Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

stereo ( w it h CD and cassette ) , power everything ( s e a t s , mirrors , stee ring , locks , windows) , and leather upholstery. O u r time with the truck was unfortunately limited to just a few weeks, but you 'd be surpr ised at how many miles Cy cl e New s editors can rack up in that tim e. In addition to utilizi ng it daily for h igh -m ileag e commutes, we took the Chevy to several m ou ntain b ik e ri des and hauled a Suz uki sp o rt b ik e from out So uthern C al i f o rn i a offices t o La s V e g as M o t o r Speedwa y for our V-t wln shootou t . Somethin g we not iced on ou r Veg as j aunt was the Sil v erad o ' s p ow er - i m p r es sive, t o say th e l e a st. A ccelerati on wa s st ro nq-b ut- srn oo th ( even w ith a b ig sport b i k e in the back) , and we could cruise at 90 without th e motor e ve n breath ing hard (not that we did , of course ). Not o n ly that, but fue l economy is pretty good for a full-s ized truck . We got better mileag e out of the Silverado than we do in some revvy compa ct trucks. And when it 's time to haul down the big Chevy , its brakes are strong and progressive enough to do so without feeling g ra bby. Even m o r e i m pressi ve was t h e Chevy's r ide. Like t he afore mentioned lu x ury car, the truck feels as cushy as a pillow, yet it resists the wallowing sensation you m ight get when cornering or negotiating d ips in a Cadi'. It's firm, yet p lush . In comparison to the older Chevy Silverado that our e di t o r recently owned , the 2000 model has a bigger cab size , and much of the roominess is noticeable in the rear seating area. Tho se LAP OF LUXURY With today's new breed of super-comforta ble fullsi ze trucks, it's co mmon to hear fo lks excla im , "It feels like you 're driv in g a luxury car! " W ell , we got a c ha nce to tryout a 2000 Chevy Sil v erad o , and we h av e to rep o rt th at the above comparison d o es not ap ply here. W h y not ? Because this truc k is ac tually more comfo rtabl e th an anything th at g ol f - pl ay i n g seni or ci ti zen s wo ul d be ap t to d rive around. Our test r ide w as an LT model , wh ich co mes standard w ith an extended c ab ( com p lete w ith two rear suicide - styl e doo rs ) , Vortec 5300 va SFI engi ne, four -wheel ABS disc brakes, dr iver and passenger air bags and a theft-deterrent ignition. It's a two-wheel drive model ( fo ur is available) with an optional rearbed tonneau cover. On the inside is where the Silverado really shines, though . Included as standard equipment are a quality seats used to be quite vertical , but they now have a co m fo rt ab le enough back and enou gh leg room th at longer ro ad trips wi th four to five people are easil y and comfortably possible. Spe ak ing of com fort, the front bucket seats are more commodious than a La -Z Boy recl iner, and they' re complete wi th arm rests and substantial lum bar support. In fact, wh en b la st ing d o w n a straight roa d with t he cruise con trol on , the seat tilted bac k, and a good CD in th e p lay er, you get the impression tha t you're no t eve n drivin g . That se nsation is amplifi ed b y th e roomy dashboard area an d the fac t that t rucks rid e taller than lu xu ry cars. Another a re a wher e o u r e d i t o r not iced a n improvement over his old truck was in attention to detail. The 2000 model has holders for everything from cups to sunglasses to CDs, and it's got a large center console with an anti -skid surface to discourage things from sliding off it. There are so m an y cool little b uttons and compartments that you sometimes feel like you 're comma nding a plane. Is the Chevy pe rfect? D am n close, though m ot o rcyclists could probably do without the optiona l be d cover ou r t est unit came with. Bu t even that is nice fo r keeping objects smaller than bikes out of eye sight, and it's said to increase fuel mileage (looks like it would make a good trampoline, as well). At any rate, it 's easy to roll up out of the way when you figure the darned t hing out. Apart from that, the only thing holding back the Chevy Silverado may be - ironically - that it's too nice. When you've got a vehicle this sweet, it almost seems a shame to load it up with a couple of greasy bikes , a pair of gearbags full of muddy apparel, and gas cans and too ls after a day at the track . Almost a sha me. b ut not quite... Chris Jonnum ~ w z z ill w Q in 11.