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/128611
p it ch ed w hi ni ng so u n d tha t wa s noticeable - if not a nnoy ing to s ome. On ce aga in, the Suzuk i is on target, but just off th e mark . S USPE NOEO ANIMATI ON Al th ough o u r run ar ound Las Vegas Motor Speedwa y met with little in th e way of bumps (s ave for that s ma ll moon c ra ter between turns five a nd six), it d id g ive us th e c ha nce to notice th e d iffer en c es in each moto rcycle. On c e again , the Showa-bu ilt Honda Mult i-Action S ystem (HMAS) 4 3mm inve rte d fo rk s and HMAS s hoc k o n th e RC5 1 o ffe rs the best rid e in raci ng co n di tio ns . Desp it e be ing a tad harsh a t lower speeds, the Honda c om e s int o it s o w n a s th e ve loci ty is uppe d . Und er br ak ing , th e forks di ve s mooth ly into th eir tra ve l, a nd th e t ra ns itio n b etween br aking a nd accele ra t ion furt her p ro ves how spot -on Honda go t th e da m ping an d sp ring ra te s for the RC. Mo st of o ur t e s t er s ra te d th e Sh o wa 43m m inverted fo rk /S a c hs sh oc k with Apr ilia Prog re ssi ve S ys tem (APS ) linkage next. Whil e not em ula ting th e RC 5 1 , the Aprilia's suspension dynamics are clos e - and maybe just a bit c u s h ie r when e ncountering hol es like our afore mentioned c ra te r. O verall , the Ap rilia is ide ntic al to th e Honda in that the suspensi on perfo rmance seems to co mplem ent the package wel l. Th e fac t that the standard RSV is a b it le ss aggressi ve ma y ex p lai n why Ap rilia wen t a head a nd built th e raci ng RS V Mille R. The Duc ati 996 slips to th ird in th is c a te g o ry , if on ly because , while its 43 m m S howa in ve rt ed legs offer a rock -soli d feel and feed back for the fro nt of t he m o tor c ycl e , th e S how a re ar sh oc k th at is link ed to th e s ing les ide d swinga rm feels as though it h a rd ly m o ve s u p and down at a ll. While th e rea r end's pe rfo rm a nce left m os t o f o ur t e s t e rs without compla ints when being pushed hard , the fa ct th a t the rear end is less than comprom is ing at slower speeds (n o wonder when it fee ls like there is no weight on the rear end wh atsoever!) knocked the 996 ba ck a bit. Finally , the Su zu k i bring s up th e rear , not so much be c au s e o f po or o verall p e rfo rm an c e , bu t m or e because o f th e fa c t that th e 43mm inverte d Kay aba fro nt fork fe lt under sprung . In fa ct, th e little bit of extra dial ing th at o ur Ra c e Te ch c rew had to do was cente red o n trying to crank in more spring pr eload until th e bike los t its tend en c y to b la st ba ck and forth thr ough its t ra vel. Onc e th e Race Tech g uys got it a s good as it was going to get , th e bik e was a blast to ride , but th e S uz uki fo rk wo u ld greatly ben efit from some add itional work. Out ba ck , we really c o ul d n ' t fault th e a ction of th e Ka yaba sh oc k o r th e Rotory Damper linkage s ys tem . Aprilia RSV Mille Engine - Longitudinal 60' V twin engine with four valves per cylinder, a double camshaft in the head; controlled by a comb inati on chain/ge ar system - Twin Spark Ignition system uses two spark plug s per cyli nder - Anti -Vibration Double Countersha ft system features two shafts rotating in the opposite direction of the drive shaft - Dry sump lubrication allows a mor e rigid and compact - Hydraulic Pneumatic Power Clutch to control rear-wheel hop • Two-into-one stainlesssteel exhaust Chassis/SuspensionlWheels - Revised shock settings • Showa 43m m inverted fork - Micro-metric eccentric cam foot -peg adjusters - Bremb o aluminum alloy wheels - Steering damp er included Cont rols - Analogue-digital dashboard with lap counte r and setta ble redli ne indicator - Brembo brakes with stainless steel braided lines, gold -anodized calipers and sintered pads - Smoother cable routing Bottom Line: The Italian com pany's sophomore effort makes its way boldly to the New World. The over-achiever, S pecifications 13 0 130 -----------:- 12 0 ------ -;--- ' 20 110 110 100 100 "0 l :I: UJ ~ DISPLACEMENT . . _ 997 .&c ENGINE 1YPE _..Uquid-cooled V-twin four- stroke BORE x STROKE . . . _. _. . _ 97 x 67.5mm COMPRESSION RATIO 11.4; 1 CARBGRETION _ Fuel injection IGNm ON . . _ Electronic 6 -speed TRANSMISSION .. _ STARTING SYSTEM Electric FUEL CAPACI1Y 5.2 gal. WHEELBASE 56 .6 in. RAKE/TRAIL 24.5 ' / 95m m SEAT HEIGHT .32.5 in. 120/65-1 7 FRONT TIRE REAR TIRE 180/55 - 17 .Showa 43m m FRONT SUSPENSION _ inverted fork w/4 .9 in. travel REAR SUSPENSION 5.4 in. travel FRONT BRAKE . . . .Brembo hydr aulic w/ dual 320mm discs and 4 pistons REAR BRAKE . .. .Brembo hydrauli c w/ single 220mm disc and 2 pistons FINAL DRIVE Chain CLAIMED DRY WEIGHT .418 Ibs. LIST PRICE $ 13.799 "0 80 eo 70 70 eo eo 50 50 40 40 30 30 -------:-- --- 20 -~ 4 5 _ + -- :---- -;-- . · 20 10 10 2 3 8 " 10 cue I e n e _ S • M AY 3, 2000 17