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/128633
o 2001 Kawasakis: New ZRX1200R Leads The Wa T h e bigge st news from Kawasaki fo r 200 I i s the extens iv el y updated ZRX 1200R . In need of more p ow er , Kawa sak i ha s comp letely red esigne d the Z RX II 00 to give u s the Z RX 12 00R i n an effort to make it more co m p eti ti ve in t h is booming seg ment of th e mark et. ' Th e dis pl a c em en t has been i n c re a se d from 1052cc to 116 4 cc by in c reasi n g both t h e b o re and str o k e dim ension s ( t h e b o r e was i ncreased from 76mm t o 79mm , and th e stroke from 58mm to 59 .4 m m ) . The motor also has a new al uminu m cy lin der - head , w hi ch is 3 .3 - po u n d s li g h t er than t he ZRX 1 100's - th e c y li n d ers themsel v es are El ectro p l at ed aluminu m , which helps them dissipate he at T he ZRX 1200R w ill ha ve a suggested retail p ri c e / of $78 9 9 and w ill be ava ilable in ear ly 200 1. Avail , .. a b le colors w i ll b e Candy Lime Green /Viv id Pu rpl e ' Mica , o r B lac k Pea r l/ M eta llic Blue Vio let. A lso n ew fo r 2 001 from Ka w as ak i is an entry level b ik e called th e E lim in ato r 12 5 - an air-cooled 124cc SO H C single-powered cru iser. T he little Elim inator h a s the lowest se at height of any Kawasaki street b i k e . That , c om b ined with its lightw e ight ( 2 8 2 p o u n d s). should m a k e it a grea t o ption fo r first -time b uy er s. It will not, however , be ava il ab le to the Ca li fo rn ia market. K a w a sak i a lso updated the ZR - 7 , w hic h is n o w called the ZR-7S. The b ike wa s in t ro d u ce d l ast yea r as an inex p ensiv e sta nd ard, and rec eives a n ew look via t he add it io n of a n upper f ai r i n g, re des ig ne d will feature a catalyzer - maki ng the bi k e inst rument clu st er , h eadl ight a nd m irrors . Power ed av ailable in the Golde n Sta t e fo r th e f ir st b y a n ai r-coole d, D OHC , 738cc inline-fou r , th e ZRt im e. Th e t r a n sm i ss ion h a s a n ew sh ift 7S a lso features a t u b ular steel dou ble-c rad le d esi gn d r um and sh ift c a m, to make th e fiv ew it h a 4 1m m fork a n d U n i -T rack re ar sus pe ns io n . sp eed t ranny shift smooth er. K aw a sak i o ffers opti o na l h ard b ag s fo r th e Z R - 7S K a w a sa k i }I1so m a d e m a n y i m p r o v eth ro ugh its accessory cat al og . The bike will be avail ments to the/chassis in a n effo rt to make it able in Ca ndy Pe rsimmon Red , a nd ca r r ies a sugstiffer , an cV,handle more res ponsively. A gested retail pric e of $ 5 9 9 9 . From the dirt side is the n ew K X8 5 , which h as a new, w ide 180 / 55ZR 17 rear tire has been add ed , ~nd is f itted t o a w id er 5 .5-i nch cla imed 10 -percent increase in horsepower over the rim . T h i s , c o rn ji lned with t he n ew oval, previ ous KX80 . Th e improveme nts c o m e f r om a slight increas e in displ ace ment, i n addi tion to a brace d swinqarrn . sho u l d h elp get the • • ... T.....-:"' . Continental Shotgun We're saving all of our big Euro news from the Intermot show for a feature in next week's issue, so for now , here's a trio of tidbits from overseas: • Fu rther consolidation in the European component industry has now com e about with the acquisition on July 26 of British brake and clutch specia lists AP Racing by Italy's rival Brembo Group, which recently also acquired fellow wheel manufacturer Marchesini. Brernbo is announced as having paid about $38 million for the debt-free company, on a cash basis. Headquartered in Coventry , AP Racing was formerly part of the muc!' bigger Automotive Products component conglomerate, and employs around 100 skilled techni cians developing and manufacturing h igh-grade brake systems for both cars and bikes , mainly for competition. but also for limited-production high-end street products such as the Saxon Radika ·3 . AP's four- and six-piston brake calipers and carbon clutches represent leading -edge technology which has been used successfully already in Grand Prix and Superbike racing. Especially in the use of advanced compos ite materials. the British firm is a world leader which will con - 'l --.) r-... I ~ .. • ..L...tI~.L~ ~ faste r. T h e c rankcase has a lso been