-__ ~ Chevrolet's 2000 Silverado LT. I' o '-' Continued from page 3 ....J ,...... C AT HCART • U o • Norton News II ..J r r: L.I The last act by Minneapolis -based Norton Motors International (NMI) to further the-return of the Norton marqu e before I -.....J running into fin ancial problems was , as reported her e ear l ie r, to com m i ssi o n British co nsultant engineers Vepr o to analyze Norton's potential market. and to reco m me nd which mod el s sho ul d be develo pe d to m eet l ik el y cus to me r demand, as well as cost-effective ways of bringing them to market. As anyone would have expected with an inkli ng of Norton's traditio n, as well as its born-again products' likely place in the market, Vepro recommended NMI to focus on developing a range of parallel-t win models, either powered by existing engines already in production and bought from outside the company , or else an all-new Norton engine design, which would be developed by a specialist engine R&D house. With this in mind , NMI contacted Yamaha to discuss obtaining supplies of its TRX/TDM850 motors, and vis ited Sachs i n Germ any and Weber /Swissauto in Switzerland, to project a ground -up eng ine design which, in the case of the Swiss consortiu m, would have been materially different from the parallel-twin engine it's already developing for Germany's MZ. At the same time, designer John Keogh was com missioned to draw up plans for four different models, all powered by a fuel-injected, liquid-cooled parallel -twin engine, from whatever source, fitt ed into a tubular steel spaceframe representing a modem version of the legendary Norton Featherbed chassis. Th e base-model Nort on twin was to have been a Commando sports bike, available in both fully-faired and half-faired fonn , with a retro -styled naked version also projected. Anoth er potential model was a more powerful Superbike version of the Comm ando, called the Challenge (after the Cosworth -designed mid- '70s F75 0 racer which. though starved initia lly of cash due to Norton's shutdown, race in Quantel form in 1988). eventually won the Daytona Also considered were an Atl as tarmac trailie simila r to the Cagiva Gran Canyo n, and a Dom inator street rod, like KTM's projected Grand Duke LC8 V-twin. The designs were well advanced, says John Keogh - but then NMI ran into serious financi al and management problems, so they stalled, though they stili remain available for any future more serious Norton comeback. Bon back for the Las Vegas finale on M ay 6, and shou ld be ready for the ou tdoor opener on May 14 in San Bernard ino , California. " He's ju st in pain , nothing rea ll y dangerou s to hi m , " said t eam manager B ruce Stjern strom . " There ' s nothing he can do , rea lly - j ust take time off and come back wh en it hurts le ss . It' s ju st up to him how big a pi ece of leather he can bite on . J ohn' s a tough guy . Tea m D ua l Dogs recently informed us that its website (http / /www.dualdogs.comJ feat ures a J esse Gold ber g tr ibute page, and that its Trails of Tejon dual spo rt ride will take place out of Lebec. Califomia, on M ay 6 -7 . In addition , the 10t h annual S eq uoia Sc enic C hallenge takes place June 10-11 in California's Kemsville/ Lake Isabella area. Call 818170 1-1913 for more infonna tion . To cast your vote, log on to http://www.cydenews.com. 160 minulrs wilh pilstopl 10.3% cyclenews.com reader poll question of the week 130 minul r s. plus two I~psl 5.S·'" If all of the followin g se ries were visiting your city on the same day, which woul d y ou attend? ::...A. AMA/Chevy Trucks Superbike C. AMA/Chevy Trucks National I B. AMAlEA Sports Supefcross Series- D. AMA/Progress ive Insuran ce Flat Track Series otocross Series ':=f w 98 MAY 3 , 2000 ' cue I e n e "" s: 1'10mlnul rs. plus two 11Ipsl 1.5% - Championships

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