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/128639
Compact wat er pump is mounted b ehind the eng ine and is driven dire ctly by th e c r a n ks h a ft, r educ ing com plex ity and weight while contributing to quicker eng ine warm-up. Even though it' s bigger, the 1832cc fuel-injected motor is 2.5 pounds lighter than before. All -new ant i-d ive system m in im izes fro n -for k di ve wh en brakin g. Th e system utilizes br ak e flu id pr essure ge nerat ed in the seco nda ry LBS ma ster cylinder mounted on th e left fo rk leg and is activated by in put from eithe r the fron t -brake lever o r t he re ar -br ak e peda l. Honda clai m s that th is first -ever appl ication of anti -d ive and LBS produces enha nced sta bili ty when m an euvering at both low speeds and highw ay speeds . Pro-U nk -mounted rear shock provides 4. 1 inches of travel. New, computer -co ntrolled. adj ustable hyd rau lic rear sus pensio n preload is easily set by the rider with push -button co ntrols and featu res a two -position memory. Engine cooling system features a series-flow coo lant fl ow pattern that improves coldsta rt rideability and provides rapid engine warm-up. T wo side -mounted radiators im prove cooli ng efficiency and use low -air-p ressure areas created by side co wls to draw cooli ng air throu gh th e rad iators an d ar ound th e rid er at highway speeds . Below 15 m ph, the rmostat -co nt rolled fans pull cooling air across the radiators into th e fai ring , keeping hot air away from the rider. Side-by-side valve placement allows the valve cover to be trimmed at the comer for better foot clearance. CHASSISISUSPENSION Stu r d y eight -plate clutch wi th ma inte nance-free hydrau lic -assist. The innovative aluminum frame is specifically engineered for optimum rigidity with tuned flex . This combination of rig idity and flexibility is designed to produce improved handling, superb riding comfort and better road feel. Inherently smooth. flat -six -cylinder Gold Wing engine also serves as a tuned stressed frame member. The solid eng ine mounting system utilizes specially de signed hangers and ca refully matched mounting bolts to pr ovide both excellent road feel and minimal engine vibration. The Gold Wing 's rigid Pro A rm single-side cast aluminum swingarm provides simplified servicing of the rear wheel and tire. Dual full -floa ting 296mm fron t d iscs with Unked Braking Sy stem (LB S) three-piston cali pe rs and a single ventilated 316mm rear disc with one LBS three-p iston cali per. Ne w to the Gold W ing is an anti-dive front suspe nsion syst em. More efficient, stainless-stee l six -into -t wo exha ust sy stem . Powerful, 1100- watt alt ern ato r uses a dua l -damper system to minimize alternator noise. Fi ve-speed tra nsmission incl udes overdrive fifth. Ho nda 's LBS features a second master c y li n de r and a three-stage proportional con tro l valve ( PC V ) to couple th e th re e -p iston ca li p e rs o f the dual - f r o n t and single -r ear b rake discs . Using the fro nt br ake lever act i vat e s t he outer two pistons of the fro nt right side c al i p er and the ce nter piston of t he fro nt left side caliper and, Most of the audio controls are Just a acti ng th r ough thumbs-reach away. t h e sec ond ary m aster c y lind er and an inline propo rti onin g val ve. the o uter tw o piston s of th e rear ca li per. Th e rear brake pedal operates th e cente r pi ston of th e rear brake cal iper, th e center pi sto n of the fro nt rightside brak e caliper and th e outer two pistons of th e fro nt le ft side calipe r. A delay valve sensitive to the rider's pedal pr essu re i s des igned to smooth out fro nt- brake engage ment. Mod els equipped with An ti -Loc k Brak e System (A BS) feature an electric- mo to r-drive n m od ulato r that pro vides ra pid and p r e c i se bra k i n g press ure a dj u st m en ts , resulting in smooth A BS op era t i on. T h e system incorpo rates an inte g rat ed e lec t ro nic contro l un it ( EC U), self-diag nost ics with an int eractive ECU t e st f u nc tio n . a nd a uto m atic p ro tec - tion against system fail ure. Th e new Pro Ann single-side swingann g re at ly im pro ve s re a r-w heel remova l. La r ge 45m m fro nt fo rk houses a cartri dge da m pe r in th e righ t leg with 5.5 Passengers wi ll appreciate the Gold Wing's wider and plushe r seat. inches of tr avel. cu e A un ique driveshaft-damping system utilizes a doubl e-pip e struct ure. with a rubb erb ond ed c o a ti n g applied to the inner pipe to abso rb road shock and engine torque. T h e long life design reduces we i ght i n t he Pro Arm asse m bly and To further Im p ro ve rear wheel s implifies rear - removal, the Pro Ann incorpora t es wheel ma intenance. a shaft damping system. A sma ll er, lighter final gearcase assembly in th e Pro Arm is achieved th rough the redesign of th e pin ion gear and ring gear assem blies. This new design eli m inates wheel alignment splines and assures accurate al ignment of the rear wh eel aft er servi ci ng. Ca st-aluminum 18 x 3.5-inch front wheel and 16 x 5 .0 inch rear wheel are lightweight and str on g. Rad ial touring tires are specifically engineered for the Gold Wing . TOURING FEATURES The parallel two-va lve cylinder-head design , tog ether with side -mounted rad iators. allow the eng ine to be m oved for ward for optimum ergo no m ics. with im pro ved ride r foot room and an enlarged passenger cock pit. Plac ing the rider closer t o th e st eering ax is al so im pro ve s steering feel and helps assu r e ev en b etter handling. All-n ew , s lo wspee d elect ric rev erse system i s e n g a ged with th e sim p le pu sh of two th um b con trols on th e rig ht handlebar. A ll -n ew , l ig h twe ight e lectro n ic cruise contro l system This phot o shows a cutaway utilizes a 16-b it-CPUpiece of the frame's multl-boxco ntrolled , m ot or section main spar. ac t uated th rott le m ech anism th at is 2.5 times m ore sensitive to sp eed vari ation and res po nds 40 pe rce nt more rapi dly th an the pr evi ous system . The Gold W ing 's aerodynam ic bodywork reduces the drag coefficient 10 percent. co m pared to the previous design . A ratcheting wi ndsh ield -adjust me nt system provides six setti ngs o ve r n early fou r in ch es of travel. O pe r ated m anua ll y . the mecha nis m eliminat es th e weig ht and complexity of elec t ric motors . The Gol d W in g t run k p ro vides 6 1 lit er s of storag e c a pacit y w i th a n additio nal fiv e liters of sto r age a vaila ble i f t h e o p tio n a l C D c h a nge r is not in st all ed . Tw o fu ll- Luggage ba gs can be operated face helmets fit in th e by remote control. I u n e vv s NOVEMBER 1 5 . 2000 1 9