comple tely redesigned, Carburetion is h and led b y a bank of 36mm Keihin con st a n t- v e lo c ity c a rb s f itted w ith Kawasak i 's K TRIC (Kawasaki Throttle Responsive Ignition Con trol) throttle-position sensor. The ZRXI200R features a new exhaust system which, on California models, 8 c a d ded p owe r of t he new moto r to t he ground. T he sw inga rm p ivo t has be en l o w e r e d b y 5mm t o im p rove rear- su spension response a nd t raction . Up front. brak ing is handled by twin 3 10mm di scs w ith new opposed six-pi ston ca li pers - and a sing le 250mm re a r d isc , with opposed p iston caliper out back. r ede s ig n ed cyli n de r h e a d, crankshaft , and p iston. Susp ens i on imp r o vements in cl u d e st iffer sprin gs fro nt and rear to help eliminate bottoming-out. The KX85 ha s been res tyled to resemble its bigger broth er s - the KX 125 and KX250. It will sell for a suggested retail price of $3199. B la k e Co nner tinue to trade under its own nam e for the foreseeable futur e though of course it will also share expertise and knowled ge with its new Bremb o parent company. • Newly retired Carl Fogarty will be the star guest of a new competition motorcycle show taking place in Britain at Birmingham 's NEC on Januar y 11-14. 2001. Bikesport International will be a desiqneted section devoted to two -wheeled sport within Europe's established number-one car racing show, Autosport International, and Fogart y has been signed up to be on hand for three of the four days the show takes place early In the New Year. "It makes sense to have a special area for mo torcycling at last at this show," says Fogarty. "Autosport is known as the best in the world as a showcase for racin g cars, and now we'll have an arena for bikes, too," With clo se geographic and trade link s to Britain's Gasoline All ey of F I/lndycarfTouring Car technology just 30 minutes south of the NEC, the annual Autosport Show has become the mec ca for movers and shakers within car racing. and for fans from all over Europe of the various teams and drivers . With Superbike racing out scoring both the Formula 1 British GP and the Briti sh Touring Car series in terms of crowd numbers and spectator spend, the organizers are obviously determined to establish the NEC Show as the major European season-closing get-together for fans of bikes as well as the four-wheeled variety . • Speaking of which, Octagon Motorsports - owners of the World Superbike Championship's promotors SBK (formerly known as the F1ammin i Group) . as well as proprietors of Brands Hatch and a wholly-owned subsidi ary of the giant conglom erate The Interpublic Group - have launched a panEuropean touring -car series heavily based on the successful World Superbik e format. The new series is set to take tin -top car racing by storm in 2001. The FIA -approved Superstars (nice namel) series ki cks off next Apri l, and will be contested by world-class drivers runningal maj or European ci rcuits over a three-day period. with qualifying on Friday and Saturday ending with a one-lap Superpole shootout for all 24 qualifiers to determi ne the starting grid for the Sunday raceday . This will feature two separate races each scoring poi nts for the Superstars series, one an hour-long feature race and the other a 3D-minute support event: the longer race will feature compulsory refuelling stop s and tire changes, as well as a possib le driv er change. "It' s a new concept in intem ational car rac ing, which is designed to excite TV viewers and spectators,' says Octagon Motor sports chairman Maurizio F1ammini, until this season the boss of World Superbike racing before handing over the mantle of organizati on to his brother Paolo. Damon Hill, Britain's 1996 Formula 1 World Champion and before that an accomplished bike racer, is amo ng several leading drivers who have expressed an interest in competing in the series. while negotiations have already begun with some of the major play ers in the various European T ouring Car series, such as BMW, Ford, Volvo , Honda and Alfa Romeo. -'Now - where did they get the idea for all this from? -......J :l u o o 8 o cyclenews.com reader poll question of the week C H c I D n D .... S • O C TOB ER 4 , 2000 77 o o o