suzuki , a lot, and we wa nted to lik e it more , but the Bottom Une: The most serious Asian response yet to Latin do mina nce of V-t win sport bike rac ing. The challenger. The boys at Race Tech were troopers a ll day, a ssist ing us w ith anything from suspension settings to filling gas tanks. Specifications DISPLACEM ENT ENGINE TYPE 999cc Liq uid -cooled V-twin four-strok e BORE x STRO KE 100 x 63 .6mm COMPRESSION RATIO 10.8:1 CARBUREnON PGM-FI w/ two injectors per cyli nder ICiNITION Dig ital w/ 3- D ma p TRA NSMISSIO N . . , 6-speed STARTING SYSTEM , Elect ric 4.75 gal. FUEL CAPACITY WHEELBASE .55 .5 in. 24.5°/1 OO.5mm RAKE/TRAIL SEAT HEIGHT .32.0 in. FRONT TIRE . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . •120/70-17 REAR TIRE , 190/50-17 FRONT SUSPENSION .Showa inverted fork w/ 4 .7 in. travel REAR SUSPENSION . . .Showa w/ 5 .1 in . travel , . .Nissin hyd raulic FRONT BRAKE w/ dual 320mm discs and 4 pistons REAR BRAKE Nissin hydraulic w/ single 220mm disc and] piston FINAL DRIVE Chain CLAIMED DRY WEIGHT .43 2 lbs, UST PRICE $9999 c ue I e n e _ S • MAY 3 , 2000 19

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